An unreleased Crash vs. Spyro racing game has been found

YouTuber Modern Vintage Gamer has uncovered an unreleased Crash vs. Spyro Racing game for the original Xbox. Developed by Argonaut in 2003/2004, this crossover version unfortunately never saw a release as the studio closed down. However, 20 years later, we now have a glimpse of the gameplay, an introductory scene featuring the two platform mascots, and the title screen.

While going through a hard drive from a development kit containing two Eutechnyx games, MVG discovered a mysterious third title called "LT Demo." This turned out to be Crash vs. Spyro Racing, which can now be played on an emulator as MVG has shared all the files. It is rudimentary and obviously incomplete since it was a canceled game, and in this version, players don't even control Crash or Spyro but rather two generic racers.

On the track, there are scattered crates that clearly come from Crash Bandicoot and even produce the same sound effect when destroyed. While searching through the directory, MVG also found a folder named "video" that contained a movie file. This is the introductory scene that can be skipped starting at 3:49. We see several characters from Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon revving up at the starting line, ready to begin the race. As they drive and compete for first place, the focus is on the rivalry between the two title heroes.

Prior to this crossover, Naughty Dog released its own Mario Kart-style game in 1999 called Crash Team Racing. Spyro did not receive his own racing game, but when CTR was remastered in 2019, the Spyro and Friends DLC was released, bringing this unknown canceled crossover to life after 20 years. Looking back at this expansion now, it carries much more historical significance as an obscure, mostly unknown vision that was only mentioned in forums with dubious evidence, most of which were dismissed, including by MVG.

In 2021, a user named Dink claimed on an Italian website that there was an Argonaut project called Crash vs. Spyro Racing, citing evidence from an Xbox Debug Kit. However, much of the crucial data was lost due to reuse. Fortunately, he shared one of the few remaining assets, the title screen, which helped MVG prove the claims to be true.

Regarding the name LT Demo, we see on the title screen that it was developed by LT Studios. MVG confirmed this when they found a startup video that showed the LT logo. But where does Argonaut fit in? As MVG discovered, LT Studios was founded in 1999 and became operational in 2000. In August 2002, it eventually became a subsidiary of Argonaut Games. Well, these two-year-old claims hold weight since the developer kit found by MVG confirms who developed this canceled racing game.