Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage!

Ripto’s Rage é uma óbvia evolução para a franquia, que precisava de mais desafio e complexidade.

A mescla entre exploração livre e mini-missões nas fases é muito bem-vinda, pois oferece variedade e adiciona um tempero que faltou ao primeiro jogo, que por vezes ficava entediante de tão linear e fácil. A adição de alguns power-ups também ajuda a tornar o gameplay mais prazeroso e profundo.

E, por mais que seja super bobinha, a narrativa amarra tudo em uma aventura gostosa de acompanhar e de personagens com personalidades bem definidas.

(Jogado na versão da Reignited Trilogy)

If Super Mario 64 [スーパーマリオ64] was the blueprint, then Spyro 2 is the pyramid. No need to bounce on Mario 64, that game was great in its own right (before we found out it could be exploited into oblivion), but the second entry in the Spyro trilogy, Ripto's Rage (or Gateway to Glimmer), is platforming perfection at the turn of the millennium, while taking inspiration from the first game.

The original Spyro the Dragon helped solidify that the Playstation could compete with the N64's brand of 3D platformer with authority. It was an atmospheric masterwork that featured rock solid gameplay and incredibly memorable locales. To continue on with the legacy, however, changes must be made. Insomniac was not a developer to fear a slight change in formula, and while Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage (or Gateway to Glimmer in Europe) retains the whimsical collect-a-thon gameplay of the original, it adds new elements to keep players hooked from start to finish.

The changes start small, with a few additions to the movement mechanics. Spyro can now hover at the end of a glide for some extra safety padding for particularly long glides, and he can also now swim underwater. The underwater aspect in particular provides many new level design opportunities, and compared to other games of the era, it's a remarkably painless system in a sea of otherwise despised water levels. The big changes, however, come from the addition of orbs. Orbs are generally hidden around levels in secret areas or awarded to the player for completing extra challenges outside of regular exploration.

For example, in the original Spyro, the only real challenges outside of platforming and basic combat were flight levels. These remain a staple of Spyro 2, but now every standard level contains additional challenges with specific objectives. Now, you may be expected to beat an enemy in a game of hockey, stealthily follow an agent to their hideout, or solve simple puzzles. In return, you are awarded orbs, one of the main collectibles alongside the standard gems and talismans (awarded on level completion). You are required to collect a certain amount of orbs, as well as every talisman, but gems are more reserved in a different form of progression. The character Moneybags will charge you to open up certain levels or areas and teach you moves. As such, all three collectibles provide ample incentive to be collected.

Generally, the games challenges and levels are very well crafted. Few orb challenges ever feel too overbearingly difficult, and more importantly, they're generally fun throughout. There are, of course, some exceptions. Guiding a near-sighted alchemist through a sea of unkillable Earthshapers proves to be exceptionally irritating, as does the infamous trolley sequence. For the most part, though, they're pretty fun to finish. The levels themselves are no exception, either. The addition of unique NPC's to each level provides flavor, and most levels in the game are crafted with the same meticulous care as Spyro 1. The homeworlds are especially gorgeous, and unlike the first game, lack enemies. This allows them to feel like true safe zones where you can unwind after a level.

The storytelling is also notably improved over the original. Many more cutscenes grow the characters around you, and you interact with a few different characters on a regular basis. This is a welcome change from the dragon system in the first game, where you hear one line per NPC, many of the lines being canned throwaways. The music, again composed by Stewart Copeland, remains high quality, but sometimes feels like it's missing a little bit of the whimsy that the first game's soundtrack contained. Atmospherically, Spyro 2 certainly has its magic, but plays it a little bit safer than the first in a number of ways. Overall, it's an excellent sequel that provides everything a player could ask for. More of what made the series enjoyable in the first place, as well as additions that add to the experience.

Ripto's Rage is pretty nostalgic for me as well, I remember as a kid in 4th grade I loved Ripto and thought he was the coolest villain ever and played this game somewhat frequent, although not as much as Year of the Dragon. And well this game is better and worse than the first in ways. I know this is praised and some even go as far as considering it the best Spyro but heres what the game did right. The camera, controls, and design in this game are mostly better than the first. This game actually has more story and a villain that gets more than 5 seconds of screen time before you fight him, and the story of this is actually decent enough for this kind of game, and there is more humor in this game than the first. The most noticeable are levels now have more to do, there are now mini games in each level where you do various activities for the people in each World like killing certain enemies in a time limit or escorting people without getting them hit. The other thing is now you have reoccurring characters like moneybags who you need to pay gems to let you access certain areas and Hunter who is basically a silly sidekick character. Now the mini games do add variety and I do think they aren't too out of place, but the thing is most levels in this game are designed around these mini games and are kind of hit or miss. The 3rd game got the mini game thing better and this game many mini games just get tedious, repeat, and some are just frustrating and poorly designed. The levels in this game range from forgettable and boring to pretty good, but none I'd consider to be great. I actually enjoyed the design of the first games levels slightly better because those levels often had challenge and were focused more on the flying and springing mechanics, this the levels are mostly mini games with the enemies and design being a little bit of afterthought.

Now this game does take longer to beat than the first, it does have more collectibles with orbs being rewarded for the minigames, the boss fights in this are a huge improvement of the first game, and the music is about the same quality as the first game with the same composer. But I didn't find the improvements to be great enough and this feels more of a transition game between the first and third game. The third game managed to get the perfect balance between variety, mini game, actual level design, storytelling, and overworld design.

Though containing many of the same thrills and decent collectathon elements of the last game, progression feels a lot more stagnant, especially in the second half of the game where the metric for unlocking levels switches gears entirely, almost making the first half entirely moot if you weren't collecting everything to begin with. Still, a greater sense of expansion and variety makes up for it.