"Quite simply the greatest videogame memory of my lifetime"

Out of all of the videogames in the history of the interactive form that I could possibly choose to write about for my first review for Gamefaqs, this is the one. Why would I choose Dragon's Lair, the pinnacle of the short but sweet laserdisc-games fad? Well, let's put it this way. I have a fond memory of videogames. I am a true '80s child. Often in my youth, around five years of age, my parents would deposit me alongside a videogame such as Pac Man or Donkey Kong without actually depositing a coin. I didn't care, for I was enthralled with just the nature of videogames.

In that, Dragon's Lair is and will remain as the fondest memory ever associated with videogames. For some, it is a ridiculous non-game that has absolutely zero gameplay, let alone replay value. The best way to describe Dragon's Lair is, ''you had to be there.''

And I was. I was five years old when I first glanced upon Dragon's Lair. I was wondering through an average arcade of that time, filled with blips and bloops, disc men eating ghosts, etc. when all of the sudden here was this fully operational CARTOON! And people where playing this CARTOON! To me, a five-year-old I didn't care about the gameplay, I was immediately captivated by the exquisite artwork taking place on the screen. The story will be explained later, but just as an introduction, it is important to explain that this game was revolutionary. From that day on I lived and breathed Dragon's Lair. I watched the cartoon show, I had the Dragon's Lair lunchpail, I had adventures in my woods that I was Dirk the Daring gallivanting throughout that creepy-ass castle. Mind you, I never actually PLAYED the game, I just loved the idea of an interactive cartoon. Years and years later, I would play and own this game and it's sequel, both presently located amongst my bookshelf as something to look back on whenever I feel nostalgic.

Ok, enough about my youth, let and me get on to the actual game itself. A bit of a disclaimer first, if you are young yourself and have grown up with all sorts of fully playable games and can not appreciate videogames as a piece of nostalgia or an art form themselves, DO NOT BUY THIS GAME. Rent it, play it, throw it out the window, just understand how old it is!

Story - 10

This is the most important part of the lure of Dragon's Lair and why I was so captivated with it. It's simple by today's standards, but the originality of certain rooms and the fact that you never know what will happen next keeps this simple story from being boring. You are Dirk the Daring, a ''valiant knight'' who is on a quest to rescue the fair (and quite hot!) Princess Daphnie from an evil dragon. Easier said that done my friend. What follows is Dirk's voyage into the Dragon's castle, a place of wonder and of peril, where danger, disaster and DEATH are around literally every corner. In the arcade, many of the rooms were random and were quite amazing in their originality. Dirk could come across a robotic horse that whips him through a series of firewalls and obstacles, or he could find himself in a room with a wall closing in between him and the exit. From giant marbles to giant bats, you never knew what Dirk would find in his quest to reach the dragon's lair, and that is what made the game so memorable.

Gameplay - 2

OK, I gave this game an overall 10 and if you don't know the game you may be asking, ''Why only a 2 on gameplay?!'' Well, Dragon's Lair didn't offer much. It was actually more fun to watch than to waste quarters on. Here's how the gameplay works; we will take one of the first simple rooms as an example. Dirk enters the castle and sees three doors (you did not enter the castle for Dirk, it is just running a cartoon), he looks around and then up, noticing that the ceiling is in danger of crumbling down on top of him. Here's where the ''gameplay'' comes in. If you move the joystick to the left, you die. You see, the ground on the left is also crumbling and Dirk will fall screaming into the abyss. If you move the joystick upwards, you will die. Also a crumbling ground. If you don't do anything, you will die. The rocks will have finally fallen and crush Dirk. However, if your eye catches a signature ''flash'' coming from the door to the right and you move the joystick to the right, Dirk will quickly run into that door and you will have cleared that room. Wow, I should have given a 1 to gameplay. That's all you do friends, guide Dirk to safety or watch him die — again and again and again and again.

Audio/Video - 10

Another reason this game rocks. The animation was done by Don Bluth, former Disney animator (ever wonder why Sword in the Stone looks like Dragon's Lair?) as well as creative genius behind An American Tail, Land Before Time, Banjo the Woodpile Cat and more recently Titan A.E. Sometimes his storylines suck, but the artwork is always top notch. Dirk is very memorable, and while there isn't any music that is memorable, Dirk's screams and grunts are so classic that they deserve a 10. The scenery, characters and situations are so beautifully done, it is no surprise that Bluth is considering a full-length Dragon's Lair movie as his next project (Here's hoping he does it!). The animation is something that has to be seen to be appreciated and there are certain scenes that I can not do justice simply in words.

Replayability - 6

Not too high, I personally love playing this game, but because of the lack of gameplay, the replay value is only as high as your appreciation and love for the product. This is a game that is fun to look back on and play every once in a while. I personally will own a fully functional Dragon's Lair arcade game when I have a career and money; I really don't care how rare or expensive one is! Luckily, for those less obsessed with video lore, this game can be found relatively cheap for the PC, usually bundled with it's sequel (which also rocked, along these same lines) and Bluth's other foray into Laserdisc games of that era — Space Ace. I picked it up recently for $20, and will probably buy it on DVD when I get a DVD player.

To Buy or to Rent - Rent

I love this game. Chances are, you won't, unless you remember it with the fondness that I do. Rent it, understand it, and read up on it. Dragon's Lair is truly a piece of interactive gaming history and will always remain in my mind as one of the best memories associated with video gaming.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 01/24/01, Updated 01/24/01