With Spyro The Dragon: Reignited Trilogy literally only two months away, we thought we’d look back at some of more unknown facts surrounding this little guy’s history. As with Crash Bandicoot, there’s a bunch of cool tidbits from early development that could have severely changed the course of these franchises.
HIS ORIGINAL NAME WAS PETE
Not that we have anything against the name Pete; it’s a good name. History is littered with great Petes. Nevertheless, you have got to admit that Spyro suits our charismatic hero much better.
HE WAS ORIGINALLY SUPPOSED TO BE GREEN
During the development of the game, Spyro was originally going to be green, but the developers thought it was a bad idea because he would blend in with grass, so they eventually changed him to purple.
SPYRO’S GLIDE IS LITERALLY ROCKET SCIENCE
Spyro had the unlimited ability to glide around the whole game map which was unprecedented at the time. To ensure Spyro had an authentic glide, the team hired a NASA rocket scientist who used his training in flight control to inspire the glide.
SPYRO’S LEVELS WERE INSPIRED BY MOVIES
Each level in Spyro was given a theme as the production team wanted them to feel different from each other. But did you know they took their inspiration from the movies? The Beast Makers Hub was inspired by Apocalypse Now; Cliff Town was inspired by Star Wars and numerous others paid homage to the Indiana Jones series.
THE ENEMY DESIGN WAS AHEAD OF ITS TIME
At the time of the original’s release, most enemies in games were designed to perform single functions. However, in Spyro they were designed to specifically target the player, either to damage or taunt the player. This design was in response to Insomniac Games’ desire to create a 3D character that interacted with its world.
THE SERIES IS A HUGE SELLER
As of 2007, the series altogether has sold over 20 million units worldwide, with almost 5 million of those sales being the first game in the series.
THE OG SKYLANDERS TEAM IS CREATING THE REMASTER
Toys For Bob, the development team behind the original Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure also happens to be the team recreating the Spyro Reignited Trilogy.
THE GAME’S SECRET REVEAL IS BACK
As a throwback to the original Spyro unveil, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy players in Europe, Australia and Latin America on PlayStation 4 can enter the iconic code (? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? square) into their controllers in the Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped title screen to watch the Spyro Reignited Trilogy trailer. The original game’s demo was released in the same fashion.
SPYRO HAS A LOVE INTEREST
Cynder is the love interest of the titular character in the in the Legend of Spyro trilogy. Before she hatched, Gaul took Cynder’s egg and chose her to be the dragon that would free the essence of the Dark Master, Malefor from his prison in Convesity. After Malefor was finally destroyed into the planet’s heart, Spyro and Cynder began a relationship wheeling through the skies above the valley, alive and free of their chain.
SPYRO’S OG VOICE ACTOR IS BACK
Tom Kenny replaced the original voice actor for Spyro’s second and third outing in Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage!, and Spyro: Year of the Dragon. Thankfully for fans, he has returned as the voice of Spyro in the Spyro Reignited Trilogy.
