Crash Team Rumble is attached to one of gaming's longest-running franchises, but it is set to release at a remarkably unlucky time. While there is no real downtime for video game releases, with new games coming out every month, Crash Team Rumble is saddled with an unfortunate release date that risks it being completely overshadowed upon its release. The game getting buried upon release could be a significant blow to those seeking to play at launch even though Crash is a memorable name, he will be facing some intimidating rivals on release day.
The latest addition to the Crash Bandicoot series, Crash Team Rumble is a MOBA spin-off starring the titular character. Tasking players with collecting the series' trademark Wumpa fruit, it offers a selection of both series heroes and villains for players to control. Like other live service games, it will be reliant on online players in order to succeed, making a good launch paramount to success. Considering that a battle pass is already planned for the game, it's clear that the developers are putting a significant amount of faith in the project. It's an ambitious game, and its performance may have an impact on the series.
June Is An Unfortunate Time For Crash Team Rumble To Release
A good launch is important for any game, and even though Crash Team Rumble's closed beta is already set, it is in danger of losing its spotlight to much bigger names. Crash Team Rumble comes out on June 20, but its problems begin at the start of the month, with Street Fighter 6 coming out on June 2. While that is liable to occupy fighting game fans, Diablo 4 comes out less than a week later on June 6. Both of these games are long-awaited continuations of beloved series, and their fans are likely to prioritize them over Crash's new game.
An even bigger blow to Crash Team Rumble may come two days afterward with the release of Final Fantasy 16. Final Fantasy may be the most famous RPG franchise in the industry, and its new installments are guaranteed to draw a lot of attention. The fact that the franchise's name is still in a lot of players' minds thanks to the ongoing Final Fantasy 7 remake games only makes it more noticeable. Final Fantasy 16 coming out almost immediately after Crash Team Rumble is likely to be a major blow to the latter game. A significant amount of players will probably be flocking to the latest Final Fantasy.
While an unimpressive opening day could be a problem for several games, the recent shutdowns of several live service games makes Crash Team Rumble's position look significantly more precarious. A game like Crash Team Rumble relies on a high among of active players to remain online. However, its place in the release schedule ensures that a fair amount of highly anticipated games will be released around it, absorbing attention and potential players. Crash Bandicoot may be well-known, but it isn't as big a name as it used to be, and that makes Crash Team Rumble's chances of success more daunting.
Crash Team Rumble was already a fairly risky project in its own right, and to make matters worse, Diablo 4's ongoing open beta test is overshadowing Crash Team Rumble's beta, taking away even that advantage. At the moment, it seems that the game is a victim of unfortunate timing on all fronts. By the time June comes around, there's a danger that Crash Team Rumble could get washed away.
Crash Team Rumble will be released on June 20, 2023, for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
