The creative director of the new Crash Bandicoot game says that Activision is keen to invest in new games in the franchise.
In an interview with VGC, Crash Team Rumble creative director Dan Neil said that “there’s a core ethos of games that Toys for Bob have demonstrated they’re excellent at producing over the decade.” As the studio behind Skylanders, the Crash and Spyro trilogy remasters, and Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, Toys for Bob has certainly made a name for itself as a developer of mascot-driven titles, but that name is far from all-important.
“It’s not only about what we’re passionate about,” Neil continues. “It’s that Activision is supportive and they continue to want to invest in new titles for this franchise. They also have a belief that we can do exciting new things.”
It’s likely that Crash Team Rumble, a multiplayer effort, is part of those “exciting new things,” putting a spin on the traditional Crash Bandicoot formula. Whether we’re getting standard Crash experiences in future remains unclear, but it’s definitely nice to see Toys for Bob return to its strengths – not that long ago, it was pulled in to help with Call of Duty: Warzone along with multiple other Activision studios, marking a significant departure from the games that made it famous.
Neil says that the experience from that period was important in the development of Crash Team Rumble, and that the studio’s flexibility in moving between those two projects is a benefit, but if one stance leans towards more Crash, I’m all for it.
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