Your opinion of Skylanders?

[Envy 6,004]

I don't really appreciate the idea of figure-based gaming. I see absolutely no value in it... I don't know much about Skylanders, but it bothers me that Nintendo thinks that low-quality figures with incredibly gimmicky features are so awesome and the 'future'.

Edited January 5, 2015 by Envy

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,152]

Okay, I'm going to tell you guys a little bit about myself. You see, Spyro was, and still is, my video gaming icon. Keep in mind that I am 28 years old, a couple of months off of 29, and while I grew up with the NES and Genesis, it was the Playstation that really solidified my status as a video gamer. Can you guess which character was the driving force behind it? It was none other than that little purplr dragon.

 

You see, I tend to place the original trilogy of Spyro games developed by Insomniac Games on a pretty high pedestal. I beat Spyro the Dragon countless times, and it NEVER got old for me. Spyro 2 was the perfect extension of the original idea while Year of the Dragon was the perfect way to close out the trilogy. What did we get afterwards? A pretty decent GBA trilogy, the absolutely ATROCIOUS (Sonic '06 bad) Enter the Dragonfly, the wonky Spyro Orange, the respectable & fun A Hero's Tail, and the sub-par Shadow Legacy. As you can see, the original series of Spyro games had seen its ups & downs, and it was quite clear that the originals still held sway over the other games that followed. Then what happened?

 

The first of two reboots happened, and we got the dark fantasy-ish Legend of Spyro trilogy. I remember when A New Beginning was being hyped, and how fans of the classic Spyro were REALLY against the young Legends Spyro. There were plenty of cried on how Spyro was ruined forever, and that the series was dying. What happened in the end? We got a pretty decent trilogy. AnB was fun, and while The Eternal Night has it's issues, it was still pretty good. Then, we got the marvelous Dawn of the Dragon, and I fell in love with that game! And Spyro's design...OH MY GOD...what a design that was. <3 Overall, while some fans of the Classic Spyro still didn't like the series, Legend of Spyro garnered some of the more open-minded of us while even gathering fans of it's own. However, considering how that storyline was, it couldn't go on much farther. What happened?

 

Skylanders happened, and when the new Spyro design was unveiled, as you may know, there were PLENTY of dissenting opinions about it, and about Skylanders as a whole. Again, repeats of "RUINED FOREVER" rang across from forum to forum to site to site. Does it ring true though?

 

I've only played Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure thus far, and it still somewhat perplexes me as to just why this game gets so much vitriol from the fans of the Classic & Legends series. Is it different? Yes? Was it needed? Maybe so, maybe not. Considering how many sequel there are, it seems that it's paid off for the publisher.

 

As for the game itself, I actually liked it! It's actually very reminiscent of the original games, and the style overall mimics the innocent and colorful feel of the original trilogy. As for the designs of Spyro & Cynder, I can see why they would irk some people. In classic Spyro, we had a character who was cute, yet bad-ass. In Legends, Spyro was humble, yet heroic. In Skylanders, some have interpreted him as ugly and dumb. I don't see that at all. To me, this design is cute, yet it's rough. Of all three, Skylanders Spyro is probably the closest to actually looking like a dragon, IMO.

 

Now, how do I rate Skylanders: Spyro's Advanture? Well, it doesn't hold a candle to the original trilogy or Dawn of the Dragon, so I'd probably rate it as my 5th or 6th favorite Spyro game; depending on where I put A Hero's Tail.

 

In closing, I like the first Skylanders game, and I certainly do not nor will I ever believe it ruined Spyro. There is and always will be a window for the return of the plucky little dragon. Right now, Skylanders is it's own thing, but right now, that's not a bad thing.

 

I'm a Spyro fan; through and through.

 

[Pixie Doodle 144]

I am a huge spyro fan, but I've stopped playing any spyro related games since A Hero's Tail, purely for the fact I hate how they changed his look. He's not my childhood hero anymore. He's a flying lizard with out features! And what is worse, he isn't even a main character in the game. (Just at OP said)

But, as if this wasn't enough for me to dislike it, they made so you can't progress through the game unless you have a particular kind of figure to unlock the next section.

I work at a game store and I see parents and grand parents blowing so much money on this fad for their children. Its just plain sad to me. Skylanders, Disney infinity, their just scams for the company to make money off of the consumer. What happened to not having to by dlc or not having to buy character to play? You just unlocked them as you went along.

 

I could rant for hours but I'll just say this:

I think Skylanders is a clever ploy to drain money out of peoples pockets because they know kids love toys to play with. They know kids will badger and pester their parents to points of insanity to get new characters for them which are £15-£25 a piece for a game that's not even worth 20p.

[Neutral 1,185]

i don't really have any feelings for this game one way or the other.

[Sudo Krenton 243]

i don't really have any feelings for this game one way or the other.

Same as @Neutral, here. I don't really have any feelings for it either.

 

I don't like in the way that you have to buy more characters to unlock other cool abilities and all and that the characters don't transfer to other versions of the game, but I understand that it's a ingenious concept to gain more money(and it works too!) The game play is pretty cool, though with two-players it can be tricky maneuvering at some times.

 

The soundtracks are awesome, but I've noticed that they've gone slightly down in quality with the newer games(Due to the absence of Zimmer?)

 

At any rate. It's pretty cool, but it has it's drawbacks... which makes it...meh.

Edited January 6, 2015 by Krenton

[Night Wing 387]

it wasnt so much the game i hated, but when i seen spyro in the gameplay trailer, spyro had died to me

[Dark Horse 12,815]

As a game I do like it. I think its pretty fun and I honestly kind of like the art style and design of the characters... that is, except for Spyro. I have to agree that seeing him go from this:

 

 

 

 

and into this...

 

 

 

 

I mean... really? Was that really necessary Activision? I thought I'd seen the worst of it when his redesign for the Legend of Spyro series came out (and I eventually grew to like that!), but this, this feel's like stealing a part of my childhood, pumping it full of mutagen, and then repackaging it as something for some bratty child who likely won't have the slightest bit of appreciation for the character that I once did, to them its just a game where you gotta collect all the monsters!

 

And that brings me to the other problem; the whole thing is just a giant cash in. I thought they were nuts when I heard that they were basically charging people for the characters and therefore, the rest of the game. People wouldn't stand for it surely. But they did.. somehow.. and it became a hugely successful series. And where success happens, imitators soon follow. Disney Infinity anyone?

 

So in final thoughts, when i actually did get around to playing it at a cousins house, I thought the overall gameplay was actually quite appealing and I could see more why people liked it, but there's just parts of it that make me go "Urrrggh!"

[TheJLeeTeam 914]

Now I don't hate Skylanders but I don't love it either. I mean I thought that was an awesome concept that you can use actual figures to play the game but I found the gameplay too generic for me to justify the purchase of a $60 set plus buying other figures as well. I also found Skylanders pretty inaccessible to play because those figures are required and if I want to change one I have to switch them constantly. If you didn't need figures to play this might have been a better game with me. I actually do like the characters but can't get into the gameplay. I've played Spyro's Adventure, Giants and decided to stop after that. I feel the original Spyro games are better in terms of gameplay. I'll admit it is popular with kids and feel they are great games for kids.

 

I haven't played Disney Infinity but I feel it's similar. With Amiibo at least games that support them are optional for bonuses and aren't needed to enjoy games that support it.

[MLPFanatic34 3,234]

Going with what PathfinderCS said I also grew up with Spyro and I adore the original Spyro including Spyro 1, 2, and 3, I also love Spyro Enter The Dragonfly and love The Legend of Spyro A New Beginning, The Eternal Night, and Dawn of The Dragon. When Skylanders came out I didn't care much for the game and had no interest in playing it. To be honest I think it ruined Spyro and think it's way too expensive for a video game. People are entitled to their opinions and can like it if they want, but I have no interest in it at all. 

 

 

 

 

 

[Lisa 5,552]

I don't really care for it. I've only played it once over my friends house and I found it boring.

[Poetic Stone 1,040]

Don't really care for them myself.

[Jeric 46,835]

@The Shadow Stallion, slight change to topic title was made to allow for the full range of opinions. 

[Light Diamond 950]

I've never actually played Skylanders, so i  can't say the quality of the game. The game really puts me of due to Spyro's look and design which is ruined, that just isn't the same purple dragon i played on the PlayStation. :/

[_GLaDOS_ 102]

I like the game, but you having to get up off your couch to go buy figures feels like a cash grab. Sure, the portal is cool, but if we could just pick off a skylander that would be great.