Crash Bandicoot Coming to Skylanders

Crash Bandicoot is back! Sort of.

Yes, it's true, it's 100% official, and it's not something you should worry about just yet. I'm here to tell you why this could actually confirm everything we've all been hoping for, but for those out of the loop, let's start from the beginning.

A few days ago, a retailer in Singapore listed a so-called "Crash Edition" for the upcoming Skylanders Imaginators, an upcoming entry in Activision's toys-to-life franchise that lets you play as the figurines you own. You might remember that Crash's old buddy Spyro was converted into a Skylander back when this franchise began, a move that simultaneously put an end to the character's solo career, much to many fans' dismay.

Many people have theorized that Crash would some day become a Skylander himself, but not necessarily with a smile. After all, none of us actually want the bandicoot to follow Spyro and be revived as something entirely different from what we love him for. Both franchises can and should coexist independently from one another.

Now let's talk about why there's no need to worry about that right now. If you head to the official Skylanders web site, you'll see that the Crash Edition is, indeed, quite real, even if there are no details or pictures about it yet, and you can only see it under certain conditions (such as selecting Canada as your country). The interesting thing about it (besides the Toys 'R Us exclusivity) is that it's not coming out on anything but the PlayStation 4, which was something that was also mentioned by the Singapore retailer earlier.

Why is this interesting? Well, if you've been keeping up with the news, you'll know that there are strong indications that Sony might own Crash now. This would explain why the Crash Edition is limited to their console, as opposed to the other editions, which are multiplatform releases. This wouldn't be a first for Skylanders — both Bowser and Donkey Kong previously appeared in Skylanders Superchargers Racing, but only on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, since they are, after all, characters owned by Nintendo. This could be a similar case.

If true, it doesn't take long to conclude that this might not be the only thing related to Crash coming out soon. Sony knows full well that people want to see Crash Bandicoot return to form, and they're not oblivious enough to think a Skylanders role will quench the fans' thirst. In fact, it's very likely that the Crash Edition exists mostly to promote something else. A popular theory at the moment is that just like Uncharted 4 is making older gamers remember Crash, the new Skylanders Imaginators will introduce the character to younger audiences, all in an attempt to promote general interest in a new Crash game.

Once again we're just theorizing with what little details we have, but I hope this has given you a new perspective on things if you were worried about Crash's future. As a reminder, Sony's conference at E3 is happening on June 13 at 1 PM (Pacific Time, which means most of us Europeans will probably be sleeping by then). Let's hope we get the announcement we've all been waiting for.

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