Regional Differences

This is a sub-page of Crash Bandicoot.

Crash Bandicoot has three distinct versions that were released, one version for each of the three regions. They were made and released in the order North American, Europe, and then Japan. The North American version will be considered the base version, as it was released first. Each version carries over all fixes made from the previous versions unless specified otherwise.

Europe#

Most of the European differences will come down to timing changes necessary due to the conversion from 30 frames per second to 25 frames per second. The region-agnostic "velocity" function used throughout the game's code will, at full speed (25 frames per second), output a value that's around 100.09766% of the truly correct value, versus the approximate average of 99.61% in the North American and Japanese versions. This means that objects move faster, gravity is more powerful, etc. Various frame values are run through a *25/30 operation to convert them to PAL framerate.

To do:
Document.

North America	Europe

A texturing bug with the lizards has been fixed.

Japan#

North America	Japan

The title logo and loading screen images were localized accordingly.
The title menu uses the European background, which has a resolution of 512x256, instead of the North American one, which has the correct resolution (512x240).
Wumpa fruit and gems are localized as "apples" and "diamonds" respectively.
The level names are changed to sound more like Japanese idioms and expressions.
Crash is overall a lot more vocal, such as making expressions whenever he ends a level, gets hit, enters a level or gets hit with a box in the level end screen. All of his previous voicelines have also been dubbed to Japanese expressions, along with Brio and Cortex.
Various actions that previously required pressing X to continue now require X or Circle (and sometimes even Start), as is customary for Japanese games.
During the map screen, camera rotation is done using R1/L1 instead of Square/Circle, as Circle and X are both used to select the level.

North America	Japan

TNT boxes now have a bomb icon instead of the text "TNT".

North America	Japan

Passwords are no longer used as alternatives to saving the game. All menus have had their password options removed. The game also no longer gives you Final Passwords. All of the code for these screens that no longer appear was not removed, and their text wasn't localized, so they remain just as functional if accessed through hacks.

North America	Japan

...except for the password input menu, which is instead now accessed with a cheat code on the title menu: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, Left, Right, Circle.

The first Aku Aku box in N. Sanity Beach was removed, as the game gives Crash an Aku Aku at the beginning automatically (but not if you die). Along with this change is a (luckily inoffensive) bug, where Aku Aku will read certain pointers as if they were game coordinates and initially spawn way out of bounds if the player skips the intro cutscene instead of letting it play out.
Due to the first level giving an Aku Aku automatically, entering it with 2 or more will downgrade it to just one Aku Aku mask, making it so the automatic hint does not grant Crash invincibility.
Two levels were swapped on the map due to difficulty: Sunset Vista and Slippery Climb, despite the latter taking place in Cortex's castle and the former having the castle in the background. Not that the level order in the original release made much more sense anyway.
A few colored gems were moved around: Hog Wild now gives the green gem, The Lost City now gives the red gem (making a revisit to Road to Nowhere no longer necessary for 100%) and Slippery Climb gives a clear gem.
Four levels have been given Tawna bonus rounds for extra save points: Temple Ruins, Slippery Climb, Cortex Power and Castle Machinery. As such, the box count has increased by 3 in those levels. Since Jaws of Darkness saves at the next level, completing its bonus round will make the Castle Machinery bonus round inaccessible.

North America	Japan

Tawna in the bonus round disappears after she gives you the save point, instead of sticking around and looking to the side every now and then.
You can now die at any time and still get a gem in a level, but boxes broken are still not saved with checkpoints, so you will have to break them all after they all respawn. In the level end screen, only one box ever falls on Crash's head. According to developer Dave Baggett, this was because the version where multiple boxes fall was disturbing to children.

(Source: Crash Bandicoot: An Oral History by Polygon)

North America	Japan

The level end screen will still tell you the amount of gems and keys you have acquired, even if you missed boxes.
Regardless of the type of save point that's acquired (save point, gem save or key save), the flavor text with the game completion percentage will always say "SAVE POINT" (セーブポイント), leaving the untranslated "GEM SAVE" and "KEY SAVE" textures unused.

Crash has an extra idle animation, the full version of the animation that plays when Crash earns a gem. In this idle animation, Crash spins and celebrates before looking around and getting back up with an embarrassed face.
The boulder has been slowed down by 2%.

North America	Japan

The platforms in the river levels Up the Creek and Upstream are larger. The venus fly traps are 10% larger, the branch leaves are 20% larger, and the floating leaves are 30% larger.
The river levels now have an ambience sound.

North America	Japan

Papu Papu has two extra hit points, and he swings his club 25% and 50% faster than normal on the 4th and 5th phases respectively. In N. Sane Trilogy, he was given the 5 hit points in all versions of the game.

North America	Japan

The High Road was significantly cut down in length. The level is simply an empty void past where it ends on this version.
For some reason, the pushers and slide platforms in The Lost City, Sunset Vista, Slippery Climb and Stormy Ascent will try to normalize their cycle timers based on the game lag when they spawn, which has the adverse effect of extending the cycle timers far too much if Crash dies and the game has to read the disc before he can respawn, as it is considered game lag. One of the flags for the pushers bypasses this.

North America	Japan

An Aku Aku box was added to Toxic Waste, the start of Jaws of Darkness, and the start of The Lab.
Some of the box code was altered, with no functional difference besides one unused box type no longer functioning.
The European anti-piracy warning screen present in all European PlayStation games is left unused (9MapP).
Different rolling demos and a different demo order, to accommodate for any possible gameplay changes: Intro, Jungle Rollers, Papu Papu, The Great Gate, Boulders, Jaws of Darkness, The Lab. This means The Lost City no longer has a demo.

North America	Japan

The memory card menu now uses the BIOS font for the save block names, due to the large amount of characters that can be displayed. The old font and old text code is left unused.
The memory card menu doesn't show "PART X OF Y" with games that take up more than 1 block when highlighting those kind of blocks.
The idle animation of Crash throwing up a wumpa fruit and having it land on him has been improved. It now uses a flag to determine when Crash has been hit with it, instead of simply doing the head scratch six times (the maximum amount of head scratches is now 50).
A potential bug where the fruit does not spawn from combo kills has been fixed.
A possible softlock when the memory card screen tries to spawn at the end of bonus rounds has been fixed.
A potential bug where the fruit does not spawn from bat auto-kills has been fixed.
The cut-off point for frametime at which gold Aku Aku spawns particles quickly has been lowered from 30ms to 27ms.
The speed value for the path-following platforms which must be stood on to start moving used throughout the game (usually horizontally) has been changed from a "units per frame" value to a "units per second" value, making it more stable and scale with the amount of lag. On spawn, it multiplies its spawn parameter for speed by 30 (NTSC framerate).
The speed value for the turtles has been changed from a "units per frame" value to a "units per second" value, making it more stable and scale with the amount of lag. On spawn, it multiplies its spawn parameter for speed by 30 (NTSC framerate).
The speed value for the ruins crushers has been from a "units per frame" value to a "units per second" value, making it more stable and scale with the amount of lag.
The speed value for the ruins bats has been from a "units per frame" value to a "units per second" value, making it more stable and scale with the amount of lag.
Brio now makes a "gibberish" sound when you come near him in his boss fight.
Lab Assistants can now be killed with invincibility even while they're electrified.
There is now a 1 in 3 chance for Cortex to laugh whenever he charges his gun, instead of being guaranteed.
Cortex only has one "attack" sound, instead of two.
Cortex now has a sound effect for getting hit.
Cortex's hoverboard now only has a 1 in 2 chance to make an explosion sound if it explodes when it breaks.
The game waits half a second longer at the end of the Cortex boss fight to take you to the game end cutscene level.
The credits are much longer.

Aku Aku Hints#

Aku Aku will give the player a hint whenever he's collected. Each level has specific hints which are played depending on how many hints Aku Aku has tried to give in the level. Aku Aku will not try to give a hint if he would otherwise give Crash invincibility when collected. The hints are skipped with X or Circle, which unfortunately still make you jump or spin afterwards.

Level	Japanese Hint	Translation
N. Sanity Beach	わしはアクアク、このしまをまもっておるまじゅつしじゃ。コルテックスのたくらみで、しまはひどいことになっておる。タウナもつかまっておるぞ。さあたすけにいそぐんじゃ。	I am Aku Aku, a magician who protects this island. Cortex's plot has done terrible things to the islands. And Tawna has been captured too! You must hurry and save her.
	わしがついているときは、いちどてきからみをまもってやるぞ。２まいあつめるとキラキラひかってとてもかっこいいぞ。わしを３まいあつめると、しんぴのパワーがばくはつじゃっ	While I am following you, I will protect you from enemies a single time. If you collect me twice, I will start to shine and look very cool. Find me three times for an explosion of mystical power.
	きばこやてきはジャンプしてこわすことができるのをしっておるかの。ジャンプしてみるといいこともあるぞよ。いつもスピンばかりではめがまわるしの。	Did you know that you can destroy crates and enemies by jumping on them? Sometimes jumping can lead to good things. Besides, spinning all the time will make you dizzy.
Jungle Rollers	えんばんいわはタイミングがすべてじゃ。いわのうごきをよ〜くみて、おもいきっていけ。ペシャンコにならぬようにな。	With the disc-shaped rocks, timing is everything. Pay extra close attention to their movements, then go as fast as you can. Careful not to get squished.
Jungle Rollers	タウナのプレートをさんまいあつめると、タウナのこころがつくりだしたせかいにはいれるのじゃ。うまくタウナのところへいけたなら、セーブができるぞよ。でもおちたらしっぱいじゃ。	If you can collect three Tawna tokens, you can enter a world created from her mind. Successfully reaching her will let you save the game. But if you fall down, you'll fail.
The Great Gate	げんじゅうみんはへいわをあいするものたちだから、おまえをきずつけることはしないぞよ。もしくるしめられるとすれば、おまえのスピンがちょっときにいらないのだろうて。	The natives are a peace-loving people, so they won't hurt you. If they do try to bother you, it's probably because they don't like your spinning too much.
The Great Gate	タウナのセーブはせいこうしたかの？セーブしたゲームではじめるときは、セーブしたステージからはじめるときと、つぎのステージからはじめるときがある。３まいめのプレートのばしょによるのじゃ。	Have you successfully completed a Tawna save? When you start a saved game, you will sometimes continue from the level you saved at, and sometimes from the level after. It all depends on the location of the third plate.
Upstream	きのうえはすべりやすいから、さらなるちゅういがひつようじゃ。おちついていけばかならずすすめるぞよ。そうそう、さかなはスピンによわいことをしってるおるかの。	The tops of the trees are slippery, so you must be even more careful than usual. As long as you stay calm, you can overcome anything. Oh, and did you know that fish are weak to your spin?
Upstream	おまえにもうひとつ、だいじなことをおしえてやろう。はこをぜんぶこわしてゴールしてみよ。うつくしいダイヤがてにはいるぞよ。チェックポイントからスタートしたときはだめじゃぞ。	Let me give you another important piece of advice. Try to destroy all the crates before completing the level. If you do, you'll obtain a beautiful gem! But it won't count if you start from a checkpoint.
Rolling Stones	このステージのどこかに、ブリオのかおがかくされておる。３つあつめると、ブリオのつくりだしたちょーむずかしいボーナスステージにちょうせんできるぞよ。じしんがあるならいってみよ。	Brio tokens are hidden in certain places throughout this stage. Collect 3, and you can take on an extra hard bonus stage that Brio created himself. Try it if you're feeling confident.
Rolling Stones	そうそう、みちのとちゅうでおまえがちかづくときえてしまうダイヤがあったであろう。あれはカラーダイヤでひらくひみつのつうろなのじゃ。イノシシダッシュでゲットせよ。	Oh yes, do you remember the gem partway down the trail that vanished when you approached it? That is a secret path unlocked by a Color Gem. Get it from Hog Wild.
Native Fortress	すべてのはこをこわしたつもりなのに、パーフェクトにならないことがあるじゃろ。それはきえてしまうカラーダイヤにひみつがあるのじゃ。イノシシでグリーンをとっていれば、ジャングルへいけ。	Sometimes, even when you think you've destroyed all the crates, you still won't get a perfect score. That's because the disappearing Color Gems have a secret. If you picked up the green one with the warthog, you must go into the jungle.
Up the Creek	このステージをぬければボスのリパールーとたいけつじゃ。いつもとびまわっているイカレたやつじゃが、そのとびかたにはきそくがある。ああみえてもきまじめなせいかくなのじゃ。	Once you get through this level, you'll face off against its boss, Ripper Roo. He's a crazy fellow who's always jumping around, but his hops follow a certain rule. Despite how it may seem, he is a deeply serious individual.
The Lost City	ここはおおむかしにぶんめいがあったところじゃ。いまはどうぶつしかすんでおらんがの。ところで、コウモリがきらいならかべのやつをたおしてみよ。りょうほうわすれずにな。	There was a civilization here many years ago. These days, only animals live here. Speaking of which, if you don't like bats, try to defeat the ones on the walls. Don't forget both sides.
Temple Ruins	このしんでんは、ないぶがとてもふくざつなしくみになっておる。もし、すすむべきほうこうがわからなくなったら、たしかめるたしかなほうほうがある。リンゴをおいかけることじゃ。	The inside of this temple has a very complex layout. If you're not sure which way to go, there's a reliable method of finding out. Just follow the Wumpa fruit.
Road to Nowhere	ここはあしばがよわいから、テンポよくすすまねばならぬ。じぶんのかげをよくみるのじゃ。おおきなジャンプとちいさなジャンプのくみあわせじゃ。イノシシはなかまではないぞよ。	The platforms here are weak, so you must proceed at a good pace. Pay close attention to your shadow. Use a combination of large and small jumps. And remember, warthogs are not your friends.
Slippery Climb	２ばんめのしまもおおづめじゃ。しろをのぼっていくと、ふたりのけんきゅういんがおるじゃろう。コルテックスのようさいがひろがってきているようじゃ。クラッシュよ、いそぐのじゃ。	Now the second island reaches its finale. When you climb up the castle, you'll find two lab assistants waiting. Cortex's stronghold seems to be spreading. Crash, you must hurry.
Heavy Machinery	いよいよここからコルテックスのほんきょちにとつにゅうじゃ。くうちゅうにうかぶロボットでトゲのついたやつはおまえにはたおせないぞよ。へんなところにうかんでいるのはなぜかのう。	From this point on, we finally begin to storm Cortex's headquarters. The robots that hover in midair are covered in spikes, so you won't be able to defeat them. I wonder why some of them are floating in odd places.
Cortex Power	どうじゃな、このしてんは。かがくようえきのみぞのはばがみやすいようにしておいたぞよ。トゲのロボットはおまえよりもたかいところにうかんでおる。したをくぐりぬけられるのじゃ。	How do you like this point of view? I've made it easier for you to see the width of the chemical solution trenches. The spiky robots are floating higher above you, so you can walk past underneath them.
Cortex Power	スイッチをみつけておさないとさいごのはこのはしはかんせいしないぞよ。とちゅうでやられてしまったら、またもどってスイッチをおすのじゃ。２ばいたのしいのう。	Unless you can find and press the switch, you'll never complete the last crate bridge. If you're defeated en route, you'll have to go back and press it again. Double the fun!
Generator Room	コルテックスのかおがうつっておるモニターがあったじゃろ。そのうえにとびのれることにきづいたかの。コルテックスをふみつけているみたいできぶんがいいぞよ。	Remember those computer monitors displaying Cortex's face? Did you realize you can jump on top of them? It feels good, like you're stomping on Cortex himself.
Toxic Waste	さて、ゲームのこらいからながくたのしまれておる、ドラムかんジャンプじゃ。むずかしい？フィーリングですすむのじゃ。ハネるやつがにがてなばあいはよこにさけるのもためずがよい。	Now it's time for oil drum jumping, something that has been enjoyed for many years in video games. Too difficult? Just go by feeling. If you're having trouble with the bouncing ones, you can avoid them by moving sideways instead.
Toxic Waste	ここをぬけると、ピンストライプのへやにはいるぞよ。やつがじゅうをうってるときはむてきだから、ひたすらかくれてがまんじゃ。たまのいれかえのタイミングもチャンスじゃぞ。	Once you've passed through here, you'll enter Pinstripe's room. He's invincible while firing his gun, so focus on hiding and biding your time. When he reloads, that's your chance to attack.
The High Road	きほんをおぼえているか？じぶんのカゲをみて、ちいさなジャンプとおおきなジャンプのくみあわせじゃ。イノシシはさゆうのはじでまっているとさけやすくなるぞよ。	Do you remember the basics? Watch your shadow, and combine short jumps with high ones. It will be easier to avoid the warthogs if you wait at the left or right edges.
Sunset Vista	さて、ここにはコルテックスのかおがかくされているぞよ。３つあつめてみよ。コルテックスチャレンジにとつにゅうじゃ。みごととけたら、ひみつのカギがてにはいるぞよ。	Cortex tokens are hidden in this stage. Collect three of them and you'll be warped into Cortex's challenging bonus stage. If you pass the stage, you'll get a secret key.
Lights Out	このステージはまっくらじゃからわしがあかりになってやろう。じかんがたつとちからがなくなるのでいそいでゆくがよい。わしもわかいころはもっとながもちしたものじゃがのう。	As this stage is pitch-dark, I become light. As time passes, my power will run out, so you should hurry. When I was young, you could carry me even longer.
	ふみだいにタイミングがあわないときは、よこにとびのってひなんできるのじゃ。きんきゅうひなんにしかならないがのう。	If you mess up on timing the platforms, you can jump to the sides in order to prevent falling off the stage, but only do it as a last resort.
	このステージをきわめたものは、わしのちからをたよらずしてクリアできるそうじゃ。くらくなってもあきらめずに、こころのめですすんでみよ。	If you have mastered this stage, you can even clear it without relying on my power. Don't give up if it becomes dark. Just believe in yourself.
Jaws of Darkness	またしんでんにやってきたな。こだいのぶんめいはおおくのひみつをのこしておる。おぼえているか？まよったらリンゴにいくさきをきくのじゃ。	You've come to the temple again. This ancient civilization has many secrets. Have you remembered? If you get lost in a stage, the Wumpa fruit will show you the right path.
Castle Machinery	ちゃんとこちらにすすんできたおまえには、ブリオのたおしかたをおしえてやろう。ブリオがなげるやくひんはブリオのわるいたましいじゃ。ジャンプしてたおしてみよ。	Since you've come this far, I'll teach you the way to defeat Brio. The medicines thrown by Brio are his evil souls. Try jumping on his medicines in order to defeat him.
The Lab	ビリビリたのしい、コルテックスのけんきゅうしょじゃ。ここをぬけると、なにもないようなステージがある。パーフェクトをつみかさねたものだけにそのひみつがあかされるという。	This is Cortex's research center, full of electrifying fun. Once you leave here, you'll find a stage that seems empty. It's said that those who've gotten a perfect on every stage will have their secrets revealed.

Japanese-Exclusive Music#

Level	Music
Bonus Round (Tawna)
Koala Kong
Pinstripe Potoroo
Dr. Nitrus Brio
Dr. Neo Cortex

The Japanese version contains five exclusive music tracks that replaced some themes of the international versions: the themes for the Tawna Bonus Round, Koala Kong, Pinstripe Potoroo, Dr. Nitrus Brio, and Dr. Neo Cortex, respectively. The original Dr. Neo Cortex theme is still heard in the intro cutscene and in his and N. Brio's bonus rounds – only the final battle theme is replaced.

According to the game's music composer, the replaced tracks for the Japanese release were

An 11th hour decision made by the Sony people in Japan. They felt that the boss rounds needed to sound more 'video game-like'. The only reference they gave was music from the Main Street Electrical Parade at Disneyland. I only had a day or so to write all those themes. My favorite comment was about the original Tawna bonus round music. It roughly translated into 'the sound of the guitar mixed with the tree imagery is too nostalgic-sounding'. I’m still scratching my head on that one.

— Josh Mancell

(Source: Interview by OKeijiDragon, Crash Mania.net)