Od vydání hry Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time uplynuly již čtyři roky a mnoho fanoušků série se ptá, jak dlouho se ještě protáhne čekání na další díl. Ukazuje se však, že další Crashova hra byla možná v zákulisí v tichosti zrušena, jak tvrdí někdo, kdo na ní možná v nějaké podobě pracoval.

Nicholas Kole – ilustrátor a výtvarník postav, který spolupracoval s Toys for Bob na Spyro Reignited Trilogy i Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time – se nedávno na Twitteru rozpovídal o Project Dragon, neoznámeném titulu, který byl ve vývoji v neznámém studiu a na němž Kole pracoval tři roky, až do jeho nedávného zrušení.

Při diskusi o tomtéž, v reakci na dotaz fanouška, zda je Project Dragon novým Spyrovým titulem, Kole ujistil, že tomu tak není, ale dále se zmínil o „Crash 5, který nikdy nebyl“, a dodal, že to „zlomí srdce“, pokud a až se o tom lidé dozvědí.

Crash Bandicoot 5 byl pravděpodobně ve vývoji ve společnosti Toys for Bob, než byl v tichosti zrušen. Kole v následných tweetech upřesnil, že Crash 5 a jím dříve zmiňovaný Project Dragon jsou dva různé projekty v různých studiích.

Rok 2024 byl pro Toys for Bob bohatý na události. Pod novou mateřskou společností Microsoft bylo studio v únoru zasaženo výrazným propouštěním, ale brzy poté bylo oznámeno, že se Toys for Bob od Activisionu a Microsoftu odkoupilo a hodlá se osamostatnit.

Navzdory osamostatnění bude další hra Toys for Bob stále vydávána společností Microsoft, jak bylo oficiálně oznámeno v květnu. Zprávy tvrdí, že se jedná o titul Spyro 4, na kterém se pracuje od ledna letošního roku.

WELL. Our cancelled project of the last 3 years is officially, truly dead as of today (internal attempts to save it failed), and the embargo on the whole body of portfolio work has been lifted.

RIP Project Dragon. Brace yourselves for the largest ever art bomb of work I loved 👁️

— Nicholas Kole (@FromHappyRock) July 13, 2024

Článek Crash Bandicoot 5 byl v tichosti zrušen se nejdříve objevil na GAME PRESS.

Spyro developer Toys for Bob has formally confirmed its next game will be published by Xbox, in a teasing statement that ends with a decidedly purple-coloured heart emoji.

Toys for Bob was previously part of the now-Microsoft-owned Activision Blizzard, and made its name making Skylanders, then working on the Crash and Spyro trilogy releases.

But more recent years saw it pulled into work on Call of Duty as a support developer, and earlier this year it lost 89 staff members as a part of Microsoft's wider layoffs of 1900 staff.

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Toys for Bob has announced via Twitter that they’ve teamed up with Microsoft for their next new game. There’s no word on what that next new game will be, but their choice of partner is… quite the choice.

Toys for Bob was originally a subsidiary of Activision Blizzard and, along with them, were bought up by Microsoft in 2023. It was only a few months before Microsoft went to work laying of 1,900 employees, including some that were at Toys for Bob, leaving the developer’s survival in question. Subsequently, Toys for Bob was able to split from the newly acquired Activision and set out on their own.

Since then, Microsoft has shuttered Arkane Austin, Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog Games, while absorbing Roundhouse Studios into ZeniMax Online.

I consider myself to be a forgiving person, but I’m confused that the studio is so eager to partner with their former existential threat. I shouldn’t be too surprised because, at the time of their split, Toys for Bob said in a statement that they were looking into a possible partnership with Microsoft. It may have been a part of the deal that allowed them to separate. Or perhaps they are working on a property owned by Microsoft. Or maybe they feel it’s a safe partnership because Microsoft no longer has the power to lay off their staff.

Toys For Bob most recently worked on the Skylanders series, Spyro Reignited Trilogy, and Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time. It’s possible that the developer is looking to return to one of those licenses, which would necessitate a deal with Microsoft. However, that’s purely speculation trying to make sense of the matter. We won’t know until the project is revealed. According to the Tweet, “We're still very early in development, so you might not hear from us for a bit - but know that we're working hard on an experience we're so sooo inspired about! Can't wait to share more.”

The post Toys for Bob partners with Xbox to publish its next game appeared first on Destructoid.

Toys for Bob has updated its website with a new logo, leading to fan speculation of new Crash Bandicoot or Spyro games.

The website now leads to a black page with just a new central logo of a Tiki mask in purple. What could it mean?

Toys for Bob is, of course, most notably the developer behind Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time and the Spyro Reignited Trilogy. The Tiki mask would hint at Crash, while the purple colour would indicate Spyro.

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On the company’s website, Toys for Bob, the developer behind Skylanders and Crash Bandicoot 4, has announced that it's diverging from Activision Blizzard to become independent.

The post doesn’t really give much more in the way of details. It states that the company will return to being a “small and nimble studio.” They also state that, while they’re separating, they are looking into a “possible partnership” with Microsoft. Explaining, “Our friends at Activision and Microsoft have been extremely supportive of our new direction, and we’re confident that we will continue to work closely together as part of our future.”

That’s somewhat surprising, considering Toys for Bob was reportedly among those hit by the massive wave of Microsoft layoffs in the wake of the Activision Blizzard acquisition. Don’t burn any bridges, I suppose.

Toys for Bob says it's in the early days of developing its next game and is looking forward to providing more updates.

This news comes shortly after the news that Saber Interactive and Gearbox are being sold off by Embracer Group. Throughout the coronavirus pandemic and even following that, we say a period of rapid acquisitions from companies like Sony, Microsoft, and Embracer. In the fallout of that, there have been a dizzying number of layoffs and studio closures, so seeing a developer spin-off on their own is almost refreshing.

The post Toys for Bob separating from Activision Blizzard, going independent appeared first on Destructoid.

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Crash Team Rumble will have no further content updates after 4th March, less than nine months after its launch.

The strategic platformer MOBA launched on 20th June 2023 on PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Since then it's had three seasons of new content, the latest being a crossover with Spyro the Dragon.

There will be no further seasons, however, per an in-game news update spotted by players of Crash Team Rumble. As of yet, there's been no official announcement from publisher Activision itself.

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Toys for Bob - the Activision Blizzard studio behind the likes of Skylanders, Crash Bandicoot 4, and the Spyro remasters - has announced it's parting ways with Activision to become an independent company once more. It also says it's "exploring a possible partnership" with Microsoft as development on its new game gets underway.

Toys for Bob, which was founded back in 1989, formed a publishing partnership with Activision in the 2000s that would lead to the studio's acquisition by the publisher in 2005. Toys for Bob has been part of Activision Blizzard ever since, initially working on the hugely popular toys-to-life Skylanders series before developing 2018 remaster Spyro Reignited Trilogy and 2020's well-received Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time. Since then, it's served as a support studio for Call of Duty while also releasing last year's Crash Team Rumble.

Earlier this month, following Microsoft's $69bn acquisition of Activision Blizzard and subsequent decision to lay off 1,900 workers across its Xbox teams, it was confirmed 86 Toys for Bob employees had lost their jobs. It was also reported the studio's physical office would be shutting down and that remaining staff would transition to working from home. And it's in this context that Toys for Bob has now announced it's splitting from Activision to go independent.

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This year has been filled with bad video game industry news. Layoffs every week. Thousands of jobs cut. Studios closing. It’s awful stuff. So I’m here to share some good news. Toys For Bob, the studio behind Crash Bandicoot 4 and the remastered Spyro collection, is leaving Activision and becoming an independent studio.

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As the video games industry violently contracts to ensure shareholder satisfaction at the cost of making thousands upon thousands of people unemployed, Skylanders studio Toys For Bob have announced they're splitting from Activision Blizzard and Microsoft to go independent. Good for them, but maybe too late for some. Earlier this month, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that it seemed Activision Blizzard were closing Toys For Bob's California headquarters and laying off 86 people. Still, the new independent Toys For Bob say they're working on something new and "exploring a possible partnership" with Microsoft.

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