The Bandicoot Comes Back To Roost

PlayStation fans will recognize the character that has become synonymous with Sony's 32-bit machine. Crash Bandicoot, released last year on the system's one-year anniversary in the US, was one of the most popular PlayStation titles of 1996. Sony is hoping to repeat that success by releasing its sequel this fall.

The game is being developed by Naughty Dog and Universal Interactive, and the original team from the first game is back working their magic on Crash's second adventure.

The story goes like this: After the ending of the first game, Neo Cortex falls to Earth, but continues to fall and lands at the entrance to an underground cavern. From there, he rebuilds his evil empire. Crash, of course, is there to attempt to stop his evil plans, but this time Neo Cortex is ready.

Some of the things to look for in the sequel are a completely revamped engine, with an increased number of animation frames.;enhanced lighting effects; an increase in the number of polygons on-screen; and more detailed textures and rendered graphics.

Sony says the levels in the second game will be much bigger - at least twice as large - as the first game's. We'll have more on Crash Bandicoot 2 as it develops. Until then, check out these screenshots, courtesy of our friends at Sony Computer Entertainment America and Electronic Gaming Monthly.