The third Spyro the Dragon game, and the last to be developed by Insomniac Games for the PlayStation. Released in 2000, the actual Year of the Dragon.In the Year of the Dragon, a rare event that happens every 12 years, mass numbers of new Dragon Eggs are brought to the Dragon Realms. But they're stolen en route by a white rabbit thief who disappears into a strange hole. Spyro follows her and ends up in the Forgotten Realms, where an evil sorceress rules. Now Spyro, with the help of his friends, has to recover all the dragon eggs and make sure the baby dragons get home safely.
All Animals Are Dogs: Many of the baby dragons show this behavior, e.g. wagging their tails or scratching themselves with their paws.
Ascended Extra: The enemies from Metropolis in the previous game return as Hunter's mortal enemies in this game's speedways, especially the sheep saucers.
Brick Joke: In Sunny Villa, the first level in the game, the mayor gives you an egg he thinks came from one of the world's giant chickens. Once it hatches, though, he apologizes for giving Spyro "the ugliest chicken I've ever seen." Later, in the last level of the game, Dino Mines, the sheriff begs you to take away a dinosaur egg before it hatches. Once it turns out to be a dragon, though, the sheriff says that it's the cutest dinosaur he's ever seen.
Also in Sunny Villa, many characters make comments about the giant chickens around the levels. If you destroy every Rhynoc, one will appear near the exit portal.
Canada, Eh?: The residents of Icy Peak appear to exhibit this. To top it off, when you opt out of paying Moneybags for an optional side quest, the negative reply is "Take off, hoser!" In case you were wondering, the mission involves protecting a ice skater... from Rhynoc hockey players.
The only two residents of the area you meet are named Bob and Doug.
Also the ice skater in the side quest. All three of the native residents speak as if they are from the Great North.
Climax Boss: Scorch, the Monster to End All Monsters and penultimate boss. comes after plot revelation, has greater build up, and is moderately challenging. The only flaw was that the previous boss is considered by many to be That One Boss.
Copy Protection: Playing a cracked copy of Spyro: Year of the Dragon? Zoe the Fairy appears at the latter part of Sunrise Spring telling you that your copy is hacked and may be an illegal copy, which will lead you to experience "problems" you would not experience on a legal copy. And as a Shout Out to EarthBound, the game recreates the " save file erasure" thing from said game, although in a more subtle manner: instead of just taking you back to an empty "select your save file" screen, it just stops the boss battle against the Sorceress and then a travel-between-worlds Saving-Loading Screen appears, and after it, you return back to the Sunrise Spring Home with your hot air balloon, with the only difference that your save file has been written with a new status - namely, a big fat zero over everything you can collect. To sum it up, instead of erasing your save file, the game resets it back to the beginning. It counts as a Shout Out as both cases of Copy Protection interrupt the Final Boss Battle. You can even see it here.
Genius Programming: In a World where most games are pirated less than a week after release, it took hackers two months to find a workaround for Spyro's crack protection.
Crapsaccharine World: The cutesy visuals remain, but most levels involve sorting out the problems caused by the oppressive rule of The Sorceress.
Year of the Dragon has a whole level devoted to this, Charmed Ridge.
The same game also has a mission which requires you to rescue Rapunzel from a tower. It turns out she's there of her own free will and has taken out a restraining order on the man attempting to rescue her.
Haiku: Once you enter Spooky Swamp, you will speak in it.
EVERYONE speaks in it. Even Sheila and Moneybags. Gets funny because Moneybags does not like speaking in Haiku (as specially noted when you talk to him after you've paid the fee to open the door to the next area).
Ironically, after you chase him down and get back all the gems he took from you, a dragon egg and a big load of satisfaction, after the Sorceress is defeated Moneybags says he's retiring to the swamp to become a haiku poet.
Hypercompetent Sidekick: Sparx could count. He collects all jewels you encounter for you, keeps track of your health, and, when you finish the Sparx bonus worlds (unlocked in a world when you've defeated the following boss), he gains new, useful abilities such as pointing in the direction where you might have missed some jewels, and even breaks open treasure pots and vases for you, which is pretty impressive when a dragon has to put in some effort to open them.
Mooning: The coal-throwing Rhynocs in Frozen Altars do this if you destroy their coal piles. You can freeze them in this position.
Which is a reference to some of the enemies from the first game.
My God, What Have I Done?: Bianca's reaction when the Sorceress reveals her intention to kill the baby dragons for their wings.
Never Say "Die": Averted. It's actually the Sorceress' intentions to kill the baby dragons that prompts Bianca's Heel Face Turn
Obvious Beta: The Non-Greatest Hits/Platinum versions of the game are very glitchy due to being rushed so that the game would be released on the Year of the Dragon.
Papa Wolf: Though he isn't actually the dad Spyro acts in this way when Moneybags reveals he found an egg and has no intentions of giving it to you. After putting up with him the whole game, you literally beat the gems out of him.
Piranha Problem: One level has a lake full of piranhas that eat you if you don't get out fast enough.
Post Final Boss: Unlike the previous two games, the area after the final boss has another boss in it: A rematch with the Sorceress. YMMV on whether or not this is a True Final Boss or Post Final Boss; the Sorceress isn't all that stronger this time and arguably weaker.
Rule of Funny: Sgt. Byrd the penguin being capable of flight.
Save the Villain: In a cutscene in Midday Gardens, Hunter saves Bianca from getting eaten by a creature she made using her magic. Acts as Foreshadowing for her eventual Heel Face Turn (and hooking up with Hunter.)
Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: Bentley the Yeti, despite his brute strength and outward appearance, actually has a very colorful vocabulary.
Bentley [to Moneybags]: Why, you brazenly avaricious, duplicitous, larcenous ursine!
Shout Out: Say no to Moneybags when he tries to do the "Magical Extending Bridge Trick" in Crystal Islands, and he will threaten to turn you into "a blue hedgehog or something."
In Haunted Tomb, one of the possible answers to one of the riddles is a bandicoot.
In a bonus level in Enchanted Towers, an inhabitant asks you to retrieve his pet wolf to him. He then tells his wolf to "never cry, wolf..."
Swallowed Whole: Happens to Spyro the first time he swims too close to the whale's mouth in Evening Lake.
Talking to Himself: Neil Ross voices both Moneybags the Bear and Bentley the Yeti. Which makes the scene between them also a case of "beat the crap out of yourself with a giant club."
What Do You Mean, It's Not Symbolic?: In Evening Lake, there is a whale swimming in the deeper regions of the lake. If you swim up to its mouth, the whale will eat you, revealing a dragon egg inside its stomach. The dragon inside the egg is called "Jonah." On the other hand, a lot of these dragons have jokenames.
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