Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage!
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| Spyro 2: Gateway to Glimmer | |
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| Developer(s) | Insomniac Games |
| Publisher(s) | SCEA |
| Release date(s) |  October 31, 1999 March 16, 2000 November 5, 1999 |
| Genre(s) | Platform |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone ELSPA: 3+ OFLC: G8+ |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation |
Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! (Spyro 2: Gateway to Glimmer in Europe, and Spyro x Sparx: Tondemo Tours in Japan) is the second game in the Spyro the Dragon series.
Contents |
[edit] Story
In the fantasy realm of Avalar, local residents Elora, Hunter, and The Professor have been working on their latest and largest portal. During a test of it, Hunter enters his birthdate as the portal's target coordinates, inadvertently activating it and allowing a small wizard named Ripto into the realm along with two large dinosaurs, Crush and Gulp. Identifying that the land has no dragons, declares that he is going to "move in" and take it over; however, Elora is able to de-activate the portal by instructing fairies to remove the orbs powering the portal. As Ripto begins to terrorize, Elora and the Professor plan to 'catch' a dragon in order to drive Ripto off.
Meanwhile, the Dragon Realms have been under rainy weather for some time; Spyro, declaring he needs a vacation, locates a portal to the realm of Dragon Shores. However, after travelling through the portal, he finds himself instead landing in the realm of Avalar by means of a smaller portal, built by Avalar's Professor. Ripto enters the scene and destroys the portal, objecting to how the Professor succeeded in bringing a dragon to the world of Avalar. Ripto is, however, forced to retreat when Gulp accidentally swallows Ripto's magical sceptre, and Spyro is asked to help save the realm of Avalar by defeating Ripto.
Each of Avalar's overworlds are captured by Ripto after Spyro enters them. In a dungeon area, Ripto and one of his minions (or, on the final overworld, resurrected versions of them) wait for Spyro. The only way to access these dungeons is to collect all of the talismans in the overworld, or in the final confrontation, to collect 40 orbs. The talismans are being held by the leaders of each homeworld. Somehow, Ripto's magic has corrupted the minds of the citizens of the realm and turned them against each other, causing outbreaks of war between worlds and races.
[edit] Characters
- Spyro, the eager, headstrong, purple dragon and main character, now a little more experienced after his adventures in the first Spyro game.
- Sparx, Spyro's constant dragonfly companion (and in-game health meter).
- Ripto, the title villain, who was transported to the realm of Avalar by accident, but announced that, as Avalar had no indigenous dragons, he would be taking over the realm.
- Crush, one of Ripto's bodyguards. A large, strong (but slightly dim) blue bipedal dinosaur-like creature who carries a club; also the boss of the first world.
- Gulp, Ripto's second bodyguard and, to some degree, steed. A quadruped dinosaur-like creature with a large appetite, and the boss of the second world. Also appears in robot form during the final boss.
- Elora, a faun of Avalar, and assistant to the Professor. She is friendly and wise, and develops a friendship with Spyro over the course of the game.
- Hunter, an anthropomorphic cheetah armed with a bow and arrows who was inadvertently responsible for bringing Ripto to the realm of Avalar, during a test of the Professor's "Super-portal". In the game, Hunter teaches the player about Spyro's abilities early on, and occasionally challenges Spyro to various mini-games or missions later.
- Zoe, a fairy who helped scatter Avalar's orbs throughout the realm to prevent Ripto from using them. Zoe appears in several locations throughout all levels, and serves as a continue point should Spyro lose a life.
- Moneybags, an anthropomorphic bear seen in various places throughout the realm of Avalar. As his name suggests, he has a love for gems, and will not hesitate to ask Spyro to "share" some of them, sometimes inventing ridiculous reasons as to why Spyro should agree. However, in all cases, paying Moneybags enough gems will result in access to new levels, further progress within the same level, or in some cases, a new ability for Spyro.
- The Professor, the creator of the "Super-portal" in Avalar. After Ripto's arrival, he created a smaller portal in the Glimmer realm to locate a dragon and bring it to Avalar.
[edit] Gameplay
Gameplay flows in a similar manner to the original Spyro, with few variations in control and Spyro's main abilities intact. Spyro can attack enemies with his typical dragon-breath, or charge through them in a charge attack, though different varieties of enemies may require a specific attack to defeat -- metal-armored enemies are impervious to Spyro's flame, and enemies much larger than Spyro himself are immune to his charge attack.
By using his wings to glide, Spyro can extend his jumping distance to a considerable reach, depending on the elevation the player begins gliding from. Levels are designed to take advantage of this, featuring large gaps that require Spyro to glide across them, and thermal updrafts which launch Spyro into the air and can allow him access to areas otherwise unreachable.
[edit] New Abilities
In addition to his returning abilities (except the "side-roll"), Spyro acquires several new skills throughout Ripto's Rage! that allow the player to explore the worlds of Avalar more thoroughly.
- Hover. Spyro's gliding ability has been augmented with a hover maneuver which, used at the end of a glide, gives Spyro one small, final boost in elevation and distance before he falls to the ground. Hunter explains this technique to the player early on in the first world.
- Swallow. Spyro now has the ability to pick up various small items and carry them in his mouth. This is used primarily for solving certain puzzles and missions, but some items (such as rocks) can be used as weapons by spitting them back out at an enemy.
- Swimming. Most water is no longer hazardous or lethal to Spyro. At first, Spyro can only swim across the surface of water, but in the first world, Moneybags teaches Spyro (for a fee, of course) how to swim underwater. Many levels feature underwater portions through which Spyro must swim, particularly the Aquaria Towers level which are almost entirely underwater. Spyro's flame breath is of no use underwater (unless augmented by a Power-Up), but he can still use his charge attack to swim at high speeds and attack foes. Spyro can still drown in unclear waters (Mystic Marsh) and green, acidic waters (Scorch and Shady Oasis).
- Climbing. In the second world, Moneybags teaches Spyro the ability to climb on certain wall surfaces, such as ladders. Spyro can traverse such walls to gain access to new missions and areas, but he cannot defend himself while hanging from a wall.
- Headbash. In the final world, Moneybags teaches Spyro one final ability, the ability to dive vertically out of the air and crash into the ground, horns first, allowing Spyro to defeat certain late-game enemies, open certain treasure boxes, and complete additional missions.
[edit] Avalar
At the beginning of the game Spyro finds himself accidentally drawn into the entirely new world of Avalar. Here there are no dragons, and numerous native characters ready to help and hinder Spyro's progress. Avalar is split into three Homeworlds, each based on a particular season. Each Homeworld serves as a hub from which Spyro can travel to separate levels via portals. Unlike the prequel, the levels in each world do not share any geographical characteristics. The levels for each Homeworld are listed beneath their descriptions. There is no Spring-themed level, since Spring and Summer have the same climate.
Summer Forest. The first Homeworld is luscious and green. Here Avalar is enjoying summer. Before reaching certain portals in this world, Spyro must pay Moneybags to teach him to swim.
- Glimmer
Enemies: Lizards, Trolls
A lush, gem-filled area, home to the Gemcutters.
- Idol Springs
Enemies: Possesed Idols
- Colossus
Enemies: Goats, Oxen
- Hurricos
Enemies: Gear Grinders, Robots, Lightning stone thieves
A world in perpetual darkness and thunder storms.
- Sunny Beach
Enemies: Water Workers, Penguins
Apt title. The Water Workers have been kidnapping turtles and putting them in iron crates.
- Aquaria Towers
Enemies: Water Workers, Crabs, Robot Sharks
The Water Workers have stolen all the water, leaving Spyro to open the above doors that will return the water.
- Ocean Speedway
- Crush's Dungeon
Autumn Plains. The second world contains the most portals to other levels. The only notable difference between it and Summer Forest is that the leaves are autumnal colours. There is also a far more extensive series of castle ramparts and galleries.
- Skelos Badlands
Enemies: Fire Wizards, Catbats, Lava Lizards, Bone-stealing dinos
- Crystal Glacier
Enemies: Ice Wizards, Draclets, Horn-nosed rabbits
- Breeze Harbour
Enemies: Zephyr Soldiers, spike mines
- Zephyr
Enemies: Breezbuilders,Baby birds
- Scorch
Enemies: Swordsmen, Camels,Arabian-esque sharpshooters
- Fracture Hills
Enemies: Earthshapers, Evil Trees, Evil Bushes
- Magma Cone
Enemies: Earthshapers, Lava Monsters
- Shady Oasis
Enemies: Thieves, Genies
- Metro Speedway
- Icy Speedway
- Gulp's Overlook
Winter Tundra. The final Homeworld is where the giant portal back to the Dragon Realm resides. There is a light snow covering here, and an eternal state of bright nightime. This level is perched high on a mountain ledge.
- Mystic Marsh
Enemies: Snail-disguised elephants, armored rhinos, monkeys, sparkplug-stealing kangaroos
- Cloud Temples
Enemies: Warlocks, Goats, Fire Toads, Fire Trolls
- Robotica Farms
Enemies: Robot bees
- Metropolis
Enemies: Space Cows, Rocket-strapped pigs, Sheep in saucers
- Canyon Speedway
- Ripto's Arena
- Dragon Shores
[edit] Power-ups
In addition to Spyro's returning and new abilities, many levels in the game feature powerup "gates" which temporarily give Spyro enhanced abilities that allow him to defeat certain enemies, reach new areas, or complete certain missions. Powerup gates are at first inactive, but become available once the player has defeated a certain number of enemies within the level.
Three of these powerup gates are based on similar abilities in the first Spyro game:
- Superflame. Superflame gates enhance Spyro's flame breath, allowing him to strike down and defeat even the normally fireproof metal-armored enemies. Unlike its incarnation in the first Spyro game, this is also a long-range ability, and Spyro can aim and shoot fireballs accurately from a first-person perspective, even while underwater. If a player gathers all the orbs and gems in the game, a door in Dragon Shores will open, with a Superflame powerup that lasts indefinitely.
- Superfly. This gate gives Spyro the ability to fly rather than glide, similar to the speedway levels.
- Supercharge. Supercharge gates give Spyro an instantaneous boost of speed. Similar to the supercharge ramps of the first Spyro game, this allows Spyro to charge through most obstacles, and even large enemies which are normally impervious to his charge attack. This ability does not wear off with time; rather it lasts until Spyro stops charging, or hits an obstacle and comes to a stop.
Other powerup gates are new to the series:
- Invulnerability. This powerup renders Spyro invulnerable to all damage for a certain length of time. This is used primarily to allow Spyro to cross large areas hazardous terrain (such as lava or acidic waters) without taking harm.
- Superjump. This gate launches Spyro high into the air in a certain direction, allowing him to land in a different area of the level.
- Ice breath. This rare gate gives Spyro a powerful ice-breath attack which can be used at long range, similar to the Superflame powerup, as well as to freeze certain enemies for solving puzzles.
[edit] Items
- Gems. Scattered throughout the realms, Gems come in varying colors and denominations, and may be found lying on the ground, or hidden in containers such as baskets, vases, and underwater pots. There are a set number of gems in every realm, and each gem collected counts toward the player's percentage of game completion; collecting enough gems is a requirement for exploring the realms (as you pay Moneybags to get rid of an obstacle) and accessing a bonus level at the end of the game. All the gems you paid Moneybags are refunded after defeating Ripto.
Red - 1 gem
Green - 2 gems
Blue - 5 gems
Yellow - 10 gems
Purple - 25 gems
- Orbs. Orbs are used to access later levels, and are a requirement for reaching Dragon Shores and accessing a bonus level at the end of the game. Orbs power up portals created by The Professor.
- Fodder and Butterflies. In various locations throughout each level there are small creatures -- such as frogs or sheep -- which scatter when Spyro draws close; these creatures serve as powerups for Spyro's health. Flaming or charging a fodder creature releases a butterfly, which Sparx devours. If Sparx eats nine butterflies, the tenth one will be a blue butterfly, an extra life. Blue butterflies may also be found in glass jars. They turn from blue to green in latter games.
- Talismans. Talismans are rewards given to Spyro by the inhabitants of various realms after he completes the level. All of the realms have talismans to offer except for boss dungeons, speedways, and realms in the final overworld, Winter Tundra. When the player collects all of the talismans in an overworld, that world's boss dungeon opens up, allowing the player to advance to the next overworld. This exludes the final boss, Ripto, which requires 50 orbs to enter. There are 14 talismans, so all the levels in Winter Tundra give you Orbs rather.
[edit] Minigames
Minigames appear in three forms in Ripto's Rage! Some appear as missions within various levels, like a match of ice hockey, or riding a manta ray around in the water.
Another form is in the "Speedway" levels as seen previously in the first Spyro game; these are optional flying missions in which Spyro must fly through (or flame) a certain number of targets within a limited amount of time. In addition, once the player has succeeded at a speedway, the player can return to the level freely, and may also locate a second challenge or minigame hidden somewhere in the level.
The final form is in the final level. Once you beat the game, the final bonus level that you can unlock has multiple minigames. An example of one of these minigames is a target practice where you shoot targets with superflame.
[edit] Trivia
- Unlike other Spyro titles, the game does not begin in the hub of the first world, but instead begins in one of the world's levels, Glimmer. The European version of the game is subtitled Gateway to Glimmer for this reason.
- When the player collects 64 orbs and 10,000 gems they can open up a gate in Dragon Shores. Inside the gate is what looks like a superflame powerup that when passed through grants the player a permanent superflame ability.
- Coincedintally, In the Fracture Hills realm, there is a faun named Sheila. This is the name of a playable kangaroo character in the next game: Spyro: Year of the Dragon. Plus, the sparkplug thieves in Mystic Marsh are kangaroos.
- Both Fracture Hills and Magma Cone are home to the fauns and the Earthshapers, and are both levels in Autumn Plains. Elora's homeworld can possibly be Fracture Hills, since Fracture Hills' fauns are all female and Magma Cone's fauns are all male.
- Possibly coincidentally, 'Metropolis' is also the name of a level from the first and third installments of Insomniac's Ratchet & Clank series. The robots in the level bear a passing resemblence to Clank.
