I never played the original in its entirety when it was released, and I find visiting the 32 bit era 3D platformers more fun in theory than in reality. But hidden underneath those rough PS1 jaggies and frustrating camera (by today's standards) was an excellent platformer.
It impresses me how well everything holds up. The dash and glide mechanics are game changers in the 3d platformer genre, and present many satisfying opportunities and just a really fun time traversing the environment and finding all of the items. Even the fire breathing mechanic is unique. It wasn't really a time where projectile attacks were well-implemented, and most platformers used the simple "jump on enemy" or hit attacks, so to see Spyro introduce several unique mechanics which worked so well is very impressive. The controls in this game are GREAT. Absolutely no added difficulty in this game due to archaic control schemes. Plays like a dream.
These games feel WAY ahead of their time. Combined with the absolutely fantastic job that Toys for Bob did, this feels like a release which people would absolutely be gushing over if it were a brand new title. The levels and hubs allow you to explore and progress as you please, but you always know what you are supposed to be doing. There were so many small details in these old games which are very impressive by even today's standards with the new coat of paint. The world feels very much alive, it did in the original game, but the charm and visual fidelity have been cranked to 11.
So, in summary- Toys for Bob took a fun, ambitious, polished PS1 platformer and turned it into a brilliant game. These games were always meant to be played with Dreamwork-caliber animations and on a big screen. Insomniac- You guys are amazing. If only you had this technology at the time.
Meanwhile, please get Toys for Bob some more legit work , Activision. The sequel to Spyro, sequel to Crash, something. That is an incredibly talented group. I cannot believe that they pulled this off in a relatively short amount of time.
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