I know there are A LOT of "Which is the best Spyro game?" convos around here, but I just wanted to give Spyro 3 its flowers (well, and the whole series). I know the game has its die hard fans and that it's generally well received, but from what I've seen, Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage and Spyro the Dragon seem to be more of the fan favorites and Spyro: Year of the Dragon is more often than not panned as the worst in the series, which I don't agree with whatsoever, to the point of me wondering if I'm playing the same game as others. Keep in mind that I'm talking about original PS1 games, btw.

If I had to do the ranking of the series, it would look like this:

1. Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon

2. Spyro the Dragon

3. Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage

Year of the Dragon just feels much more grander and more complete compared to Ripto's Rage. Here are the things I feel Spyro 3 has over Spyro 2:

• **THE COLLECTABLES** \- I really enjoyed the unique-to-each-world talismans, but the decision to change the main collectables from talismans to orbs in the last hub world is just odd in my opinion and makes the game feel indecisive and both of the collectables feel less definitive in my head. Dragon eggs are cool and more satisfying to find than the orbs and are hidden in cool places more often. (though the long glide in the Autumn Plains is elite of course.)

• **THE MUSIC** \- Personally, I enjoy the 3rd game's soundtrack more. It's much more sparkly, energetic, percussive and dense production-wise. I also find the sound quality to be a step up. I feel like the sound presets Copeland used were of higher fidelity. Also, I just love the drum sounds from all the tracks, there is this flanger (or something, correct me if I'm wrong) effect used on a lot of drums, giving it that cool warping sound. Other than that, the compositions are just amazing; the title track, Sunrise Spring, Sheila's Alp, Sunny Vila, Cloud Spires, Icy Peak, Evening Lake (my absolute favorite... Just mesmerizing), Fireworks Factory, Frozen Altars, Harbor Speedway, Bamboo Terrace... So many creative bangers. All Spyro games have top tier soundtracks, don't get me wrong, but Spyro 3 is peak music.

• **PACING** \- This might be the biggest offender in Spyro 2 for me. The pacing in that game feels off. Let's talk about the homeworlds. Homeworlds in Spyro 2 are beautiful (Autumn Plains and Winter Tundra might be the best homeworlds in the series purely from the design standpoint followed closely by Sunrise Spring, Midnight Mountain, Artisans and Beast Makers which is painfully underrated btw), but it really irks me that there are only 3. (And they are... 3 seasons? Like, did they not expect people to question the absence of the fourth one?) The last hub world, Winter Tundra, which is BEAUTIFUL feels short and Autumn Plains (classic, of course) is too bloated. The game really could've used the 4th homeworld and better level distribution to make it feel more satisfying and stable. Also, as I've already said, the sudden change with orbs becoming the main collectables over talismans feels weird and messes with the pacing, too. Some other pacing points are made in "LENGTH". A bit more polish to the pacing would've made finishing Ripto's Rage more satisfying. And that's the big thing. Spyro the Dragon and Spyro: Year of the Dragon feel more SATISFYING to finish and complete in my opinion, because they lack the pacing issues Ripto's Rage has and feel more fleshed out regarding the level distribution, homeworlds concepts and collectables consistency. (well, except for the egg thieves in Spyro the Dragon which the game completely forgets about past the half-game mark, lmao.) Spyro 2, comparatively, feels unfinished.

• **LEVEL DESIGN** \- I prefer the level layout of Spyro 3. In Spyro 2 the experience can get quite hectic (which granted, can be the part of the fun) with all the side missions and objectives being in the same room. Spyro 3 often has these black doors that take you to a different stage in the same level, which I like and in my opinion don't take away from immersion at all. It makes the main stage more focused and improves the flow of the level.

• **STORY** \- While no Spyro game has INCREDIBLE story plots and major life changing events (like for example Sly 2 has), Year of the Dragon has a bit more layers and intricate character motivations. Sorceress wanting to rip off the wings from the dragons is hardcore, and Bianca realizing she's a freak is always amusing. Hunter and Bianca relationship is wholesome and saving baby dragons feels more, how should I say, palpable than just saving the worlds from Ripto's reign. All in all, more engaging story.

• **VARIETY** \- The new characters are great (especially Sheila) and provide fresh variety which was necessary for the trilogy at that point. I reckon this is the most common critique of this game and is generally the biggest critique for most 3rd installments of platforming games (think about Crash Bandicoot: Warped and Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves). And look, I get it. You enjoy them or not. I for one, always appreciate variety in platforming games as long as the core gameplay doesn't get lost in the sauce and it starts to feel like I'm playing another game, which is definitely not the case with Spyro: Year of the Dragon. Crash 3 and Sly 3 feel like worse offenders (yet Warped still might be my favorite Crash game along with Crash 2 lmao, I like the vehicles). But extra characters in Spyro 3 never outstay their welcome and control quite well in my opinion, except for maybe Sgt. Byrd whose controls are a bit stiff. I just feel like you play PLENTY as Spyro. More than enough. I also think the extra characters playtime is heavily exaggerated. I never felt like "Urgh, when am I playing as Spyro again?" during the game. Also, Spyro 2 arguably had worse mini-games and they felt much more frequent than in Spyro 3, yet I never hear people complain about those. Skateboarding parts are lots of fun, too. I just have a feeling that people easily subscribe to the "3rd Game Syndrome" where the franchise introduces many more mechanics, characters and gameplay ideas which waters down the experience. It's a cliché at this point, but a natural progression if you ask me. However, I don't agree that it necessarily waters down the experience. Crash 3, Ratchet and Clank 3, and in my opinion Spyro 3 succeeded in making a fantastic game with those experiments. The only game I feel faltered a bit was Sly 3 (imagine giving the controller during the pirate talk mission to a person that just finished Sly 2: Band of Thieves, it's ridiculous.) which is still a good game mind you. All in all, I feel like people have preconceptions about the 3rd games because of all the new stuff, when in reality, these things are not nearly as jarring. I appreciate when developers aren't repeating the same exact games. It makes the trilogies that much more fun and sparks more conversations like these.

• **LENGTH** \- Spyro 3 is LONG which I love. I know this is a matter of personal preference (as honestly most of this is), but I just think the length is perfect. It really gives you time to become immersed in the game. I feel like Spyro 2 could benefit from an hour or two of more gameplay. Instead, there is already a feeling of finality as soon as you reach the 3rd world, which continues my issues with the pacing. As soon as you beat Gulp and have that fake "it's all over, enjoy the vacation Spyro!" cutscene, the game is giving you mixed signals, which I think did not go over as well as they thought it would. Because of that, the 3rd world (which again, I think is amazing) unfortunately feels like an afterthought.

• **ATLAS > GUIDEBOOK** \- This is a minor thing, I guess. I just prefer leafing the Atlas much more than the Guidebook. It has a nicer and more satisfying presentation of the worlds and your objectives/achievements.

• **BIANCA -** I like Bianca's character. Her change of heart felt genuine and her interactions with Spyro and Hunter were engaging. There was no character arc like this one in the previous games. Not that they needed it, but it's nice to see a more complex character successfully blended into the game.

• **SPYRO'S** **MOVES** \- He can headbash, climb and swim from the beginning of the game and I appreciate that decision.

• **FLYING LEVELS** \- And finally, I think flying levels are the best in the series. The races actually feel exhilarating once you get the hang of the star placements and how to approach the rings; and the time attacks are better, too. The side missions with Hunter are MUCH less strenuous and annoying than the side missions in Ripto's Rage, in my opinion. I love the speedways in Spyro 3.

This might seem like I don't like Spyro 2, but that's definitely not the case. I really respect Spyro 2 for the major innovation and successful changes to the Spyro formula. The controls, style, characters, level design. I think Spyro: Year of the Dragon perfected it though. Things I believe Spyro 2 has over Spyro 3 (or that they're at least arguable) are:

• **BOSS BATTLES -** Boss battles are INCREDIBLE. They are tense and have nice mechanics. Ripto's final boss is so good, it honestly might be my favorite boss battle in all of platforming games. Spyro 3 boss are very good, too, but Ripto's Rage is unbeatable.

• **RIPTO > SORCERESS** \- This might seem contradictory to my story points earlier, so let me explain. While I do think Sorceress' motivations are more interesting and that the story generally is more engaging in Spyro 3, Ripto feels like a more fleshed out main villain simply because we see him interacting with Spyro during the whole game. Buidling him up to be a bigger threat is a good decision. Also, I like his character design more than Sorceress'. She always underwhelmed me and doesn't feel nearly as iconic as Ripto.

• **AUTUMN PLANES / WINTER TUNDRA** \- As I've already said, these might be the best homeworlds. So beautiful and tranquil. The ambient music was a PERFECT choice for these hubs, rather than more upbeat music that was more prevalent in Spyro 3. The design and the atmosphere is breathtaking.

• **SKELOS BADLANDS / MYSTIC MARSH / HURRICOS / METROPOLIS / GLIMMER** \- I can see any of these great Spyro levels being somebody's favorite. While I generally prefer the level design and layout of Spyro 3, and I do have levels above them I believe (Icy Peak, Bamboo Terrace, Cloud Spires, Enchanted Towers, Fireworks Factory, etc.) I cannot deny that these 5 are insanely memorable and peak Spyro. They're just a treat to the eye. Then again, the level rankings change all the time. As I've said, this is arguable.

• **REALM** **CUTSCENES** \- No need to explain. They were adorable.

• **ELORA** \- She was much more prominent in Ripto's Rage of course, and I like her. Her voice, the design and the classic "I'm a faun, you dork!" Sad we didn't see more of her.

• **GEM RADAR FROM THE START** \- I would prefer having the gem radar from the start like in Ripto's Rage but oh well.

• **MORE STABLE FRAMERATE -** I've experienced framerate drops in Year of the Dragon in some situations (when blasting something with explosives, entering a room with lots of stuff going on). It's not that frequent, but I've never experienced any framerate drops in Ripto's Rage.

So, as you can see, I still LOVE the game and think it's a great entry, but the other two feel much more fleshed out in my opinion. Spyro 1 may be simple, but the vastness and the atmosphere that it exudes is timeless. Notice how I didn't compare the games to Spyro 1. Because I feel like Spyro 1, being the first game in the series, shares lot less similarities with Spyro 2 and 3 and puts you in a much different mindstate. I didn't compare it with the Year of the Dragon because it is its own beast, whereas Spyro 3 feels like a continuation and improvement of the formula Spyro 2 established. The same thing applies to franchises like Crash, Sly and Jak and Daxter, for example. I feel like Spyro the Dragon embraces its simplicity and relative "emptiness"  and as a result achieves its goal with more grace than Ripto's Rage.

At the end of the day though, it doesn't really matter because I think they reinforce each other in great ways and I can see each game being someone's favorite. The differences in quality are not that huge, in my opinion. I'm just always amazed at the love Ripto's Rage receives, because Year of the Dragon, I think, is the ultimate Spyro experience.

Sorry for the incredibly long post, if you endured to the end, please tell me what you think about my points and which game do YOU like the most.

Spyro: Year of the Dragon is the ultimate Spyro experience