"spyro the dragon" was the second game developed by insomniac games, following the release of their first game, "disruptor", in december 1996. although "disruptor" was a commercial failure, its positive critical reception was enough to impress universal interactive studios and encourage the team to continue with their next endeavor. the idea of a game about a dragon was introduced by insomniac artist craig stitt, who suggested the concept out of his own interest in the mythical creature. initially, the game's tone was far darker and more realistic; according to insomniac's coo, john fiorito, who joined the company in 1997 during "spyro"s development, inspiration was taken in part from the film "dragonheart", and the game was initially "realistic and kind of dark and gritty" before it eventually took a more whimsical, light-hearted direction. mark cerny, an executive at universal interactive studios and the game's producer, advised that the team create a game with more mass market appeal, as the demographics of the playstation were decreasing and its selection of children's titles were greatly outnumbered by the nintendo 64's.