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Originally recorded: November 22, 2020
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I always like it when I have a plan of attack for specific streams. I like it even more when I make it even further than I plan on. Having unexpected guests is also a massive treat. So, this was a good stream, pure and simple. Probably one of my favorite sessions all year.

Bentley's a pretty fun character. I think I still like Sheila more, simply due to having a faster walk speed. But his controls also aren't quite as finnicky as Sgt. Byrd. Granted, I feel like the penguin's main issue was attempting to make his playstyle work without analog sticks. Late-era PS1 games were weird in the sense that it seems like the developers wanted to completely shift to analog controls in most cases, but due to the continued existence of the original controllers that only had a D-Pad, Sony wasn't willing to drop that market (or force them to pay like $30 for a new controller). ...God, that makes me feel old. Remember when first-party controllers used to cost LESS than a new game? Granted, I guess we're heading there again now, but only due to another impending cost increase on the games themselves. And even then, I wouldn't count on the controllers themselves not getting expensive again to compensate.

So, with Bentley unlocked and the third world's hub area picked clean, I decided to backtrack and finish off the stages I didn't quite complete from the first two worlds. With the Gem Radar back, it was mostly pretty easy. Admittedly, I was a bit worried about the existence of "sub-areas" in most levels, but the way the Radar was adapted for those ended up working out pretty well: it goes dead if a particular area is empty, forcing you to check other parts of the stage for any stragglers.

What I didn't expect was having enough time left over to make some headway into the third world itself. I tend to be pessimistic when it comes to estimating my progress in streams. But at this point, the Speedway levels are pretty much gimmes. It's funny how I went from dreading them after my bad experience (singular) in the first game to outright enjoying them. But I still wouldn't bother with them in the original Spyro: controls are way too awful in that one.

I did feel a little humiliated trying to finish off that other stage though. Finally figuring out the solution to the last few gems after attempting some extreme parkour made me feel like a complete idiot. On the plus side, I did manage to knock out the Yeti in two rounds -- which felt especially impressive, considering KI referred to this as the hardest minigame in the entirety of Year of the Dragon.

Hoping to wrap up what I can in the third world next time and maybe make a little headway into the fourth world next time. But we'll have to see, won't we?