At long last, a new Crash Bandicoot game is on the way. Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time does not hide the fact it will ignore everything the franchise produced after the PS1 era, which most fans believe was the license's peak. Naughty Dog's trilogy and Crash Team Racing helped cement the Bandicoot as the PlayStation's mascot and one of gaming's most iconic characters.

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If someone owned a PS1, they likely had a couple of Crash Bandicoot games. The franchise was beloved by many and quite accessible, especially once Naughty Dog toned down the difficulty following the first game. As such, there are many casual fans of the PS1 games that might not know some fascinating facts about Crash Bandicoot.

Crash The Wombat?

Every idea must start somewhere, and Crash Bandicoot did not just form fully realized from the minds of Naughty Dog's developers. While conceptualizing the design of the lead character, Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin took inspiration from Sonic the Hedgehog and the Looney Tunes.

During this time, a couple of animal types were considered, including bandicoots, and Crash went by the name of Willy the Wombat. This name was just a placeholder, eventually transforming into Crash Bandicoot.

Tawna

Outside of Crash Boom Bang! and the PS4 remakes, Tawna is only a significant character in the original Crash Bandicoot. Presented as the hero's girlfriend, Tawna stood out due to her design, which was reportedly based on Pamela Anderson and Jessica Rabbit.

The character's original aesthetic had to be toned down at the request of Universal Interactive Studios, so much so, Naughty Dog removed Tawna from subsequent games as she became too far removed from the studio's original vision.

A Looney Tune

Compared to other mascots of the era, Crash Bandicoot's characters are surprisingly emotive, especially Crash. Naughty Dog achieved this using vertex animation, a 3D tool that is effective at creating deformed and expressive facial features. It stemmed from Naughty Dog's desire to inject a touch of that Looney Tunes magic into Crash Bandicoot.

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This resulted in a game that was considerably more cartoonish than its peers, in terms of visual style and rules governing its world.

Three-Dimensional

Crash in medieval times in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped

Crash Bandicoot's trademark behind the character camera angle is a staple of the license. While the likes of Super Mario 64 would hit shelves prior to Crash Bandicoot, Naughty Dog was pushing the envelope when the studio was developing its title.

In 1994, side-scrolling platformers were still the norm, but 3D games were growing popular in arcades. As such, Naughty Dog took the initiative and sought to create a full 3D platformer instead of a traditional 2D side-scroller.

Ripper Roo Is A Genius

The always hyper Ripper Roo shows up in three of Naughty Dog's PS1 games, often serving as an early boss to test the player's skills. Despite repeatedly falling victim to his own weapons and being outsmarted by Crash, Ripper Roo is actually a certified genius.

In between the first and second games, Roo goes to college and even publishes a successful book. Crash Bandicoot was never about its story, but there is more to Naughty Dog's characters than meets the eye.

Ken Kutaragi Was Against The PlayStation Having A Mascot

Unlike Nintendo's Mario or Sega's Sonic, Sony did not set out specifically to position Crash Bandicoot as the PlayStation's mascot, especially in Japan. After all, the brand already had the Polygon Man, so any other mascot was fighting an uphill battle.

Ken Kutaragi – The Father of the PlayStation – was specifically against the idea of the console having an official mascot. Sony's system was targeting an older audience than Nintendo, consequently, a cartoon mascot was seen as unnecessary or even counterproductive.

The (No Longer) Lost Level

Prior to the release of the N. Sane Trilogy, "Stormy Ascent" from the first Crash Bandicoot was a lost stage. While it was possible to access it through a GameShark Code, most players would have never even heard of the level if not for the remake.

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In a platformer filled with unforgiving levels, "Stormy Ascent" was deemed too cruel and difficult by Naughty Dog to be included. The studio also did not have enough time to finish the level.

Spyro The Dragon Demo

Spyro posing in front of the castle from the original game.

Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon are forever linked as the definitive platformers of Sony's original console. This connection was further enhanced by both series offering demos of the other. Spyro the Dragon included a demo of Crash Bandicoot: Warped that allowed players to run through the "Tell No Tales" stage.

Naturally, Warped returned the favor by including a Spyro the Dragon demo that featured the game's opening hub world. The guide on how to access the demo was provided in Warped's manual.

The Origin Of The Crates

Crates are synonymous with Crash Bandicoot. They hold the game's main collectible, Wumpa Fruit, and are just really fun to smash. Iconic as they would become, crates were introduced quite late into Crash Bandicoot's development cycle and were designed as a way to fill up space in the stages.

Crates proved to be such a great addition that they would be expanded upon to include TNTs and Nitros, ultimately becoming a significant tool in the games' stages.

CTR's Unlockable Characters

Along with all the bosses and Fake Crash, Penta Penguin can also be unlocked in Crash Team Racing using a cheat code. While functional, the character was buggier than the other racers in the game.

The game's villain, Nitros Oxide, would not make his playable debut until the PS2's Crash Nitro Kart, but Naughty Dog did try to make him available in CTR. While a Gameshark code can unlock him, Oxide is extremely buggy and can break the game.

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