Big Picture Big Sound

In 1983, "Dragon's Lair" hit arcades across the country creating an immediate sensation. Its use of real Full Motion Video animation in a video game (courtesy of its built-in laserdisc player) made it look and sound quite unlike anything else at the time.

The animation team, led by Disney alum Don Bluth, created very high production-quality animation as well as an interesting story line. Our hero "Dirk the Daring" is on a quest to save Princess Daphne from the clutches of a nasty dragon (fire-breathing, of course). Along the way, Dirk must pass a series of obstacles and battle (or run away from) castle-dwelling monsters in order to ultimately face the dragon in its lair (hence the title), where Princess Daphne is being held.

There are some high points in the animation. The voluptuous Princess Daphne was modeled after Playboy centerfolds, complete with skimpy outfit and top-heavy hourglass figure. And apparently it's a bit, well... colder in the dragon's lair then one might expect. Also, the various deaths that befall our struggling hero along the way (as the player inevitably makes a few mistakes) provide for some of the more humorous moments.

Picture and Sound

The film has undergone a complete frame-by-frame remaster for high definition, going back to the original film negative and transfering it to full 1080p widescreen high definition video. The image is sharp and noticeably improved even over the laserdisc version. Sound has also been remastered to Dolby Digital 5.1-channel surround (448 KBPS data rate), but the sound is not particularly enveloping or exciting.

Game Play

This is not a "game" title, per se, in that it can be played on any Blu-Ray disc player that supports BD-Java (not just the PlayStation 3). Assuming your stand-alone BD player supports BD-J properly (not all do), you will be able to watch the "film" and the extras, and you'll be able to play the game using your remote control. Controls are simple - just 4 directional options and the "Enter" button to swing your sword.


The original laserdisc-based arcade version suffered from one major, but inevitable limitation: long pauses between taking an action and seeing the result of that action. This was caused by the sluggish track access times of the laserdisc format. Happily these delays are eliminated now on the Blu-Ray version, but it does present some new problems.

There are supposed to be "motion guides" available that let you know when to take an action. These do not seem to work reliably on a Sony PS3. During the game there are some points where flashes of light indicate recommended directions, but these are fairly inconsistent. Knowing when you need to act is pure guesswork and this makes gameplay more difficult than it should be.

Also, I would assume the game is supposed to allow you to advance once you have completed a scene, but if you die without completing a scene, you'd have to repeat it. With unlimited lives at your disposal, this will save you a lot of quarters. But once I got past the first couple of scenes, it seemed like completing a scene or dying made no difference. The game would just randomly take me to some other scene, sometimes a scene that I had already completed, with no real advancement toward the goal.

Eventually I just gave up in frustration and went into the "Extras" to watch the complete "movie" from beginning to end.

The Extras

In addition to being able to watch the complete "film" (all animation sequences in order, including all possible deaths), which is a nice feature, the Blu-Ray Disc also includes 3 trailers for "Digital Leisure" game titles, a split-screen visual comparison of pre-remaster and post-remaster, a time capsule comparing the HD version to previous versions of the game, commentary from the game creators via an inset PIP window, and interviews with these same creators. The commentary and interviews lend some interesting insight into the creation of the game and the challenges involved in bringing it to market.


Final Thoughts

"Dragon's Lair" broke new ground in its initial arcade release, and breaks new ground again as the first Blu-Ray title to use the BD-Java feature of Blu-Ray Disc. But the game play itself is awkward, and prone to errors in playback (or just odd design choices) as I experienced within just 20 minutes of beginning game play.

For die-hard "Dragon's Lair" fans, or fans of classic arcade games, the Blu-Ray Disc may be a worthwhile addition to their collection, if only for the video quality of the new transfer. But with its simplistic (yet awkward) game play and significant problems, I don't think the title is going to win any new fans. I'd recommend a rental before plunking down your hard-earned cash.

Technical/Release Details

• Blu-Ray Disc release date: April 9, 2007
• MSRP: $39.99
• Original Game Release Year: 1983
• Video transfer: 1080p 16:9 HD transfer
• Sound format: Dolby Digital 5.1 (English)
• Extras:
  • Trailers for "Space Ace," "Dragon's Lair" and "Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp"
  • Split-Screen pre-HD/Post-HD comparison
  • Time capsule - visual comparison between previous versions of the game and the HD version
  • Commentary by game creators Don Bluth, Gary Goldman and Rick Dyer
  • "Watch" feature to watch all scenes of the game in order
  • New interviews with game creators