Although reviewing a game is difficult on a console from the last generation. Spyro the Dragon was possibly the first game I had ever played as a child. That and also the Crash Bandicoot series. These two Sony games gained a large audience but since Spyro was the first ever game I completed (Since I'm a pyromaniac). I'm just going to review that game and see if it's aged well and if gamers should still give it some attention.
Spyro the Dragon is a Platform game developed by Insomniac Games in 1998. Who also developed the Ratchet and Clank series. Isn't this a beautiful piece of crumpet? I have so much hope for this game that I just want to plow my face into the nearest tree.
The story is that a crazy Gnasty Gnorc hears one of the dragons in the Dragon realm bad-mouthing him and ended up using his powers to turn all the dragons into statues except one which is the main character. This is a typical "You need to be the hero and save everyone" story and you play as Spyro the purple small dragon who managed to dodge the attack because of his shawty size. You have to travel to all the worlds and save the frozen dragons then defeat Gnasty Gnorc. Now it's time for some questioning. Is Gnasty Gnorc really a bad guy? He only froze the dragons because they were talking shit about him on the news (Dragons have cable?) and then ends up being slapped across the face by a baby purple dragon. The game introduces a large amount of dragons that you can interact with when you save them and you have your buddy Sparx. Who acts like your health bar.
The graphics are well done, keeping in mind that the game is made on the PS1. Because of the fictional setting and the basic designs of the characters. They look decent without them being a pile of polygons and there were no polygon glitches to be found. The music was nicely done, fitting most areas to create a nice cheerily and colourful atmosphere for children, created by Stewart Copeland who also developed the music for The Amanda Show, which happens to be a very funny show I used to like and enjoyed the music on there too.
The Gameplay is like most platformers. You can jump, attack and explore the open worlds. The downside of the game (which was fixed in the later games) was the lack of hovering, since gliding ended up difficult without clipping onto the edge of the platform you're trying to reach and falling. The difficulty curve isn't steep as the game gives you a large area to practice on. However there are times where the camera would refuse to follow the character and possibly twirl around the purple dragon like it was impersonating a hurricane.
Spyro was a big hit in 1998 and I agreed that the game was fun to play and to go back to. The movement was a little choppy but wasn't a big thing to complain about. The visuals were bright and cheerful, but also adding to the different scenery that they tried to create. When they created creepy. It was creepy. When they created gloomy. It was gloomy. It wasn't always cheerful and had contrasting dark areas. Overall. I think the game hasn't aged as well as the two others in the trilogy (I'm referring to the PS1 trilogy) and 100% completion isn't really rewarding but adds to the replay value and also adds to the difficulty in some parts. I think the game was a good game to pick up and play for a few hours but I have to say that the second and third are superior to it, which is a shame.
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