If you rate this game 7 or lower, like Gamespot did, you probably haven't played a Crash game. (Real 9.7)
Multiplayer and co-op modes are addicting and are the real strength of this game. Co-op during adventure doubles the excitement of it. Adventure is fast paced and balanced in length and difficulty. A wide variety of minigames.
The Bad:
Single-player experience ends too quickly. A few control issues. Boss fights are somewhat tedious.
Crash's first party game is probably his best one to this day. It's not just a different Mario Party, it's a party without the boring Monoply-like board and a varied amount of games that can accurately test your skill.
The tragic thing is, despite the excellent amount of multiplayer modes and minigames, a few infrequent but noticeable ccontrol issues seem to attampt to hinder your progress in the Adventure mode, especially in the Crash Dash minigame, where they are tough to get the hang of. Another problem are the tedious boss fights, mainly the Bearminator(tough control), and Oxide(tough to pass), but the Papu Papu and Big Bad Fox bosses are well made and can be passed easily.
In final words, with all flaws aside, if you rated this game 7 or lower, like Gamespot did, you probably haven't played a Crash game.