darkSpyro

Guys.... I pity those who takes everything SpyroUniverse posts as absolute fact.




Reminder that a rando sends private message to companys Twitter. Said company would never spill insider scoop. They're always gonna respond in PR chargain.
I'm not trying to come off as an ass. sorry, I've just been burned to many times by this Twitter account.

Yeah, Skylanders’s situation does remind me of Guitar Hero and Tony Hawk, and I do agree that avoiding any kind of question with vague answers is different from not denying such a huge and widespread rumor.
It was mostly a way to reinforce the idea that Activision isn’t exactly the most talkative company out there, even if there was probably no need to do so.

Regarding the tweet, while that account indeed gave me false hope multiple times in the past, I’d say this time it wasn’t him spreading fake news but rather the general hype mood which made everyone read a bit too much into the answer.

All of that being said, this once again doesn’t disprove the possibility of remakes being announced relatively soon, especially since I think Spyro has never been as big as he is America and Europe, in Asia.
At least in Japan.

How about this stuff for possible style/graphics choices?

Still pretty flat. If you're going to do a remake rather than a remaster(**** what Acti calls the N. Sane Trilogy), might as well replace the models rather than just making them prettier and rounder.

Hey how about character redesigns? A lot of them are fine but many need an overhaul IMO. For example the dragons in Spyro 1 could do with some variation, themeing and styleization. I know the colors were a bit different between the home worlds but why not distinguish the dragon types more? Like with:

Art and music themeing for the Artisans, in the form of scale embellishments but also tattoos and art themed props? Really though, the original game gave no indications the Artisans were actual artisans as described in the game booklet.
Epaulet (a shoulder embellishment used to signify rank among armed forces) shoulder scales and helmet - like head plating for Peace Keepers
Stardust and energy effects coming off of the Magic Crafters. What if they also had magic items like staffs, pendants, wands, etc?
More monster-like aspects like huge teeth, claws and spikes with really bizarre body shapes for the Beast Makers. This would work best if all the dragons in Beast Makers were entirely unique and really wild.
Technicolor crystals spines with soft cloud and colored light effects for the Dream Weavers. What if the dream weavers appearance changed slightly every time the camera left and returned to them, like the way things are in a real dream?!

Don’t like how Sunrise Spring looks in the first video, but the take on Autumn Plains in the second one is just sligly “worse” than Valefor’s remake of the Artisans’ World.
Kinda the direction I would like for these remakes, though.

I really like some of those ideas, ClassicSpyroLUV, and absolutely agree that Elders should be more unique and recognizable this time also in terms of animations.
I’d go even further and say they should change their crystallized forms a bit; I know it’s a pretty iconic design and realism isn’t the key for the series, but it could be fun and interesting to see them freezed in different poses and visually get rid of the crystal “shell” and come back to life after being released.

They could even stay there permanently, and it wouldn’t be a problem for saving since we know they are apparently working on a new easier system.
Wouldn’t surprise me if both decisions (making them pop out of nowhere and forcing them to disappear) were forced by the system’s limitations back then, and this was Insomniac’s original plan all along.

Quote: ClassicSpyroLUV

Hey how about character redesigns? A lot of them are fine but many need an overhaul IMO. For example the dragons in Spyro 1 could do with some variation, themeing and styleization. I know the colors were a bit different between the home worlds but why not distinguish the dragon types more? Like with:

Art and music themeing for the Artisans, in the form of scale embellishments but also tattoos and art themed props? Really though, the original game gave no indications the Artisans were actual artisans as described in the game booklet.
Epaulet (a shoulder embellishment used to signify rank among armed forces) shoulder scales and helmet - like head plating for Peace Keepers
Stardust and energy effects coming off of the Magic Crafters. What if they also had magic items like staffs, pendants, wands, etc?
More monster-like aspects like huge teeth, claws and spikes with really bizarre body shapes for the Beast Makers. This would work best if all the dragons in Beast Makers were entirely unique and really wild.
Technicolor crystals spines with soft cloud and colored light effects for the Dream Weavers. What if the dream weavers appearance changed slightly every time the camera left and returned to them, like the way things are in a real dream?!

You mean like this

^Oooh I really like that. I take it the Faix Caudas are LoS dragons?

I think the inspiration for Artisans was more greek and philosophical. I'd guess more squeaky clean, elaborate clothing, maybe even wearing hats, but that might deviate from the style too much - most dragon or dragonlike creatures don't even wear more than a robe under a bit of armor, if anything.

Quote: nitendofan92

Quote: ClassicSpyroLUV

Hey how about character redesigns? A lot of them are fine but many need an overhaul IMO. For example the dragons in Spyro 1 could do with some variation, themeing and styleization. I know the colors were a bit different between the home worlds but why not distinguish the dragon types more? Like with:

Art and music themeing for the Artisans, in the form of scale embellishments but also tattoos and art themed props? Really though, the original game gave no indications the Artisans were actual artisans as described in the game booklet.
Epaulet (a shoulder embellishment used to signify rank among armed forces) shoulder scales and helmet - like head plating for Peace Keepers
Stardust and energy effects coming off of the Magic Crafters. What if they also had magic items like staffs, pendants, wands, etc?
More monster-like aspects like huge teeth, claws and spikes with really bizarre body shapes for the Beast Makers. This would work best if all the dragons in Beast Makers were entirely unique and really wild.
Technicolor crystals spines with soft cloud and colored light effects for the Dream Weavers. What if the dream weavers appearance changed slightly every time the camera left and returned to them, like the way things are in a real dream?!

You mean like this

That's a pretty good start.

They look nice too. The artstyle kinda reminds me of Disney or Don Bluth.

Quote: Bolt

Me still thinks this is the best reimagining of the dragon elders.

Wow, really like this style!
Maybe it could use a few tweaks, but these designs are just cartoony enough to fit.

Those other more realistic designs are cool, and they have some parts which could worklike the wings and tails, but they don’t suit the mood of the game in my opinion.

I want a cutscene for Spyro's first encounter with the Sorceress in Spyro 3 ... They should talk to each other, it was always strange for me that Spyro is sent straight to the fight against her without a cutscene or an dialogue between them.

Found this and thought it could be an interesting approach to make the Elders look more realistic but still feel cartoony enough to not ruin the mood (sorry for the stretch):



Overall, I think working with such old and “rough” models can be a bless at times, since it leaves a lot to the designers’ interpretation: I’ll be honest, I’d consider myself satisfied as long as they stick to certain colors and features per World (Beast Makers being more beastly and almost deformed, Dreams Weavers looking willowy but somehow majestic, and so on).
Dragons don’t have to be recreated 1:1, in my opinion.

The images posted by Bolt and Drek are really good and I'd be satisfies if that's what they looked like (especially in the image Drek posted) but there's still more that could be done IMO. I am in LOVE with the idea of the Dream Weavers changing slightly every time the camera leaves them to make them look more mysterious and dream-like, as well as the idea of careening off model for each of the Beast Makers.

OH. MY. GAAAAAWD! I just had the BEST idea! How about instead of a competition to design the idle animations they have a competition to design the dragon elders?! They could expand it to include the dragon hatch-lings too! OHHHH I want that so BAAAAD!

Acitivision has confirmed at least one remaster in their "Titles from Our Library of IPs"(lol) releasing in 2018.


Guys it's Prototype, I can't believe the're remastering it at last nah.You want a more neglected franchise than Spyro? I don't think they even remember ever developing it.

Now, that’s what I mean by “official news”!

Sure, they haven’t flat out said it’s Spyro but... Come ON!
Unless they plan to actually release it next year, but I still think they are using this titles to fill up the Skylanders’ gap and that’s one of the reasons why the N. Sane Trilogy was released the year after Crash’s 20th birthday.

If it’ll be released by the end of this year, then I can totaly see them revealing it relatively soon.
Inb4 it gets announced on the 31st of March.

Quote: Bifrost

Acitivision has confirmed at least one remaster in their "Titles from Our Library of IPs"(lol) releasing in 2018.

could be talking about the MediEvil Remaster

MedEvil is 100% Sony. They nuked the developer team twice now, but they were the only publisher for all 3 games.

That quote from the Acti financial annual report(sauce, btw) is about Acti's IPs only. You've got more Crash games, Spyro, Prototype, Vigilante 8, Vampire: the Masquerade and that's it really on big franchises and REALLY stretching the definition of big for the last two. They can always be really stupid and remaster more COD games, but... *knocks on wood*

Yup, never thought about MediEvil not even for a second.
I believe Activision never owned the rights for that franchise, and I think there was no mention of the company nor logo at the PlayStation Experience’s announcement.

With a rumored new Crash game coming out next year, I’d say Spyro is the safest bet right now.
Prototype might work better as a reboot or third game and I frankly never heard of the last two IPs.

Cautiously choo-chooing.

Vigilante 8 is apparently from oldschool Acti days, never heard of it before, but if we talk about that, might as well talk about all the games back when they were passionate.

Vampire: The Masquerade is a big RPG based on the World of Darkness tabletop franchise. Niche of a niche, but the game is a huge cult classic.

Quote: Bifrost

Vigilante 8 is apparently from oldschool Acti days, never heard of it before, but if we talk about that, might as well talk about all the games back when they were passionate.

Vampire: The Masquerade is a big RPG based on the World of Darkness tabletop franchise. Niche of a niche, but the game is a huge cult classic.

Vampire: The Masquerade is one of the best RPGs I've ever played, and definitely the vampire game to play. It's so good that I think everyone wants the upcoming Vampyr to be its successor (or blood-suck-cessor!), and might not respect the designer's decisions. I don't think I've ever played a necknibbler game that captures the experience quite as good as that (even though it is a bit cheesy). Can't say I know of Vigilante 8. Sounds a bit like Agent 47.

Yay! Official merch I can actually afford!

Spyro's gotta be next, you can't have one without the other.

Oh, man, this is thrilling.

The most exciting details are the fact they have no exact release date yet (possibly because Sony asked them to wait until the reveal of the game) and that these will be “newer styles”, probably reflecting the new Spyro’s model, artwork and perhaps the new logo(s).

This is almost exactly what happened with Crash, except we didn’t have any similar precedent back then.

Also I’d like to thank you a lot, JCW555, for the amazing work you have been doing recently with all the reported leaks, news and rumors.
I tried to find something myself but it really isn’t easy.

Never awaited March this much before, and it starts tomorrow!

Sorry the pics won't show up. Try links instead.

Hotlinking denied.

Things are looking exciting! Can't wait for the time to come!

Do we know if the medieval remake will be on PC someday?

Quote: JCW555

Thank you Drek for the kind words. This the most I've been hyped about Spyro since 2007, so to talk to you guys about it again is really nice.

Also have a thought on the rumored March announcement date.

Talking with some friends, apparently Activision hasn't had a big E3 presence these past 2 years, and they announced Destiny 2 in March last year really out of the blue, and it wasn't connected to SXSW or GDC either. Maybe the same thing will happen for Spyro?

Here's the E3 floor plan for this year:



Activision does have a booth, but it's not a big one. I don't know if Crash was at Activision's booth or at Sony's booth in 2016 (which is kinda huge this year, see picture below), but if Activision is downsizing their E3 presence, then it's kinda interesting to note.

You definitely deserved them!
And I completely agree, I’ve been eager to discuss something new and exciting about Spyro, because I think we pretty much covered everything the series had to offer.

Regarding Destiny 2’s announcement, going by its Wikipedia page it seems like there were multiple steps: a confirmation of a sequel for Destiny in February, a poster leak with the title in March and finally a reveal event in May.
Really hoping Spyro wouldn’t go through all of this.

The fact they have a smaller booth for this year’s E3 is interesting, though they did announce Crash at Sony’s conference so we shouldn’t exclude that option just yet; doubt it was there since the first gameplay we got was from 2016 PlayStation Experience.
They might not have demos of the game because they’ll finally unlock the one inside the N. Sane Trilogy; I wonder how many people would buy those remakes just to try it out.

I know I would, if I hadn’t already bought it when it came out.

Now if they truly want to get this out by September, the I’d say we’ll get a Spyro the Dragon gameplay reveal trailer this month (already the 1st of Marchm here!), some Gateway to Glimmer footage at E3 and finally see Year of the Dragon in action between June and the release, potentially during GamesCom in August.

Say, this is a pretty good HD remake, kinda like what Sunrise Spring would be like if revisited in a Hero's Tail sequel IMO.

would prefer more like this. more true to insomniac vision but his some style its own. most hds feel cluttered but no soul. nice look but no heart, yes? spyro remake needs heart more than anything else.

move mouse. see more than just where camera takes you. very cool.

Acti is never interested in retro though,their objective is always wowing new people. It's ok if it's not your expectations anyway, but they'll go for at least a more unified and detailed art style, because no shareholder is going to believe the flat models and simple textures are an aesthetic.

As pretty as those painted re-textures look in still-shots... Something about all those bright colors smeared together and popping out with no determinable outline is triggering some from of motion sickness with me for some reason. It's probably just me, but I'm getting a gut cleaning reaction just thinking about those textures and amping that camera speed up to SPYRO charge speeds hdjskdhsjkad

The Summer Forest one isn't AS bad for me in that regard, (Probably because it's overall darker?) but it makes me able to see that a texture style just like that would make it kinda hard to judge where the edges of some platforms are, thanks to the no outlines...

I agree with spyroid, to me these seem more like how the remastered versions of the levels would look like if they were actually possible.
But since it’s highly likely they will do what they did with Crash and remake all three games from scratch, I doubt they would still stick to the same models from twenty years ago and simply polish them up a bit.
Might as well go for the “WOW” effect, like Bifrost said.

That Sunrise Spring isn’t bad (think it was created by the same guy who remade Autumn Plains), but while it is indeed a nice rendition and a good start it still doesn’t convince me.
As stupid as it may sound, I always felt like those worlds were plausible albeit fantastic, even the most surreal ones like the Dream Weavers Homeworld or Crystal Islands: I don’t get the same vibe here, they either look too realistic or a bit too cartoony.
I think they should fall between those styles.

And uoah, that guy really wanted to change subject, didn’t he?
Yet another hint towards the seemingly inevitable.

Honestly, the biggest thing I'm worried about with the graphical upgrade, is them making it so that the Gems pop out enough from the background to be noticeable.

That seems to be an issue in a lot of these Spyro fangames (Artisans Revisited, especially) have. Where the Gems blend in with the flowers or the grass. Even AHT kinda had this problem at times, but at least in THAT game, the gems didn't really matter.

The first three Spyro games, however...

AHT did a fun trick by having the main grass be flat with the odd tuft and flowers, but have tons of actual grass assets on other scenery so everything looks like normal grass from a distance. The only time I thought gems blended in was in Dragonfly Falls and Coastal Remain where they overdid said assets.



Here's a refresher for those who haven't played in a while.

How about a subtle twinkle effect for the gems? Like a lens flare, glitter sparkle or watery light refraction? Even in areas where the light wouldn't naturally cause it it would still work fine since this is a cartoon fantasy game.

Exactly what I was abou to say.
Would really like to see small touches like that which not only improve the gameplay but also improve the overall asethetic.
I’m sure the old-style twinkles could be replaced by some slightly more realistic ones, or even by a random reflection effect caused by their rotation.

Sparkles indeed are a big part of Spyro’s magical visual design, from disappearing enemies to Orbs, and I’m really curious to see how they’ll handle them.

I wonder if the delay of First4Figures’ statue will impact the announcement of the game, or if it’s actually influenced by it.
Frankly doubt it, but you never know.