Welcome, Spyro fans, to Spyro World! We are the fastest growing Spyro the Dragon site on the internet, so you’ve come to the right place for all your Spyro news and reviews. Our network includes a news site, wiki, image gallery and a forum. In addition to news and reviews, we provide your Spyro fix with Spyro videos, artwork and more! Keep an eye out for special Spyro exclusives you won’t find anywhere else, coming your way! We hope to become not only one of the most comprehensive Spyro sites available, but also your favorite. Look no further to keep up-to-date on Spyro.
Gaming site Destructoid has posted a list of their top ten most anticipated games of 2008. Number three on that list? Spyro! Ranked above Metal Gear Solid 4 and Resistance 2 .
Here's what they had to say:
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The first three Spyro games on the PlayStation hold a very special place in my heart. In fact, Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage! and Spyro: Year of the Dragon (the second and third games) are two of my favorite platformers of all time. But since that last glorious PSOne game, most of the entries in the series have been rather lackluster efforts (Insomniac only developed the original three games and subsequently sold off the license to Universal).
This will be the first next-gen title, and after checking out Hamza’s impressions of the game, I am unbelievably stoked for it. Hearing about things like its revamped art direction and tone, as well as the new ability to fly for as long as you want and a co-op story mode, has got me wet in the pants for this game. Here’s hoping it’ll live up to my expectations.
It's mail time! If you're subscribed to the Sierra Insider e-news bulletin, you may have found a new newsletter revealing... everything we know. Don't fret, however, as a new wallpaper was included. The image is the same as we've seen but at least it's an official wallpaper... not another fan made one.
Even though we haven't had any updates on the 2009 Spyro film lately, it's still in production. A new Variety article briefly mentions Velvet Octopus - the company behind the film - and includes a mention of the Spyro movie.
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Velvet Octopus has a five-pic deal with producer Ash Shah, which includes two more 3-D projects, both CGI animated — “Outback,” the story of a white koala bear, and “The Legend of Spyro,” a spin-off from the best-selling video game.
There's a video interview with Chris Wilson, a producer on Dawn of the Dragon, available on Game trailers in which he pretty much summarizes all we know about the game.
1UP had some comments from the producers of the Legend trilogy in their preview.
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He's leaner, more athletic -- more of a teenager now," says Michael Graham, associate producer of The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon.
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"He's a dragon -- of course he can fly," senior producer Chris Wilson says... "He couldn't in previous games because it was a technical limitation [and] difficult to pull off."
Nothing new, really, but still let's us hear from the creative driving force behind the trilogy.
Anyone who worried that the change in developers meant a change in composers can now rest easy. Our good friend Becky Kneubuhl, who co-composed the beautiful music for the last two Legend of titles wrote to me this morning informing me that she would indeed be back with her partner (in music, that is) Gabriel Mann. She also says that all these fears over changes aren't grounded in that the same brain trust behind the last two Legend games are back. Here's what she had to say:
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Gabe and I are indeed hard at work on Dawn of the Dragon. Now that it's officially announced, we can officially say we're officially writing official music.
Rest assured there will be continuity from our standpoint as well as the game as a whole; the producers at Sierra are the same as the first two games in the series (Chris Wilson and Michael Graham, Spyro genius producers extraordinaires). Our direction comes from them, as well as the creative oversight of the games in general, so I think there is no reason to worry about crazy changes to characters or the story arc, etc.
I can't give out specific details beyond what's been announced, but I can say that we are EXTREMELY excited about this game and have been incredibly impressed by what we've seen so far.
When asked if she knew why Krome was replaced, Becky responded:
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Honestly, I don't actually know all the details. Sometimes developers and publishers just can't come to terms on a contract for various reasons, which may have nothing to do with the game itself - but I don't have any real information, sorry!
Have no fears - franchise is in good hands at Sierra. :)
Thank you, as always, Becky and Gabe for your cooperation. Good luck with the music! We're looking forward to it!
Well, all the news you've been waiting for is finally here.
The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon
The game will be released on the XBox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Wii, and Nintendo DS. It'll go on sale this October. Abandon hope for a PSP or GameBoy Advance release, if it wasn't mentioned by now then it's most likely not going to happen.
You can see concept art and screenshots in the media section of the site. The screens seem to be for the XBox 360 version, so they're big and crisp. Nothing yet on how well those graphics will be translated to the Wii, PS3 and PS2 consoles.
You can't judge a game by its screenshot but obviously this is a different style overall. Spyro and Cynder's models are more grown up and it looks like there will be more platforming and/or exploring than the previous titles.
Krome Studios is no longer developing the title. When or why they got booted off the project (and yes, they were working on it previously) is not yet known but guesses are that either Krome got ousted for poor review scores on The Eternal Night or it was because Sierra didn't like where the project was headed. Speculations have been made that the title switch (we were previously led to believe the title was The Darkest Hour) came as a result of the developer switch.
Etranges Libellules are now at the head of Spyro's latest adventure. Other titles they developed include Arthur and the Invisibles (based upon the movie of the same name), Asterix & Obelix XXL, a Pink Panther game and other titles of lesser notability.
In the final chapter of the trilogy, players find Sypro teaming up with an unlikely ally - Cynder, his former enemy, to face his most challenging mission to date. As the Dark Master’s (voiced by Mark Hamill) evil envelopes the world like a plague, Spyro must fulfill his destiny and unlock the true power of the purple dragon within him to stop the Dark Master in his tracks.
The game introduces two never before seen elements into the Spyro universe: Spyro can now fly at any time and players can drop-in/drop-out with the new cooperative feature. The co-op feature allows players to have the option of completing the game as either Spyro or Cynder, giving them more freedom to explore Spyro’s world in completely new ways.
“Spyro has grown up a lot since his debut, and players are going to notice advanced gameplay, character design and story lines in Dawn of the Dragon,” said Al Simone, senior vice president, Global Marketing for Sierra Entertainment. “The game takes some exciting twists and turns – fans of the series and newcomers alike will experience non-stop fun, a renewed sense of intensity and the type of challenging adventure only Spyro can overcome.”
Another site goes into further detail:
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Game play is similar to the previous Spyro games, but with some notable changes. Spyro himself uses fire, ice, electric and earth attacks, while Cynder uses poison, shadow, fear and wind. They not only play into the way you fight, but also into the varied puzzle sections on the game. Each dragon can perform sets of combos, increasing the rewards (read: gems) you get from fallen foes, which in turn restore health, breath power and give you points to upgrade all of your powers. There are also sets up armor to collect that upgrade certain stats when you wear them.
*According Nintendo Power, the Dark Master's name is Malefor. That's kind of anti-climatic, but there you have it. The game takes place three years after Eternal Night according to Nintendo Power.
Sam 'Sazime' Sorensen from sites such as 1Up has brought us more information from the press release event:
*There are sets of armor to collect that upgrade certain powers when you wear them - almost more like an RPG game.
* You can go through areas multiple times to find everything, unlike TEN where once you leave an area, you never go back.
* There is no gauge for flying - it truly is unlimited.
* The breaths play prominent roles in puzzles.
* There's now a combo meter (it reads 1 hit, 2 hits, 3 hits, etc.) that increase the gem return - which was a feature in the GBA version of TEN but not the console version.
After recently seeing a demo of the game, I was most impressed by its style and art; adults will find a lot of nuance here, too. Spyro mixes a lot of brightness and darkness in its style, reminding me of Fantasia or other old-guard Disney animations. Grasses leaned back as the wind raked over them, in a saccharine outdoor scene. But in another moment, sharp, muted stones matched the danger from an attacking monster.
While GameZine reports:
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Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon is slated for release on PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2 and DS in October. Those who have seen footage of the game at Sierra's Spring Break event last week claim it will be a step up for the series.
There is a far more detailed set of impressions at this link.
Notes of interest - Etranges Libellules means "Strange Dragonfly". Dragonflies used to be a prominent part of Spyro games.
This is almost like a return home for Vivendi. They're a France-based media conglomerate and now they've hired a France-based developer.
Thanks to Charlie Miller for the Nintendo Power tip.
After months of speculation and several false leads, we were treated today to the truth behind the next Spyro game – as you now know, it’s called The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon. After days of waiting the countdown finally hit zero, revealing --- nothing as of this posting. However other sites have posted more specific details about this third and final game in the Legend of Spyro trilogy.
Spyro - Elijah Wood
Cynder - Christina Ricci
Ignitus - Gary Oldman
Sparx - Wayne Brady
Dark Master - Mark Hamill
Hunter - Blair Underwood
The developer of the DS version is Estranges Libellules (a France-based company). All the information ToTheGame previously reported has been confirmed as true so far. ToTheGame reported Estranges Libellules was developing all the versions of Dawn of the Dragon. This now looks like it could be true, but no official word on that yet.
The graphical style obviously has far more color and detail in the XBox 360 version. The DS version is upgraded too, however. Both versions have taken Spyro from his young dragon image to a more teenaged style. That would make sense considering the ending of the previous Legend of title was that Spyro would be frozen in crystal while the world underwent dramatic change.
Currently confirmed systems of release include: Wii, DS, PS2, PS3 and Xbox 360.
Well, for those of you who didn't see it in our forums already or over at darkSpyro yet, a headline posted on Sierra's news section confirms that the name and voice cast information provided by ToTheGame was correct. The headline is not yet clickable for the full new briefing, but the Spyro's Lair countdown still has a few hours left and it's safe to assume soon after it hits zero, the full news briefing will be posted.
Here's the headline from the news section at Sierra:
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SPYRO THE DRAGON® CONTINUES HIS EPIC ADVENTURE THIS FALL IN THE LEGEND OF SPYRO™: DAWN OF THE DRAGON
Spyro Trilogy Culminates with Premiere on Xbox 360® and PlayStation®3 system; Elijah Wood, Gary Oldman, Christina Ricci, Blair Underwood, Wayne Brady and Mark Hamill Provide Voice-Over Performances
No Billy West or Mae Whitman? Christina Ricci is the only female in that lineup so she may assume the role of Cynder while Wayne Brady, a notable comedian, will most likely take over as Sparx. These Legend of Spyro games seem to have some trouble keeping their voice actors on board from game to game.
So far ToTheGame was correct on the name and voice cast, we'll have to wait a little longer to see if what they said about the gameplay elements was true, too.
I remember well the ads I saw for Spyro: Year of the Dragon and that excitement...the counting down until Christmas...when I knew I'd get the game because my sister had sneaked a peek at our gifts and told me Spyro was among them.
Counting down...an exciting, anxious, and nerve-racking time. Right now we are counting down until Sierra updates the official Spyro website with the announcement of the next Spyro game just like I counted down the days to Christmas so many years ago - hoping, waiting, dreaming - of that new Spyro game waiting for me under the tree.
This week we are featuring the ad that fueled by childhood hype for Spyro as I counted down the days until Christmas.
Welcome, Spyro fans, to Spyro World! We are the fastest growing Spyro the Dragon site on the internet, so you’ve come to the right place for all your Spyro news and reviews. Our network includes a news site, wiki, image gallery and a forum. In addition to news and reviews, we provide your Spyro fix with Spyro videos, artwork and more! Keep an eye out for special Spyro exclusives you won’t find anywhere else, coming your way! We hope to become not only one of the most comprehensive Spyro sites available, but also your favorite. Look no further to keep up-to-date on Spyro.
