"Crash Team Racing" was given favorable reviews from critics. "Official PlayStation Magazine" described "Crash Team Racing" as "the game that made kart racing cool". "Electronic Gaming Monthly" believed that the game was "inspired [a lot] by "Mario Kart", but still an amazing multiplayer racer." Doug Perry of IGN said that the game was "rock solid" in its gameplay and graphics, but Perry did not like Crash's smile because it made him look evil. Jeff Gerstmann of GameSpot called the game "a great Mario Kart clone", and that it succeeded where similar games like "Mega Man Battle & Chase", "Bomberman Fantasy Race", "Diddy Kong Racing", "Chocobo Racing" and "Mario Kart" had failed.