Toys For Bob, the development studio behind Crash Bandicoot 4 and the Spyro Reignited Trilogy have secured a new deal with former owners Microsoft for their first independent title.
The news of a deal comes exclusively via Jez Corden at Windows Central, and comes just one month after Microsoft and Toys For Bob agreed to the latter becoming an independent studio.
Perhaps best known to retro gamers as the studio that brought new life to iconic platforming series Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon, in recent years however the studio had partially become a Call of Duty support team under the Activision umbrella.
Windows Centrals’ sources have revealed that the developers have brokered a deal with Microsoft to fund their first title with Head of Xbox Games Studios Matt Booty, reported as saying that Toys For Bob’s next game “be similar to games Toys For Bob has made in the past”.
Booty’s statement could infer a great number of things considering Toys For Bob’s history although fans of Crash and Spyro and obviously hopeful the studio will have another opportunity to work on those franchises.
Toys For Bob’s own blog post announcing their indie venture also revealed that the studio is “confident that we will continue to work closely together as part of our future”.
The most recent release from Toys For Bob under Microsoft and Activision stewardship is the multiplayer mayhem title Crash Team Rumble which saw the feisty Bandicoot entering the online multiplayer space in a departure from the jort-wearing marsupial’s usual platforming hijinks.
A Legacy Of Greatness
Toys For Bob legacy stretches back over thirty-five years, with the California-based developers debut title Star Control releasing for the Amiga, Commodore 64, MS-DOS and the Sega Mega Drive in 1990.
The 90s saw the studio release their first platform game ‘Pandemonium!’ to mostly positive reviews, before embarking on a series of Disney licenced projects including 102 Dalmations: Puppies to the Rescue and Disney’s Extreme Skate Adventure.
2011 saw Toys For Bob produce their first Spyro title with the introduction of the popular toys-to-life game Skylanders.
After several years producing Skylanders titles, Toys For Bob delved back to the beginning of the purple dragon’s game catalogue to remake the first three Spyro games for the beloved Spyro Reignited Trilogy.
Crash Bandicoot 4 followed in 2020 and gave the team an opportunity to create a modern platforming masterpiece of their own.
Regardless of whether Toys For Bob’s next adventure includes Crash or Spyro, is an entirely new IP or maybe a fresh entry in the Microsoft owned Banjo-Kazooie series, fans have renewed reason to be excited.
