Spyro: Year of the Dragon Prototype OST (Sep 4th, 2000) | Lost Fleet

[@ZVAARI]

i will never understand this series and its deep obssession with making tracks and never using or releasing them

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

Right?? This is an absolute bop, too bad it never got a soundtrack release!

[@HyperSonicXtreme]

Kinda sad Stewart Copeland did 2 versions of the song and ultimately discard them in the final build.

[@ViRiXDreamcore]

It is a shame, but As a game composer myself, i get how this happens. The direction may not have been going the way they were hoping. I can tell parts of the song aren’t as polished as others. Meaning it never got finished.

[@rockstopsthetraffic]

​@@ViRiXDreamcore good chance it was deemed too scary, imo. Target audience is children, and America is less tolerant of the whole "Lavender Town" or "Mt. Pyre" type of thing. This version sounds polished enough to release, I'm willing to bet that enough of the last playtesters just said it gave them the willies, so they made quick substitutions.

[@rockstopsthetraffic]

​@@HyperSonicXtreme probably more than 2, we just hear the ones that got released to the public through demos. And not every early version even gets compiled into a demo to begin with.

[@lumilauraa]

my god. those bells are fucking ETHEREAL

[@ChristopherStrider]

​@@GeneratedHalo take the L lil homie

[@Gamerjman19]

Even as a kid I think I thought it was a little strange or cheap that this level's theme was only a edit of Sheila's. This really should've been used.

[@zakman246]

My release had the music from super bonus round. Having heard the Sheila's theme edit it sounds hilarious - like they added an accordion to make it "pirate ship sounding" 😆

[@Gamerjman19]

I'm glad I had the Greatest HIts version. Shame some didn't@@zakman246

[@GameFreak839]

Hearing this track now in its full glory, the name "Lost Fleet" holds an entirely new meaning in the present day. In itself, Lost Fleet as a level is already a marvel, a mysterious graveyard of pirate ships from a time long passed. All that remains of the era they came from are the shipwrecked husks and whatever treasure was left to be found after the fallout. In the actual game, the remix of Sheila's theme, while somewhat unfitting to some, at the very least captures some of the wild antics you get into in this bygone world. Blasting Rhynocs piloting submarines in acid-filled lakes, racing a pack of them on skateboards in a bid to save the baby dragon they guard, shooting ravenous buzzards out of the skies, you name it... ...but this track amplifies all of that tenfold. It captures the ethereal aura of the location perfectly, a remnant of untold tales forever lost to time, especially demonstrated through the track's almost haunting bells and melancholy brass. And despite that, it also fits the chaos of the level just as well at the same time. It really makes me wonder how impactful this level would have been, had this track made it into the final game instead of the one we got. You wouldn't really think about that too much as a kid, though, since you'd likely have spent 90% of your time in this realm torching the Rhynocs dressed as Scooby-Doo-esque ghosts making a mess of the place. At least, I sure didn't as a 4 year old boy who was only trying to pull through the Forgotten Worlds alongside my older brother. But now, as a soon-to-be 24 year old man, I can envision a clearer picture of what the devs wanted this level to be. And fitting enough for this track (even down to its very name), to be considered lost only to be unearthed decades later is the epitome of what the level represents- an eerie, unexplainable resting place of the time in which these ships dominated the land. A burial ground for the Lost Fleet of the Forgotten Worlds.

[@sparkus4229]

Wow! A really great explanation! Thanks for this! 😄

[@chillbizz74]

Damn, that's deep..

[@Slenderquil]

This is such a cool track, wild that it never went unused. It totally transforms the atmosphere of the level while still sounding "Spyro." That said, I could totally imagine this being used in some RPG of the time too.

[@AdmiralOctopus]

I think some of the samples at the beginning sounded better in the April version, but holy shit that melody at 0:30 is incredible. I didn't expect something that dramatic and melancholic for a PS1 Spyro level, and I can absolutely imagine this level being one of my favourites as a kid if they had used this.

[@MoonsOrca]

I’ve never been a fan of Sheila’s theme and just a remixed version for this level was always disappointing to me, I really really loved that melody at 0:30, it sounds odd for Spyro but also super memorable, wish they had the time/resources to use this. Crazy how music will change atmosphere so much.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

@@MoonsOrca I LOVE THE MELODY!!! ❤❤❤❤ honestly sounds like a fan song I’d create! (I’m a sucker for minor themes)

[@koopaeliminator4148]

The fact we now have a nearly finished version of Lost Fleet's actual theme is amazing to me... and I'm really disappointed they were likely planning to scrap it anyway. I did some digging in a rip of this prototype and found the version of Sheila's Alp with the accordions. Which leads me to believe this track was getting scrapped no matter what.

[@deoxysandmew2162]

I love this version! Its so bone chillin'. Gives that sense of confusion, being lost within ghost area. Its crazy how many different soundtracks this specific level had... only to be stripped of its pride.

[@VinMetal666]

Yet another slapper, goddamn they fucked over Lost Fleet in every way imaginable in every version of Spyro 3 ever released.

[@AdmiralOctopus]

I mean at least Super Bonus Round's music *kinda* fits this level.

[@YouMissed2024]

Reignited's remix of Sheila's Alp remix is so lame that the composer was so lazy he just used the Greatest Hits original stereo theme in his mix and slapped his instruments over it 💀

[@cinnasauria]

it's unreal just how cool this theme is, too cool to actually be real apparently

[@YouMissed2024]

No you can't do this to me. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I SACRIFICED!?

[@Martyste]

I've always seen the Super Bonus Round music as the superior choice against a remix of Sheila's Alps, considering the many parallels between Lost Fleet and SBR: namely the Skateboard racing and Submarine sections, and shared use of a crab enemy. Whenever I play Reignited in fact I mute most GH tracks and play the Platinum equivalent instead from VLC. But this prototype... it hits different. It contains a lot of mystery, and despair from whoever were lost with the ships. Eerie but beautiful. Greatest Hits version needs a mod to use that track instead.

[@Nobody_61]

Oh my god. Where do you get these prototypes!? That is so awesome!

[@Mr.Feather130]

Sucks that this version of the Lost Fleet theme is dropped in favor of a different version of Sheila's Alp theme in the finished version of the game because this fits with the haunted shipwreck aesthetic of the level way better

[@bradenarsenault4661]

I can't believe that this track was developed for lost fleet all the way near the start of development and made it all the way to near release with improvements and seemingly got scrapped last second and replaced with super bonus round and a remix of sheila's theme..... This track is amazing

[@DumasP]

Wow! This is wonderful! I can’t believe they trashed this for Sheila music. It fits in so well. I got this modded on Reignited and I had to go check it out. Thanks for your discoveries! (I was aware of the old prototype of this track, but didn’t know this new one was discovered until I played the mod. Very excited to hear this!)

[@ChristopherStrider]

god this sounds so much better edit: I'll definitely play this instead while in the actual level

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

I’m planning the same thing!!! 😄

[@YouMissed2024]

3Godzilla3 has this as a mod for Reignited

[@CitrusBlitz]

Holy crap... Is all I can say. my favorite track for this level for sure... goosebumps

[@pvbwt7gv1bd8x]

Beautiful! It sounds like this could be an intro to a movie or somth.

[@KartMarisa]

This is so good but wtf are those vocals? They sound like they were just dropped in without any mixing.

[@hydro1410]

I feel like the vocals would be toned down like Bamboo Terrace one if they decided to use this prototype track.

[@YFourteen]

We got robbed of this for Sheila’s Alp? 🤦‍♂️

[@TheHulkfan]

This music is sooo gooood!! I hope that the will use this track in the future Spyro game!

[@sonicshadowfreak]

Sounds like something I'd heard in Jazz Jackrabbit 2; I love it.

[@Shambles32]

Whoa, I really like this final rendition of the theme! I'm also baffled by the fact that many tracks that would appear in the 1.1 release are used in this build, but removed not long after for 1.0. I wonder what the thought process was during the final days of development

[@Hwd405]

Funny thing is I reached out to a couple of the devs about it and got a resounding “dunno what happened there lol” haha, I assume there was a reason for it they don’t remember though. Space reasons + late development panic I assume (especially since these tracks absolutely wouldn’t fit in PAL)

[@deoxysandmew2162]

@@Hwd405 I would gladly take that in my pal version of the game I have. ;3

[@Shambles32]

@@Hwd405 Ha, it must have been a rocky time for the devs, so I don't blame them for not remembering something like that from over 20 years ago! I didn't consider space reasons... are these tracks that much less compressed than the final? Insane.

[@Hwd405]

@@Shambles32 the compression isn’t any different, but they still had a bunch of audio dialogue to add at this point so it was possibly a concern. Could’ve been the case that they wanted to make sure the dialogue was all in before adding the tracks in and accidentally left a bunch out? But that’s just speculation. The PAL version has all the tracks converted to mono though so I’m certain that space was a very major factor for that version, at least.

[@gemlik_rogue]

Can't believe the april version has got a finished version! Thank you for releasing the proto tonight!

[@livesinalazywonderland4021]

Banger, prefer the April version but this feels more inline with the game perhaps. Shame we didn’t get these

[@sparkus4229]

Now we need a mashup of the two versions. 🤩

[@MrModez]

@@sparkus4229 a mashup and a more complete melody. I wish for someone to do it, or maybe I'll do it myself someday.

[@sparkus4229]

@@MrModez I like your channel! If you create one, I’ll definitely listen to it. 😍

[@bluegum6438]

Seriously? This would have improved the feel of the level so much. I always thought the track they used is easily the worst in the game and doesn't even slightly fit.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

Why didn’t we get this theme?!?? ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@LullabyOfChaos]

thank you so much for finding these songs, this one is so good!!! wish it was in the official release

[@8Apedemak8]

Wow...This is beautiful...

[@Sapizanza]

1:24 Can you hear the silence? Can you see the dark? Can you fix the broken? Can you feel my heart?

[@Sheimiko]

It is a shame this was scrapped.

[@YouMissed2024]

I have this as a mod for Reignited

[@Sheimiko]

@YouMissedAgainTimes32024 such a good music track

[@scaperist]

I love it so much. I wish it were used :(

[@ssj99lucario]

I'm on the fence with this one because both takes fit the level in their own right. September's take fits the overall feel of the level, being melancholy for what the level is; a "haunted" ship graveyard with old war machinery strung around, with an overall mystery of a lost treasure (haunted being in quotes since they were just bedsheet rhynocs). And the grunts used as instruments, like they were for Super Bonus Round, gives a link between both levels; insinuating that the gems you win after beating the yetis were originally from Lost Fleet. April's take fits with how things can get wild in the level; racing on rocket-powered skateboards, a submarine fight where you can get insta-killed by their mines, swimming through litteral acid, and unmasking the scooby-doo~esque ghosts

[@rockstopsthetraffic]

This theme is too dark, it's like the slightly nightmare-fuel curveballs that Pokemon sometimes throws at the audience... At least when you're like 8-10. Makes total sense that it was scrapped.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

@@rockstopsthetraffic I think it’s my favorite of the cut themes. Spyro needed more of these kinds of tracks honestly, they’re so COOL to listen to!! 😃😃

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

@@rockstopsthetrafficit honestly sounds like a track I would’ve written with it being in E minor and all. 😄

[@YouMissed2024]

Then the Greatest Hits version is just Sheila but covered in bed sheet

[@brianhenao96]

Brother, is it possible to add this song to the original version or the remaster, it would be incredible to play this level with the original song, I think it is one of our favorites.

[@JadedDarkness]

This is much better than the April version, I'm really surprised this wasn't used in the final build.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

AMAZING!!!!! It sounds like a Spyrit composition; it’s got so much style!!! ❤❤❤

[@AlexanderBrior]

I think these might have been cut after Insomniac asked Stewart for revisions too soon before release, so they had to give some levels songs that already existed

[@KingDray]

...Okay, after listening to this version, I think this theme actually suits Lost Fleet very well. I kinda understood why they went with a remix of another track for the final game when I heard the April prototype's version of this theme, but THIS one is really good!

[@HyperSonicXtreme]

Stewart Copeland was like I'm gonna remove the electric guitar and replace it with bagpipes, and it needs some deep voices and more bell chimes in the next build. And I'll remove the piano.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

Fans: GREAT ADDITION!!! ❤❤❤

[@yiris10001]

quite literally

[@EnigmaGameMaster]

This is the creepiest and the saddest song I've ever heard.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

But that’s exactly why it’s so good. The vibes are amazing.

[@TyrannoNoddy]

Might take some time to decide if I like this or the earlier version more but it certainly sounds more complete and unique, and still makes me wish this was the theme used for Lost Fleet in the final.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

It almost sounds apocalyptic, which fits the level very well!

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

Gonna remake this song in Spyrorchestra style, it would work so well!!

[@Monobrobe]

This would’ve made the skateboard race much more tolerable. I’m still glad my version was Super Bonus Round instead of Sheila’s Alps though.

[@ECDT1089-EtheLamborghini]

🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@mr.spyro98thedragon24]

Was this song composed by Ryan Beveridge?

[@MOVGAMES.]

Stewart and Ryan co composed every track in a constant back and forth between the two (info from Ryan himself when Mr. FO1 and I contacted him years back), no track was the work of a single composer. Its exactly why YOTD has such drastic changes to the music over the months compared to 1 and 2.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

@@MOVGAMES. oh neat! I always thought Stewart did the level themes and Ryan did the homeworlds.

[@Sevfora]

@@MOVGAMES. Ooh, I could never guess if it was either an ETD situation (being composed by someone else with Copeland adding finishing touches for the final mix) or if they just worked on their own tracks separately. I thought that could explain why so many tracks were missing from the official soundtrack release (thinking Copeland didn't compose them)

[@MOVGAMES.]

@@Sevfora My personal theory regarding the OST release was that A: what was released was all that survives in a usable form in Stewart's archives (which would explain the odd inclusion of pre final mixes of Ice Cavern, Twilight Harbour and Zephyr and the mountain of missing tracks from all 3 games), and B: that all of the tracks are only the ones he was able to clear for streaming services. Some of them use obscure samples from long dead companies or discontinued packs / software so they may be difficult to clear nowdays if those samples were based on something else.

[@JAKEOLOLOL]

@@MOVGAMES. is twilight harbour a premix? i didn't notice any differences

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

Weird that this refuses to play on the site. It’ll play in the app but not the site, why?

[@Aemyl_]

1:24, sounds like a witcher 1 or 3 song lol

[@germy0011]

Lost Fleet has 3 songs?

[@thesuddensilent7349]

If I counted correctly, 4 different pieces of music have been used in this level 1. April 25th, 2000 early version 2. Sep 4, 2000 this version 3. sheila remix version (only in usa release?) 4. i have Pal version where game use super bonus round music for that lost Fleet level.

[@chillbizz74]

Lost Fleet would've been a lot less annoying if it wasn't repeating Sheila's theme All though to be fair this song doesn't sound very "Pirate-like" compared to her theme.

[@YouMissed2024]

I grew up with Super Bonus Round in Lost Fleet so I never had this issue

[@MiroFloydtan]

Why is someone coughing through the entire track?

[@YouMissed2024]

Cause they have COVID and gave it to the Super Bonus Round singers too

[@NotOrdinaryInGames]

Eh, Sheila remix fits better (cause the level is more goofy than scary).

[@YouMissed2024]

Wrong.

[@DoofenSpyroDragon16]

I’m tagging @Spyrit1995, he needs to hear this 🤩