OK, way back in the day, there were three things that bugged me about the so-called “revolutionary” animated arcade game Dragon’s Lair. First, it was the first video game I’d ever seen that cost $.50 a play, and that pretty much put me off the whole console genre for the remainder of my life. If I can’t get 10 minutes of entertainment for a quarter, I ain’t interested. Second, there were always a bunch of bigger, meaner kids hogging the game so I never got a chance to see if I could slug it and learn the games’s tricks.
And third…did you ever notice how the main Dragon’s Lair character’s ears are freakishly high up on his head? And those huge feet? I mean, I know it’s a cartoon, but…yipes.
Those of us weho were traumatized by the original Dragon’s Lair game—or, you know, folks who might have fond memories of it—will be delighted to know Ontario’s Digital Leisure will be releasing the original Dragon’s Lair game on Blu-ray disc. Authoring studio Infinite HD transferred the game footage from from the original film, gave it a frame-by-frame digital cleanup, and enhanced it with an all-new 5.1 surround sound mix (which, for the first time, includes the game’s original move sounds). And what’s more, this Dragon’s Lair release isn’t a video game for a specific platform: it’s implemented using the interactive capabilities Blu-ray Java (BD-J), meaning it can be played in any commercial Blu-ray player. (Although the PS3 or a PC with a game controller might be your best bet, unless you can see yourself jumping around and fighting monsters with your Blu-ray remote.)
The Dragon’s Lair title also contains 1080p special features, including interviews with Dragon’s Lair creators Don Bluth, Gary Goldman, and Rick Dyer, along with a full-length visual commentary on the game.
“I’ve seen the newly restored footage and it just looks amazing” says Don Bluth, original creator of Dragon’s Lair, in a release. “It looks even better than I can remember. The visuals, the 5.1 surround sound audio, all I can say is ‘Wow!’ Now a whole new generation can enjoy Dragon’s Lair all over again.”
Yeah. Assuming we ever got to enjoy it the first time.
Dragon’s Lair will be available April 9 from retailers and the Digital Leisure site at a suggested price of $49.95. Digital Leisure also plans to release Space Ace and Dragon’s Lair II: Time Warp in Blu-ray format.
