When Sony and Naughty Dog
bailed on Crash Bandicoot in favor of something more adult, Universal Games
snatched the property as quickly as they could. Shortly afterwards, Insomniac
Games abandoned their Crash-esque franchise with similar goals in mind: create a
new series with more of an edge. The abandoned franchise was Spyro the Dragon,
flying, fire-breathing action/adventure for the PSone. With Crash already on
board, Universal completed their collection with the addition of Spyro.
At their new home Crash
and Spyro have had the luxury of branching out onto new game consoles. While
GameCube has only seen ports of old Crash and Spyro games, Game Boy Advance has
had brand-new Crash and Spyro games developed specifically for that platform.
Crash worked great as a side-scrolling adventure game. Spyro: Attack of the
Rhynocs turned out a bit different. For starters, it’s not two-dimensional.
It’s not three-dimensional either; it’s somewhere in between. Spyro uses an
isometric view. What’s that? In simple terms, it means that the view is
top-down and partially angled to give the game a Sonic 3D-style look. Another
example would be the original Diablo, which also uses an isometric view.
The good thing about an
isometric view is that it gives the player the perception that the game is in
3D. You’re not just moving toward the top of the screen (as in a game like the
original Zelda, which uses a top-down view), you’re moving deeper into the
world.
Spyro developer Digital
Eclipse modeled the controls after the PSone version. You won’t find many
differences. The A and B buttons are designated to the jump and fire breathing
actions. Holding the right shoulder button will cause Spyro to run fast with
vase-breaking power. (Vases contain valuable items that must be obtained to
complete the game. Most vases can be destroyed with fire, but others are
impervious to flames. Spyro must therefore use his "head" – the same way that
Rex did in Toy Story 2 – to break the vases.)
It’s been a while since
I’ve played the PSone and PlayStation 2 versions of the game, but at some point
in the series a new kind of fire-breathing power was introduced. Actually, it
wasn’t a fire-breathing power at all, but that of wind. I know what you’re
thinking; Spyro is paying homage to Abe’s Oddysee by using his power from
within. That’s not exactly the case. His wind power comes from his mouth just
as his fire does. Fire is still Spyro’s main form of attack, but he has also
taken a liking to the power of ice. Apparently dragons have more abilities than
was previously thought. Either that or they just have really strong breath
mints. The ice breath enables Spyro to combat enemies (and helpless sheep) by
freezing them. Then you can switch to fire and break the ice into tiny little
pieces! Items will be left behind, and they’re much more important than wool,
so find some sheep and start freezin’.
Fans of the series will
quickly discover that Spyro: Attack of the Rhynocs is close to being the easiest
game in the series. The puzzles/scavenger hunts are basic at best, making the
game more suitable for young gamers who have very little prior gaming
experience. You might have to hop around a small area and put out the flame
covering 16 different books.
One serious problem this
game has is its amount of dialogue. Virtually every non-destructive character
in the game has something to say. I’ve seen this before in games geared at
young children, and every time I ask the same question: why? Why would they do
this? I’ve played numerous adult games that barely had an options menu, let
alone dialogue. I don’t have the patience to read a ton of pointless words,
whether they’re important to the game or not. I’m sick of every kiddie game
trying so hard to tell a story. Just give me my objectives and get on with it.
When I was a kid my favorite game had a few lines of dialogue. "We’re sorry,
but your princess is in another castle." That was plenty.
More likely than not, if
you’re old enough to be reading this review, you won’t get much out of the game
beyond a rental. However, if you’re a parent looking for a game to pick up for
your kids (who either enjoy or don’t mind a bit of reading), Spyro: Attack of
the Rhynocs will likely put a smile on their faces. It plays a lot like the
PSone version, so there isn’t much of a transitioning period. Insert the game
and play. That’s the extent of it.
If you kids have never
played a Spyro game before then you should probably get a PSone and let them try
the versions for it first. They’re pretty fun, and have been really popular
with the younger crowd. Kids are more likely to enjoy Attack of the Rhynocs if
they’ve played the other games first.
Gameplay: 7.9
You’ve got
flying, fire-breathing, platformer elements and frozen sheep that can be
shattered. What more could you want? (Alright, so you’ve got a list, big
deal!) Spyro’s gameplay is good, its only notable drawback being that it’s
easy. And it has some dialogue issues. But other than that kids won’t have any
reason not to play this game. Don’t buy it over Mario – or Crash, one of my
favorite GBA titles – but do be sure and check it out.
Graphics: 8.5
Even as the
N-Gage swarms in on the ancient technology that’s stored inside the GBA, game
developers find a way to create a few more graphically impressive titles. Spyro:
Attack of the Rhynocs has excellent, fully rendered sprites that give the
characters a much more solid look. The backgrounds are slightly bland in color,
but detailed in objects and in dimensions. The cartoony fire effect is also
kinda cool.
Sound: 7
Decent music,
annoying sound. Not one to listen to, but not necessarily one to cover your
ears for either.
Difficulty: Easy
Some kids might
find it difficult, but anyone with experience – even children as young as six –
will not be too challenged by Spyro: Attack of the Rhynocs.
Concept: 7.9
Digital Eclipse
must’ve spent a lot of time analyzing this game on the PSone. They took
everything that’s good about the PSone versions and ported as much of it onto
the GBA as possible. When I say "port," I mean a gameplay feature, like Spyro’s
various attack styles. This is not a rehash quest – the levels are all new!
Overall: 7.9
Spyro: Attack of
the Rhynocs is a great game for the kids. It’s a bit too simple for the teen
and adult crowd; though I’m sure a few of you will snatch the game from your
little brother or sister for a bit.
The isometric view gives
the game a closer-to-3D feel than any other game on the GBA. Even Banjo-Kazooie,
which used a similar gameplay technique, is not as effective at pulling it off
as Spyro is.
The various dragon
powers, like ice and wind, add more puzzle variety to the mix. Kids will have
some trial and error ahead of them, especially if they’ve never played a Spyro
game before. In that case they’d be unaware of what each power does. This game
should keep ’em occupied for a while no matter what though. A great rental, a
good buy.
