Taking into account the joy provided by the release of Crash Brandicoot N.Sane Trilogy, it was silly to think that this venture wasn’t going to kickstart a flurry of remakes that would send us flying head first back to our childhood. Despite some hearty competition in 2018, the Spyro: Reignited Trilogy still manages to sparkle like a gem in the rough, bringing smooth animation and personality to its once clunky and rigid PSone forebear.
Infuriating, clumsy controls were the very essence of retro platforming, and any fan of the likes of Crash or Spyro will be well acquainted with the immeasurable bouts of frustration that had us gritting our teeth and shaking our fists at the TV screen. This was forgivable by game standards back in the 90s, however, our purple, scaly quadruped required a real do-over in order to impress modern gamers and their more demanding expectations. Fortunately, the Spyro: Reignited Trilogy addresses most of these finicky issues; no more soaring off a cliff with a mere flick of the analogue or fussing with non compliant camera controls – everything feels sleek and smooth.
The trilogy’s a real treat for the eyes thanks to both the vibrant, breathtaking visuals it’s flaunting and commendable animation work that breathes a sense of life into each character, provoking the trademark charm and cheekiness you’d expect from the genre. Even the sound design is enough to raise hairs on the back of your neck. It’s weirdly satisfying hearing the buzz of Sparx as he races to collect gems or the beat of Spyro’s wings as he swoops into a glide. It’s clear as you play that the developers pride themselves on its acute attention to detail and it all pays off in constituting a real Game of the Year contender.
The best part is that even in the shadow of a sizeable refurb that’s seen the widely adored PSone trilogy scrubbed shiny and new, Spyro still remains true to its roots. Every second of play time feels like a nostalgic trip down memory lane, making the Spyro Reignited Trilogy a dandy throwback that cleverly highlights and allows us to appreciate the substantial progress made in the industry over the last few generations of gaming.
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What were your thoughts of the Spyro: Reignited Trilogy? Does the vibrantly coloured dragon's collection top Crash's? Spit fire in the comments section below.
Comments 27
Yep, I'd say this definitely deserves a shout-out. Following the success of Crash and with MediEvil on the way, this was the remake that most grabbed my attention and to which I have the most nostalgic connection.
Whilst I may have currently stalled halfway through Spyro 2 due to factors beyond my control, I'm looking forward to returning and finishing the trilogy in the New Year.
Maybe it's just me but I prefer to see a new game instead of a remake in a top ten of 2018 games even when I love Spyro, but his games are already in my top PS1 games and the same can be said for Shadow of the Colossus
I still need to pick this up someday. I wasn't a big fan of the Crash remaster, but I've heard so many good things about this one.
@GKO900 I would agree if it was a remaster, but I think remakes are deserving of their place.
Dang, I wish this one one disc and wasn’t, in a sense, intentionally shipped as a game more broken than AC: Unity. It’s a worse practice and I wish it would more flak for asking to to download part of a physical game, not an update, but the actual game. It sounds great, but I can’t overlook the fact they it has no respect for the consumer.
@GKO900 I agree with @get2sammyb on this. Remakes have their place, remasters are really not needed (backwards compatibility can cover that perfectly).
I absolutely loved Crash, I'm looking forward to playing Spyro! It's gonna have to wait a while, though, since I'm playing God of War, then there's Kingdom Hearts III and Resident Evil 2 in January... 2019 is gonna be another big year for PS4.
I don't think this should be on this list. It was rushed out for a holiday release. Really glitchy in Spyro 3, and the fact the game could fit on a single disc really hold this one back imo. Good if you guys enjoyed it, but there are way better games that game out this year that probably won't make this list.
So we're only getting the #10? I assume we have to download the rest of the list?
@GKO900 It different for remakes, plus many people will not have played the originals so I think it's fair game
It's the most fum I've had playing with a Dragon that didn't involve heroin.
@Jaz007 There is no way in a million years that Spyro is as broken as AC Unity, that's just hyperbole. Apart from the occasional frame rate drop and maybe too much motion blur it's a perfectly playable game which you couldn't say the same for Unity at launch.
@AdamNovice No update means two-thirds of the game are missing. They're not playable at all without an update. AC:Unity without patches is a more playable game than Spyro is. They shipped a game (in terms of no updates) less playable Unity.
@Octane Superb
Great games and collection, but I’m not sure if remakes and remasters belong to a GOTY list. They are already acclaimed games from another era, it’s difficult for new games to compete with classics and all the nostalgia.
Anyway, it’s a great collection and Spyro is another reason why I’m a huge fan of Insomniac.
@Jaz007 I played Spyro one while the patch was downloading it’s a great game and very playable. Even as a single game not a trilogy I would still recommend Spyro. I understand it would not be wise to try and play Assassins Creed Unity unpatched
@jaz007 Most people were able to download the update though whereas Unity was busted regardless. Besides a lot of people would have bought Spyro digitally so it would have been a non issue for them.
Sorry but off the top of my head I can think of at least 10 games better than this
Got it on Xbox One but can't play it until Christmas.
@Jaz007 that's why I haven't played it even though it's 20$ at my local store. Just can't stomach that they had no respect for the physical buying consumer.
@Enuo
Boom
Does anyone know if it's possible to get the old graphics back? It may just be me but the things they changed in the games seriously ruined them for me. I was excited for Spyro but got some weird knock off version that was dumbed down, watered out, and made to look like a preschoolers TV show. The dragons were badass in Spyro especially for the time it was made and now they just look like wanna be hipsters. If there's like an update or even a doc I can buy to actually get Spyro that'd be amazing
Awesome. Looking forward to playing this at some point in the new year.
I feel this should of been way higher probably 4 or 5 only because we already know the top 2 games are going to be RDR2 and GOW just which order they go in is unsure!
Spyro will always have a special place in my heart. Not in my top 10 of 2018 games, though. It had its time to shine and it most certainly did. Other games deserve recognition that they won't get.
It's not the end of the world, of course, I just wanted to say that I agree with several people here.
Why are people so dismissive of remakes, this whole give other games a chance talk is nonsense. If those games were that good then they would place higher in the first place.
@AdamNovice This whole "if those games were that good then they would place higher in the first place" is nonsense.
See how this is kind of statement is nonsense?
Honestly, the cartoon look of the remaster doesn't appeal to me either.
But I bought it on sale for $29, so my son can check it out first.
Even he was ambivalent, but we needed one more gift for him.
No way I was paying full price when they couldn't even bother to fill the disc.
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