Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back/Diggin' It

In this level you will find many new elements. First of all, carnivorous plants that throw bombs at regular intervals. If you get close to them, these plants crouch down and stop attacking you. You can jump on them and belly-flick them out, but be careful not to touch the spikes around them. You will then encounter stone faces moving along the way. They are easy to avoid, but deadly on contact. You'll also find some typical elements of the levels you're being chased through, like exploding springs, green arrows that propel you forward, and electric fences. In the second half of the level you will also find some beehives on the ground. You cannot destroy them in any way. After you pass them, a bee will come out of these hives and start chasing you. You must therefore be ready to eliminate it with a spin. Try to move away quickly, after traveling a certain distance the bees will stop chasing you. Towards the end of the level you will also find a reddish ground. By pressing the attack buton, you can sink under this terrain and continue hidden, like a mole. You will thus be invulnerable to enemy attacks, including bees. A few steps before the exit room you will also find new enemies, armed with a hammer. Eliminate them quickly, before they can hit you.

The bonus area is about halfway through the course. It is easy to overcome it and also break all the boxes. There is a hidden extra life, on metal crates far above. To reach it, you will have to expertly exploit two high piles of boxes that are located immediately before. However, it is difficult to perform the right moves to reach it and there are no boxes there, so you can safely ignore it.

Getting the first gem
Just over halfway through the level is a fork in the road. The path to the right is always accessible, but in order to take the path to the left, you must get to this point without losing any lives. In fact, only in this way will a platform marked by a skull appear that will allow you to overcome the long gap on the left. This path is definitely more difficult, but along the way you will find a clear gem to collect. The two paths then reunite before the last checkpoint.

Getting the second gem
To break all the boxes in this level, you have to explore both paths after the fork, both the right and the left. This means that you have to walk a certain distance backwards, walking towards the screen. You will therefore have to take the right path first, then go back and take the left one, without losing any lives. It's not easy, with electric fences and bees coming towards you. You have to move with the utmost caution. Only then, however, will you find the second gem in the final room.