Highlights
- Toys For Bob, the developer of the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, has become independent from Activision and Microsoft.
- Their first independent game will be developed in partnership with Microsoft, with potential for a new Spyro game.
- Spyro’s popularity was revived by Toys For Bob through the Reignited Trilogy and Skylanders series, making them a strong candidate for a new entry in the franchise.
Recently, former Activision developer Toys For Bob announced that it had spun off and become independent from Activision and new parent company Microsoft. This is the first time in several decades that the 35-year-old developer will be operating independently, giving them the freedom to work with whomever they so desire. Surely, this is a relief for the veteran studio, who after shipping 2020’s Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, largely served as a support developer for the Call of Duty franchise before facing layoffs and a studio closure following Microsoft’s buyout of Activision.
Even still, while the developer is now free to shop its services around to any publisher it pleases, the team will not be going too far from its previous home base. Toys For Bob confirmed following its spinoff that its first proper “independent” game will nevertheless be developed in partnership with Microsoft, as the Xbox heads will handle the publishing duties. Naturally, it’s hard to predict whether the game will be based around an original IP or an existing one, but I truly hope that Microsoft will give Toys For Bob the opportunity to make a brand-new Spyro the Dragon game. Microsoft has been hoping to bring back Activision franchises that aren’t Call of Duty, and Spyro would be a great place to start.
Toys For Bob Has Revived Spyro More Than Once
Should Microsoft (and, by proxy, Activision) decide that they want to create a new Spyro game, Toys For Bob should be the first developer they call for the job. After all, it was Toys For Bob who revived the franchise with the Spyro Reignited Trilogy in 2018, a remake collection featuring brand-new versions of the original three PlayStation Spyro the Dragon games. Not only was this release a major commercial success that sold over 10 million copies, but it was a great shot in the arm that the Spyro franchise desperately needed after so many underwhelming entries.