Crash Bandicootis undoubtedlyone of the biggest and most recognizable platforming icons in the video game industry. However, unlike his contemporaries, the orange marsupial hasn’t had the best history when it comes to fully-realized titles. As a result of his rights jumping from one company to another, multipleCrash Bandicootgames have been tragically canceled over the years.
Crash became a popular character thanks to his classic PlayStation 1 trilogy, but he unfortunately had quite a tumultuous saga after that. Over the course of several years, many developers unveiled their stories on promisingCrash Bandicoottitles that ultimately went unreleased. The following games are some of the most fascinating examples that we wish had seen the light of day.
8Crush Bandicoot
A Wacky Sci-Fi Adventure With An Evil Doppelgänger
Magenta Software was a relatively small British studio that mostly worked on licensed games until its closure in 2015. However, they were in the running for developing a brand-newCrash Bandicootgame back in 2004, when they pitched an interesting concept to Vivendi Universal that was simply calledCrush Bandicoot.
Not much is currently known about this canceled project, but it was revealed by artist Andy J. Davis a few years ago,and it was luckily archived later by the site Crash Mania. The main selling point of the game was going to bethe introduction of Crash’s evil twin,Crush Bandicoot, and the entire experience would have had a focus on sci-fi environments and wacky vehicles. It was definitely an intriguing pitch, but it was ultimately rejected by the publisher.
7Crash Bandicoot Evolution
An Ambitious Project That Was Ruined By The Release Of Ratchet & Clank
Crash Twinsanityis one ofthe most beloved PlayStation 2 entries in the franchise, which is quite impressive for a game that wasn’t developed by Naughty Dog. The original incarnation of this zany 3D platformer was much bigger, more innovative and more ambitious, to the point it was considered an entirely different game titledCrash Bandicoot Evolution.
Several developers who worked at Traveller’s Tales Oxford Studios revealed this unseen project when talking to Crash Mania in interviews. After the release ofWrath of Cortex, they immediately began working on this massive space adventure that mixed platforming with RPG elements. The plot was about the Evil Twins stealing Crash’s Island from Earth and the marsupial ultimately trying to stop them.
A lot of work & effort was put intoCrash Bandicoot Evolution, as this would’ve definitely been one of Crash’s most impressive adventures. The developers came up with fascinating concepts for locations, characters, and even alien races. Unfortunately, when Insomniac releasedRatchet & Clankin 2003, Traveller’s Tales believed the two projects were too similar and decided to start from scratch, which led to the development ofCrash Twinsanity. As a small Easter Egg, most of the concept art forEvolutioncan still be found within the extras ofTwinsanity.
6Crash Twinsanity 2
One Of The Franchise’s Most Popular Games Almost Got A Sequel
The unexpected popularity ofTwinsanityshould not be underestimated, as this felt like a fresh new direction for the franchise, and Traveller’s Tales Oxford Studios came up with many unique ideas for different follow-ups. This included a proper sequel that ultimately went nowhere, which was revealed bydeveloper Keith Webb in a 2012 interview for Crash Mania.
Crash Twinsanitywas already quite a creative game, butCrash Twinsanity 2was potentially going to take it to a whole new level. This sequel would’ve seen Crash stuck inside a TV and having to explore several levels themed after popular tropes & genres, including a Wild West show, a black-&-white cartoon, a cooking show hosted by Rusty Walrus, and even a medical drama.This was a really fun idea that is reminiscent of theGexfranchise, but it was sadly rejected by Universal, alongside many other related projects.
5Crash Clash Racing
The Original Version Of Tag Team Racing Was A Twinsanity Sequel
Crash Clash Racingwas yet another idea for a sequel toTwinsanitythat Traveller’s Tales Oxford Studios began working on after the release of their hit game. What’s especially curious about this project is that its plot would’ve been a direct follow-up toTwinsanity, which is quite unexpected for a racing spin-off.
Once again,Paul Gardner and Keith Webb revealed the existence of this game to Crash Mania, where they even revealed unused concept art of Evil Crash driving a spooky personalized car. The main gimmick ofCrash Clash Racingwould’ve been the fusion of vehicles between two different characters. So, when Vivendi Universal canceled this title, they handed the development over to another studio: Radical Entertainment. They ended up using most of these ideasin order to make the 2005 racing game,Crash Tag Team Racing.
4Cortex Chaos/The All-New Cortex Show
A Game Full Of Brilliant Ideas, Starring The Main Villain Of The Franchise
Out of every idea that was created by the success ofTwinsanity, the project known as bothCortex ChaosandThe All-New Cortex Showis undoubtedly the most interesting one, and it has left fans wanting to see it as a reality someday. After all,Neo Cortex is a fun & hilarious antagonist,so an entire adventure led by him would’ve been extremely entertaining.
While this was also revealed on Crash Mania by former developers, the YouTube ChannelDidYouKnowGaming recently talked to Paul Gardnerand managed to acquire some fascinating design documents for this project. What’s especially peculiar is that they pitched two different – but equally promising – ideas that would’ve featured some really inventive gameplay mechanics.
The first concept was titled the “Trials of Cortex,” in which the other evil doctors from the franchise would put Cortex on trial for his past failures. He, in turn, would have to overcome different challenges to prove his evilness by using various gadgets and weapons. The second concept was titled “Clones of Cortex,” where the doctor had created multiple miniature clones of himself called Duplets, and controlling them would’ve been reminiscent of games likeLemmingsorPikmin. Sadly, all these brilliant concepts were ultimately rejected by Vivendi Universal because of the disappointing sales ofCrash Twinsanity, and they decided to move onto other projects and developers.
3Crash Landed
A Promising Reboot That Could Have Saved Crash During The 2010s
Crash of the TitansandMind Over Mutantgot a mixed reception in the late 2000s, so developer Radical Entertainment immediately began working on a brand-new title that would’ve been released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, which at the time were impressive next generation HD consoles. This promising new project was known asCrash Landed, and its cancelation frustrated fans for many years.
This is because unused content of this game was revealed around 2013, during one of the longest droughts in the franchise’s history.Crash Landedwas meant to be a complete reboot of the franchise that would’ve explored Crash’s origins with new expressive designs and a cartoony art style. On the other hand, the gameplay was going to have a big focus on different tools & gadgets (like jetpacks or guns) that Crash could create by combining items he could find in the overworld. The map was even going to be a semi-open world, similar toTwinsanity.
Several artists who worked on the gamepublished unused concept art and animations, an almost completepress kit by Ansell Creative Groupwas found, and evena brief demo for a Nintendo DS portwas discovered later. So, what exactly happened toCrash Landed? After two years of development, Activision acquired Sierra Entertainment and all of its subsidiaries, which resulted in numerous layoffs at Radical Entertainment and the inevitable cancelation ofCrash Landed.
2Crash Team Racing (2010)
Crash Landed Almost Got Its Own Kart Racing Spin-Off
It’s evident that Radical Entertainment had high hopes ofCrash Landedpotentially bringing Crash back into the spotlight, because they even had plans for a racing spin-off before development of this project was even finished. Simply titledCrash Team Racing(referencing the original PS1 racing game from 1999), it was briefly developed by High Impact Games, and it used several elements and characters fromCrash Landed.
Crash Team Racing (2010)was going to share the same art style asCrash Landed, had high-octane racing gameplay that was going to include customizable vehicles, and it would’ve starred characters like Crash, Dingodile, Polar, and the brand-new Land Shark. This looked really fun and would’ve definitely helped fans grow attached to this unseen new iteration of the marsupial. Nevertheless,Crash Team Racing (2010)was canceled alongside its companion piece, and many fans believe it was retooled intoDreamworks Superstar Kartz. However,an anonymous developer revealed to Crash Maniathat Crash’s new kart racer was going to be much more ambitious in comparison.
1Crash Bandicoot 5
The Success Of Crash 4 Was Not Enough To Greenlight A Crossover With Spyro The Dragon
Video game journalist Liam Robertson recently revealed this game to the public, and the story of this unbelievable project’s cancelation is nothing short of heartbreaking. Toys For Bob developedCrash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, and it was a huge critical and commercial success, so they immediately shifted focus to two different new projects: their idea for a multiplayer game (which becameCrash Team Rumble) and a sequel toCrash 4, tentatively titledCrash Bandicoot 5.
This game was largely inspired byTwinsanityand it would’ve taken place in Madame Amberly’s Academy of Evil. In a concept that is reminiscent toPsychonauts, Crash was going to explore the minds of iconic villains like Cortex, N. Gin, or Tiny Tiger, and discover their origins in some unique & creative levels. The most captivating part aboutCrash Bandicoot 5is that it was also going to work as a crossover with theSpyro the Dragonfranchise, as the evil Uka Uka was going to use a device in order to travel to Spyro’s dimension and possess the Dragon Elders of that universe.
Crash BandicootandSpyro the Dragonare two closely related franchises that fans have wanted to see crossover into a real platforming adventure for decades, so this concept had the potential to be a huge success. Unfortunately, Activision’s exceedingly high sales expectations forCrash 4and their new tendency to favor live-service games led them to reject Toys For Bob’s brilliant idea. The studio suffered many layoffs and the remaining developers began working onCrash Team Rumbleand providing assistance in the development ofCall Of Duty: Warzone.
