The California-based video game development studio Toys for Bob has been credited with singlehandedly reviving the popular 90’s Crash Bandicoot and Spyro series. Acquired by Activision in 2005, the company assisted with the recent remakes of the six games in the Spryo Reignited Trilogy and Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, and also developed 2020’s well-received Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.
Many people assumed that with the unquestionable success of these games, the future of Toys for Bob was secure and that more titles in both series would soon be in the works by the developer. Gamers saw a teaser in the official Crash Bandicoot 4 art book that many took as confirmation that a fourth Spyro game could be expected sooner or later, and an easter egg hidden in Crash 4 seemed to allude to a fifth entry in that franchise as well.
Flash forward to April 29, 2021, when Toys for Bob announced on Twitter that it would henceforth be a development support team for Activision’s Call of Duty: Warzone. “Toys for Bob is proud to support development for Season 3 of Call of Duty: Warzone and look forward to more to come,” said the post. The resulting backlash from fans of Toys for Bob, Spyro, and Crash Bandicoot now has multiple related terms trending on Twitter.
The general feedback from gamers has been anger towards Activision, outrage about Toys for Bob being “demoted” to a support team, and disappointment that hopes for additional Crash and Spyro games may now be permanently dashed. Some Twitter users are adding the hashtag #FreeToysForBob to their posts, while others have declared that Activision has now “managed to top EA as the WORST video game company ever.”
It should be noted, however, that just because Toys for Bob will be working on the battle royale Call of Duty: Warzone for the immediate future, that doesn’t mean that will be its role forever. The studio may well return to Crash and Spyro at a later date. Although it seems to the layman that the logical thing for Activision to do is immediately take advantage of the success of the remakes and Crash 4, the company undoubtedly has market analysts that may have decided on a better short-term route.
Putting Toys for Bob in the role of a Call of Duty support team does seem like it will use the company’s skills in a questionable way, though. Before the Crash and Spyro games, the studio worked on multiple licensed Disney and Skylanders titles. There is a clear style to Toys for Bob’s work, and it does not really swing in the direction of Call of Duty-type realism. But then again, maybe this addition to the company’s CV will give the developers a break from working on Crash and Spyro for the past six years and might add useful tools to their toolbox that players will benefit from in future games.