Top 3 Reasons Why You Should Be Excited for the ‘Spyro: Reignited Trilogy’
Is it September 21st yet? Seriously, almost 20 years after its initial release, Spyro: The Dragon is coming back with an HD remake. But you already knew that! What you didn’t know was just how faithful (and beautiful) this game is. Between interviews and demos, the game was on full display at E3 – or rather, only the 1st game, which is 1/3 of this game – and we learned so much! So here’s the Top 3 reasons why you should be excited for the Spyro: Reignited Trilogy!
- Attention To Detail – Level Design, Cast & Music:
The single most promising statement I heard about the Spyro: Reignited Trilogy is that ‘it’s basically playing the original Spyro with a fresh coat of paint’. You see, Insomniac might not be involved with this game, but the developers behind Spyro: Reignited Trilogy – Toys For Bob – went above and beyond the call of duty with this one. You see, they actually found a way to map every asset in the original Spyro games – from level design to the paths enemies wandered – and then rebuild it all from scratch with the new digital assets. Even collision detection is the same; and that is why every one who has played the Reignited Trilogy at E3 has walked away commenting on how it truly “feels” like the original. But they didn’t end there.
Tom Kenny, who was the voice of Spyro in the two later (and arguably better) games is returning as the voice of Spyro as well as some other voice actors like Gregg Berger – who voiced Hunter and Ripto. Though if you ask, many Spyro fans will say the most important part of the games is their music. And I’m pleased to announce that the music will all be remastered versions of Stewart Copeland’s original pieces. Needless to say, you’ll be drowning in nostalgia with this level of detail, and speaking of detail…
- Improved Graphics:
A picture is worth a thousand words, so I can’t really say anything in this section that the gameplay and concept art hasn’t already said. From how the grass and ice actually burns/ melts in response to Spyro’s fire to how the creatures and worlds have been recreated, everything visual with this game has been tackled with the utmost interest in quality as well as respect for what came before. In fact, even though the original Insomniac team didn’t work on this game, Toys For Bob did get to meet with them and run their ideas by them so they could preserve the spirit of the original game. The best example of this is with the ‘beasts’ found in Alpine Ridge – a monster I was particularly interested in seeing redone in HD. The original was so intimidating to 8 year old me and now 28 year old me can’t help but feel the same about its modern incarnation. If only we got to see the Lava Lizards from Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage and the Chinese Fire Dragons from Spyro: Year of the Dragon too…. OH WAIT WE TOTALLY DO!!!!!
- ALL THREE GAMES!!!!!
We may have only been getting Gameplay from Spyro: The Dragon, but there’s a reason it’s called “Reignited TRILOGY”. All 3 of the original Spyro games are part of this game and we actually got our first peak at them in a Tweet that revealed the official box art of the game. In it you can see the Lava Lizards as well as the Chinese Fire Dragons – hmm, it’s almost as if Activision is listening to me. Though what’s really exciting about this news isn’t just the additional content, but how Ripto’s Rage and Year of the Dragon added to the gameplay experience. Swimming, Climbing, Funny Intro-Outro Scenes, Arena Boss Battles. If Spyro: Reignited Trilogy looks this good and we’ve only see the base game, imagine how much better everything else is!
No matter how you look at it, Spyro: Reignited Trilogy is truly a love-letter to fans of the original series. You can keep your Skylanders and alternate reality (Not) Spyros. This was the game many have been waiting for. And we just so happen to get 3 for the price of 1. Spyro: Reignited Trilogy releases September 21st for PS4 and XBox One; and I’m literally counting the days!
Joe primarily covers video games news (i.e.: Pokemon, Spyro & Destiny) as well as the occasional ‘Theory Thursday’ pieces. Before writing for FanFest, Joe was the Creator & Editor of TheInsightfulPanda.com. He is also an illustrator and is currently working on Season 3 of his not-for-profit, fan-art crossover series PokéRangers on Instagram.
