Taste-Test: Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair

Rated: T for Teen Developer: Dragonstone Software Publisher: Encore Software Players: 1 Saving: 17 Blocks per Game Save, 2 Blocks for Settings

In 1983, Dragon’s Lair single handedly saved the coin-op industry from death by using laser disc technology to make an interactive animated movie. Since then, it’s been ported onto every conceivable platform, even to DVD. The game was a phenomenon and it spawned a whole new generation of gaming. Now 20 years later the game has been resurrected in full 3D; unfortunately without any ground breaking technology or innovative game play.

Dirk is the main character whose quest throughout the game is to rescue the beautiful Princess Daphne. It’s your average knight in shining armor saves the damsel in distress story, but without the shining armor and bravery part. The game is everything from comedic to suspenseful.

To keep the look and feel of the original Dragon’s Lair in tact, the creators used cel-shading technology to recreate Dirk’s original character design bringing him into the 3D world. The character models are beautifully done; Silky smooth animation and some top-notch cel-shading truly bring Dirk to life. Unfortunately, the only things that are cel-shaded are the character models. The level designs are still implemented in a full 3D look which takes away from the fantasy. A game should either have a full 3D look or a fully cel-shaded look (like the Wind Waker). Dragon’s Lair should have been done fully cel-shaded.

The 3D worlds do not have a lot of detail put into them which does give it a more of a cartoony look, but the textures are definitely not what you would expect to see on this generation of consoles. The frame rate of the game is not up to par with the current generation of games. There is no reason any game should have an unsteady frame rate when Metroid Prime can run perfectly, using a ton more system power. It's not that noticeable, but it's just one of those things that should not happen unless you're really pushing a console.

The game play is divided into rooms within the castle. Each room has a different puzzle or challenge Dirk has to overcome in order to advance. If you die in a particular room, you wake back up at the door of the room. You WILL be playing a single room several times before you beat it and move on. The puzzles range from timing jumps between moving platforms, to climbing and jumping from series of ropes, to defeating a baddie. The rooms will be extremely difficult at times and many can be very frustrating until you figure it out. The difficulty is one of the best aspects about the Dragon’s Lair series. It is not too often that a game requires both brains and skill to beat.

It’s hard to describe what genre Dragon’s Lair fits it because it has aspects of your basic action, adventure, platformer, and puzzle game. It mixes all these genres perfectly. It’s everything you remember from the classic but so much more. Unfortunately there is nothing ground breaking nor spectacular about this title. Unlike the original, Dragon’s Lair 3D doesn’t have a whole lot new to offer.

The one thing that Dragon’s Lair 3D excels in, is sound. The background music is done by a full orchestra and fits the game perfectly. It really sets the mood for the area you’re in and adds a very movie-like feel to the game. There is also some really good voice acting, but unfortunately it’s mainly of Princess Daphne’s voice, and she probably has the most annoying/ditsy voice I’ve ever heard. While she does give you some tidbits of help throughout the game, you really begin to wonder why Dirk wants this chick. But then again, Dirk isn’t the smartest or best-looking guy either…

Matt Schraeder