Crash: Mind Over Mutant

Crash: Mind Over Mutant (Japanese: クラッシュ・バンディクー アルティメット2 Crash Bandicoot Ultimate 2) is the fifteenth installment in the Crash Bandicoot series (and currently the last), although this is the seventh chronologically. The game's story centers on the arrival of a popular technological device (a parody of such devices as the iPhone and the BlackBerry) that puts whoever uses it under the control of the device's creators and antagonists of the story Doctor Neo Cortex and Doctor Nitrus Brio. The protagonist of the series and the only one unaffected by the device (other than his magical mask friend Aku Aku), Crash Bandicoot, must free his friends from the control of the device and put an end to Doctor Cortex's plot.

Act One
The game begins with Doctor Neo Cortex dropping his niece Nina Cortex off at an Evil Public School that he owns. He subsequently reconciles with his old colleague Doctor Nitrus Brio, who invents a helmet-like device capable of transforming whatever wears it into a ferocious bloodthirsty creature. Cortex realizes the marketability of the device and has it mass-produced.

At the Bandicoot home, Coco is struggling with the eye of the Doominator, which is still sprawled out in front of their house. Crunch decides that they'd better clean the place up, as it has been a metric year since they've done so. Coco snidely refuses to follow Crunch's orders, entertaining Crash. Crunch, defeated, resigns himself to saying catchphrases. After briefly catching on fire (a problem quickly solved by Crunch and his fire extinguisher), Coco declares her intent on converting the Doominator's eye into "the best entertainment system of all time". With the ability to play games, watch movies and dispense butter, the system would be "the mother of all TiVos". This excites Crash and Crunch, whose short-term memory loss causes him to forget where he got a fire extinguisher from. Coco then gives Crash a list of parts that are needed to make the entertainment system functional. Crash goes out into the jungle and retrieves the parts for Coco, encountering the now-feral Ratnicians, who have been abandoned by Cortex, along the way.

Crash returns to the Doominator and gives the parts to Coco, who is now able to create the entertainment system. As the Bandicoots turn on the new entertainment system and ready themselves for watching NASCAR, an advertisement airs asking the viewers if they're tired of having too many gadgets cluttering up their lives. A simpler solution is offered by a disguised Doctor Cortex in the form of the "NV", which allows the user to access any file, talk to friends, watch pay-per-view and julienne fries. After assuring the audience that this is not an evil plan, Cortex announces that the NV will arrive at the doors of Wumpa Island inhabitants free of charge, and will soon be available everywhere but Arkansas. The Bandicoots are amazed by the device and decide to get some, after which the device immediately arrives in the mail. Coco and Crunch hastily don the NVs and already begin sending text messages to each other. Crash tries to use the device, but ends up electrocuted with each attempt. Aku Aku guesses that the NV doesn't "like" Crash and tries on the NV himself, but because the NV is too small to go over Aku Aku's eyes, he is unable to see what the big deal is.

As Coco begins receiving 400 text messages a minute from ordained clergy, Doctor N. Gin, briefly impersonating a Tusken Raider, appears out of nowhere with a gang of Ratnicians and commands them to kill the Bandicoots. Aku Aku attempts to call the Bandicoots into action, but Coco and Crunch are too distracted by their NV devices to be of any assistance. Crash successfully fights off the Ratnicians himself, forcing N. Gin to flee the scene.Crash and Aku Aku follow N. Gin to a large observatory in the middle of the island. When Crash and Aku Aku barge into N. Gin's quarters, he orders them both to leave, as he has yet to clean up the room, let alone shave his face. Slightly amused by N. Gin's poor state of living, Aku Aku asks N. Gin what he's doing here. N. Gin reveals that he was left here by Doctor Cortex when he escaped the Doominator. Refusing to be ignored, N. Gin began watching the Bandicoots and collecting information on them, which makes Crash feel personally violated. Crash and Aku Aku listen on with increasing incredulousness as N. Gin raves of his delusion that he will be rewarded when Cortex is triumphant, expecting a shower of gifts and to be made king of Wumpa Island. It is when he compares himself to Serpentor that Aku Aku declares N. Gin to be "totally nuts" and orders Crash to punch N. Gin in the throat. Before Crash can do so, N. Gin orders his Ratnicians to lead Crash and Aku Aku out of the observatory and do away with Crash.

Crash fights off the guards and confronts N. Gin once more. N. Gin, believing himself to be too pretty to be thrown punches, attempts to seek sympathy from Crash and Aku Aku, telling that he's been watching and stalking them for a lowly year with only the Ratnicians as company. Unconvinced, Aku Aku sternly tells N. Gin to leave the island, to which N. Gin reluctantly complies. With N. Gin out of the way, Aku Aku uses N. Gin's telescope to observe Coco and Crunch, who are still addicted to their NV devices. Crunch is receiving reports of hot weather, while Coco is attending a symposium on the effects of Hungry Hungry Hippos on children. Suddenly, the NVs begin to buzz and shake violently. Crunch displays slight worry over this occurrence, but is assured by Coco that it's probably a feature. As the NVs begin sparking, Coco and Crunch are transformed into large, monstrous versions of themselves.

Crash and Aku Aku hurry back to the Bandicoot home and find Coco and Crunch on the back of the Doominator, where a basketball court has been installed since the Doominator's fall. Crunch runs off, leaving Coco to battle Crash with a large basketball-launching machine. Crash is able to defeat Coco by returning the flaming baseballs she launch's back at her and return her back to normal. Aku Aku reveals that he felt his brother's influence pervading Coco, leading him to conclude that the NV was loading Coco with some sort of dark Mojo. Coco is immensely disappointed upon learning that the "best gizmo in ages" is evil. Aku Aku reminds Crash and Coco that Crunch is still under the NV's control and that they need to find out where he's going. Assuring Crash and Aku Aku that she's got a plan, Coco uses the Doominator's eye to hack into the villains' network and discovers a video posted in Cortex's blog, a concept that is somewhat foreign to the ancient Aku Aku.

The video displays Neo Cortex and Nitrus Brio presenting the NV to an audience of Uka Uka and some Ratnicians inside a new space station, using a Sludge as a guinea pig. Cortex uses the NV-influenced Sludge to incapacitate Uka Uka, allowing Cortex to resume control of his own operations. He then reveals a secondary reason for capturing Uka Uka: he requires a source of bad Mojo to fuel the NVs, of which Uka Uka is. N. Brio brings up the question as to how they'll get the NVs onto mutants' heads, leading Cortex into revealing that they'll "give it to them", at which point the video ends. Coco, deducing that the NVs could be all over the island by now, declares that they need to find a way to take them out at the source. She reluctantly decides that Nina is the only one that can help them at this point. Aku Aku is incredibly skeptical of this idea and is convinced that the NV gave Coco brain damage, but Coco assures him that Nina, besides being their only lead, will be on the outs with Cortex after her shenanigans in Crash of the Titans. Crash is ecstatic and goes off to find Nina.

Act Two
Crash and Coco make their way to the Frozen Coast, where the Brat Girls, now independent of Nina, are busy bringing the Ratcicles under NV control. Eventually, they reache the Ratcicle Kingdom, where more civilized Ratcicles dwell. Here, a Janitor Ratcicle speaks of a nearby prison supervised by the Brat Girls, leading Aku Aku to believe that there might be some link between the prison and the Evil Public School. Crash and Coco go and infiltrate the Ice Prison, where they eavesdrop on two conversing Brat Girls and learn that the entrance to the School is near the Ratcicle Kingdom. They find a TK, a new mutant with telekinetic powers, and use it to escape the Ice Prison and return to the Ratcicle Kingdom, but are unable to make their way past the gates that lead to the Evil Public School due gates' switches' odd mechanics and Aku Aku concludes that may be a spinning titan may help. A meek, masochistic Ratcicle nearby tells Crash about spinning Titans in the desert in the Wasteland that may be able to open the gate. Crash and Coco make their way back to Wumpa Island with the TK and learn that they have to pass the temple Colosseum, which is near N.Gin's used-to-be hideout, to reach the Wasteland. Crash uses the TK to pull down stone towers to make a bridge that leads them to the temple Colosseum. When they arrive at the temple Colosseum, they find a large Scorporilla and two Magmadons all under NV control. Crash battles and jacks one of the Magmadons and uses it against the Scorporilla. They battle until Crash finally beats and jacks the Scorporilla and uses her Ground and Pound to break the floors of the temple Colosseum until they reach the entrance to the Wasteland. Crash and Coco proceed to find the Rhinoroller Village along with the Scorporilla.

Using the Scorporilla, they cross a land bridge which breaks and fallsthus they can't go back to Wumpa Island any other way. The find a Rhinoroller and another Scorporilla, both under NV control, battling each other until the Scorporilla is defeated by the Rhinoroller. Crash uses the Scorporilla they brought from the Colosseum to battle and jack the Rhinoroller. More brainwashed Rhinorollers come and Crash uses his newly jacked Rhinoroller to defeat them. Crash and Coco try to go back home with the Rhinoroller but are unable to because the land bridge is now gone due to the Scorporilla that they brought with them. They proceed to continue onto the Rhinoroller Village. They come across a locked gate and find a switch just like the switches to the locked gates leading to the Evil Public School. Crash learns of the Rhinorollers' ability to unlock this kind of switches by using their abilty to roll on the switch. They soon come across a desert filled with brainwashed Rhinorollers and proceed to find three keys unlocking the entrance to the Rhinoroller Village. When they arrive at the village, they find it under attack by some brainwashed Spikes and learn from an old female Rhinoroller, who seems to be attracted to Crash, and a Rhinoroller cub that there is no one left to protect them since all the Rhinorollers have been brainwashed by the NVs. Crash and Coco use their Rhinoroller to defeat the brainwashed Spikes. They also free other Rhinorollers from the NVs' control. The female Rhinoroller and Rhinoroller cub praise them and tell them the way out of the village. As they travel out of the village, they find a large locked metal gate which Aku Aku suspects will be important in their journey to find Crunch. Crash and Coco make it back to the bridge they crossed earlier and learn that the old female Rhinoroller wanted to do them a favor by having NV-free Rhinorollers fix the bridge. They make it back to the Colosseum and battle a few Magmadons and they safely reach Crash's house along with the Rhinoroller.

Taking the mutant Rhinoroller to the Ratcicle Kingdom, Crash is able to open the special gate which leads them to the Evil Public School, where students are trained in the basics of the negative principles that run society. Coco stays outside the school to stand guard while Crash and Aku Aku infiltrate it and encounter a lot of Brat Girls who now rule the school. They learn of the Evil Science Fair and reach Nina, who angrily accuses Crash of ruining her life. Aku Aku informs Nina of her uncle's latest evil plan to control mutants, but is initially refused help from Nina. Desperately, Aku Aku tells Nina that they'll do anything to get her to help. Nina, hoping to be amused, forces Crash and Aku Aku to kiss each other, taking a photograph of them performing the act as well. Nina then gives Crash the task of protecting her evil science fair project from the turkey-launching cannons surrounding it. In return, Nina tells Aku Aku that Cortex made up with his old lab partner N. Brio and uses her science project to track down their exact location at the moment. Upon returning to the Ratcicle Kingdom, Crash and Aku Aku are informed by the masochist Ratcicle that he's been hearing about Mutants attacking Wumpa Island.

Crash, Coco and Aku Aku hastily return to Wumpa Island to find that their homes are being invaded by brainwashed Snipes and Spikes. Aku Aku deduces that the only way to scare off the Titans is to take out the leader. Crash and Coco reach an arena-like temple and they find a group of Spikes and their leader, the Spike Hero know as Spike Chief, all under NV control. Crash defeats them and saves the Spike Chief from the NV's control. They obtain a key which Aku Aku deduces as the key that unlocks the huge metal gate they found in the desert.

Coco presumably stays behind while Crash and Aku Aku, along with the Spike Chief, return to the Wasteland and unlock the gate, which leads them to the Junkyard, which is the remains of N.Gin's lair in the previous game and where Brio is currently recycling parts to create new NV devices. Crash and Aku Aku encounter many brainwashed Sludges and some crazy Doom Monkeys that were abandoned by N.Gin in the previous game. They eventually find a group of brainwashed Sludges helping with N.Brio's activity that they have to battle to save some friendly Sludges. They defeat the brainwashed Sludges and save the friendly ones that thanks them and inform them where Crunch and N.Brio are. They eventually find Crunch and N. Brio inside the remains of N. Gin's Weapons Factory using a TK. Aku Aku tries to convince Crunch to take the NV helmet off, but Crunch is too enraptured by monkeys to do so. Brio then orders Crunch to attack Crash. Through the use of the TK Titan, Crash destroys the factory's missile systems by chucking explosive TNT Crates at them and subsequently attacks Crunch by throwing him into a set of grinding mechanisms. Crash then jacks Crunch and takes on N. Brio, who retaliates by sending out his kamikaze Doom Monkey soldiers. Crash removes the NV from Crunch's head, returning him to normal. Aku Aku confronts N. Brio (while Crash beats Crunch up because he thinks he's still bad) and learns that he and Cortex are obtaining negative Mojo from his brother Uka Uka. Brio is then forced to leave the island, but promises that it is not the end.

Act Three
Crash and Aku Aku travel to Mount Grimly while battling some starnge small creatures known as the Znu, where Uka Uka is being siphoned for his Mojo. The Grimlies are informed by Cortex that Crash Bandicoot has entered the premises and orders his demise. Then they get to the Grimly Mountains where they encounter some Battlers and, for the first time, encounter some Grimlies. They learn of the Grimlies ability to slow down time and use them to surpass the hazards of the path that leads to Uka Uka whose bad mojo is being sucked and stored in the mojo collectors. They eventually reach the room where Uka Uka is being milked for his mojo. They are forced to battle several Znus and Grimlies, and one Yuktopus. Crash uses a Grimly to jack the Yuktopus. With the help of the jacked Yuktopus, they manage to destroy the collectors and set Uka Uka free. Uka Uka asks them to help him get his revenge on Cortex. Aku Aku, at first, declines but eventually agrees when Uka Uka offers to transport them to Cortex's Space Station. Uka Uka asks them to retrieve his voodoo bones, which have been stolen by titans, since his magic can't work without them. Uka Uka then informs them about teleporters somewhere in the mountain that will teleport them to different parts of the islands. Aku Aku and Crash travel to the teleporters, leaving behind the Yuktopus. They reach the teleporters but find them guarded by Stenches who now wear suits. They battle the Stenches and jack one of them. Then they teleport back to Wumpa Island.

Along with Coco, they travel to the Uka Tree. They travel in a small part of the tree, battling some Snipes and Grimlies along the way. They eventually reach the room of the Grimlies' brainwashed leader, the Grimly Prince. They battle the Grimly Prince who is assisted by two other Grimlies and eventually free him from the NV's control. They find the first bone of Uka Uka's mask. They then teleport back to Mount Grimly.

They use the teleporters to go to the Wastelands. They head over to the Rhinoroller Village. As they reach it, Crash and Coco are informed by the Rhinorollers that one of the dummer cubs has been kidnapped by the brainwashed Snipe's leader known as Snipe Tyrant. They head the Snipe Tyrant's room, battling several Snipes along the way. They find the Rhinoroller cub who is about to be the Snipe Tyrant's dinner. They surprise the Snipe Tyrant and the cub escapes and they battle the Snipe Tyrant who is not assisted by any other titans. They free him from the NV's control and are praised by the Rhinorollers. They find Uka Uka's second bone and teleport back to Mount Grimly.

They teleport back to the Ratcicle Kingdom and travel to the Ice Prison. Using a Grimly in a new alternate path, they reach the Magmadon Hero's lair. There, they find the brainwashed Magmadon Lord waiting with two other Magmadons in a room filled with boiling water. They free the Magmadon Lord from the NV's control and receive the third bone.

They teleport back to Mount Grimly and travel back to Uka Uka. Uka Uka thanks them for retrieving his bones and tells them to go inside the Doominator's eye so he can teleport them to Cortex's Space Station. He teleports them back to Wumpa Island. From there, Coco stays behind while Crash and Aku Aku travel inside the Doominator, bringing along the Grimly Prince. Uka Uka then teleports them to Cortex's Space Station. They travel around the space station and encounter several Stenches and Slape-E's. Crash travel all around to find the switches that lead to the entrance of Cortex's lair. Crash and Cortex finally meet each other decide to fight each other man to mutated bandicoot. Cortex cheats by drinking one of N.Brio's mutagens which transforms him into a giant superhuman form of himself, ripping his clothes as he grows. Cortex battles Crash by using his Super Spin and Crash stops this by using the Grimly Prince's time-slowing power. They proceed to fight each other hand to hand and Crash is able to jack Cortex. A lot of Cortex's minions come in which Crash fights using the jacked Cortex. A big spinning platform then pops out which unlocks a giant button which ultimately beats Cortex.

Cortex, crying rudely, starts beating the floor very hardly which hits the vital part of the space station. Using an escape pod, Cortex, along with a Znu, flees without his pants and Crash and Aku Aku stay as the space station falls down to Wumpa Island. Miraculously, they survive the fall and it lands near their home. Coco and Crunch arrive and the story ends with the words of Coco:'' "We're still not gonna clean up." Aku Aku: (sighs) I know, Coco. I know. ''After the words of Aku Aku, Crash laughs like crazy.

Minions

 * Ratnicians - Having gone feral and vegetarian since Crash of the Titans, they now work for Doctor N. Gin.
 * Brat Girls - They have betrayed Nina after the events of Crash of the Titans and now run the Evil Public School and supervise the Ratcicles in the Ratcicle Kingdom.
 * Doom Monkeys - They now work for Doctor Nitrus Brio in the Junkyard.
 * Znus - Bulbous, purple creatures with eye beams that work for the Grimlies.
 * Slap-Es - Hand-shaped robots that share Doctor Neo Cortex's memories and personal problems.

Mutants

 * Ratcicle


 * Magmadon


 * TK


 * Scorporilla


 * Rhinoroller


 * Spike


 * Snipe


 * Sludge


 * Battler


 * Grimly


 * Yuktopus


 * Stench


 * Titan Heroes


 * Mutated Cortex

Real World References

 * The games name is a pun on the saying: Mind over Matter.
 * Coco proclaims that her upcoming entertainment system will be the "mother of all TiVos". TiVo is a digital video recorder that provides an electronic television programming schedule and a range of features when connected to a home network, including movie and TV show downloads, advanced search, personal photo viewing, music offerings, and online scheduling.
 * Upon completing the entertainment system, Coco plans on watching NASCAR, a brand of stock car racing events.
 * The commercial advertising the NV claims that the device is from the creators of "I Can't Believe It's Not Tolstoy!". The name references both I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!, a brand of margarine, and Russian author Leo Tolstoy, who is best known for his 1,225-page novel War and Peace.
 * The cutscene "N. Coming Message" is animated in the style of The Animatrix, a collection of nine animated shorts based on the Matrix series of films. The cutscene opens and closes with Matrix digital rain, a rain of falling green computer code characteristic of the series.
 * When Doctor N. Gin makes his first appearance in the game, he briefly impersonates the bray of a Tusken Raider from the Star Wars series of films. Adding to the reference is the staff N. Gin wields in this sequence.
 * After Doctor N. Gin explains his plot to Crash and Aku Aku, he proclaims that he's "gonna be like Serpentor," a character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero line of military-themed action figures.
 * Before becoming controlled by the NV, Coco uses it to attend a symposium on the effects of Hungry Hungry Hippos on children. Hungry Hungry Hippos is a board game in which the goal is to force the hippos to consume as much plastic marbles as possible.
 * The basketball machine Coco uses when brainwashed features a plastic container of "Bandiade", the name and logo of which are parodies of sports drink brand Gatorade.
 * While urging Doctor Cortex to go through with overthrowing Uka Uka, Doctor Nitrus Brio recites the phrases "Eye of the Tiger" (a 1982 hard rock song by Survivor) and "Hadōken" (a special attack used by a number of characters in the Street Fighter series of video games).
 * When the TK Titan is released from the Ice Prison, it proceeds to perform the Moonwalk and dance routines from the music video Thriller, both made famous by pop music artist Michael Jackson, who died eight months after the game was released.
 * In the Evil Public School, Doctor Cortex states over the intercom that the winner of the evil science fair will receive an "explosive space modulator", a device often used by Looney Tunes character Marvin the Martian.
 * In the Evil Public School, a frustrated Doctor Cortex tells his mutants over the intercom that they "can't has cheeseburger" and to stop asking about it, muttering to himself that "it's a stupid meme, anyway". He is referring to the weblog I Can Has Cheezburger?, which features comical pictures of cats with captions and other animal images."
 * The name of the cutscene "Crunch Get" is a reference to countless cases of poor English adaptations of Japanese games, most noticeably the Japanese version of Super Mario Sunshine with its line "Shine Get", which appears whenever the player collects a Shine.
 * The cutscene "Crunch Get!" ends with Doctor Nitrus Brio hitchhiking down a road while sad piano music plays in the background. This is a reference to the television series The Incredible Hulk, in which most episodes would end with Doctor David Banner hitchhiking in a similar manner. This is especially fitting considering Brio's tendency to turn into a hulking green monster in most of his appearances.
 * The cutscenes "I'm Not Your Buddy, Guy" and "I'm Not Your Guy, Friend" are animated in the style of animated television series South Park. Additionally, the names of the cutscenes are derived from an argument between characters Terrence and Phillip and Stephen Abootman in the South Park episode "Canada on Strike".
 * One of the lines said by the Znus includes "Tonight, we dine over there!", a parody of a line shouted out by King Leonidas (played by Gerard Butler) in the film 300 (the original line is "Tonight, we dine in hell!").
 * Doctor Neo Cortex makes an exceptionally explicit reference to the Star Wars franchise with the following announcement he makes over the Space Head intercom: "Minions, I have detected a disturbance in the Force! This is surprising because I'm not actually a Jedi. It may be gas, but just in case, thought I should mention it."
 * The cutscenes "Fists of Orange Fury" and "Home Pun" are animated in the style of the Dragon Ball series of manga and anime, particularly the Dragon Ball Z sub-titled versions.
 * The first time Crash and Aku Aku confront N. Gin, he says that Cortex will shower him with presents like "a million Kwanzaas".

Trivia

 * One of the many reasons that there are so many real world references in Mind Over Mutant could be to appeal to current generation fans. In fact, the developers said something similar, mentioning that they want to reintroduce Crash to a new age of children.