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The case for the return of Crash Bandicoot

theecakee

Member
Not opposed to a new Crash, just seems like a hard thing to pull off.

Sony is definitely at least considering the idea if not already going for it, which I guess E3 would be the time for that.

Unfortunate Activision would never give up the rights to Spyro now though, given how crazy successful Skylanders is....but we can't bring back all the 90s platformers lol.
 
Ye there is no way
Naughty Dog uses Crash in the game and does not give a special thank you to Activision for allowing them to use him
 

Vernier_Cascade

Neo Member
Getting hyped with the gift of my sister last Christmas
ZyjUhrx
 

TDLink

Member
Seems like there's a lot of smoke indicating it is going to come back. Honestly though I feel like this series will crash and burn. It hasn't been popular in ages and lots of tries to bring out a new Crash game have been complete failures. I think the first few games are pretty solid but the franchise never was really that special. Just Sony deciding they needed a mascot platformer too (as everyone did back then).

Just my opinion though. Happy for the Crash die-hards, just don't see him attracting new audiences. I know I'd be excited if a new Banjo-Kazooie got announced (Yooka-Laylee is basically it though so I'm happy).
 
Honestly though I feel like this series will crash and burn.
That's what they're calling this one.

Crash Burndicoot.

Didn't Ratchet sell pretty well? Seems like Crash is the perfect game to capitalize on whatever demographic bought that game + nostalgia for the original series. Definitely wouldn't have the sales potential of a 3D Mario but it'd probably do as well as a Sonic (which still seems to sell decently, disasters like Sonic Boom aside).
 

NOLA_Gaffer

Banned
The only Crash Bandicoot titles that anyone really remembers were the original three. Much of the nostalgia surrounding these titles is due to Sony's heavy marketing during their time. Sony pushed Crash as the "Anti-Mario" just as the entire Playstation library was pushed as "Anti-Nintendo" and it just blew up from there. It's basically the same stunt Sega pulled with Sonic in the early days of the SNES.

The games themselves are massively overrated, ranging from average to mediocre, and you'd struggle to find anyone remembering a game in the series past the year 1999 when Sony was no longer marketing them.

Crash Bandicoot just doesn't fit today's gaming landscape, especially on the Playstation 4. Your average Playstation 4 owner wants mature, violent games. Fallout, Call of Duty, Metal Gear Solid...these are the games individuals on that platform what to play, not cutesy run and bop platformers. If customers wanted to play those games the Wii U would have blown up.

Personally I think the Crash Bandicoot series is best remembered as a relic of the 90s. Let the Bandicoot sleep the long sleep and remember him for what he was.
 

Pancake Mix

Copied someone else's pancake recipe
^Ratchet might be the #2 or #3 NPD title next month and gave the franchise it's best opener ever. The PlayStation audience is diverse and includes lots of people who grew up in the late '90's and early '00's.

Not opposed to a new Crash, just seems like a hard thing to pull off.

Sony is definitely at least considering the idea if not already going for it, which I guess E3 would be the time for that.

Unfortunate Activision would never give up the rights to Spyro now though, given how crazy successful Skylanders is....but we can't bring back all the 90s platformers lol.

I think if anyone can pull it off, it's Naughty Dog, even if they haven't done a full colourful platformer since Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. It could be someone else but I hope it's still a good studio who makes a classic Crash platformer.

Insomniac is a third party. If they're game Activision could approach them or vice versa for a new Spyro since the 1998-2000 trilogy was their baby anyways. I could see that as part of a platformer revival.
 
The only Crash Bandicoot titles that anyone really remembers were the original three. Much of the nostalgia surrounding these titles is due to Sony's heavy marketing during their time. Sony pushed Crash as the "Anti-Mario" just as the entire Playstation library was pushed as "Anti-Nintendo" and it just blew up from there. It's basically the same stunt Sega pulled with Sonic in the early days of the SNES.

The games themselves are massively overrated, ranging from average to mediocre, and you'd struggle to find anyone remembering a game in the series past the year 1999 when Sony was no longer marketing them.

Crash Bandicoot just doesn't fit today's gaming landscape, especially on the Playstation 4. Your average Playstation 4 owner wants mature, violent games. Fallout, Call of Duty, Metal Gear Solid...these are the games individuals on that platform what to play, not cutesy run and bop platformers. If customers wanted to play those games the Wii U would have blown up.

Personally I think the Crash Bandicoot series is best remembered as a relic of the 90s. Let the Bandicoot sleep the long sleep and remember him for what he was.

There's enough bait in this post to feed a whole school of fish.
 
They bought Crash Bandicoot and ND second team are working on it, and they bought Spiderman back and have Sucker Punch on it.
I know this for a fact because my friends uncles milkman knows a guy at the local who said his sister is dating the guy who delivers pizza to bobby kotics hair dresser.
 

NOLA_Gaffer

Banned
There's enough bait in this post to feed a whole school of fish.

I consider myself rather platform agnostic and I lived through the 90s video game market. Even at the time I found the Crash Bandicoot series merely okay. When you saw what Nintendo and Rare were achieving on the Nintendo 64 with Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie and even what some developers were achieving on the Playstation, Crash Bandicoot always felt like a real step backwards.

Call me troll bait all you want, I'm just here to offer my opinion.

^Ratchet might be the #2 or #3 NPD title next month and gave the franchise it's best opener ever. The PlayStation audience is diverse and includes lots of people who grew up in the late '90's and early '00's.

Ratchet & Clank is also primarily a shooter, not a platformer.
 

SNURB

Member
I consider myself rather platform agnostic and I lived through the 90s video game market. Even at the time I found the Crash Bandicoot series merely okay. When you saw what Nintendo and Rare were achieving on the Nintendo 64 with Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie and even what some developers were achieving on the Playstation, Crash Bandicoot always felt like a real step backwards.

Call me troll bait all you want, I'm just here to offer my opinion.



Ratchet & Clank is also primarily a shooter, not a platformer.

Next you'll be saying that Sonic Adventure looks like a masterpiece compared to Crash.
 

NOLA_Gaffer

Banned
Next you'll be saying that Sonic Adventure looks like a masterpiece compared to Crash.

Oh goodness no. Once Sonic Adventure's "wow" factor wore off as the generation progressed, everyone quickly saw the raw stank underneath the surface.
 

Pancake Mix

Copied someone else's pancake recipe
Ratchet & Clank is also primarily a shooter, not a platformer.

While true it's been called a platformer everywhere, ever since its first title 14 years ago. It's still partially a platformer and it sells that way, despite also being a TPS. I'm sure that's factored into any decision on whether Crash is viable, as it should.

As for your opinion that Crash is overrated, it's just an opinion. The reality is that Crash was critically acclaimed as all hell, sold incredibly well, and became the PlayStation's first mascot.

I personally preferred Spyro but I did love Crash.
 

NOLA_Gaffer

Banned
While true it's been called a platformer everywhere, ever since its first title 14 years ago. It's still partially a platformer and it sells that way, despite also being a TPS. I'm sure that's factored into any decision on whether Crash is viable, as it should.

Crash Bandicoot third-person shooter incoming?
 

Jonnax

Member
I would be shocked and excited if ND were developing it.
But if it's some random no name studio with a pedigree in mobile games then I ain't interested.
 

Meciu

Member
Man, if this won't be announced on E3 than I don't know what to think about this anymore. So many tells until now. C'mon SONY, do it!!
 

pixelation

Member
The only Crash Bandicoot titles that anyone really remembers were the original three. Much of the nostalgia surrounding these titles is due to Sony's heavy marketing during their time. Sony pushed Crash as the "Anti-Mario" just as the entire Playstation library was pushed as "Anti-Nintendo" and it just blew up from there. It's basically the same stunt Sega pulled with Sonic in the early days of the SNES.

The games themselves are massively overrated, ranging from average to mediocre, and you'd struggle to find anyone remembering a game in the series past the year 1999 when Sony was no longer marketing them.

Crash Bandicoot just doesn't fit today's gaming landscape, especially on the Playstation 4. Your average Playstation 4 owner wants mature, violent games. Fallout, Call of Duty, Metal Gear Solid...these are the games individuals on that platform what to play, not cutesy run and bop platformers. If customers wanted to play those games the Wii U would have blown up.

Personally I think the Crash Bandicoot series is best remembered as a relic of the 90s. Let the Bandicoot sleep the long sleep and remember him for what he was.

*points to the door, kicks booty on the way out*
:p
 

dark10x

Digital Foundry pixel pusher
I would be shocked and excited if ND were developing it.
But if it's some random no name studio with a pedigree in mobile games then I ain't interested.
I dunno, I think it would be a waste of ND's talent. Big time.

The guys that MADE Crash have mostly left the company anyways.
 
Seeing how well R&C has performed has strenghtened my belief that there absolutely is a market for Crash on the PS4. The important thing is that this revival needs to be developed by a team who understand why the original trilogy is still so treasured to this day. If it just ends up being like the Activision installments then it's going to be a bust.
 
I don't have much to look forward to from Nintendo because E3 is going to be all about Zelda, so I NEED Crash Bandicoot Returns to make my E3. Do it, Naughty Dog, take your baby back!!
 

Pancake Mix

Copied someone else's pancake recipe
Had to

Long ago, we looked upon a hyper-realistic brown sky. The memory of the Cortex Vortex that threatened all burns eternal in our hearts. In its wake came an age of low-budget 2D platformers and edgy shooters. Yet with each fond remembrance, we knew those encountered were not forgotten, that some day we would see them again. Perhaps it was no more than wishful thinking. But after the long calm, there are the beginnings of a stir. The reunion at hand may bring joy, it may bring fear, but let us embrace whatever it brings. For the bandicoot with 90's 'tude is coming back. At last the promise has been made

Naughty Dog please. Not calling out Uncharted as being an edgy shooter by the way, it's fantastic too.
 

JordanN

Banned
Seeing how well R&C has performed has strenghtened my belief that there absolutely is a market for Crash on the PS4. The important thing is that this revival needs to be developed by a team who understand why the original trilogy is still so treasured to this day. If it just ends up being like the Activision installments then it's going to be a bust.

If Sony is paying out a ton of cash to get the Crash Bandicoot license, even they must be aware it needs a good studio to back it or it's all money being wasted.

It wont be a case like Playstation All-stars where Sony always owned the IP and thus the risk felt mitigated.
 
Naughty Dog constists of much more employes than the Uncharted 2 days, right? Could they form a small team of 20 or 30 people to work in a new Crash?
 

N.Domixis

Banned
Id buy a crash bandicoot PlayStation Allstars. Even with just crash franchise characters it would be better than PlayStation all stars.
 
Id buy a crash bandicoot PlayStation Allstars. Even with just crash franchise characters it would be better than PlayStation all stars.

In my opinion, if there will be a new Crash by Sony, it will be a new Crash in the vein of the first Naughty Dog's games or a remake in the vein of Ratchet and Clank or a new Crash team racing. The most possible cases are the first two, in my opinion.
 
FWIW Naughty Dog has said numerous times now that they have had two teams to develop games at the studio for a while now. The Last of Us and Uncharted 3 were two different teams for at least a good way into development.

Not saying I necessarily think ND will develop the new Crash (at least by themselves) but they definitely have enough people to at least assist in it.
 

gamerMan

Member
I loved the Naughty Dog Crash Bandicoot games, but I really wouldn't care for this series if it was made by any one else. Practically anything Naughty Dog touches turns to gold but I just don't seem them wasting their time on this series. Maybethe guys that created that new Tony Hawk 5 will make it and it will really crash.
 

bede-x

Member
Have we made a thread about what kind of game we want it to be? Let's talk about that too because I'm curious on what GAF wants and what GAF thinks it'll be like.

As pure a platformer as possible. Should it happen, don't focus on gimmick levels, shooting or mini games, but make it almost entirely about platforming. Closer to the first game than the third.
 

GOOCHY

Member

There's clearly a thirst for mascot style games in the market. I'll bet you dollars to donuts that Ratchet & Clank is at worst #3 on the monthly NPD charts. It's been the top selling title overall in the UK for two weeks now. People are going to be very surprised.
 

Caronte

Member
If they do bring Crash back they need to get the original composer (Josh Mancell) onboard. If they are playing the nostalgia card then music is a big factor there.
 

B.O.O.M

Member
Honestly the best case for the Crash to return is the sales numbers for the latest R&C. I find that to be the best reason to be hopeful for this.
 
"We're pleased to announced....Crash Bandicoot...is coming to Playstation 4............. as a new series of PSX classics! Please be excied for the Playstation Experience."
I think it'll be a shame if it doesn't go multiplatform

Why is that? I have more trust in the quality if Sony are behind it.
 
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