Developers Splitting from Owner Groups: Crash Bandicoot and Spyro Developer Toys for Bob Becomes Independent Studio
After a tumultuous series of events in the video game industry, Toys for Bob, the developer of popular games Crash Bandicoot and Spyro, has announced its split from Activision and team Xbox. A quick succession of mass layoffs in the industry, including those at PlayStation and Electronic Arts, has now been joined by more developers leaving their respective companies. Growing from a closure of its own facility and the subsequent impact of Microsoft’s mass layoffs, Toys for Bob determined it’s the right time to pursue independent game development.
Early Days of Independent Studio
According to a message on Toys for Bob’s official website, studio heads Paul Yan and Avery Lodato acknowledged that the development of its next game is in its early days and no details can be shared at this time. Expressing gratitude for being able to work on beloved IPs like Crash Bandicoot and Spyro, Toys for Bob is hopeful for the future and is excited to create new stories, new characters, and innovative gameplay experiences.
We’re thrilled to announce that Toys for Bob is spinning off as an independent game development studio!
Over the years, we’ve inspired love, joy, and laughter for the inner child in all gamers. We pioneered new IP and hardware technologies in Skylanders. We raised the bar for best-in-class remasters in Spyro Reignited Trilogy. We’ve taken Crash Bandicoot to innovative, critically acclaimed new heights.
With the same enthusiasm and passion, we believe that now is the time to take the studio and our future games to the next level. This opportunity allows us to return to our roots of being a small and nimble studio.
To make this news even more exciting, we’re exploring a possible partnership between our new studio and Microsoft. And while we’re in the early days of developing our next new game and a ways away from making any announcements, our team is excited to develop new stories, new characters, and new gameplay experiences.
Our friends at Activision and Microsoft have been extremely supportive of our new direction and we’re confident that we will continue to work closely together as part of our future.
So, keep your horns on and your eyes out for more news. Thank you to our community of players for always supporting us through our journey. We can’t wait to share updates on our new adventure as an indie studio! Talk to you soon!
Over the past year, Toys for Bob has been actively involved in the development of Crash Team Rumble, while also having previously worked on renowned games like Crash Bandicoot 4 and Spyro Reignited Trilogy.
This move comes in the wake of reports indicating that Saber Interactive is also planning to split from Embracer, and Gearbox Software could potentially follow suit.
