The audio is equally excellent with a rousing, exciting orchestral score and fantastic voice work from some of Hollywood’s best acting talent.

Some of the environments do borrow heavily from the Lord of the Rings films, but that doesn’t detract from the overall high quality. There are plenty of special effects and graphical flourishes that help it stand out visually against most other third party Wii games, with the animation and frame rate all smooth. It features some beautifully realised environments with well crafted 3D models and sharp, vibrant textures. The parallels extend far beyond just the storyline and often creep into the art direction and audio too.įrom a technical viewpoint, the game is extremely well made. While the familiarity may appeal to some, the similarities are too close and too frequent for it not to become bothersome to most players. There are plenty other clear references to the famous fantasy trilogy in the storyline too. The influence of the Lord of the Rings is evident from the opening scene, where Spyro and Cynder are faced with a battle against a massive fire-breathing demon from the depths. In fact, the storyline suffers from more than a lack of clarity, with huge portions of the story and many of the set pieces seemingly lifted from a certain popular fantasy film adaptation of a classic literary trilogy. The narrative as a whole suffers because of this lack of a story recap, as many of the characters’ motivations are unclear. There are a few hints for the player, but it is never made clear. Hunter tells them that the Dark Master has escaped from Convexity and has covered the land in Darkness, launching Spyro and Cynder on a new perilous quest.ĭisappointingly, the player is left to guess what has occurred in previous titles in the trilogy. They quickly meet Hunter, who explains that Ignitus, Spyros mentor, sent him when Spyro did not return to the dragon temple after battling the Ape King, Gaul.

They have been chained together by a group of mysterious creatures known as Grublins.

Spyro and his dragon companion Cynder awake after being frozen in crystal for three years in the ruins of the Mountain of Malefor. The storyline continues three years after the second instalment of the Legend of Spyro series, The Eternal Night. Aimed at children, it is most often quite light-hearted, but it does explore some deeper themes of friendship, trust, and good and evil.

It is technically excellent, features great art direction and superb audio, but suffers with mediocre gameplay, overly simple puzzles and a generic, recycled narrative. The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon is a competent, but unimaginative conclusion to the Legend of Spyro trilogy.

Spyro for the wii