Spyro Is Back With A Brand New Game After Almost 20 Years

If you already thought that the world was returning to the 90s with the arrival of the Analogue 3D and the M64, then I've got some news that's going to make you feel like you're drinking a glass of Sunny D and watching Cartoon Network all over again.

Toys for Bob, the California-based studio that brought us the Spyro Re-Ignited Trilogy, the Skylanders games, and Crash Bandicoot 4, are back with a brand new Spyro game for modern consoles, and it looks phenomenal. It's the first original Spyro game that we've had in almost two decades, eighteen years to be exact, and it's releasing in Spring 2027.

Spyro: A Realm Beyond sees original voice actor Tom Kenny returning to voice the world's most famous dragon (sorry, Smaug). Spyro has a brand new look, and according to Toys for Bob, he'll act more like a dragon than ever before, with the studio really leaning into what it means to be a dragon. Players will be able to fly at any point, use fire to create an updraft to get to new levels, and really have to think about the physics of flight more than ever before.

Toys for Bob's studio head Paul Yan has spoken on multiple occasions about the importance of creating a game that appeals to Spyro fans of all ages. A Realm Beyond needed to be something that new fans to the series could gel with and that old fans would feel instantly nostalgic over. I still see Spyro and feel my inner child jumping for joy, and it's that feeling of joy that Toys for Bob will be hoping their levels will instill in all of us once more.

I wonder if MomokaRage will be bringing their Spyro statue to the release party!

It's hard to believe that I first played Spyro back in the 90s... three decades ago. I'm trying not to think about the fact that I'm old enough to have kids who could be playing on Spyro games now. I've seen a couple of people wondering whether there's room for Spyro in a world where gaming has got a little more 'adult' in nature, but I think there's always been a space for Spyro. Legends just don't disappear - the Re-Ignited trilogy proved that. And also, Nintendo haven't ever stopped making cutesy games; adults don't just have to pump zombies full of lead, they can also play games like Echoes of Wisdom and Yoshi games that are about as threatening as a ball of wool.

If Toys for Bob can bring a little more joy and happiness into the world with a new Spyto adventure, then I'm all for it. Escaping back to the 90s is what we're all about here at Retro Dodo, and if I can not think about bills or jobs for a couple of hours while listening to Tom Kenny again, then I'll be a happy man!