Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage!

Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage!, known as Spyro 2: Gateway to Glimmer in Europe, is the second game of the Spyro franchise and a sequel to Spyro the Dragon. It was originally released for the PlayStation in 1999. In 2018, the first three Spyro the Dragon games, one of which is Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage!, were remade for Spyro Reignited Trilogy.

In the game, Spyro is placed in Avalar, rather than the Dragon Worlds, where the previous installment was set. A dinosaur-riding sorcerer, known as Ripto, has invaded the world of Avalar, and is wreaking havoc on its citizens with his magic. Idols come to life and attack their creators, Eskimos are encased in ice cubes, and a civilization of seahorses has had its water confiscated. Spyro must travel through the world of Avalar and undo the damage done by Ripto. Spyro and Sparx are the only two returning characters from the first game.

On July 26, 2007, Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! was released as a PSone Classic for the PlayStation Network, which is before its predecessor, Spyro the Dragon. On August 7, 2007, the game was pulled from the PlayStation Network due to technical issues, such as certain levels failing to load. A few days later, Sony refunded those who bought the game and  (another PSone Classic that was released on the PlayStation Network). On May 7, 2009, Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! was re-added to the PlayStation Network.

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 (22475) 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, Ripto 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 Avalar, Elora and the Professor plan to 'catch' a dragon in order to drive Ripto off. 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.

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 traveling 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 is 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 Talismans in the overworld. The final battle requires 40 orbs.

Gameplay
The gameplay is similar to the original Spyro the Dragon but with few variations in control and Spyro's main abilities intact. Spyro can attack enemies with his flame attack, 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. Like the first game, Spyro's health is indicated by the color of Sparx, whose health can be replenished by eating butterflies.

The game is split up into three main hub worlds containing portals to various realms. In order to progress through the first two hub worlds, Spyro must acquire a talisman from each realm, which is awarded for reaching the end of the level, before facing the boss of each world. Each level also contains a certain number of orbs, which can be earned by completing secondary tasks for certain characters, such as lighting a series of lamps or protecting characters from attacks. These orbs are required for opening some of the portals to certain levels, as well as progressing through the third hub world.

Gems gathered throughout the game are required to pay fees Moneybags charges in order to progress through the game. As well as opening portals or granting access to certain areas, Moneybags also teaches Spyro three brand new abilities over the course of the game. Swimming lets Spyro dive underwater to reach submerged treasure and hidden tunnels, climbing lets Spyro climb up certain surfaces. The headbash allows Spyro to perform an overhead smashing attack that can break rocks and certain cages.

In various locations throughout each level there are small creatures, such as frogs or sheep, known as fodder. When Spyro approaches them, the fodder try and escape from him. When Spyro charges or flames a fodder, it releases a butterfly, which Sparx can eat to restore a unit of his health. If Sparx eats nine butterflies, the tenth one will be a blue butterfly, which grants an extra life. Blue butterflies are sometimes found in a bottle.

Each level has a Power-up Gate, which can be activated after defeating a certain number of enemies, who release a spirit particle upon being defeated. When Spyro walks through a Power-up Gate, he is given a temporary power-up, including Invincible, Superfly, Supercharge, Powerflame, Superfreeze, and Bigbounce.

Characters
This game introduces new characters into the Spyro series, many of whom would appear in later games. Both Hunter and Moneybags make recurring appearances in the series, while Ripto would make more series appearances than any other antagonist, making him the key villain of the original series. The dragons of the previous installment have been replaced with an entirely new cast of characters, including fauns, satyrs, anthropomorphic animals, and robotic businessmen, among others.

Realms
The world of Avalar is divided into three homeworlds, each based on a particular season. Spyro can access the levels via portals. In every realm, there is a castle that, during the course of the storyline, is captured by Ripto. Each realm features a number of different worlds, a speedway world, and a dungeon with a boss. Every level has 400 gems.

Abilities
In addition to his returning abilities (except the sideroll), Spyro acquires several new skills throughout Ripto's Rage! that allow him to explore the worlds of Avalar more thoroughly.

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:

The game introduces a few power-ups:

Minigames
Minigames appear in three forms. 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, which 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 Spyro has completed a speedway, he 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. The extra level, Dragon Shores, unlocked for completing the game, has multiple minigames. One of the minigames is a target practice where Spyro shoots targets with superflame.

Trivia

 * One of the game's working titles was Spyro II.
 * Unlike other Spyro titles, the game starts in the the first level, Glimmer, rather than the first world's hub. This could explain why the European version is subtitled Gateway to Glimmer.
 * This is the only PlayStation game in the Spyro franchise where the player cannot exceed 100% completion.
 * When Spyro collects 64 orbs and 10,000 gems, he can open up a gate in Dragon Shores. Inside the gate is what looks like a superflame powerup that when passed through grants Spyro a permanent superflame ability.
 * 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.