Gaming Target - Xbox: Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair

Written by Ryan Genno on July 01, 2003

Full Review: "Why is Daphne half naked?!"

To understand why this game sparks so much interest to so many nostalgic gamers out there, it's because this isn't Dragon's Lair's first picnic. Like other people over twenty, I belong to the older generation of video game players out there. Way back in 1983 there was this interesting arcade game called Dragon's Lair. What made Dragon's Lair so special over other arcade games was that it looked like a real cartoon. That was really the DL's only problem; it had million dollar looks with ten-cent game play. Jump ahead 20 years later where gaming technology has become so advance that it's now possible to create a realistic looking cartoon video game just like we see now with other titles like Robotech: Battlecry, Jet Set Radio Future, the Legend of Zelda the Wind Waker, and many more. Enter Dragon's Lair 3D, a remake of the original laser disc adventure but this time the game is completely interactive in a dream come true. Can the dream be realized and can Dragon's Lair 3D be the adventure game that Xbox owners have long been seeking or is this one big interactive disappointment?

In Dragon's Lair 3D you must help the heroic but sometimes clumsy knight, Dirk the Daring, venture through a deadly castle in hopes of rescuing the beautiful Princess Daphne from a gigantic dragon called Singe. Making your way through this castle won't be easy (in more ways then one) because there are tons of evil creatures, traps, and minions just waiting to end your quest early. Since this is a remake of the original Dragon's Lair the story remains the same but now you have the time to explore this castle a little more now at your own free will. Dirk can also do other new tricks like learn magic and collect treasure on the way to make for a more amazing game.

Although this new 2000 edition of Dragon's Lair may no longer have the look of a linear Full Motion Video cartoon, the graphics still hold up very well. This game still has many of the colourful locations that you seen in the original and each area is quite detailed too. The Xbox version even supports 1080i HDTV's so it possible to make Dragon's Lair 3D look even better. The game also uses that famous Cel shaded technology for those popular characters here. I especially like that super sexy Princess Daphne in her naughty black lingerie outfit. I love Daphne because she looked way better then the usual fully dressed Princess's found in those other softer titles. She was always a great crowd pleaser although her voice can be too whiny at times.

That takes me to Dragon's Lair 3D sounds. The game does have some good sound tracks when the music kicks in but some of the in game effects were a little non-existent. I could barely hear what the people were talking about in the making of Dragon's Lair 3D videos no matter what the sound settings were. I really like these behind the scenes features in video games but why is the sound so buggy here? The rest of the music and sound effects were fitting for this game though.

Sure, Dragon's Lair 3D sounds like an excellent game so far but if you peeked over at the score already then you know there has to be something wrong. Let's move on to the game's controls. Now that Dirk is in 3D he can do a lot of things like walk, run, attack, block, roll, grab platforms, and so much more. That alone doesn't seem so bad but you'll be surprised how difficult it can be to do even the simplest task. For example: when Dirk has his sword or crossbow equipped he no longer as the power to grab onto ledges. This can get you killed in a hurry because you sometimes have to fight enemies and grab chains or platforms in the same level. You have to continue to this very annoying switching back and forth every few seconds to complete your various objectives. Another strange thing the programmers did to screw you around is that they added a Run button to the long list of moves here. Usually you would use the analog stick to run in most great 3D games but not Dragon's Lair 3D. To make matters worst for Dirk is the game's spotty collision detection. Half the time my sword attacks didn't seem too effective on the enemies at all even if I locked on to the opponent. I haven't played a game this demanding on the controller since that ugly Oni game for the PS2.