I got 100% in the original versions of all three recently and I'd say 1 was my second favorite after 2. 1's controls aren't as nice as the analog in Crash 2 and 3, but the music and vibe is the best. I really like the jungle, river and temple environments. I also ended up liking the difficulty of having to run the whole level without dying once to get the box gems. Even though I cursed it at first. Fumbling in the Dark was the hardest level for me to get the box gem. Nice sense of vindication when I finally did it.
Warped was my least favorite because of the non-platforming stages. They're fiiiine, but some dragged on too much. I really hated getting the box gem in that jet ski level with the hidden pirate ship area. Those levels can be fun when you're going fast, but when you have to slow down and search for boxes constantly...ehh.
