'Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time' Leaked and Teased by Activision

After the success of the N. Sane Trilogy, it's no surprise to see an all-new Crash Bandicoot game on edge of announcement. Still, it's hard to contain every ounce of PlayStation One-era delight at the news of Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time, reportedly coming to (at least) PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Xbox Series X according to a leak from the Taiwan Digital Game Rating Committee.

 A report on Gematsu broke news of the leaked game, developed by N. Sane Trilogy developer Toys for Bob, and quoted the following description accompanying the listing:

"Crash is relaxing and exploring his island in his time, 1998, when he finds a mysterious mask hidden away in a cave, Lani-Loli. The mask is one of the Quantum Masks and apparently knows Aku-Aku, Crash’s mask friend! With the Quantum Masks returning and a Quantum Rift appearing near our heroes, they decide to bravely head through to different times and dimensions to stop whoever is responsible."

The game's cover image, also accompanying the listing, states that the game will run on both Xbox One and Xbox Series X. Presumably the PlayStation 4/5 will also see a similar arrangement, although nothing outright confirms that to be true.

It's a small detail, but the fact that the title is set in 1998 (the release date of Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped) strongly suggests that this title will be consistent both tonally and gameplay-wise to the original three Crash games. That's aside from the obvious fact that it's being titled Crash Bandicoot 4 despite being FAR from the fourth title in the franchise. Toys for Bob is clearly ignoring Crash's 2000s-era exploits—understandably. 

Lending credibility to these leaks, Activision recently sent out a 200-piece jigsaw puzzle to members of the press, alongside the quote "A little something to help you pass the TIME" signed: "Your Favorite Bandicoot". The jigaw displays an image of a tiki-style mask also featured in Sony's "It's Time To Play" advert. 

Clearly, an official announcement for this upcoming Crash game is imminent, and I for one, cannot wait.