Dragons are huge, scaly, vicious, brutal, bad tempered creatures with sharp teeth and fiery breath.

Or are they?

Imagine a land populated by dragons who are cultured, wise, constructive, diplomatic - and who have sharp teeth and fiery breath. A land where virtually anything can happen - and often does.

Welcome to the Dragon Lands.

Spyro the Dragon

Once, the Dragon Lands were a peaceful place, where Dragons co-existed with fairies and balloonists, and looked after their enormous wealth. The only problem in the Dragon Lands was one Gnasty Gnorc, a cross between all the bad qualities of a Gnome and an Orc, so they banished him to the Dragon Junk Yard for being an unmitigated pain in the neck.

In revenge, Gnasty cast a spell from his new home which turned all the dragons into crystal. Except for Spyro, who was so small that the spell flew right over his head.

Saving the Dragon Lands

Spyro's task now is to release all the dragons and recover all of the treasure. Gnasty has attempted to secure his hold on the Dragon Lands by turning some of the gems into guards, and hiding others in secret lands where a challenge must be faced to regain them. He has also hired a band of fleet-footed thieves to steal dragon eggs, to make sure that he can turn them to crystal too when they hatch

There are five Dragon Lands, all of which are linked by balloonists who will give Spyro a lift to the next World once he's rescued enough dragons in the present one to make it possible. Each of the separate Worlds contains a number of magic portals which take Spyro to the many different regions of each World. There are also four secret levels which need to be found where Spyro is granted the ability to fly. Here he must complete a series of challenges within a set time.

Duffing up the Baddies

Spyro has two weapons at his command for fighting Gnasty's Gnorc minions (well, three if you include rolling out of the way of blows). Flame and Force.

Many enemies can be burned up with Spyro's fire breath (after all, he is a dragon). Alternatively, Spyro can charge them down and knock them into the middle of next week with his horns. Some enemies are only vulnerable to one weapon or the other - you will need to work out which one Spyro needs to use to avoid getting a swipe from them!

Whenever Spyro returns to a world, perhaps to seek out some forgotten treasure, he will find that the baddies have all come back - but if he kills them again, they will become shiny pearls, and for every twenty of these that Spyro collects, he gets a new life.

Working with the Goodies

Spyro is not alone in his quest, and has a wide range of allies available to see him through all kinds of challenges

Sparx the dragonfly is Spyro's most useful companion. This little invertebrate can absorb the force of any blow that connects with Spyro, though it takes away a third of his strength each time. The third time Spyro is hit, he will vanish completely and the next hit Spyro takes will kill him. Fortunately, Sparx's strength can be topped up throughout the game.

Although the Dragons have been crystallised, as Spyro releases them, they give him hints and advice for the journey, so releasing them is a priority.

The Fairies are without doubt the second greatest allies to Spyro after Sparx. They hover over the spots where Spyro releases dragons and will save the game if he asks them to. They will lift him up to higher platforms that he couldn't otherwise reach, and - best of all - a fairy's kiss will temporarily give Spyro enhanced flame breath that will break through virtually anything!

Is it Good?

Spyro is one of those games that will either appeal at once, or turn off at once! The challenges are not too difficult for young players, but no so easy that older gamers will be completely bored. The music is also very good, if a little twee at times.

The graphics are fairly simple, but this does not detract from the fun of charging cowering Gnorcs or burning their tents down. Admittedly Spyro is quite difficult to control at first, so time should be taken mastering the art of simply getting him to go in the direction you want him to whilst you are safely settled in the first of the Dragon Lands, as very few enemies actually fight back at that stage.

Spyro the Dragon is a pleasantly diverting game for a quiet evening or two's entertainment.

Spyro 2 - Gateway to Glimmer/Ripto's Rage

Having saved the Dragon Lands from the evil influence of Gnasty Gnorc, Spyro and his mate Sparx are looking for some R and R. However it is not to be found in the Dragon Lands, where rain is a persistent feature. The best place to go, without doubt, is to Dragon Shores, the Dragon holiday resort of beaches and funfair rides.

Meanwhile, in another dimension, the land of Avalar is in serious trouble from a small, orange creature called Ripto, who has done to Avalar pretty much the same thing that Gnasty Gnorc did to the Dragon World. The citizens of Avalar have gathered in the small land of Glimmer to summon a Dragon to deal with Ripto - and guess who they get?

Holiday Detour

With his journey to his holiday interrupted, Spyro has much the same task ahead of him as he had against Gnasty Gnorc. All the treasure in Avalar has been scattered all over the place, and (if Spyro ever wants to get back to the Dragon Lands) all of the green crystal orbs that will operate the portal to get home have also been nicely distributed throughout the entire world.

Friends and Enemies

Spyro makes a number of new friends in Avalar, particularly Elora, a Faun, and Hunter, a slightly dim cheetah. Once again, Spyro can count on fairy help for saving his progress. Sparx is, as always, his constant companion, and can still absorb knocks and blows. Again, he should be fed with butterflies to keep him healthy - and if he eats ten, the next one will be a spectacular blue insect, which will give Spyro an extra life.

Ripto doesn't share Gnasty Gnorc's ability to transform gems into enemies - but there are still plenty of them about. Ripto's henchmen, Gulp and Crush, are ready and waiting for Spyro too. There is also Moneybags, a somewhat ambiguous character who is not exactly an enemy, but he isn't much help as he keeps charging Spyro for information,advice and even to use things that help his progress.

New Skills and Items

Spyro has been busy since his last journey, taking the time to learn some new abilities. He doesn't roll sideways any more, but he has learned to swim at last, and he can even extend his glides slightly with a graceful hover at the end, which is very useful, furthermore, he can leap into the air, somersault and then headbash things on the ground - which also leads to some very graceful dives into water! Sparx has learned a new trick, too. Press all of the shoulder buttons, and he will point to the nearest gem, wherever it is - very helpful for finding the last gems in a world.

Spyro can still charge and flame his enemies, instead of being converted gems they are small sparks of energy taken from various powerup portals. When Spyro takes an enemy out, the energy spark is restored to the powerups, and when enough have been collected, Spyro can use them to bounce, shoot fireballs or fly!

Is it good?

Once again, simple graphics and carefully balanced challenges are the order of the day. There are four worlds to visit, each with a number of individual lands to explore, gems to collect and items to recover. All of the challenges are rated using a star system to show how difficult they are considered to be. Again they are not so easy that an adult will be bored, nor so hard that a child will be unable to complete them. The music comes up trumps and is in the same vein as that in the first outing. Although the game is different, it is not too different, and leads on nicely from the original.

Spyro: Year of the Dragon

Spyro has been one busy dragon. With peace in the Dragon Lands, freedom restored to Avalar and Hunter the dim cheetah in tow, Spyro and Sparx are home again, the Dragons have a huge clutch of new dragon eggs waiting to hatch and all is settled.

Or is it?

Forgotten Lands where Dragons reign no more

On the other side of the World from the Dragon Lands, another continent exists. Forgotten by the Dragons and with its magic draining away without them, it is now ruled by a creature that appear to be a mix of Crocodile and Frog - the Sorceress. She is assisted by her downtrodden apprentice Bianca, and has a dastardly scheme to increase her own power at the expense of the Dragons that remain in the World.

The Sorceress dispatches Bianca and an army of her followers, the Rhynocs, through a magical tunnel to the Dragon Lands with one objective, to steal all of the dragon eggs. Though their plan is successful, the dragons awake in time to see where the eggs have gone. Again the tunnel is too narrow for anyone else but Spyro to get through - and so another adventure begins!

Here We Go Again

Spyro, accompanied as always by Sparx, heads off to pastures new once more - and Hunter the dim cheetah tags along for the ride. As with all words Spyro visits, he must progress through the worlds using portals to travel from country to country, perform tasks and collect jewels. This time, however, he must collect all of the dragon eggs and return them to the dragon worlds to prevent the dragon magic disappearing forever.

Help and Hindrance

The professor, who Spyro encountered in Avalar, has been experimenting with his portals again and a certain avaricious bear with a monocle and the name of Moneybags has found his way to a new world. The Sorceress has paid him to guard four creatures who are the only threats to her plan (which is revealed progressively in cut-scenes throughout the game) - but he's not averse to a little bribery if Spyro's willing to pay.

These four creatures, Sheila the Kangaroo, Sgt. James Byrd the Penguin, Bentley the cultured Yeti and Agent 9 the genetically modified monkey, all have their own skills, which they are more than happy to use on Spyro's behalf. Furthermore, some eggs have been hidden using portals so tiny that only Sparx can get through them, so he can have adventures of his own. As he wins eggs, he will be rewarded with extra magic to aid Spyro on his journey. Keep an eye out for Bianca - she will pop up every so often to offer every hindrance she can, but for how long?

The Sorceress has copied Gnasty Gnorc's trick of transforming jewels into Rhynocs, and she has engaged a number of thieves which will need to be chased down. The number of tasks Spyro has to complete has increased in the form of 'mini-games' within each land - where Spyro must do all kinds of things from the highly skilled¹ to the plain bizarre². Fans of the Flight levels will be delighted to find that they are back - and again they are required to complete the game.

Is it Good?

As before, Spyro: Year of the Dragon has simple, but colourful graphics and plenty of different tasks for Spyro to undertake. The additional characters give a new dimension to the game in that they have different skills to master and weaponry to use, though their overall aims are the same as Spyro's. Spyro has one new ability, which must be mastered, in that he can now skateboard - in certain levels - which is a great deal of fun. The music is as good as ever, and there is plenty to do - with even Sparx having his turn!

Perhaps the best game of the three, Spyro: Year of the Dragon is enormous fun and will give hours of entertainment.