We’re going back quite a ways here... Does everyone remember the Playstation 1? On the Playstation 1 there was a game called Spyro the Dragon that cemented itself as one of most distinguished franchises for the system. 10 years after Spyro went on his first adventure, we are now on the Xbox 360 playing the his latest journey, The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon. Spread you wings its time to fly with Spryo one more time.

Spyro is a friendly little dragon that returns to the classic adventure style of gaming. As mentioned these games were first released back the PlayStation 1 days and now we’re 10 years ahead on the 360. Even though The Legend of Spyro holds on to tradition, it still manages to trek through new lands and missions. With Spyro being a dragon and all, he obviously has the ability to fly. All dragons can fly, this is the first game though that feature called free-fly mode that allows Spyro to fly anytime he wants. This is a new feature along with the change up of fighting along side an old nemesis, Cynder. Attached by a magical casted chain Spyro and Cynder must fight together. They can both do the same things; the only real difference between the two is their associated elements.

As you move through Dawn of the Dragon you’ll notice crystals (gems) protruding from the ground. The green gems are energy gems, these go towards your elements. Spyro’s elements are fire, electricity, ice and earth. While Cynder has wind, poison, fear, shadow. When each of these elements is used energy goes down, so use carefully. Also elements aren’t only used to defeat enemies, but they can be used to unlock puzzles and make progress through the game interesting. The next gem is a health gem. This is a pretty simple idea, when your health is down just smash a few of the crystals and your health will be back up to par. The last gem is a spirit gem. This gem adds a fun concept to Spyro; they give you points that can be used to upgrade Spyro, which we’ll get into later. Aside from the small gem collections, there are also large crystals. Once you destroy a large crystal you get a health or energy upgrade.

Throughout the game you can upgrade Spyro and Cynder’s elements and armor. Each armor upgrade will affect how the two characters take damage. To upgrade your elements this is where the spirit gems come into play. So if Spyro’s level one fire breathing isn’t enough there’s no need to worry, soon enough it’ll be better. If elements and attacks aren’t enough there’s also fury. Fury is displayed in a meter on top of the HUD and once it’s full you can unlock it for stronger attacks, and the ability for a fury beam attack.

The game itself is fairly simple. The story doesn’t take much thinking and you have teammates that will help you throughout your adventures. Of course there’s Sparx, Spyro’s sidekick who always has something witty or clever to say. The gameplay is also pretty simple, fly, land, attack, and repeat. Occasionally there are puzzles that don’t require much thinking as long as you find the appropriate switch or button.

The enemies can be a little stubborn at times, especially with the slightly inconvenient camera angles the game leaves you with. During some “night” levels enemies can be near impossible to see so mashing the X button can become a habit. Spyro and Cynder have many attacks and combos so when enemies surround you there will always be a way to make sure they leave you alone, for a few minutes. Also, this new Spyro adventure as a bit more of a free roam experience, just don’t expect a Grand Theft Auto styled free roam.

Graphically Spyro is decent. Having just played Gears of War 2 my expectations for new next-gen games are high, but I did manage to lower them in an understatement that Spyro is a made for a younger and less demanding audience. There are some visual glitches and the cut scenes aren’t as clean as they could be, however these aren’t the biggest issues. The biggest issue is the frame rate, when there are more than two enemies on screen you will start to see obvious frame rate issues that can hinder any gaming experience. All that aside though the graphics aren’t terrible, they still offer a nice cartoonish experience. As for the sound, everything is there but something neat is the all-star cast they have doing the voice-overs. Elijah Wood (Lord of the Rings) plays Spyro, Christina Ricci (Penelope) plays Cynder and Wayne Brady (Whose Line is it Anyway) plays Sparx. Aside from these three there are many more voices that are recognizable.

There isn't much to say about Spyro, it’s not a game with a lot of depth, nonetheless it is still mildly entertaining. Spyro is a game that’s safe for the whole family and will provide plenty of adventure for anyone. The controls are simple and as long as you can button mash you’re pretty safe. There’s a great cast of voices and the sounds really can’t be messed up. Unfortunately the graphics can be messed up. There is a very noticeable frame rate issue, there’s no difference between an SD or HD television, and the cutscenes are bland. Don’t let all this turn you away though. The upgrade system, armor and gameplay is still fun, for an hour or two at a time. The story isn’t hard to follow; yet still isn’t exciting enough to keep you involved. If you are looking for a family fun game or something that younger crowds can enjoy this is a great game, but don’t expect an epic experience.

Gameplay:7, Graphics:5, Sound:8, Innovation:6, Mojo:6 Final: 6.4 / 10

Reviewed by Chris Gagne | 11.25.08