| The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night | |
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Cropped European Boxart |
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| Developer(s) | Krome Studios (PlayStation 2 & Wii) Amaze Entertainment (Game Boy Advance & Nintendo DS) The Mighty Troglodytes (Mobile phone) |
| Publisher(s) | Sierra Entertainment (PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS & Wii) Vivendi Universal Games (Mobile phone) |
| Composer(s) | Rebecca Kneubuhl Gabriel Mann |
| Engine | Merkury Engine[1] |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Wii, Mobile phone |
| Release date(s) | PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance & Nintendo DS
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| Genre(s) | Action |
| Mode(s) | Single Player |
| Rating(s) | |
| Media/distribution | Wii Optical Disc, 128-Megabit cartridge, DVD |
The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night is a video game in the Spyro the Dragon series. It is the second game in "The Legend of Spyro" trilogy, released for the PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and Wii. It was the last game officially released for the Game Boy Advance in Europe.
It utilizes voice talent by Elijah Wood and Gary Oldman (reprising their roles of Spyro and Ignitus respectively), and Billy West (as Sparx, replacing David Spade).[2] Kevin Michael Richardson (as Terrador and Gaul) and Mae Whitman (as Cynder, replacing Cree Summer) were also confirmed to be part of the cast during Sierra Gamers' Week 2007.[3]
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The gameplay is similar to its predecessor. Spyro must travel to the end of a level in a linear fashion and defeat the boss at the end of each level, defeating enemies with his combat moves. However, there is a much larger emphasis on exploration and puzzle-solving. [4]
Spyro will learn different breaths from the Chronicler, who is met in Dreams which occur to Spyro during the course of the game. The breaths are a tool for defeating enemies. They come in different elements; fire, ice, electricity and earth. Spyro can also use furies, which are big blasts of elemental magic. Spyro is required to obtain a certain amount of purple gems to be able to use these skills.
Spyro is able to learn the skill of "dragon time" from the Chronicler. This skill allows Spyro to slow down time. He can use this ability to jump on platforms which are too fast to land on with his normal speed. He can also use this ability to defeat enemies easier.
Throughout the levels there are forty quills. Each quill collected gives the player 5 pieces of concept art.
The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night continues the storyline established by A New Beginning, which ended with the defeat of Cynder, a black dragon in servitude for an enemy called the "Dark Master". In The Eternal Night, a new antagonist -- "Gaul" the Ape King has risen to power and is intent on resurrecting the Dark Master on The Night of Eternal Darkness.[5]
The story begins with Spyro following Cynder through the jungle surrounding the Dragon Temple. Spyro catches up with her and asks her not to leave. Cynder says she's sorry for what she had done in the previous game and wishes to find out where she belongs in the world, currently believing that she does not belong at the temple. She runs off, leaving Sparx and Spyro alone. Soon after she is gone, the Temple is attacked by the apes. After Spyro repels the attack, Ignitus, the leader of the dragons and master of fire, sends Spyro to seek out a tree that Spyro saw in a vision (in the dreams to follow, he gets his powers back, as he lost them at the end in The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning) while Ignitus looks for help against the Apes. As Spyro searches for the tree, he also searches for another dragon known as the Chronicler, who asked Spyro in a vision to find him. When he finds the tree, it suddenly turns into a tree monster known as Arborick and attacks Spyro. After Arborick is defeated, Spyro is captured by pirates, and is taken onboard their ship to take part in gladiatorial combat.
When Spyro escapes the pirate ships, he discovers that the Apes have established a base on the Mountain of Malefor, also known as the Well Of Souls, in an effort to revive the Dark Master using a lunar alignment called the Night of Eternal Darkness. He also discovers that they are keeping Cynder prisoner hoping to turn her to their side.
Spyro eventually finds the Chronicler, who tells him about the Dark Master. According to him, the Dark Master was the first purple dragon; his raw power allowed him to master practically every elemental power. When his growth failed to stop, he was exiled and sealed away by the dragon elders, but not before he taught the Apes how to use dragon magic. The Chronicler wants Spyro to hide from the Dark Master until a later time, but Spyro insists on going to Cynder’s aid.
When he gets to the mountain, Gaul, the Ape King, orders Cynder to attack Spyro. When she attacks Gaul instead, he knocks her out and challenges Spyro himself. During the fight, the lunar alignment occurs, and the evil energy it generates is channeled through Spyro. He uses his immense power to kill Gaul, and then leaps back into the beam of evil energy. Cynder awakens and knocks Spyro out of the beam, freeing him from the beam's power. When the alignment passes, the mountain begins to crumble around Spyro, Sparx and Cynder. Remembering the Chronicler's words about riding out the storm, Spyro uses his powers to encase himself, Cynder and Sparx in crystal to protect them as the Well of Souls collapses. The story continues in The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon.
Upon its release, The Eternal Night has received mixed reviews, garnering less praise than The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning. Like A New Beginning, it was criticized for its gameplay and its high difficulty. Game Chronicles said that while the game may be too difficult for kids and a bit too simple for adults, many will be able to find a lot to like about the game.[6] The voice acting was also mixed among critics, particularly Billy West's role as Sparx the Dragonfly, stating that the character's lines are placed incorrectly.[6][7][8] British Nintendo magazine NGamer gave it 70%, calling it a "decent platformer, if you can get into the relentless fighting groove". Joystiq gave the GBA version a 9.5, praising the game's graphics, combo system, and its storyline; they called it "the last great GBA game." IGN was the harshest and among the most negative reviewer to criticize this game and they gave the Nintendo Wii version a 3.6 while the Sony PS2 version a 3.5. They criticized it for its "Lame controls, lame storyline, lame platforming, lame combat and crappy experience. The biggest problem is just how pointlessly difficult this game is."
The music theme at the end of the game is called "This Broken Soul" sung by Rebecca Kneubuhl.
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