What is the name of the mascot character created by Naughty Dog for PlayStation?

The mascot character created by Naughty Dog for PlayStation is Crash Bandicoot. Naughty Dog designed Crash as the star of a 3D platform game intended to give Sony a character who could stand alongside Nintendo's Mario and Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog. Development began in 1994, and the game was released for the original PlayStation in 1996.

Crash was initially known informally as “Willy the Wombat” and was based on the idea of using an appealing but relatively obscure real animal. Artists Joe Pearson and Charles Zembillas helped shape his orange, energetic design. The final name “Crash Bandicoot” reflected both his species and his habit of smashing crates throughout the game.

Crash became PlayStation's unofficial mascot during the late 1990s, although the character was never permanently owned by Sony. Universal Interactive retained the franchise rights, and later Crash games appeared on competing consoles. That is why Crash is strongly associated with PlayStation without being an exclusive PlayStation character today.