"Crash Bandicoot 5 Canceled After Studio's Indie Shift"

Crash Bandicoot 5 was supposedly shelved, hints Toys For Bob’s former concept artist. Dive into the details of what the game's former developer, Nicholas Kole, had to share!

Crash Bandicoot 5 Supposedly Shelved

‘Project Dragon’ Also Scrapped

The gaming community might have missed out on a new Crash Bandicoot adventure, as hinted by former Toys For Bob concept artist Nicholas Kole in a July 12th X (Twitter) post. While discussing his other canceled project, "Project Dragon," which led to speculation from Sonic comic writer Daniel Barnes that it might be Spyro-related due to its name, Kole clarified that it was a new IP with Phoenix Labs, not Spyro. However, he also mentioned the shelved Crash Bandicoot 5, suggesting it met a similar fate.

"It is not Spyro, but some day folks will hear about the Crash 5 that never was and it’s gonna break hearts," Kole stated.

The fan reaction in the replies was exactly as Kole anticipated—filled with disappointment and shock. Comments like "Hearing any sort of cancelled project news breaks my heart, but hearing about a cancelled Crash in particular stings harder than anything.." were common.

Toys For Bob, the developer behind Crash Bandicoot, parted ways with Activision Blizzard earlier this year to become an independent studio. This move coincided with Activision Blizzard's acquisition by Microsoft. Despite their independence, Toys For Bob is collaborating with Microsoft Xbox for the publishing of their first independent game, though details about this project remain under wraps.

The most recent mainline Crash Bandicoot game, Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, was released in 2020 and sold over five million copies. Subsequent releases included the mobile endless runner Crash Bandicoot: On the Run! in 2021 and the online multiplayer Crash Team Rumble in 2023, which concluded its live support in March with a final content update but remains playable on next-gen consoles.

With Toys For Bob now operating as an independent studio, there's hope among fans that Crash Bandicoot 5 might still see the light of day. Only time will tell if this beloved franchise will return to delight fans once more.