Customer Reviews

Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After a couple of disappointments in the series, I bought this Spyro game for my daughter in the hopes that it would get a new look on the PS3. It most definitely does, with not only gorgeous visuals and breathtaking locations, but a surprisingly different take on the interface: this game has the same mechanics as the God of War series. You have light and heavy attacks, combos that involve simple button-press sequences, and a "level-up" capability that involves collecting special crystals and then choosing which abilities to funnel them into. The buttons even map exactly the same. I played this for a bit with my daughter, then out of curiosity I switched over to God of War when she was out of the room, and it felt pretty much the same--the flight mechanic even resembles God of War's "Icarus Wings".

Unfortunately, this new interface won't resonate with everyone who is a fan of the Spyro games. For example, camera control isn't always 100%--sometimes it's taken out of your hands. I'm used to the God of War series having none at all, so I don't find this as jarring in this title as others might. Not every special ability or chaining action is simple to pull off--but believe me, any 10-year-old will pick this up fairly quickly. The new "grab" mechanic that lets you seize hold of your opponents is surprisingly easy to do, but requires you to make some decisions in the middle of a pitched battle--there's a time when grabbing is a good idea, and a time when it's a bad idea. Flying is extremely fun, but not always perfect: there are times when the wind direction (which you can see) will limit your actions. You have to follow the lines that show you the direction of the air flow, so this won't be easy for the under-10 set. In fact, I almost think the "ages 10 and up" rating is more for a child's capability of understanding the game than it may be about the content.

Here's what makes Dawn of the Dragon tons of fun, though: it has sharing loosely coupled to the story. Gameplay is like a "prison escape" movie cliche--you have two heroes, and they're tied together. They have to work together to get through the story (often referred to in gamer circles as "two-player co-op"). Thankfully the magical "tether" tying Spyro to Cinder is a pretty long one, letting you rather freely move about. The game sticks two dragons together and not only lets a single player jump on-the-fly from one to the other, it also lets you switch in and out of two-player mode with a couple of button-taps. If a sibling wants to join in on the fun, they can take the reins of one of the two dragons. If they get bored and want to stop playing, just pause the game and select "one player" again and the game will resume exactly where it left off. Kids can share together without having to start over, reload, or commit to both of them finishing the level. Dawn of the Dragon also adds some fun for girls: while the previous Spyro entries have been boy-oriented, my daughter was thrilled at the chance to play Cinder, the girl dragon. Her abilities are different (and just as important) and she even seems to be a bit better at flying.

That said, the Spyro series doesn't just have kids in its fan base--there are "elite bosses" and hidden secrets that are more for an adult player looking to get the most out of their gaming experience. There are character cutscenes with a longer story and dialogue, and you may be surprised to know that some top-drawer talent lend their voices to the series: Elijah Wood (as Spyro) and Gary Oldman (as Ignitus). The elite bosses and secrets are optional parts of the game, and it may take some explaining to younger players that certain bad guys don't have to be defeated: they can be skipped. I'd recommend skipping them the first time through because the two that we've uncovered so far have turned out to be impossibly hard to battle. If you want to cut down on frustration, don't try to level every skill to the top, and definitely steer clear of the Elites.

If you have children who enjoy the Spyro series, chances are they will find this one fun, but they'll need to understand that it's not exactly the same as the rest of the series. They should also play it all the way through once before trying to master it all and beat the Elites. Consider it more for ages 8 and older, with 10 and up getting the most out of it. If you're an adult who likes the Spyro series and also enjoys God of War style games (like Heavenly Sword and Dante's Inferno), then there's a good chance you'll enjoy this makeover just as much as the younger fans will.

I know that some will disagree with me but this game was very disappointing to me and my family. We have enjoyed the Spyro series over the years and eagerly anticipated this PS3 version.

Unfortunately, the designers seemed to want to "upgrade" the game to be a much more complex and difficult game. At the same time, they eliminated useful capabilities that would make it enjoyable.

On the first level, there is a door that needs to be opened and required Spyro or Cinder to carry an object. It is heavy and makes climbing/jumping from platform to platform very difficult. The some of the jumps have to be perfect!!! I'm sorry but that is not why I play the game. Trying the same darn jump over and over and over until I finally make it perfect. What a waste of time. I don't have hours and hours to spend each day on a game. I want to get in, have some fun and then have time to do other things.

Also, they eliminated the previous ability to look around 360 degrees. The ability to look around is very limited. That doesn't help when you are stuck and trying to figure out the next puzzle and yet cannot even see all around.

It is nice that you can be either Spyro or Cinder and can change. Plus, the graphics are nice. But these do not overcome the game's shortcomings, in my opinion.

Instead of a PS3 version of the old game with incredible graphics, they have also made it a much more difficult game. Not for younger kids as I think they will get frustrated.

My suggestion is you try this game before you buy it.

Good Fun & Entertainment from an Old Friend!

I remember Spyro from the late 90's when he made his debut on the PS1. Here we are ten years later and he is still going strong. Yes, the last few Spyro titles have been a disappointment, but for some reason Activision did it right and churned out a great game. I have to admit that since Spyro landed on the PS2 and the Gamecube including the Wii that the games have been a bit of a let down. The games were still playable, but missing that certain something quality that made the original first three games so much fun. The magic from the original creators had faded away.

Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon is probably one of the most beautiful Spyro games to date. It's simply gorgeous. This is also the first time that Spyro can fly in a game. I think the Spyro the character has really matured a bit and there is a certain grown up element to this game.

I wouldn't call it a boss battle, but one of the big monsters in the first level is a bit on the scary side and the way the game plays reminded me a little of God of War. I would say this game isn't complete 3D like Mario. Spyro is restricted to what is visible on screen and the 2nd analog stick doesn't function the way I would like it to. The second analog stick has always been used to rotate the camera angle around the screen 360 degrees, but because of the fact you are restricted to semi 2D/3D layout that one can only move the camera to what the game lets the player see, so its pretty much a 180 degree turn. I didn't find this to be a BIG problem, but it was a bit annoying at times.

Other then that small annoyance i actually found the game to be quite entertaining. It brings back some of the magic from the original Spyro games that were lacking on his PS2 days. This is definitely a title you want to add to your library and its hours of fun with a familiar face.

My son loves this series. It is vastly superior to the previous release, being more intense and heavy in graphics. The story line is a bit more complex, as well.

This is a role playing game and the role that you play as Spyro and Cynder is fantastic. I felt like I was playing in a Lord Of The Rings game because of the way that the story was set up. The missions you were assigned were pretty epic, and if they were boring tasks you could make them epic. However sometimes you might feel confused on where your supposed to go, the game needs a little more direction on where and what you need to do. As for Spyro and Cynder they really feel all grown up as dragons. Primarily because their breath and fury attacks will destroy anything in there path (for once). As in previous titles when you were a small "dragon" that could spit fire and head butt things. Because of their new and improved roles this gives the gameplay a whole new dimension to explore, such as free flight. Finally, they brought this into this game and it is very fun and useful in a lot of situations because you can fly at any time. Another cool feature in this games other then flight is playing as your new accomplis Cynder. From the crazy "I want to kill you" to the insecure little dragon, Cynder is quite the dynamic character in this series. Her attacks are very unique and a lot more interesting then Spyro's elemental attacks. Personally I played as her more then Spyro. This is the only Spyro game from the PS3, for the moment, and the hardcore processors of the PS3 deliver graphically. The worlds are bright and big and full of things to explore. The character models are high quality and in HD. Although I will add that the frame rate was a little inconsistant for me. Once it would be around 80 fps and then it would drop to 20 fps, I am a little osd about these things so it shouldn't bother other people too much it was just something that I noticed. As well as the sound effects in the cuts scenes were a little mello-dramatic and quite for my taste. But, while you are playing the music and sound effects are explosive and accurate for what is going on. In the end the story gets summed up really fast and it could have been a little longer. I did beat this game in under a week. However I still re-play it and I still love it. I am not going to spoil the ending but it completely satisfied me. I give this game a high rating because I like Spyro and I think this is the best title yet. There's more to do and it's a ton of fun for all ages, not to mention you can play with friends on two player co-op. For anyone who is a fan of Spyro, buy this game, for people who have a good taste with a fantasy action genre, buy this game. For people who aren't sure about this game watch some gameplay footage on youtube to help you decide. The people who would not like this game are people who are a little over critical about everything, so if your that kind of person don't buy this game. I love this purple dragon, and now I like black dragon too. Totally worth the price and I hope you'll like them too.

This is my second Spyro game and I really like this one. Here's why:

-The graphics are absolutely beautiful. In Avalar Valley, when Spyro and Cynder are free-flying around, you can see individual blades of grass, each leaf on the trees, and there is so much color! The environments are very passionate and have a mood that relates very closely to the storyline.

-The breaths are powerful and vivid. Spyro's fire breath lights up the whole screen! They have an instant effect on enemies and are very gratifying to use.

-Medium difficulty level. I am currently playing this with my seven-year-old sister and we both have no problem getting through puzzles and fighting enemies. I have definitely played easier games, but this was not the hardest. I've only died twice and I am halfway through the game. Contrary to earlier reviews, jumps don't have to be perfect; there is some margin for error.

-Runs smoothly. This game never gets choppy and I have yet to see a glitch (and I'm halfway through!). When Spyro and Cynder are flying and one wheels about, the camera moves without any hiccups. This makes the experience feel more lifelike and immersive.

The problems I have with this game include the following:

-The camera constantly drives me insane! Pushing really hard on the right analog stick makes the camera drift only a very small amount. This seems confining, especially in a game with such rich environments, puzzles, and intense combat.

-May be hard for some players. Some parts can be a bit confusing, and combat can drain life quickly, but this isn't a problem if you have some time and patience! Finding all the health and magic upgrades is constantly irking me as I can't seem to find any! The armor is a nice touch, and looks pretty cool, but finding all of it could be difficult.

OVERALL, this is a wonderfully made game with few hiccups and many hours of deep, bright, colorful gameplay that involves puzzle, platforming, and fighting elements. I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who has some money to spend and a few hours to play!

My daughter and I loved this game, took us a day to conquer it. The only gripe I have is that spyro and cynder are tied together with a magical amulet/leash throughout the entire game which made it a little difficult. We really had to communicate to each other which way we wanted to go in the game and the other had to follow. Playing single player mode it's worse the other dragon does not follow it just drags you down as your trying to climb walls. There were a few areas where you could move the camera angle quit a bit and other areas where you couldn't move it at all. There have been a few glitches such as when my daughter was playing cynder and I had spyro, cynder got squashed by a large square stone trying to escape from the tunnels using her shadow breath through the doors, She died, but the game did not start us over instead spyro was dragging her dead lifeless body around lol it was quit funny eventually spyro was then killed and it started us over. Other then that it was and is a great game. I have loved spyro since the 90's I do not have a problem with the change. I really would love more spyro games especially now that my daughter is hooked. I gave her the old spyro games to play as well, she loves them all.

About halfway in and the game is great! If you like co-op and want a change of paces form the swords and armor type co-ops this is a good substitute. Its can be a little kiddy but is very fun to fly and breath death on enemies! Great for kids and adults!

Got it right away. purchased it for my son and he enjoys it very much

The game is pretty good. I got it as a Christmas gift for someone. I played it a couple of times and I would say the graphics are it's biggest strong point. The voice acting is done extremely well and the game control is pretty easy to learn. The one grip I have is the story is too short.