20 Game Anniversaries Coming In 2026 That'll Age You Mercilessly

The PlayStation’s first major IP (and, in a certain sense, its mascot), Crash Bandicoot spun into action in the nineties, enticing children and adults alike towards the new console with its engrossing platform format, and in the process setting up a franchise that would last longer than anyone might have guessed.

Fourth game in the main franchise, The Wrath of Cortex, pits the Bandicoot and his sister Coco against their old nemesis Neo Cortex. This time the mad scientist has created the bionic bandicoot Crunch, whose Elemental power sources Crash and Coco must defuse before Cortex can use his creation to take over the world. And, achingly, we admit that the game is now hitting its twenty-five-year mark.

Wrath of Cortex didn’t reinvent the genre or even the Crash series, but the game did help the ‘Coot transition to the PS2, and ensured the IPs viability and longevity for a good seven more years. That was until the era-ending Mind over Mutant, and the decision to leave the little orange guy behind when Sony moved over permanently to the PS3, ending new game development for the PS2. Thankfully, he’s been resurrected for the PS4 and 5 in several remasters and a new title, so we don’t have to feel so dated when revisiting the critter.