The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night

Spyro the Dragon was one of the first platforming games that become synonymous with the original PlayStation. When the PlayStation 2 was released, the original developers of the game handed off the franchise and started a new one (Ratchet & Clank). Over the years the Spyro franchise has never regained its former glory. Hoping to capture this glory once again, a new developer decided to “reboot” the franchise and make it much darker than the original series.

The story goes like this: The Dark Master spirit is finally free from the prison inside Convexity. It is now the Ape King Gaul’s goal to resurrect him on the Night of Eternal Darkness, which is when the Celestial Moons come together to form a great eclipse. Recently Spyro has been having visions that are telling him of this great danger and how to stop it. Spyro is now seeking the advice of an ancient dragon called the Chronicle, who will be able to tell him what his dreams mean and how to stop this evil from coming upon the world.

One problem that I had with the game was the difficulty level. I know the developers are trying to get a broader reach but at the same time they are going to alienate the younger gaming fans. At times this game can get really difficult (and frustrating) and will have you wanting to throw your Wii-mote through the screen; at other times the game is mind-bogglingly simple. It is like the developers couldn’t make up their minds who this game was going to be marketed to.

This would have been Ok if the difficulty ramp up was consistent throughout the game. Sadly, this is not the case as you can go from one section where you have to defeat many enemies that gang up on you, charge at you with sheer stupidity, and even hit you when you are down to another section that you can complete with your eyes closed. If that wasn’t irritating enough then the hand-holding throughout the entire game will get on your nerves. In order to replenish your health, magic, or upgrading, you will need to collect crystals that are spread and plentiful. So, on one hand you have so much health and magic that you can defeat anything in your way and then you are left with nothing to defeat hordes of enemies.

One major irritation I have with games that are part of a linked trilogy is that you go from being an “uber powerful” character to a wimp in the introduction movie without any real explanation. This is especially irritating in this game, which starts off directly from the end of the last game but still forces you to go through the game reclaiming your powers (again!). Some developers get around this by giving you unique and different powers from the first game, or even giving you a somewhat-reasonable excuse other than “why don’t you have your powers,” or the always classic “you used up all your energy in the last battle, so now you have to figure out what the powers are and how to use them again.”

Another feature that is put in this game is a take on the famous bullet-time effect, though this time around it is called Dragon Time. This allows you to slow time to help solve various puzzles such as platforms going too fast for you to hop on them, and even defeat some of the tougher enemies. This really feels like a tacked-on gimmick because it really doesn’t exploit this feature other than solving moronic puzzles thrown about throughout the game.

The controls are really easy to get the hang of. What is disappointing is that the developers really didn’t implement any real motion controls, which would have added some flare to the game. Instead this game makes limited use of the Nintendo Wii motion controls; in fact the only move that requires the use of the motion controls is the Fury move, which unleashes a nasty gift to any enemies in your path.

The graphics for The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night are decent but I have seen better on this system. The problem is that the characters and the environments have a very saturated and low poly look to them. The environments at times will be lush with detail and other times appear parched. It is like I mentioned earlier with the difficulty, it is like the developer had a hard time coming up with a balance between everything to make it all run smoothly together. One thing that is consistently nice is the special effects from the Fury moves to when Spyro uses the elements.

The sound is really good, especially in the voice acting department since the developer spared no expense in getting some top voice talent. Gary Oldman, Elijah Wood and Billy West (from Futurama) have lent their voices to this title. At times the dialog is lame and seems a bit forced, but overall the actors did a good job of telling the story and keeping it moving along. The music is also pretty good and sets a nice atmosphere in this game. The sound effects are decent and get the job done but don’t really try to go the extra mile.

The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night is rated Everyone 10+.

Gameplay: 6.1
The gameplay is fine but it really needs freshening up to make it more appealing.

Graphics: 6.7
The graphics for this game are decent, but this system is capable of much more than what is given.

Sound: 7.2
The voice actors do a good job here. The music is pretty good and adds a nice atmosphere to the game. The sound effects on the other hand are a tad generic.

Difficulty: Medium
Even though this game is made for a younger gaming audience, there are times where it is really frustrating and at other times the game is too easy. The developers had a real hard time balancing it all out.

Concept: 6.8
I really hated having to regain all the powers from the first game. Don’t developers realize that in a trilogy you really shouldn’t make gamers start from square one again with no solid excuse why, especially if the game picks up immediately after the last one ended?

Overall: 6.7
Even with all of its faults, The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night remains a fun game that will keep you occupied for quite some time. If you are looking for a decent platforming game and can’t wait till Super Mario Galaxy comes out then check this game out.