The remaster for Crash Team Racing channels much of the same energy and cartoonish personality that made the classic PS1 title such a well-loved game. Developed by Beenox, Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Refueled also manages to go a bit further than updating the original, including more content than people had anticipated. During PAX East 2019, we spent some time racing on the different tracks in Nitro-Refueled, which included the return of some tracks found from the sequel Nitro Kart.

Speaking with GameSpot at PAX, Beenox co-studio head Thomas Wilson described the approach they took with the remaster, and what sort of content they wanted to include with the game.

"With the name Nitro-Fueled, we wanted to see how we could complement the original experience," said Wilson. "We did that by adding new tracks that originated from Crash Nitro Kart, and which we decided pretty early on we were going to do that. We felt it was the right decision, and it was all about creating a more well-rounded package for fans."

During our hands-on time, we got to play across four different tracks pulling from CTR and Nitro Kart. One thing that the original game was known for was its challenging difficulty, and that's certainly present here. I really found myself struggling to keep up with other opponents--both AI and other players. One sudden hit from an enemy's missile or driving straight into a vial of chemicals almost inevitably put us in a bad way. With that said, I still felt that Nitro-Fueled managed to recapture that same sense of fun from the original, which was present in the updated art style that looks more vibrant than ever.

This remaster also includes a number of changes and revisions to the core gameplay. For instance, all the anti-gravity sections from Nitro Kart's tracks have been removed in order to keep it consistent with the courses from the original game. Nitro-Fueled also offers an upgrade to the original's car combat mode. Featuring only the standard battle mode, the remaster will also incorporate the maps and modes from Nitro Kart as well, bringing it to a total of 12 different battle maps with multiple game types, including standard combat and capture the flag. From our recent hands-on, Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled is shaping up to be a solid remaster that will rekindle the fast-pace and fun of the original.

For more from PAX Eat 2019, including the latest on Borderlands 3, and other games that caught our interest in the show, be sure to check out