Despite the fact that Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy has been available for a while now in western territories, and absolutely dominating the UK sales charts in the process for good measure, the game is still yet to release on Switch in Japan. In a weird turn of events, Sega will be taking over publishing duties for the region, creating an all-inclusive situation that we would never have expected to see just a few years ago.
Yes, Sega will soon be responsible for publishing a series of games that were originally exclusive to Sony's PlayStation on a Nintendo console. When these games were first released between 1996 and 1998, these three companies were very much in competition with the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Nintendo 64 battling it out for video game dominance. For some, the sight of Sonic parading around on Switch might still cause the odd knowing chuckle, but adding a third party into the mix adds another mind-boggling layer.
The game will make it to the land of the rising sun on 18th October, complete with the 'Future Tense' bonus level that was added with the Switch version's release last month. It'll be interesting to see if the game sees similarly high levels of success in Japan.
Do you remember the console wars of years gone by? Would you ever have imagined something like this happening back then? As ever, leave a comment below to share your thoughts with us.
[source gamer.ne.jp]
Comments 40
I can’t see it dominating like it has in the UK. I expect it will still sell well mind you
Another example of either regional publishing or straight up port development being "Someone elses problem".
Sega publishing an originally Sony property to a Nintendo system. What a weird world.
"Sega will soon be responsible for publishing a series of games that were originally exclusive to Sony's PlayStation on a Nintendo console."
Between this, and Microsoft and Nintendo playing nicely together, we have certainly entered a strange world. I almost can't process it!
What in
"Sega does what Sony didn't so Nintencan"
@jswhitfield8 to be fair sonic is on the switch twice and a third one coming - with This trilogy... my 90s self is very confused
@Maxz To your comment... Bravo! The Internet day is won!
I grew up watching Mario and Sonic bobsled at the Olympics together so none of this is strange to me.
There is something entertaining about the idea of Sega publishing a former Sony exclusive on a Nintendo console. I really cannot argue that.
It's a nice set of games but I really don't understand why it's so overwhelmingly popular in the UK.
Can't wait to tell 90's me that in the future Sonic and Mario will be in multiple games together and that SEGA will publish a Crash Bandicoot game.
Obligatory WOAH
1998 was 20 years ago. They Resurrecting an abandoned iP. What box it started on seems irrelevant at this point.
This actually makes me super happy haha
@Agramonte Wow, you must be fun at parties...
The world is already Upside Down. 🙃
@GrailUK 😂😂😂😂😂... This popped up on my email and made me lol in the middle of the office.
NL comment section is great when waiting for our stupid servers to update in "who knows where" 🙂
As an import gamer, you get used to seeing things like this. Similarly, Square Enix also publishes Call of Duty games in Japan.
@Agramonte hehe
Had a flashback to late '96/early '97 playing Super Mario 64 on my new N64, playing Crash Bandicoot on a friend's Playstation, and looking through gaming magazines for word on Sonic X-treme because another friend had a Saturn (that we'd sometimes switch out for his Genesis because that one had the Sonic games).
Funny looking back at that now.
"It's a-me, Mario!"
@Stocksy I can’t either. The purchased bag mentality in the UK always seems to see junk fly to the top spot and quality titles slide down faster than anything else
@MoonKnight7 that’s how whorey and low quality Sega have become
@Stocksy I don’t think so, the original Crash trilogy was very successful in Japan.
Back then all consoles were Japanese... Xbox is still a box in Japan.
Wut
The world's gone mad. Sega publishing crash wtf
How bout next they make a Sonic Crash crossover, I'll buy that just don't make it another Olympic Games nonsense like Nintendo did.
What a time we live in.
Just imagine what the reaction would've been in the mid-nineties if gaming magazines had headlines like "Sega publishes Crash Bandicoot on Nintendo's newest system".
1996 me just fell off the chair in confusion
It's a me, Sonicrashio!
Maybe they will make a decent art on it... I write this because the western release was laziness on its purest form.
Bizzare and crazy but totally possible these days...
@retro_player_22 to be fair sega confronted Nintendo first
WTF? Sega is publishing crash on NINTENDO??????????????????????????????????? The 90's called playstation wants crash back
@Giygas_95 Sony never owned Crash though. Naughty Dog made the games, but they weren't part of Sony back then. The franchise changed hands a couple of times, from Universal Interactive, to Vivendi, and now Activision.
@Octane I know. It's just at one time Crash was sort of Sony's mascot.
@Giygas_95 Yeah, that's definitely true.
@NintendoSEGA2004 Really? So the Olympic Games was Sega's idea from the start? Well that's a big miss opportunity, the worst part is that Nintendo actually go along with it.
I remember the fights in the playground about Mario and Sonic. I was definitely team Mario. If only I'd known then what I know now I could have really rubbed their faces in it.
Tap here to load 40 comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...