The original 1996 Crash Bandicoot had a level in it so hard that developer Naughty Dog deemed it too difficult for human consumption. That level, Stormy Ascent, has finally been unearthed and released as free DLC to Vicarious Visions' recent remake Crash Bandicoot N-Sane Trilogy.

Stormy Ascent is available for free in Europe and North America through 19th August. After that it will be $2.99, at least in North America.

This content is hosted on an external platform, which will only display it if you accept targeting cookies. Please enable cookies to view. Manage cookie settings Stormy Ascent is roughly four times the size of any other Crash Bandicoot level.

The original stage's level designer Taylor Kurosaki reflected on Stormy Ascent in an interview with Vicarious Visions on the PlayStation Blog. "It was one of the last levels I finished during production, and as we prepared to deliver our Gold Master to Sony for manufacturing, the decision was made to cut it," he lamented.

"It was playable, but just too damn difficult, and we ran out of time to make it easier. It remained on the disc as it was less risky just leaving it rather than trying to remove it."

Eventually people found it using Gameshark, but it was never part of the game proper.

Vicarious Visions wanted to fix this, though it ran into trouble remaking it as the team was having a hard time completing the level in the first place.

"It was challenging to first master the level so that we could accurately remaster it," said N.Sane game director Dan Tanguay. "In particular, the timing of the level was challenging to get right. The hazards and platforms steadily increase in speed as you go along!"

Care to give Stormy Ascent a whirl? Let us know how you fare with it in the comments.