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Also citing that the character has been mistreated when compared to Sonic the Hedgehog and Mario.
"Hello everyone and welcome back to another GRTV News. Today what we're going to be talking about is Crash Bandicoot. Because over the weekend, one of the, or basically the co-creator of Crash Bandicoot came out and said that Crash hasn't been getting the love that it deserves, or that he deserves rather, in the adaptation space. And that if, you know, we get into a point where he should be getting his own movie or TV series. So I have a few thoughts about that, but first of all, let's hop into the news piece. So yes, Crash Bandicoot should have his own movie or TV series according to the co-creator. There have even been a few half-hearted attempts made, but nothing has even come close to a finished product."
"So gaming history is littered with retired platform game mascots including Bubsy, Croc, Earthworm Gin, Klonoa, Sparkster, Wonder Boy, Zool, and more recently Sackboy. Bubsy's making a comeback actually by the way, there's a new game coming out relatively soon. And Croc got a rework, or a remake recently as well, so there's that. Anyway, the only ones who have truly stood the test of time and remained relevant across the decades are Mario and Sonic, and today they're perhaps bigger than ever before. And that's also perhaps a little bit unfair for Crash, because he did get a brand new game a couple of years ago, but anyway. There are however, a few more successful characters who haven't quite made it all the way, but who are nonetheless reasonably well-known and have games that sell decent numbers. A prime example of this is Crash Bandicoot, Sony's first serious attempt to rival Mario and Sonic. Today there are certainly those who hope for more games, but interest from Activision Blizzard, now owned by Microsoft, has been non-existent. One person who's clearly frustrated by this and believes the character deserves a better fate is Charles Zambulas, who helped create Crash and his friends, as well as his enemies. In an interview with Time Extension, he vents his palpable frustration over how the Plumber and the Hedgehog have become two of Hollywood's most iconic movie stars, while Crash, at best, gets the occasional re-release of an old game. It's got to be one of the most poorly managed properties."
"Even now I'm thinking, where's the movie? Where's the TV series? You guys have a winner here and you're doing nothing with it. Zambulas knows a thing or two about the subject and has, among other things, helped create animated classics like She-Ra, Princess of Power, Ghostbusters and Sonic the Hedgehog. But even though he clearly thinks it's a shame that Crash isn't getting a chance, he believes it's only a matter of time before it's the Bandicoot's turn to make it big in Hollywood. It's inevitable that Crash will be in a series or feature film. It just takes the guys who make these decisions to commit to it. Crash is in the fabric of society. It's a large fanbase. It's a fantastic property. Crash is fun. A series or film would introduce the characters to a new generation. It would be a hit just because of the fanbase. What do you think about this? Would a movie or TV series featuring Crash Bandicoot have enough potential to become a truly popular and is it overall a neglected brand that deserves better or is it simply a matter of acknowledging that Crash, in the end, doesn't quite have the charisma that Mario and Sonic possess in such abundance?
Now, I do think that Crash deserves more. I do. But I do think that he deserves more in the video game space. Now, I think it's unfair to compare Crash to Mario and Sonic for the simple reason that Mario and Sonic have transcended generations time and time again. And even comparing Mario and Sonic is perhaps unfair because Mario is head and shoulders bigger than Sonic the Hedgehog these days. Sonic tends to flounder a bit in the video game space, whereas Mario kills it there. Mario is perhaps chasing Sonic's coattails a little bit in the adaptation space, but the Super Mario Brothers movie was bigger than any of the Sonic the Hedgehog movies. I think it was nearly bigger than all three of them combined in regards to... No, it might actually be bigger than all three of them combined in regards to how much money he made. But the point is that comparing Crash to those two is unfair because they have been key parts of the video game world for a long, long time. Now, Crash Bandicoot... I mean, the most recent game, Crash Bandicoot 4, It's About Time, that came out in 2020 and that was the fourth mainline Crash Bandicoot game since the character debuted at this point about 30 years ago, I believe. Now, you compare that to Mario and you compare that to Sonic and there's a completely different story here."
"And I know that Crash has had a few spin-offs like the other two have had as well. You know, Crash Nitro Kart Racer and stuff like that. But we are talking about two very different brands here. And the other thing to note as well is that Mario and Sonic have proven time and time again to be interesting to young audiences and to constantly deliver experiences that tailor to young audiences. Crash Bandicoot, anyone who has ever played a Crash Bandicoot game knows that it's not a very easy game. It's what makes it so good. But I'd argue that because of this, because of the fact that video games are typically, especially platformers, easier to play than they were, especially when Crash Bandicoot first came out, I'd argue that he doesn't really have the same appeal among younger audiences. So if you go and crank out a movie or you go and crank out a TV series, I don't think you're going to see a lot of the sort of younger audiences flocking to cinema to go and watch, you know, Crash being made by Illumination or something like that. It's probably not going to be that. I don't think it'd be unsuccessful, but I think you need to have a look at the brand itself and say maybe Crash Bandicoot and the people who like it, they're more of an aging demographic. So maybe you need to make more mature platformers with the character. Now, a character like Spyro, on the other hand, Spyro has always been a more younger friendly audience geared game. When you play a Spyro game, it's much easier than a Crash Bandicoot game. And Spyro is also in the same boat as Crash in that it doesn't get the love it deserves. But I do think that if you're going to give a character more love beyond the video game space, I think that Spyro is probably better positioned than Crash Bandicoot is, despite the fact that both of them are absolutely fantastic. So yeah, I look at Crash and I think Crash deserves more in the video game world. We deserve more Crash video games, be that kart racers, be that platformers, whatever. Crash deserves more because Crash is a fantastic brand and it's a fantastic character. But is it as plug and plays as the co-creators making it say and hear by just saying, if we just make a movie or TV series, it's going to be a hit?
I don't think it's as simple as that personally. But it's interesting of the same. And I do hope that Crash gets more. But again, that's all the time that I have on today's episode of GRT News."
"Let me know below if you agree with me, whether you think that Crash is a plug and play, that, you know, a movie will just be a massive hit in cinemas. And otherwise, I'll be back now tomorrow for the next GRT News of the week. So I will see you on that one."
