Science & Technology News

It was only a matter of time until the Spyro-mania craze reached the halls of Artisan game developers. Insomniac Games has created a stunning new video game based on the adventures of our hero Spyro, aptly entitled "Spyro the Dragon."

Here is the low-down on this A+ game:

• An absolutely irresistible little dragon - Spyro's colorful personality and attitude that we all know and love is captured perfectly in this game!

• Variety of moves: walk, run, glide, fly, charge, flame, roll and jump. Power-ups: Super flame or Fireball for a limited time.

• Journey across 30 huge graphically stunning and completely interactive worlds - that can be played in any order - home base, three regular levels, a boss round and a treasure round. Explore all the Dragon Worlds from the comfort of your home - the Artisans, Peacekeepers, Magiccrafters, Beastmakers, Dreamweavers and Machinists.

• A visual feast! Breathtaking environments with graphic features completely unique to Spyro such as the Cyclorama background scenes, bright, smooth, highly-detailed textures, and a floating camera system that shows off the game's huge 3D levels.

• Exceptionally crisp and humorous character animations. Dragons come to life as you free them from their spells and provide you with valuable hints. Enemies and characters will run and hide, hit each other, fire cannons, throw snowballs and even "moon" you -- all in reaction to how you play the game.

• A fun-filled mixture of platform puzzles and enchanting adventures. Collect treasures, recover stolen family jewels and discover hidden regions. NOTE: Hidden areas (accessed by flaming a rock, shooting a cannon, running around a tree, charging a wall section, etc.); Listen carefully to the rescued/thankful Dragons for clues to where to find these hidden areas.

• Special Treasure Rounds for even more gameplay value. Take full flight as you shoot down planes, fly through rings and arches, collect treasure and more! Complete each Treasure Round successfully and receive an "all in one bonus."

• Voice-over for Spyro (brought to life by Carlos Alazraqui, best known for Rocko and the Taco Bell Chihuahua) and the Crystal Dragons will add to the personality and attitude of the game.

• True Hollywood-style effects, including music composition by Stewart Copeland, film composer and ex-member of the Police.