The secret sixth warp room is believed to be based on top of the ruins of Castle Cortex, which burned down in the first game. This is indicated by the "N" banners hanging on either side of the save screen and the fact that the other two islands are visible in the background.

It's possible to freeze the game by spinning right at the beginning of the final boss level.

As it was shown in the E3 preview video, the "Ruination" level used to have a stone signpost showing the "easy" and "hard" paths through the level. Although the signpost has been removed in the final release, the code and data for it still remain in the game's files and are completely functional.

In N. Gin's boss level, there are 20 missile paths in the data, even though only 10 were used. A lot of these unused paths are also misplaced and can't hurt the player.

If you skip the crystal at the end of a stage, Cortex will be annoyed and demand you re-enter the stage and retrieve it. If you skip it again, Cortex will be upset and remind you what the crystal looks like and have you go back. Should you skip it again, Cortex will be furious and remind you one more time to get the crystal. If skipped a fourth time, Cortex will reset the process of obtaining the crystals all over again.

According to Jason Rubin, in the Japanese version of the game, a death animation of Crash being crushed and left with his head and feet was replaced. This was because the animation reminded Sony Japans of a serial killer on the loose in Japan who decapitated the victims and left their head with their shoes.

Tiny Tiger was originally named Taz Tiger, since it was based off the extinct animal Thylacine, better known as the Tasmanian Tiger. His name was change possibly because it was to avoid any legal issues with Warner Bros., since there was another character that goes by the name of Taz, the Tasmanian Devil.

In the North American release, when you pause the game in the middle of Tiny's boss fight. His name reads Taz Tiger. This was a mistake Naughty Dog left behind and it was fixed in the European release.

There was a manga series made in 1998. It was entitled Dansu! De Jump! Na Daibouken (Dance! Then Jump! It's a Great Adventure!) and it was written and drawn by Ari Kawashima. Published by Coro Coro Comics and released only in Japan, the story is loosely based on Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back. The series lasted 2 volumes before being canceled for unknown reasons.

There are several differences between the manga and game series whicih include:
• Crash speaks throughout the whole story.
• There is some mild swearing.
• Wumpa Fruits and Crystals are referred to as Apples and Power Stones.
• Many of the jokes and gags are based around Japanese culture.

Hidden within the bookshelves in the Ripper Roo boss level, thick game guides for Crash Bandicoot 1 can be found.

In the Warp Room with Polar in it, if you jump on Polar 10 times, you get 10 lives.