Dragon’s Lair Review

Dragon's Lair Review | January 12, 2015
Xbox, Windows, iOS, Android, Nintendo, PlayStation

Dragon’s Lair was first created in 1983 on laser disc but it also was a arcade powerhouse around the same time. This is one of the first games to introduce quick time event as the main style of gameplay. You would see a little flash on screen and you would have to push the joystick in that direction quickly. Too soon you die, too late you die. You also in many cases had the choice to jump or use your sword or shield depending on the situation. All of this was ground breaking when Dragon’s Lair was created. You are Dirk the Daring a honorable knight but he is a bit clumsy and accident prone. He is sent to rescue the beautiful Princess Daphne daughter of King Aethelred only because all the other knights in the kingdom have been killed. She has been kidnaped by a Dragon named Singe and he takes her back to an Evil Kings kingdom. Dirk has to rescue her from the castle before sun rise or the dragon will kill her.

When most video games were only using sprites to represent their characters Dragon’s Lair had completely flushed out highly defined fully animated people and things on screen. The game was animated by Don Bluth. He worked movies like Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone and The Secret of NIMH. His influence on the game is so strong that his name is on the cover. Dragon’s Lair is still one of the most unique brilliant games ever made. This was a must play game if you were lucky enough to find the arcade version. Dragon’s Lair is one of only three video games in the world that are in Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. and the other two are Pong and Pac-Man.

Dragon’s Lair takes around an hour or two to get through each time you play but game length with this one does not really matter. This game is so brilliant and ground breaking and looks so timeless. It still has this fresh fell like it was just developed for modern gaming systems. There have been other attempts at a Dragon’s Lair game. The Nintendo NES version is terrible and the Super Nintendo or SNES version is not much better. The first version of this game from 1983 is still the best way to experience Dirk the Daring trying to slay the dragon and rescue Princess Daphne. Easy buy here at $5 and Dragon’s Lair has a very high replay value. You will want to replay over and over and you will want to keep dying on purpose just to see the funny death scenes. We had no game mechanic issues at all while playing, they did an amazing job while giving this game a HD upgrade. Great game for any type of gamer and it does not matter if you play it in arcades as a kid or it is your first time experiencing it.

10 out of 10
Buy This Game Today

10 out of 10
Buy This Game Today

Rated
E10 for Everyone

Rated
PEGI 7