Now that I have completed Insomniac’s first Spyro game, courtesy of the Reignited Trilogy, I thought it would be a good time for a nice top 5 list.  Today we’ll be discussing the Duck’s top five levels from Spyro the Dragon!  In general, I was either looking for levels I really enjoyed or had something special about them that made them stand out from the rest.  So, without further ado…

5: Wild Flight – I have a love/hate relationship with the flight/speedway levels in these games.  When they’re easy, they’re actually a lot of fun.  And when they’re difficult, I despise them with every fiber of my being.  Wild Flight is the easiest of such levels in this game, so that’s why I enjoyed it greatly.

4: Beast Makers Home – Out of the “hub worlds”, the Beast Makers one was my absolute favorite.  I love spooky forests and bogs, so I was really excited when I ended up in this particular location, with its lush greenery and the somewhat unsettling animal noises in the background.  For me, this place felt really atmospheric, thus earning it a place on this list.

3: Tree Tops – This particular level takes place high above the swamps of the Beast Makers world, and it’s home to some of the most confusing jumps in the game.  In order to reach two extra tricky sections of this stage, you have to employ some rather tough supercharge jumps.  Though it can be rather frustrating, for what was normally a pretty easy game, I liked the level of challenge required to get 100% in this stage.

2: Haunted Towers – Though Haunted Towers is not nearly as dark and spooky as I was expecting based on the name, it is home to a bunch of armored ghosts that can only be defeated with your powered-up flame attack.  So, unlike most other levels in this game, there is a bit more strategy involved in navigating this stage beyond merely flaming or charging every enemy in sight.  For being a unique and memorable level, Haunted Towers gets the second spot on my list.

1: Gnasty’s Loot – Easily my favorite stage in the game, Gnasty’s Loot is a bonus level that can only be unlocked once you’ve gotten 100% in the game.  This stage is quite easy, but it’s a lot of fun because it’s the only non-flight level in the game where you can fly around.  Basically, you can only fly as high as the highest platform you reached, so you spend the level getting to higher and higher spots until you can fly anywhere you want, all the while collecting a whopping 2000 gems and chasing down thieves both on the ground and in the air.

What were your favorite stages in the original Spyro the Dragon, dear readers?  Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below!