Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair (titled Dragon's Lair 3D: Special Edition in Europe) is an action-adventure game released in 2002 by Ubi Soft. It is based on 1983 arcade video gameDragon's Lair and follows a similar story: Dirk the Daring must enter the evil wizard Mordroc's castle to rescue Princess Daphne from Singe the Dragon. Many of the characters and locations from the 1983 original make appearances in the game, along with new puzzles, rooms and enemies. Animator and director Don Bluth, who produced the cartoon animation for the original Dragon's Lair, produced new animated sequences for the opening and ending of the game. The game uses cel shading to mimic the style of the hand-drawn art of the 1983 game.
The game is the first in the series to host non-restricted movement for the player. A mostly linear exploration of the castle is broken up with boss fights, many of which are characters from the original arcade game, but not all. Many of the rooms seen in the original are seen again, though some are modified. New mechanics are introduced by the Dragon Essences that grant new powers. Health and Mana meters are also introduced and can be given upgrades throughout the game. A crossbow is also introduced and is used as an alternative weapon and resourceful object for puzzles. Treasure is also brought into the game to act as optional challenges to complete; collecting all 100 treasures unlocks extra gameplay options such as unlimited mana, alternate character skins, and faster sword charging for use when the player starts a new game.
Plotedit
The story starts as the Princess Daphne is captured by the dragon Singe commanded by the wizard Mordroc. Dirk sees this as he is riding his horse, Bertram, and unsuccessfully tries to rescue her. Daphne is taken through a portal but leaves behind an amulet that allows her to talk to Dirk as he works his way through the castle withholding her. Daphne explains to Dirk how the wizard has become extremely powerful and would be undefeatable without the help of the Dragon Essences: magical objects that grant their users abilities and are each guarded by the strongest beings in the castle. Dirk manages to find the princess and goes into battle with Singe, largely mirroring the original arcade's version of the fight. As the knight walks away with the princess in his arms, he notices a different reflection in a nearby crystal and drops her to find that she is really a dark alter-ego version of himself in disguise. The evil Dirk laughs at the hero for almost falling for his trap and goes on to explain how he is one of the beings holding an essence and that long ago, those who held the essences grew corrupt, thus a civil war between the forces broke out. Dirk defeats the alter-ego and goes on to gather the rest of the essences, but as he gains a magical set of arrows that are the only weapon capable of dispatching the wizard, Daphne begins to chastise Dirk for picking them up. Soon after, it is revealed that the Daphne speaking to Dirk up to this point was Mordroc impersonating her (much like in Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp). Nevertheless, Dirk travels to where the princess is held captive and duels the wizard, who transforms into a dragon. Ultimately, he is defeated by the magical arrows and the knight saves the princess.
In late 2004,[37] Digital Leisure released Dragon's Lair III (unrelated to the earlier Dragon's Lair III: The Curse of Mordread). It is based on footage taken from Dragon's Lair 3D, but using a control system closer to the original and akin to their DVD version of the original Dragon's Lair.
Referencesedit
^"Ubi Soft shuffles release dates". Eurogamer.net. 2003-09-02. from the original on 2023-03-30. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
^ abSulic, Ivan (2002-11-11). "Dirk Gets Daring, Goes to Store". IGN. from the original on 2023-03-30. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
^"Dragon's Lair III, um, released". Eurogamer.net. 2004-11-08. from the original on 2023-03-30. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
^"What's New?". Eurogamer.net. 2004-03-05. from the original on 2023-03-20. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
^ ab"What's New?". Eurogamer.net. 2004-03-26. from the original on 2023-03-30. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
^"Dragon's Lair 3D Ships - Press Release". Nintendo World Report. from the original on 2023-03-30. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
^"A Knight to Remember". Computer Graphics World. Jan 2003. from the original on 2023-09-11. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
^Marriott, Scott Alan. . AllGame. Archived from the original on 2014-11-14. Retrieved 2014-11-21.
^EGM Staff (January 2003). . Electronic Gaming Monthly. p. 194. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-11-21.
^Reed, Kristan (2004-03-17). "Dragon's Lair 3D: Special Edition Review (GC)". Eurogamer. from the original on 2013-02-07. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Barber, Chet (February 2003). . Game Informer. No. 118. p. 101. Archived from the original on 2008-03-02. Retrieved 2013-03-16.
^Barber, Chet (January 2003). . Game Informer. No. 117. p. 113. Archived from the original on 2008-09-15. Retrieved 2013-03-16.
^Bad Hare (2003-01-15). . GamePro. Archived from the original on 2005-02-14. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Silverman, Ben (2002-11-01). "Dragon's Lair 3D Review (Xbox)". Game Revolution. from the original on 2021-01-25. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Davis, Ryan (2003-01-08). "Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair Review (GC)". GameSpot. from the original on 2021-01-28. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Park, Andrew (2002-11-27). "Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair Review (PC)". GameSpot. from the original on 2014-12-27. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Davis, Ryan (2002-11-27). "Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair Review (XBox)". GameSpot. from the original on 2021-01-28. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Williams, Bryn (2003-01-14). . GameSpy. Archived from the original on 2008-10-12.
^Fryman, Avi (2003-01-01). "Dragon's Lair 3D (PC)". GameSpy. from the original on 2008-08-23. Retrieved 2008-09-02.
^Gibson, Jon M. (2003-02-18). "Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair (Xbox)". GameSpy. from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2008-09-02.
^Hopper, Steven (2003-01-19). "Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair - GC - Review". GameZone. from the original on 2009-06-04. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Hopper, Steven (2002-12-05). . GameZone. Archived from the original on 2008-02-10. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Tha Wiz (2002-12-02). . GameZone. Archived from the original on 2008-02-19. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Casamassina, Matt (2003-01-07). "Dragon's Lair 3D (GCN)". IGN. from the original on 2015-03-09. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Sulic, Ivan; Goldstein, Hilary (2002-11-25). "Dragon's Lair 3D Review (PC)". IGN. from the original on 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^Goldstein, Hilary (2002-11-20). "Dragon's Lair 3D (Xbox)". IGN. from the original on 2014-03-23. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
^"Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair". Nintendo Power. Vol. 165. February 2003. p. 156.
Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair at Giant Bomb
January 01, 1970
dragon, lair, return, lair, titled, dragon, lair, special, edition, europe, action, adventure, game, released, 2002, soft, based, 1983, arcade, video, game, dragon, lair, follows, similar, story, dirk, daring, must, enter, evil, wizard, mordroc, castle, rescue. Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair titled Dragon s Lair 3D Special Edition in Europe is an action adventure game released in 2002 by Ubi Soft It is based on 1983 arcade video game Dragon s Lair and follows a similar story Dirk the Daring must enter the evil wizard Mordroc s castle to rescue Princess Daphne from Singe the Dragon Many of the characters and locations from the 1983 original make appearances in the game along with new puzzles rooms and enemies Animator and director Don Bluth who produced the cartoon animation for the original Dragon s Lair produced new animated sequences for the opening and ending of the game The game uses cel shading to mimic the style of the hand drawn art of the 1983 game Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the LairNorth American Xbox cover artDeveloper s Dragonstone SoftwarePublisher s WW Ubi SoftNA Encore Software GCN EU THQ GCN SeriesDragon s LairEngineGenesis3D 7 Platform s Windows Xbox GameCube PlayStation 2ReleaseWindowsNA November 18 2002 2 EU September 12 2003 1 EU November 8 2004 DL3 3 NA November 23 2004 DL3 XboxNA November 18 2002 2 EU March 5 2004 4 GameCubeNA January 6 2003 6 EU March 26 2004 5 PS2EU March 26 2004 5 Genre s Action adventureMode s Single player Contents 1 Gameplay 2 Plot 3 Reception 4 Legacy 5 References 6 External linksGameplay editThe game is the first in the series to host non restricted movement for the player A mostly linear exploration of the castle is broken up with boss fights many of which are characters from the original arcade game but not all Many of the rooms seen in the original are seen again though some are modified New mechanics are introduced by the Dragon Essences that grant new powers Health and Mana meters are also introduced and can be given upgrades throughout the game A crossbow is also introduced and is used as an alternative weapon and resourceful object for puzzles Treasure is also brought into the game to act as optional challenges to complete collecting all 100 treasures unlocks extra gameplay options such as unlimited mana alternate character skins and faster sword charging for use when the player starts a new game Plot editThe story starts as the Princess Daphne is captured by the dragon Singe commanded by the wizard Mordroc Dirk sees this as he is riding his horse Bertram and unsuccessfully tries to rescue her Daphne is taken through a portal but leaves behind an amulet that allows her to talk to Dirk as he works his way through the castle withholding her Daphne explains to Dirk how the wizard has become extremely powerful and would be undefeatable without the help of the Dragon Essences magical objects that grant their users abilities and are each guarded by the strongest beings in the castle Dirk manages to find the princess and goes into battle with Singe largely mirroring the original arcade s version of the fight As the knight walks away with the princess in his arms he notices a different reflection in a nearby crystal and drops her to find that she is really a dark alter ego version of himself in disguise The evil Dirk laughs at the hero for almost falling for his trap and goes on to explain how he is one of the beings holding an essence and that long ago those who held the essences grew corrupt thus a civil war between the forces broke out Dirk defeats the alter ego and goes on to gather the rest of the essences but as he gains a magical set of arrows that are the only weapon capable of dispatching the wizard Daphne begins to chastise Dirk for picking them up Soon after it is revealed that the Daphne speaking to Dirk up to this point was Mordroc impersonating her much like in Dragon s Lair II Time Warp Nevertheless Dirk travels to where the princess is held captive and duels the wizard who transforms into a dragon Ultimately he is defeated by the magical arrows and the knight saves the princess Reception editReceptionAggregate scoreAggregatorScoreGCPCPS2XboxMetacritic65 100 33 61 100 34 70 100 35 62 100 36 Review scoresPublicationScoreGCPCPS2XboxAllGameN AN AN A nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 8 Electronic Gaming MonthlyN AN AN A4 5 10 9 Eurogamer4 10 10 N AN AN AGame Informer7 75 10 11 N AN A7 10 12 GamePro nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 13 N AN AN AGameRevolutionN AN AN AC 14 GameSpot5 1 10 15 5 3 10 16 N A5 1 10 17 GameSpy nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 18 nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 19 N A nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 20 GameZone7 10 21 7 5 10 22 N A7 5 10 23 IGN6 8 10 24 7 4 10 25 N A7 8 10 26 Nintendo Power3 5 27 N AN AN AOfficial Xbox Magazine US N AN AN A8 1 10 28 PC Gamer US N A80 29 N AN AX PlayN AN AN A nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 30 The Cincinnati Enquirer nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 31 nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 31 N A nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 31 Entertainment WeeklyN AN AN AC 32 The game received mixed or average reviews on all platforms according to video game review aggregator Metacritic 33 34 35 36 Legacy editIn late 2004 37 Digital Leisure released Dragon s Lair III unrelated to the earlier Dragon s Lair III The Curse of Mordread It is based on footage taken from Dragon s Lair 3D but using a control system closer to the original and akin to their DVD version of the original Dragon s Lair References edit Ubi Soft shuffles release dates Eurogamer net 2003 09 02 Archived from the original on 2023 03 30 Retrieved 2023 03 30 a b Sulic Ivan 2002 11 11 Dirk Gets Daring Goes to Store IGN Archived from the original on 2023 03 30 Retrieved 2023 03 30 Dragon s Lair III um released Eurogamer net 2004 11 08 Archived from the original on 2023 03 30 Retrieved 2023 03 30 What s New Eurogamer net 2004 03 05 Archived from the original on 2023 03 20 Retrieved 2023 03 30 a b What s New Eurogamer net 2004 03 26 Archived from the original on 2023 03 30 Retrieved 2023 03 30 Dragon s Lair 3D Ships Press Release Nintendo World Report Archived from the original on 2023 03 30 Retrieved 2023 03 30 A Knight to Remember Computer Graphics World Jan 2003 Archived from the original on 2023 09 11 Retrieved 2020 12 24 Marriott Scott Alan Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Review Xbox AllGame Archived from the original on 2014 11 14 Retrieved 2014 11 21 EGM Staff January 2003 Dragon s Lair 3D Xbox Electronic Gaming Monthly p 194 Archived from the original on 2016 03 04 Retrieved 2014 11 21 Reed Kristan 2004 03 17 Dragon s Lair 3D Special Edition Review GC Eurogamer Archived from the original on 2013 02 07 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Barber Chet February 2003 Dragon s Lair 3D GC Game Informer No 118 p 101 Archived from the original on 2008 03 02 Retrieved 2013 03 16 Barber Chet January 2003 Dragon s Lair 3D Xbox Game Informer No 117 p 113 Archived from the original on 2008 09 15 Retrieved 2013 03 16 Bad Hare 2003 01 15 Dragon s Lair 3D Review for GameCube on GamePro com GamePro Archived from the original on 2005 02 14 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Silverman Ben 2002 11 01 Dragon s Lair 3D Review Xbox Game Revolution Archived from the original on 2021 01 25 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Davis Ryan 2003 01 08 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Review GC GameSpot Archived from the original on 2021 01 28 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Park Andrew 2002 11 27 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Review PC GameSpot Archived from the original on 2014 12 27 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Davis Ryan 2002 11 27 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Review XBox GameSpot Archived from the original on 2021 01 28 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Williams Bryn 2003 01 14 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair GC GameSpy Archived from the original on 2008 10 12 Fryman Avi 2003 01 01 Dragon s Lair 3D PC GameSpy Archived from the original on 2008 08 23 Retrieved 2008 09 02 Gibson Jon M 2003 02 18 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Xbox GameSpy Archived from the original on 2014 07 14 Retrieved 2008 09 02 Hopper Steven 2003 01 19 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair GC Review GameZone Archived from the original on 2009 06 04 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Hopper Steven 2002 12 05 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Review PC GameZone Archived from the original on 2008 02 10 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Tha Wiz 2002 12 02 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Review Xbox GameZone Archived from the original on 2008 02 19 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Casamassina Matt 2003 01 07 Dragon s Lair 3D GCN IGN Archived from the original on 2015 03 09 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Sulic Ivan Goldstein Hilary 2002 11 25 Dragon s Lair 3D Review PC IGN Archived from the original on 2012 11 07 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Goldstein Hilary 2002 11 20 Dragon s Lair 3D Xbox IGN Archived from the original on 2014 03 23 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Nintendo Power Vol 165 February 2003 p 156 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Official Xbox Magazine January 2003 p 76 Osborn Chuck February 2003 Dragon s Lair 3D PC Gamer 72 Archived from the original on 2006 03 15 Retrieved 2015 11 16 Sessler Adam 2002 12 18 Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Xbox Review X Play Archived from the original on 2003 02 01 Retrieved 2013 02 08 a b c Saltzman Marc 2003 01 21 Sorry Dirk new Lair disappoints The Cincinnati Enquirer Archived from the original on 2008 05 15 Retrieved 2014 01 15 Walk Gary Eng 2003 01 17 DRAGON S LAIR 3D Review Xbox Entertainment Weekly p 87 Archived from the original on 2021 01 25 Retrieved 2015 11 16 a b Dragon s Lair 3D for GameCube Reviews Metacritic Archived from the original on 2023 11 20 Retrieved 2013 02 08 a b Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair for PC Reviews Metacritic Archived from the original on 2023 11 20 Retrieved 2013 02 08 a b Dragon s Lair 3D ps2 2003 Reviews Metacritic Archived from the original on 2008 09 13 Retrieved 2015 11 16 a b Dragon s Lair 3D for Xbox Reviews Metacritic Archived from the original on 2023 11 20 Retrieved 2013 02 08 Dragon s Lair 3 Metacritic Archived from the original on 2023 11 20 Retrieved 2023 11 01 External links edit nbsp Wikiquote has quotations related to Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair at IMDb nbsp Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair at MobyGames Dragon s Lair 3D Return to the Lair at Giant Bomb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Dragon 27s Lair 3D Return to the Lair amp oldid 1208962462, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
