Dragon's Lair

This article is about the video game series. For the first game in the series, see Dragon's Lair (1983 video game). For other uses, see Dragon's Lair (disambiguation).
Dragon's Lair
Genre(s)
Developer(s)
Publisher(s)
Creator(s)
Platform(s)
First releaseDragon's Lair
June 19, 1983
Latest releaseDragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair
November 18, 2002

Dragon's Lair is a video game franchise created by Rick Dyer. The series is notable for its film-quality animation by ex-Disney animator Don Bluth, and complex decades-long history of being ported to many platforms. It has also been adapted into television and comic books.

The first game in the series, Dragon's Lair, was originally released for arcades in 1983 by Cinematronics.[1] It leveraged LaserDisc technology, offering greatly superior graphics compared to other contemporary video games.[2] While many home ports were released in the following years, developers often had to make severe compromises to make the game work on the target platforms of the era, such as splitting it into two halves.[3] A sequel, Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp, had started development as early as 1984, but would only see release in arcades in 1991. While its graphics were once again praised, its limited interactivity compared to the newer generation of arcade games was considered outdated, and kept it from reaching the same popularity of the original.[4]

The two first games in the series are considered gaming classics,[5] and are frequently re-released on each new generation of consoles, often bundled alongside the 1984 LaserDisc game Space Ace.[6]

The franchise has since expanded into other media, including a short lived animated series that aired on ABC in 1984 and a comic-book miniseries released in 2003. Plans for a feature-length film have existed since the 1980s and resurfaced in 2015, when Bluth launched two crowd-funding campaigns.[7] While the Kickstarter campaign was unsuccessful,[8] the Indiegogo campaign reached its target in early 2016.[9]

  1. ^ "Review: 'Dragon's Lair' returns on Blu-ray Disc". CNN.com. May 18, 2007. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
  2. ^ "Enter The Dragon's Lair" (PDF). Games Magazine. February 2008. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  3. ^ "Conversion Capers" (PDF). Retro Gamer. May 2007. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  4. ^ "Review Crew: Dragon's Lair II". Electronic Gaming Monthly. December 1994.
  5. ^ Service, Marc Saltzman Gannett News. "CNN.com - New 'Dragon's Lair' disappoints - Feb 13, 2003". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  6. ^ Harris, Craig (October 27, 2010). "Dragon's Lair Trilogy Review". IGN. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  7. ^ "Dragon's Lair creators turn to Kickstarter to raise money for Dragon's Lair: The Movie". Polygon. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference DL Kickstarter was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference indiegogo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).