Crystal

Crystals (known as Power Crystals in Crash Twinsanity and Crash Tag Team Racing, and Power Stones in the Japanese games and manga) are seen in many Crash games as an energy source much like gems. They have been used in the series starting from Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, as a way of showing a level's completion.

The crystals were mostly used for evil to control all of Dr. Cortex's machines and gadgets but now they are mostly used for good to help Crash Bandicoot save the world.

It has been stated that there are 25 slave crystals, one Master Crystal, and the Super Big Power Crystal. However, there are 28 crystals in Crash Bash and 142 in Crash Tag Team Racing. In that game, the crystals apparently have the power to change the environment in the stages, in addition to changing their rules. Starting with Crash of the Titans the crystals were replaced with the mojo that was used to power Cortex's machines and to create his titan army.

Trivia

 * The crystals are most likely based off the Amethyst Crystal, a type of quartz mineral, due to their shape and complexity of color only being in the violet variety.
 * In the early version of Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, the crystals were going to be red, but they were changed to purple.
 * Coincidentally the icon for crystals in Crash Twinsanity is red.
 * In Crash Bash, all the crystal challenge arenas are changed from the original arena design. (e.g. Space Bash is a futuristic type arena, while its crystal challenge is more of an Egyptian type arena.)
 * There were crystals in Crash Bandicoot, which were hazards in a cut level, Acid Rain.