Activision used Sony’s third annual PlayStation Experience (PSX) to offer gamers a chance to get hands-on with its new Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, which ships for PlayStation 4 and PS4 Pro in 2017. Developer Vicarious Visions has been enlisted to upgrade the original ‘90s games (created by Naughty Dog) for today’s hardware, having previously worked with the bandicoot on a pair of Game Boy Advance titles, as well as Crash Nitro Kart on PlayStation 2.
This marks a sort of resurgence for the character. He’s playable right now in Skylanders Imaginators in a new dedicated level, Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands. Crash also appears in two episodes of the new Skylanders Academy television series, streaming now on Netflix. Dan Tanguay, game director at Vicarious Visions, told [a]listdaily that the Crash games have stood the test of time because they were incredibly beautiful at the time on PlayStation 1.
“There wasn’t anything that looked like them,” Tanguay said. “They’re just a visual treat for the eyes. The second thing is the sense of humor that pervades the games. It’s zany, it’s loony, it’s irreverent and you’re always having fun dying or seeing what the characters are going to do next.”
Tanguay said the original level design was great in that they’re challenging, but compel you to want to keep coming back for more. Vicarious Visions is building the new game from the ground up with new lighting, animations, environments and 4K support. “It really allows us to capture that spirit of Crash Bandicoot that Naughty Dog was shooting for 20 years ago,” Tanguay said. “We’re really able to push more with the animation and get more personality across and really create more lush and rich environments and audio escapes.”
Tanguay said that over the course of the trilogy, Naughty Dog learned a lot and made improvements to the games. Vicarious Visions has the luxury of adding those lessons to every game. “We’re trying to put Time Trials into every single level, even though they only appeared in the third game,” Tanguay said. “We hope they’ll give fans a great reason to play the game over and over again.”
He also said the new games will also offer Easter Eggs for fans, having scoured the internet and read all the fan boards and watched the YouTube videos. “We really know what the fans are looking for and we have additional features planned for these games, which we aren’t prepared to talk more about at this point,” Tanguay said.
In addition to having worked with Crash previously, Vicarious Visions has also developed Activision’s Skylanders: Swap Force, Skylanders: Trap Team and Skylanders: SuperChargers in recent years. “Our experience with action platformers such as Skylanders has helped us hone our skills to be able to bring Crash into the present,” said Tanguay.
Activision is also tapping into the retro fad that Sony embraced at PSX, reviving classic games like Parappa the Rapper, Windjammers and Wipeout: Omega Collection. “I love it partly because I’m a bit old,” Tanguay confessed. “The games that are coming back really deserve to have a chance with a new audience. It’s just a way to keep the spirit of things like Crash alive.”
