Originally published at: A history of 'Dragon's Lair' | Boing Boing
…
9 Likes
I always loved the characters and animation, but really didn’t like the actual game. I am, however, excited about the upcoming animated movie with Ryan Reynolds.
5 Likes
Oh god no! I had to listen to that thing for endless hours while we took apart how the arcade version worked.
5 Likes
It wasn’t so much a game as a choose-your-own-adventure cartoon.
8 Likes
I always preferred Cliff Hanger, which was the laser disc game based upon Lupin III’s Castle of Cagliostro. I fed so much money into that machine at Chuck E Cheese in the 80’s.
6 Likes
One reason I didn’t like the actual game was how easily the console was abused by players, making it worse for subsequent players. I can’t think of another game that invited so much physical abuse.
4 Likes
See previous post.
The thing about Cliff Hanger was that Dragon’s Lair had used up the supply of laser disc players rated for the continuous duty cycle, so they used home retail units gimmicked to work – with rapid failure rates.
5 Likes
The technology used in the arcade game was quite something for the day. It was the first time I gave some thought about what sort of tech was in the cabinet (beyond typical 2ft x 2ft PC boards stuffed with DIP chips).
It was also 50 cents a play, compared to 25 cents for Space invaders.
6 Likes
I picked up the Dragons Lair series (1, 2, and Space Ace) over the holidays for the Switch. Best part is it has a setting that is MUCH more forgiving on timing than the console was. I never was a great twitch-speed reaction player and that certainly hasn’t gotten any better as I’ve aged.
2 Likes
Yeah. I’ve had all 3 for the iPhone for a while also. They’re fun to play through very so often. The touch interface seems to work very well for this sort of game as well. I’d say it’s way more fun than the original.
1 Like
One of the greatest weeks of my young life was when the local arcade had BOTH Dragon’s Lair and Space Ace - and both could be glitched into adding free plays by bumping the coin area.
Wish I could brag I finished both but sadly the latter had some tough final levels.
3 Likes
“Track and Field”?
1 Like
Tell me more? I loved watching others play these games but was terrible at them myself. Having a Switch, I could be tempted if I could actually progress…
2 Likes
i loved this game but i felt kinda fraudulent for relying on the flashes to guide my correct direction…i never felt like i was “playing” and was just “following” - or was that the point?
1 Like
In my arcades at the time it was a buck to play so I stuck to the single quarter games.
If I was going to invest a roll of quarters in anything it was Gauntlet with 2 or 3 freinds. A lot more bang for buck.
1 Like
Loved that game, have it on a MAME machine with real arcade buttons. Haven’t destroyed them yet.
I remeber kids using pencils or butter knives across their knuckles to get more speed.
2 Likes
Yes, and after a while some owners would turn the buttons’ bevels(?) around so this method no longer worked.
Cinematronics also RDI put out Thayer’s Quest, which was way too complicated for me. I think it was $0.50 or $1 a play, and I didn’t bother playing it twice.
There’s a wealth of options at the start screen, including an “easy mode” that gives you a few extra seconds to respond, you can turn on more blatant prompts, and so forth. Due to some nerve issues, my hands don’t work the way I’d like them to sometimes so I still die a lot, but the options at least give me a chance of playing it.
Was $10 on sale for the three, and I’m happy with that price.
3 Likes
Thanks, think I’ll give it a go!
1 Like
1 Like
