Crystal

Crystals (known as Power Crystals in Crash Twinsanity, Crash Bandicoot Purple: Ripto's Rampage, 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. 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.

Overview
It is revealed by Uka Uka in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped that he tasked Dr. Cortex from his temple prison with gathering the crystals, along with the gems, to serve their plans to rule the world. According to Uka Uka, the crystals and gems are power sources. Making their debut in Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, Dr. Cortex saw them as remarkably powerful assets to his plans for world domination.

As either demonstrated or explained in the same game and future games afterward, the crystals can harness and absorb planetary energy such as a solar flux, and power machines. In Crash Tag Team Racing, the crystals apparently have the power to change the environment in the stages, in addition to changing their rules. It is also revealed in Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex that the crystals are capable of banishing evil entities as they were used to banish the Elementals when they were released from the state of hibernation. The extent of the power of the crystals is unknown. However, it is implied by Uka Uka in Crash Bandicoot: Warped that the power of the crystals and gems can be harnessed by others to have influence over the world and possibly the entire universe, as he planned to do so when Crash encountered both him and Dr. Cortex in their final fight.

Appearances

 * Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back
 * Dansu! De Jump! Na Daibouken (Referred to as Power Stones)
 * Crash Bandicoot: Warped
 * Crash Team Racing
 * Crash Bash
 * Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex
 * Crash Bandicoot: The Huge Adventure
 * Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced
 * Crash Nitro Kart
 * Crash Bandicoot Purple: Ripto's Rampage
 * Crash Twinsanity
 * Crash Bandicoot (mobile)
 * Crash Tag Team Racing
 * Crash Boom Bang!
 * Crash of the Titans
 * Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy
 * Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled
 * Crash Bandicoot: On the Run

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.
 * During the intro cutscene for Crash Bandicoot: Warped, it is implied by Uka Uka that there was no more crystals and gems to be found on Earth short of time travel. However, Both items still seem abundant on Earth in later games, starting from Crash Team Racing.
 * In Crash Twinsanity, the crystal Cortex finds at the end of Classroom Chaos does not count for some reason.
 * 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 would have been large, unmined crystals in Crash Bandicoot, in the cut level, Acid Rain.
 * Crystals grants Crash with immunity from all damage, excluding hazards, in Crash of the Titans for the GBA.