Yes, there’s actually a story reason.
Activision and developer Vicarious Visions announced Crash’s younger sister Coco as a playable character in the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy during E3 2017. And, for those wondering, the team has an actual, narrative reason, to allow Coco to appear in all three games — even before she was created.
During a demo at E3, Producer Kara Massie told IGN that the team was able to justify Coco’s inclusion thanks to Crash Bandicoot: Warped’s use of time travel. Showcasing the save/load screen of Warped, with Coco standing next to it, Massie described how the younger Bandicoot can be fully playable in Crash Bandicoot and Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back.
“Time travel solves everything,” Massie joked. “So, [we have] the save/load screen. She’s hacking in with her pink laptop and you see shots of the first two games [appear].
“There is a similar interaction point in all three hubs of all three games,” Massie explained, and Coco will be able to transport herself between games via these hubs, in which players can hot swap between Crash and Coco.
And so while Coco has narratively been worked into the N. Sane Trilogy, there is another, development-oriented reason Coco is included.
“The team wanted to [include Coco] right from early stages of production,” Massie said. “Animators, character designers came to me and said ‘Can we fit this in the schedule?'”
The answer became a resounding “Yes” after a game jam at Vicarious Visions in which a few members of the team created a working Coco prototype.
“So the team was like, ‘OK, if we’re going to make this happen it has to be much more than a re-skin,” Massie explained. The team decided to create all new animations for her attacks, platforming, idle stances, deaths, and for when she earns rewards like relics and gems.
Coco first appeared in Cortex Strikes Back and was playable during select levels of Warped. Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy will be released on PlayStation 4 on June 30. For more from E3, stay tuned to IGN’s E3 2017 hub.
Jonathon Dornbush is an Associate Editor for IGN and if he’s good at any game, it’s Crash Bandicoot. Find him on Twitter @jmdornbush.