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h, there's nothing like the worlds where Spyro first starts each of his adventures: The enemies are timid, the setting is charming. The rhynocs occupying Sunrise Spring for the Sorceress are cut from the same cowardly cloth as the gnorcs from the Artisans World in Spyro 1, bless their goofy hearts.

Of course, just because Spyro is likely to survive this world pretty easily -- after all, much of it serves as a tutorial for new players -- that doesn't mean it's all a cakewalk ...

1) Keep a sharp eye out for the two free life butterflies in Sunrise Spring. The second is on a ledge above where the flight tunnel lets out. Ignore the gems the first time through (you don't need to fly to get them anyway), then fly up and left as you exit. If you time it right, you should drop onto the ledge with the butterfly when your flight powerup runs out.

2) Yes, the camera has a lot of problems during Shiela's quest to climb the high tower to Rapunzel in Sunrise Spring. Set your camera to "active," go sloooowly and hit the triangle button a lot to look through her eyes -- and even that doesn't always work. It's frustrating, but doable. And while you're in the area, always remember to look up a lot: There are several hidden areas she can jump to that you might not notice at first.

3) And while we're on the subject of Shiela, yeah, she attacks more slowly than Spyro does. But with the exception of rhynocs who attack unseen due to camera issues, she can usually wait and let them come to her and her kicks.

4) Missing gems in Cloud Spires? Check between the ramps in the area where you chase the sun seeds into the pot, around the rim of the bell tower area and on the steps below the three bellows -- there's one more step there than you probably think.

5) Missing gems in Shiela's Alp? Work your way back to the beginning of the level, looking up. There are two or three spots where chests, gems and stompable boulders are tucked away.

6) Want to break open that sealed chest near the egg thief speedway in Molten Crater? Don't bother supercharging around the track to find the right spot to leap off it: You can supercharge perpindicular across the track and blast the chest almost immediately. (Thanks to Connie for the scoop.)

7) Can't figure out where the remaining eggs or gems are in Molten Crater? See that sealed-up portal next to the return home portal? The one that has Sgt. Byrd's face on a sign nearby? Come back when you've freed him in the Midday Gardens homeworld. (And a general tip here: In Spyro 3, it always pays to clear all of the homeworld first before going through any portals, and be prepared to come back to certain levels later on.)

8) To destroy the turrets in Seashell Shore, don't bother jumping up on the wall of the castle: Sheila can jump on the barrels of the guns and smash them down that way.

9) The "Secret Cave" egg in Seashell Shore is in Shiela's portion of the game. Look up near the beginning.

10) On beating Buzz, the level's boss: "keep headbutting him into the lava," says Connie. Sheila will help out, sort of, but lining him up to knock him back into the lava, repeatedly, is the key. (It's also a skill you'll use with other unique enemies in the game.) Shawn points out that all the bosses have an attack pattern and a defense pattern that you can learn and exploit. And my wife, who knows better than anyone that I'm not the Spyro guru some people seem to think, has this final word on the subject: "Run up to him to headbutt him and then stand still. He will jump to one side or the other. There's no need to be running around like crazy while he's doing this. Just let him jump to the side and then turn to face him - headbutt him again. That way you can control how close you are to him and reduce the time it takes to chase him down to headbutt him. Don't run around while he's jumping side to side cause it just wastes time and effort. Let him finish his jump and then hit your left/right button to face him head on and then charge from there. When he hits the lava and the kangaroo is doing her job, just run along the edge of the circle to elude his rolling ball. Repeat from the top. Good luck."

11) If you never played old school videogames like Scramble and Defender, you might be finding Sparx's levels a little difficult. The biggest trick is to hold onto the side scrolling buttons at all times, once you're pointed at the mass of the enemies. Only being able to shoot in the direction you're going will get you killed every time, but keeping his gun (OK, mouth) pointed at the crawdads (and later enemies) should do the trick nicely for you.

12) Mike was frustrated with the Sparx level: "I'm missing around 10 gems, and I think I know how to get them. There are two enemy generators with shields around them that I cant seem to blow up. How do I destroy those generators?" Mary's answer: "In the rooms where you find the key to open the next door, you will also see red circles on the floor. Fly over these so they turn green. This removes the force feild from around the 'generator.'"