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The baby crocodilian’s more free-roaming and go-kart laden sequel, which allegedly sported the ‘Kingdom of the Gobbos’ subtitle during development (it was subsequently dropped for the official release in June of 1999), is indeed getting a fresh, modern coat of paint. The revisited Croc 2 will hit every major platform, including Nintendo Switch, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Steam and GOG, with the majority of accompanying wishlists going live today. I’m a tad disappointed by the lack of N-Gage compatibility, but you can’t win them all.

The upcoming remaster is due for release in Q4 2026, so not that long of a wait, all things considered. I wouldn’t be shocked if work on Croc 2: Kingdom of the Gobbos began alongside the retooled Croc: Legend of the Gobbos, but that’s pure speculation. I have to think Argonaut predicted at least some level of genuine nostalgic success with the reissue of its classic 3D platformer, and good for them if it’s doing better than anticipated.

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If the Croc 2 project is anything like its predecessor, it will probably include plenty of graphical, on-the-fly toggles and CRT filters, alongside a remastered soundtrack and revamped controls. By 1999, a lot of PlayStation games fully supported the DualShock controller, and luckily, Croc 2 was part of that wave. So, gone were the first Croc’s tank controls, and what replaced them were proper analog inputs, thank God. The original Croc did support the short-lived and now quite rare Dual Analog controller, my personal favorite Sony gamepad, but it was more or less shoehorned in at the last minute.

In a 2016 Retro Gamer interview, lead designer Nic Cusworth told me that Croc 2 was a ‘flawed favorite’ of his. He said there was a lot of ambition going into the sequel, and plenty of obvious Diddy Kong Racing influence, especially in regard to the central hub world and all the new vehicle segments. Regardless, he wished he could have ultimately fixed the wily camera in Croc 2, and maybe Argonaut will finally grant him that redo later this year.

Croc 2: Kingdom of the Gobbos will also bring back the extensive Crocipedia, a sprawling digital museum of art assets, design documents and lengthy developer interviews. Now it’s called the Croc2pedia, because hey, why not. Full disclosure: I was interviewed for the original Crocipedia, so you can check out my chat in the first Croc remaster, if you’re so inclined.

I still remember seeing the advert for Croc 2 on the back of the Croc: Legend of the Gobbos instruction manual, emblazoned with a shiny Christmas 1998 release date, then having to wait until the year 1999 to finally play it. Development delays, I’m assuming. Once I eventually picked up a copy for $20 at Walmart (on clearance!) I definitely had some good fun, although admittedly, it didn’t make as much of an impact on me as Legend of the Gobbos. Reviews reflect this, and maybe it’s because expectations had changed by 1999. 3D gaming had evolved, and gamers had a higher bar.

Regardless, I’m still very much looking forward to re-exploring this arguably underrated PS1/Windows game, which will hopefully prove much more enjoyable this time around, outfitted with better visuals, better controls and most importantly, a refined camera. Maybe it will make up for the cancelled Dreamcast port. I’m still salty about that one. Salty like the Bering Sea.