Fans believe a follow-up to Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled has been outed via a banner image, but it might not be what it seems.
Crash Bandicoot may have started as PlayStation’s most iconic mascot but his trajectory over the years has been turbulent to say the least.
After developer Naughty Dog stopped making the games for the original PlayStation, the quality of the spinning marsupial’s adventures nose-dived significantly across the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 generations.
However, thanks to remakes of the original trilogy and karting spin-off Crash Team Racing, along with new entry Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, it seemed like his fortunes had been reversed.
Unfortunately, his comeback tour didn’t last long, with the character’s last game, 2023’s Crash Team Rumble, but fans have a new reason to hold out hope.
A banner image on X shared by Beenox, the studio behind 2019’s Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled, has caused some commotion within fan circles.
The image shows various games the studio has contributed towards to celebrate its 25th anniversary, including Call Of Duty and Guitar Hero, but people have zoned in on Crash specifically.
Expert, exclusive gaming analysis
Sign up to the GameCentral newsletter for a unique take on the week in gaming, alongside the latest reviews and more. Delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning.
As highlighted across Reddit and X, an image of Crash Bandicoot driving a kart appears to use an asset of the marsupial pulled from Crash Bandicoot 4 – and not the same design seen in Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled.
As such, many fans are hoping this is a tease for a sequel and, to add fuel to the fire, Beenox has since removed the image – implying it was significant. However, if recent rumours are anything to go by, it might not be quite as exciting as first hoped.
Earlier this year, a rumour claimed a revamped version of Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled would be released on current gen consoles and PC in early 2026. This new version, entitled Grand Prix Edition, would add new characters and tracks as part of the re-release.
While it’s worth taking all of this with a pinch of salt, there have been other whispers of Crash Bandicoot related media recently. Last month, What’s On Netflix claimed a Crash Bandicoot Netflix series was in development, so this might all coalesce into one announcement – possibly at The Game Awards in December.
Whether we’ll ever get a proper sequel to Crash Bandicoot 4 is still an unknown. According to reports from last year, Crash Bandicoot 5 was in development at Toys For Bob but it was cancelled by Activision in favour of live service multiplayer titles.
Developer Toys For Bob split from Activision and Microsoft in March 2024, and while the studio hasn’t confirmed what they’re working on next, all the signs point to a new entry in the Spyro series.
Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter.
To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here.
For more stories like this, check our Gaming page.