Some games will be around forever. Games like Gran Turismo, Tekken and Grand Theft Auto absorb whatever extra processing power a new console may offer and use it to enhance the driving, fighting or driving and fighting experience. They become, in a word, immortal. And then there are the games which flourish on one system, but fail to make the technical step-up to the next. Games like Crash Bandicoot and... Spyro.

Abandoned by the masters who originally crafted them (Naughty Dog and Insomniac, respectively) these games are now being fostered by new and less caring parents. Close your eyes because the results are akin to watching a prize fighter slog his guts out long after he should have retired.

The plot, never a strong point of any platformer, once again features stolen items (in this instance, dragonflies) which have been littered throughout a mystical world. So Spyro, now older, bigger, ganglier and armed with a few new flavours of breath attack, must jump, glide, scorch and scurry through garish lands, completing tasks to retrieve them. Such tasks, some of which are timed, include rounding up cows in a UFO, taking out armoured vehicles in a tank and mowing down piggy Chinese rickshaw drivers.

In addition to Spyro's staple flame attack, he can now spew out ice, electricity and bubbles - the latter has been specifically added to catch the rogue dragonflies. The dragonflies, however, are unhappy at being fly-napped and are increasingly tricky to catch. They can often spend a whole level floating just out of reach, blowing raspberries and taunting you. It's frustrating to the point where you wonder if you can really be bothered. But catch them you must, because dragonflies also act as currency and enable you to move on to new levels. We say 'new', but 'new' is little more than a lick of paint, sadly peeling in places and exposing the true age of the game engine.

If you're a fan of the original Spyro titles - and we are - then you'll know exactly what to expect here and will be able to get to grips with the action straight away. If, however, you're expecting this PS2 Spyro to have made a flashy next-generation leap forwards, you're going to be disappointed. Of course, it could be described as one for 'the kids', but the trickiness of some of the controls makes even this label questionable.

Spyro: Enter The Dragonfly is by no means a poor game, but it feels old and rehashed. The original creators of the purple dragon have gone on to make Ratchet And Clank, having taken Spyro as far as they believed he could go. Compare the two games and it's easy to support their decision.

1. We loved Spyro's previous PSOne adventures
2. Loads of challenging 'new' levels to plunder

1. Adds nothing significant to the series
2. Contains the same old faults - pop-up, erratic cameras...
3. Painfully long loading times

Graphics 50%
Bright and jolly, but hardly next-gen!

Sound 50%
Upbeat tunes chip away at your sanity

Gameplay 60%
Love or loathe it, it's still the same game.

Lifespan 60%
Lots to do, but can you be arsed again?

Overall 60%
Spyro was cute as a kid, but has turned into an ugly adult. What worked before is light years from what we demand now.