Battle of the Dragons

"Free at last! Now, get out of my way, this dimension is mine!"

- Dark Spyro, season intro

 was the third season in Crash Bandicoot: On the Run!. It began on the 10th of June, 2021, and ended on the 12th of July, 2021.

Progression Content
Upstream was added mid-season to the game as well as 5 new gangs, bringing the game's total Power Gem count to 200.

Theme
This season was themed around the Spyro the Dragon series. Dark Spyro and Gnasty Gnorc invaded the Wumpa Islands, and Spyro the Dragon followed their trail to the Bandicoots' dimension to stop them. Additionally, the season celebrated Pride Month with new rainbow-colored skins.

At the end of the season, Spyro managed to repair the portal and send Dark Spyro back to the Dragon Realms, but Gnasty Gnorc is still lurking around the Wumpa Islands. Regardless, he bids farewell to both Crash and Coco and thanked them for their assistance.

Season Event Area
As the female N. Tropy was banished at the end of the previous season, she left open a portal to the Dragon Realms. The portal appeared at the beginning of the season, on top of a stone pillar next to the Season Event Area. It emitted an ominous purple light field and a trophy is floating in front of it, rotating on itself.

At the season's start, the portal broke down after Spyro entered it. Its frame appears ruined, with dark purple crystals sprouting from its base. The gold-encased gem that was on top of the arch replaced the floating trophy, which then floated on the sea next to the pillar. The gem rotated on itself while emitting energy sparks.

Vending Machine Additions
Season 3 added 7 new skins as Daily Deals in the Vending Machine and 7 new ones as Season Offers. The Rainbow skin Season Offers were not available to players living in countries banning same-sex unions.

Survival Runs
This season featured the Dino might! and revamped Bear It Survival Runs.

Mission Board
Most missions were given out by Spyro who needed the traded items to repair and power back the portal to the Dragon Realms. Gnasty Gnorc joined in to taunt the Bandicoots while taking over the islands. Neo Cortex also called for a truce and requested items to craft a Reverse Ray and turn Dark Spyro back into an egg. This tactic distracted Dark Spyro enough for Spyro to finish fixing the portal.


 * Main article: Mission Board

Seasonal Gangs
Dark Spyro and his gangs invaded Bear It, the Lost City and Road to Ruin. The sky turned pink in Bear It and dark purple in the other levels. Purple crystals sprouted everywhere and crystal particles were floating in the air. Flames in the Lost City and Road to Ruin turned blue. Chunks of lands and towers from the Dragon Realms were sucked in as well and appeared stuck into the cliffs of Bear It or simply floating in the air in the other two levels. Large inactive portals with three purple gemstones also appeared on the sides of the path in Road to Ruin. Lastly, Dark Spyro marked his territory with banners sporting his face and the symbol of Dark Aether.

Trivia

 * While the developers planned to have a Spyro season from the start, they didn't want to have Crash and Coco fight Spyro, and so added Dark Spyro instead as a Battle Run boss. They also managed to add Gnasty Gnorc as an additional boss battle for the season and to give more variety to boss attacks.
 * The developers adopted the idea that Crash Bandicoot: On the Run! also takes place in the center of a multiverse where all Spyro games happened. This season sticks to character designs from Spyro Reignited Trilogy. The conflict between Spyro and Dark Spyro is directly inspired from their battle in Skylanders Academy. Furthermore, Dark Spyro's emblem is the symbol of Dark Aether from The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night, where the character was first introduced to the series.