Spyro Reignited Trilogy
PlayStation 4
Nostalgia Factor:
Back in the late 90's I was a casual fan of the Spyro the Dragon series. I wouldn't say I was a super fan by any means, as I only rented the games and never actually owned any of them. In fact, I can't say with any certainty that I even played the second or third games at all.
Nevertheless, when I saw that they were remastering these three games with today's graphics, I got excited. I knew that the classic gameplay of Spyro the Dragon coupled with the graphics of today would be a winning formula.
Would my prediction prove true? Let's find out.
Oh yeah before we start, I should note that I am counting this collection as one game instead of three individual games. If I ever go back and play the old PS1 versions of these games, I will review them individually. But not now.
Story:
Each game has its own unique storyline. The first game finds all the dragons around the world being turned into stone, and Spyro must rescue them and take down the bad guy responsible for the chaos. Spyro 2 finds the purple dragon working to free a captive people from an angry warlock named Ripto. The third game has Spyro rescuing dragon eggs that have been stolen.
Really though, the game's storylines are pretty inconsequential in the long run. You don't play Spyro games for their stories. They just kind of exist as a formality. You are here for the gameplay. Very quickly I found myself not caring at all about anything going on in any of these games' storylines.
Gameplay:
Basic gameplay is the same for each Spyro game. You control the titular dragon from a behind-the-back 3D perspective. The square button is a charge attack where Spyro lowers his head and barrels forward, attacking with his horns. The x button makes you jump. The circle button makes Spyro breathe fire.
Your main goal in each game is, quite frankly, to collect as much shit as you can possibly collect. You start out in a hub world, and this hub world contains several self-contained stages. Pass through these stages, collecting jewels, eggs, rescuing dragons, whatever it is you need to do. This unlocks further stages within your hub world. Pass all these stages and you can move on via hot air balloon to the next hub world, where you do more of the same. Spyro comes, he collects, and he conquers. This basic formula is pretty much the same for each game in the series.
Later Spyro games introduce twists into the mix. For example, in the second game Spyro can pass through gates that give him temporary special powers like the ability to fly or shoot destructive missiles from his mouth rather than his standard fire cloud. The third game introduces different playable characters you can take control of, including a bouncing kangaroo and a bird that packs some serious firepower.
While you will spend most of your time exploring stages and collecting everything in sight, each game does offer little wrinkles like minigames to help break up the action and make things seem not so monotonous. I hated these stages when I was a kid, but the stages where you have to fly around and destroy things within a set time limit were some of my favorite segments in the game.
Correct me if I am remembering improperly, but the gameplay of the classic Spyro trilogy remains completely unchanged for this collection. Aside from the graphics, the stages are just as I remember them. Everything handles and controls just as it did in the past. This seems to be a very, very faithful adaptation of the original Spyro games.
Each Spyro title can be not only beaten but fully platinum trophied in just a couple of days, maybe a week depending on how much time you sink into your playing sessions. There were a few tricky hidden collectibles for me to find, but all in all I did not have a very difficult time playing any of these games.
Graphics:
This game's graphics may be one of the best things about it. It can't even say it "looks good." That is doing it a disservice. It is stunning. This game has zero rough edges. It is bright, it is colorful, it is basically a Pixar movie come to life.
Magical is all I have to say about this game's look.
Sound:
None of the game's music really stands out in my mind. Not to say that its music is bad, it just isn't iconic like Mario's, Sonic's, or even Banjo-Kazooie's. It does its job in helping bring the magical world of this game to life, and that's all I really have to say about it.
The sound effects, though, are very good. I enjoy the sound of Spyro breathing fire. I like the sound of stampeding feet when you do your charge attack. The sound it makes when you collect a gem is very satisfying. Little touches like the "baa-ing" of sheep and the noises your enemies make really put things over the top. The voice acting is decent too, but like I said I didn't really care much for any of these games' stories, so I didn't pay too much attention to it.
Overall:
This was a really fun trip down memory lane. I had forgotten how enjoyable these old Spyro games were. Aside from a few minor twists and changes, however, each game is very similar to the one before it. By the time the third game on the disc came around, I was experiencing major Spyro burnout. Heck, I was experiencing this burnout already on the second game.
Not to say that the Spyro formula isn't a good one. I like these games a lot, and I think they still withstand the test of time even 20 years after their initial release. But yeah, they can be a little repetitive, especially if you play them back-to-back-to-back like I did.
Fans of the original Spyro trilogy should definitely check this out. I can't say it is worth buying if you already own all the old Spyro games, since really all that has changed is the graphics. It depends on if the visual upgrade is worth it or not for you. If you don't own the old Spyro games but are a fan of this genre, then you definitely need to check out this title. I won't lie and say that Spyro is better than Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie, Conker, or even the Gex series, but it is still pretty dang good.
Final Score:
B+
If you liked my review of the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, please check out some of my other game reviews:
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