Spyro Reignited Trilogy

Genre: Compilation / 3D Platformer

Players: 1

Game Company Bad Behavior Profile Page: Activision Blizzard

The Nintendo Switch 2 Difference

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Review:

(Note: This game is included in the Spyro + Crash Remastered Game Bundle, along with Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy.)

Spyro Reignited Trilogy is a remake of the three PlayStation One 3D Platformers Spyro the Dragon, Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage, and Spyro: Year of the Dragon. This game lovingly recreates the classic platformers with completely redone graphics on par with more modern games.

Okay, so I’ll level with you here – I never really played the original releases in the Spyro trilogy. It was always one of the games in my backlog I intended to get to eventually, but somehow I never managed to get to them. However, it’s just as well, because this release absolutely blows those games away with its amazing presentation.

Spyro Reignited is absolutely gorgeous, full of colorful worlds, amazing detail, and delightful animations. Little details like grass getting singed by your flames pairs with stuff like early mook enemies shaking in fear as you approach to really flesh out the world of the game. This version of the game does have a few rough edges, such as long load times and places where the framerate shudders, but overall it’s still very impressive to look at.

As for the gameplay, what’s here holds up pretty well, albeit with a few caveats I’ll get into in a moment. This game comes from the golden age of 3D platformers, and as such you’ll find the hallmarks of that era in full force here, including all the collectable goodies you’re tasked with seeking out, and simple combat paired with a focus on platforming. It all works really well and is still plenty of fun now.

There are a few issues, and I’ll start with the bane of 3D platformers from that era, the camera. In this trilogy, the camera hangs just a bit too close to your character, especially in the first game, where you’re tasked early on with charging down evasive characters at high speeds, and the combination of these elements makes for some frustration. Also, the level design of these games is needlessly confusing – it’s hard to tell one grassy area apart from another, and without any sort of map, often the only clue that I’ve already been to an area is whether the gems there are missing.

One other detail I should note regarding this release – if you’re thinking of getting this game in physical form, please be aware that a sizeable download is required to play Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage and Spyro: Year of the Dragon. Keep this in mind when deciding which version of the game to get.

Despite these flaws preserved from the original releases, Spyro Reignited Trilogy is an absolutely superb collection of classic 3D platformers, with graphics that are phenomenal, and gameplay that has largely withstood the test of time. The effort put into this remake really goes above and beyond what you’d expect of a revisit to some old PlayStation titles, and what’s more, you’re getting not one, but three of them in one package. Definitely a collection worth owning.

tl;dr – Spyro Reignited Trilogy is a collection of the original three PlayStation Spyro games, family-friendly 3D Platformers that have withstood the test of time and are presented here with absolutely gorgeous graphics. While there are a few elements that haven’t aged well, like the camera, on the whole this is an absolute joy that fans of platformers should consider a must-have.

Grade: A-

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2019 Game Awards:

Runner-Up: Best Port/Remake, Best Compilation/Collection, Best Game for Kids and Casual Players, Best Platformer

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The Nintendo Switch 2 Difference

Spyro Reignited Trilogy

Genre: Compilation / 3D Platformer

Players: 1

Game Company Bad Behavior Profile Page: Activision Blizzard

.

Review:

(Note: This game is included in the Spyro + Crash Remastered Game Bundle, along with Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy.)

Spyro Reignited Trilogy still looks great in a lot of respects on Nintendo Switch, but framerate and resolution are not among those good qualities, and the Nintendo Switch 2 doesn’t change that. This is another example of a game that mainly benefits on Nintendo Switch 2 due to improved loading times.

Having said that, it’s a pretty great improvement! Loading to the title screen (including logos and small print at the start) takes 1 minute 14 seconds on Nintendo Switch, but only 34 seconds on Nintendo Switch 2. And loading into a game after that goes from 26 seconds on Nintendo Switch to 15 seconds on Nintendo Switch 2.

It’s a good improvement, to be sure, though there’s still a wide gap between this and the version of Spyro Reignited Trilogy on other platforms. But at the very least this is certainly an improvement over playing the game on Nintendo Switch.

tl;dr – Spyro Reignited Trilogy is a collection of the original three PlayStation Spyro games, family-friendly 3D Platformers that have withstood the test of time and are presented here with absolutely gorgeous graphics, though still nowhere near as nice as what’s available on non-Nintendo platforms. While there are a few elements that haven’t aged well, like the camera, on the whole this is an absolute joy that fans of platformers should consider a must-have.

Grade: A-

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