hat makes a character memorable? How do you go about crafting a video-game mascot with staying power? What does it take to make an icon? Those are all questions we decided to tackle head-on in our new feature: Making of an Icon.
In this reoccurring feature, we will explore the past and future of the most iconic characters in the video-game universe. Characters chosen may already be an established pillar in a video game series or franchise. Or, they may be a character who has starred in a single game, but shows the signs of becoming a budding icon. We may even include individuals from brand-new IP’s that have yet to make their video-game debut – in order to understand the intricacies of creating an entirely new persona with the hopes of building a property around him or her.
Spyro the Dragon
When brainstorming a list of iconic video-game characters, a substantial amount of entrants came to mind. In addition to some of the most distinguished names in gaming – Mario, Link, Sonic, Lara Croft, Mega Man and more – there are dozens upon dozens of other memorable video game icons in existence. Choosing from them was difficult, but one of the first characters we sought to explore in this feature was Spyro the Dragon. Spyro – a childhood figure for many of us – is celebrating his 10 year anniversary this fall with the release of The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon. In order to explore and fully understand Spyro’s iconic status, we delved into both his history and his future, with the help of two producers for the Spyro franchise who know him best.
History
In a total of ten years Spyro has starred in eight console titles, with a smattering of handheld games thrown in the mix along the way. Despite the impressive number of releases in only a decade, Spyro – like many others – has hit turbulence during his long run in the spotlight.
Spyro made his worldwide debut in 1998, when Insomniac Games released his self-titled game for the PlayStation. Capitalizing on what had become a platforming craze, Insomniac brought originality to the mix with the introduction of a pint-sized (at least for his species) dragon named Spyro. The game followed Spyro on a quest to save his fellow dragons from the evil Gnasty Gnorc. Spyro’s abilities were limited to jumping and gliding, charging and breathing fire, but the gameplay provided enough diversity to excite gamers and critics alike.
Enough buzz was generated from the purple protagonist’s first game that he starred in a sequel the very next year. Again developed by Insomniac Games, Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage released in the fall of 1999 and pitted Spyro against Ripto, a spiteful wizard with dim-witted dinosaurs for companions. The game was similar enough to the first, but it allowed Spyro to swim, hover, and even climb ladders. Ripto’s Rage also took Spyro to an entirely new world – Avlar – where Spyro met a large variety of non-dragon friends.
The third Spyro installment – Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon – released one year after Ripto’s Rage. Year of the Dragon would be the final game developed by the brain-company and creator of Spyro. In this title, Spyro was asked to recover stolen dragon eggs that were scattered throughout the world. The game featured several new characters including a kangaroo, a penguin and a yeti. Once again, the title scored well across the board, but some started to wonder if Spyro was straying a bit to far from his origins.
All of the following screens are from the upcoming title - The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon
Feeling that they had reached a ceiling in Spyro’s character development, Insomniac handed off creative control for the fourth installment. Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly was the first game to be created for the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo GameCube. It was also the first and last Spyro game crafted by Equinox Digital entertainment and Check Six Studios. The title was greeted by a poor reception as it was constantly compared to its predecessors. Released in 2002, it is said that the title was rushed and as a result was found to have an abundance of glitches, sound issues and irritatingly long load times.
The critical reception caused for another change in development teams, and this time, the duty was given to Eurocom. Eurocom released Spyro: A Hero’s Tail in 2004. The game was developed for the Xbox, GameCube and PlayStation 2. Once again the player was allowed to take on the role of Spyro and his group of ragtag friends. A Hero’s Tail scored slightly better than Enter the Dragonfly, but still did not reach the level of success the franchise did while in Insomniac’s hands. Apparently, it was time for a change.
Enter Krome Studios and Sierra Entertainment. The sixth Spyro console release – The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning – was crafted from the beginning to form a trilogy of games as a reboot of the entire Spyro franchise. Released in 2006, A New Beginning focused more heavily on action than the previous Spyro titles. The game also explained Spyro’s origins all the way back to his birth, and stressed the importance of the young dragon in the greater context of a prophecy come to life.
As a trilogy, the first game introduced additional protagonists and antagonists that would play a role in the later games. Krome also chose to bring on an all-star cast of voice actors for the reboot, including Elijah Wood as Spyro, David Spade as Sparx, and Gary Oldman as Ignitus. Still, with all the changes, the game was both applauded and criticized. Many praised Krome for rejuvenating the Spyro franchise, but others criticized the game for straying too far from the roots of Spyro lore.
The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night, was the last console game to be released as of now. Developed again by Krome Studios and published by Sierra Entertainment, The Eternal Night continued the story left off in the first part of the trilogy. Developed for the PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and Wii, new abilities were added to the roster including the ability to slow time when needed. Again, the response to the game was mixed, leaving it with a slightly lower average score than its predecessor.
The newest Spyro title is still in development – slated to release to retail this October. The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon will be the third – and final – entrant in The Legend of Spyro Trilogy, and as such has taken on a more ambitious attitude than the previous two titles. For this game Krome Studios handed off the baton to Etranges Libellules, who are currently developing the title for the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PS2 and Nintendo DS. Libellules seems to be taking the responsibility with great care, as they are pioneering several new features never before seen in a Spyro title. Spyro is now a teenage dragon, and has the ability to fly unaided for the first time. Partnering with female dragon Cynder, Spyro must team up to save the world from evil once and for all. The addition of Cynder also introduces drop-in and drop-out cooperative play to the mix.
Things have been looking good for Dawn of the Dragon, with favorable gameplay impressions circulating the web. It is also hard not to be impressed with the striking screens and art of the now grownup dragon. Many – including us – are anticipating getting our hands on the game next month. If you want to check out some Dawn of the Dragon goods for yourself, click on the screenshot and media tab for newly released content.
So it is obvious that Spyro has seen both highs and lows in his ten-year run, but he is still alive and kicking. Keep reading to learn more about the purple dragon, and to get some inside perspective on his past trials and tribulations.