Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos Review: Charming, but Pricey

Croc 2 was never the PlayStation mascot anybody built a shrine to, which is exactly why I like that it is back. Argonaut Games and Titanium Studios released the remaster on October 29 on PC (Steam and GOG), PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S and Switch. It restores the original development title, Kingdom of the Gobbos, and costs €29.99 on Steam.

How I got to this verdict: this review rests on the store listings, the announced feature set and launch reviews from Gamersyde, Noisy Pixel, Games Asylum, Gamesurf and Creative Bloq, not on a full playthrough of my own. Where a claim comes from one outlet, I name it.

What you get

Croc leaves his island to find his birth parents while Baron Dante comes back for revenge. The story is a coat hanger, as it was in 1999. What hangs on it is the appeal: four mainland villages, more than 40 open-ended 3D platforming levels, Gobbos to rescue, new Guardians to beat, and vehicle sections with cars, speedboats, minecarts, a hang glider and an airplane.

That variety is the best argument for the sequel, though not because the vehicles are deep. Gamersyde calls those sections fairly basic and Noisy Pixel calls them hit-and-miss. Still, this game keeps changing the verb, and the new triple jump gives Croc more height in the fussier platforming.

The museum is the real prize

The Croc2pedia is the part I would pay extra for: an in-game digital museum of unreleased development material and cut content, packaged with the Croc2mentary, a 90-minute documentary with interviews from both the 1999 team and the remaster developers. Noisy Pixel and Creative Bloq both single it out as the highlight, and I can see why. Too many remasters treat history as a menu of concept art.

The old problems, mostly handled

The camera was the most criticised part of the 1999 original, and the Steam page still does not mention it. Gamersyde, playing on PC, says a manual camera makes the platforming "much smoother" than in the past, and it describes a field-of-view setting that includes the wider view of the 2000 PC version. That detail comes from Gamersyde alone, so treat it as one outlet's report rather than a consensus.

Controls look like the safer win. Gamersyde says modern controls are the default with the original tank controls optional, and Noisy Pixel reports that you can switch between classic and modern styles on the fly. Rough edges remain: Gamersyde mentions tail swipes with little feedback and imprecise hitboxes, and early levels without checkpoint gongs.

The real doubt is value

Gamersyde finished in about six hours without chasing 100%, and Noisy Pixel talks about an afternoon or two. At €29.99, that is roughly €5 an hour for a 27-year-old game. The Double Pack with the first game is €53.08 on Steam at launch, only 10% off. The minimum PC spec is also oddly high, at 16 GB of RAM and 24 GB of storage.

Critics are split on the game underneath: Noisy Pixel gave it 7.5 as enjoyable but uneven, Games Asylum 6, and Gamesurf 5.5, calling it a superficial touch-up. Steam users are kinder, at 94% positive from just 36 reviews when I checked, a small and probably nostalgic sample.

Nintendo Everything reports that PM Studios is bringing Switch 2 Editions to retail, with pre-orders open at Canadian retailer VideoGamesPlus and boxed copies expected in 2027, with no firm date yet.

Who it's for

People who grew up with Croc should buy it. Collectors who want a box face a wait until 2027. Younger players and families curious about 90s platformers should wait for a sale.

Verdict: A varied, affectionate remaster with an outstanding museum and, by launch accounts, its old handling problems largely dealt with. The better camera removes the biggest risk, but about six hours of simple 1999 platforming at this price gives that point straight back.

Score: 7/10

Image: Tomas Castelazo / CC BY-SA 3.0, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Croc_conclave.jpg