Ah, what memories I have of the original Dragon’s Lair. Crawling through crumbling dungeons, marveling at hands-drawn animations, laughing at the off-kilter comedy. At least I might have those memories, if I hadn’t been born four years after the game came out. But now a woeful gap in my classic gaming education can be filled, as Dragon’s Lair is available in the Android Market for $4.99.
For the uninitiated, Dragon’s Lair was a classic arcade game that wowed players with hand-drawn animation and cutscenes from master animator Don Bluth, of Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone, An American Tail and many, many more. The Laserdisc format allowed for huge graphics with voice acting, though the gameplay is more like an interactive book than a traditional video game. The achievements of Dragon’s Lair were so impressive for the time that it’s one of only three video games on permanent display in the Smithsonian Museum.
Even if the technical merits of Dragon’s Lair are lost on most 21st-century gamers, the story and humor of the game is timeless. It really is like playing a 70s Disney movie, with perhaps a bit of PG-13 style and humor. (Princess Daphne was originally based on classic Playboy models – yowza!) It’s an experience that every true gamer should try at least once, and now you don’t have to track down a 27-year-old Laserdisc player to do so. Try it out on an Android tablet if you can – you won’t be disappointed.
Awesome to hear! It was not a video game, it was an interactive cartoon. It’s been a long, long time.