Here's the walkthrough for the CD-rom version. BTW, if you haven't tried
Space Ace, its alot more forgiving control wise.
Dragon's Lair CD-ROM
A rambling walkthrough by Steve Derby (sderby@netcom.com)
In the early 1980s as a teenager, I (like many teenagers) had a paper
route to earn a little extra spending money. Being the young carefree soul
that I was, most of that extra spending money went directly from my pocket
to the local video arcade. The lion's share of the money went (at 50 cents
a pop!) went to Dragon's Lair. I shudder to think how much I had spent
before finally defeating the loathesome Singe and rescuing the beautiful
Daphne.
Many years later, I readily bought Readysoft's diskette versions of the
game, only to be disappointed by the poor animation and shortness of the
games (in 3 parts, even). Years after that, I bought a CD-ROM unit and
(only for testing purposes, of course :) purchased a copy of the CD-ROM
version of Dragon's Lair. It was like being transported back in time.
(Though I guess that would be Dragon's Lair II, wouldn't it?) The large
capacity of CD-ROMs had allowed Dragon's Lair to be played on a PC almost
in its entirety. (Purists will note that a few scenes from the arcade
version, like the burning vines and the falling platform have been
eliminated, but almost everything is there.)
Anyway, on with the walkthrough:
General notes:
- The CD-ROM version of Dragon's Lair is somewhat forgiving about
timing, but it's still important in some areas. I've tried to indicate
timing in the walkthrough where it's important.
- All movements are given in uppercase: LEFT, RIGHT, UP, DOWN,
SWORD.
- Many of the scenes have two versions: one is a mirror image of the
other. I've indicated the ones I know about, but if I've missed any, just
replace the LEFTs with RIGHTs and vice versa.
- The moves I've listed work for me. In some cases, I've probably
included unnecessary moves (particularly at the end of scenes). These
extra moves won't hurt you, in any case.
- The scenes probably won't appear in the order listed: they appear in
a quasi-random order, with a few fixed ones.
- If you find this walkthrough helpful or have any comments or
criticisms, please drop me a line: sderby@netcom.com
DRAWBRIDGE AND CRUMBLING ROOM (Beginning)
When Dirk falls through the bridge and the tentacles emerge from the
moat, SWORD, then quickly move UP. Dirk will run into a room which begins
to crumble around him. When the door on the right opens, move RIGHT.
GREEN TENTACLES
As soon as the first tentacle slithers out from the hole in the
ceiling, SWORD. Wait until the scene changes (the door will flash), then
move RIGHT. Jump BACK and when tentacles begin to come down the stairs,
jump LEFT and UP through the door.
SNAKES, SNAKES, EVERYWHERE
When you hear the hissing of the first snake, SWORD. SWORD the second
snake, then move RIGHT to release the rope and escape.
EARTHQUAKE ROOM
This scene, one of my favorite in the game, has two versions. When Dirk
first enters the room, note which side his sword is on. You'll be moving
the direction first. The directions are for the first moving being to the
right. If your scene is reversed, reverse and the LEFT and RIGHT actions.
When the floor begins to crumble, run RIGHT, then UP when the scene
changes. The floor will continue to crumble, so move LEFT, then UP to jump
into the pool. Go RIGHT to exit the pool and UP when Dirk steps on the
pressure plate. A spider will emerge from the ceiling. Quickly SWORD it,
and move UP fast to leave the room.
THE GIDDY-GOONS
As soon as the first goon appears, SWORD it, and quickly move RIGHT
towards the stairs. The scene will shift somewhat, then go UP the stairs.
When more goons appear in front of DIRK, SWORD them and go UP through the
door.
SLIDING STAIRS
This scene MAY have a mirror-image. I'm not entirely sure. The first
move will be the direction Dirk is walking at the beginning of the scene.
When the shot changes to a close-up of Dirk's face, move LEFT (the
direction Dirk was walking). When tentacles emerge from the pit, swing
your SWORD at them, and move left away from the pit. Don't be fooled into
pulling that chain! Instead, move LEFT towards the porthole, then LEFT
again to leave.
FLYING WEAPONRY
This is one of those mirror-image scenes, but there's only one lateral
move in it. As soon as you enter the room, draw your SWORD. An enchanted
sword will fly into the air, SWORD it out of the way. Next, a morning star
will fly into the air. SWORD it, too. Don't attack the anvil, though, move
move LEFT (away from the fire) to avoid it. SWORD the flying spear out of
the way, and SWORD the statue when it begins to move.
SPINNING BATONS
Timing is crucial with this scene. Watch carefully as Dirk approaches
the batons. He will extend one of his hands (it's a mirror-image scene so
it could be the left or the right, but it doesn't matter) and begin to
duck deeply. Count the number of times he ducks. As he ducks for the third
time, run UP. The staff at the end of the catwalk will glow: better SWORD
it, and move DOWN quickly. Move UP through the door, avoiding the thorny
branches.
MAGIC CLOSING WALL
This one is easy. Move UP.
FIRE AND LIGHTNING
The timing is tricky with this scene. After the bench falls and
ignites, move RIGHT quickly. As soon as (or even just before) the
lightning strikes, move UP then immediately DOWN. Move LEFT to avoid the
fire and LEFT again to leave the room.
RIDE 'EM, COWBOY!
This is a mirror scene. The first move will be the OPPOSITE of the
direction the horse is facing when Dirk enters the room. Make one move
very quickly each time the scene changes to avoid fire and walls: RIGHT,
LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, LEFT (or vice-versa).
THE BLACK KNIGHT
Aside from Singe's lair, this is probably the most difficult scene in
the game. It's also a mirror-image scene. Note which hand the knight's
sword is in when the scene begins: your first move will be in the OPPOSITE
direction. Make the first move immediately, then make one move every time
Dirk starts to jump: LEFT, RIGHT, UP, RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT. SWORD to
draw the sword, and SWORD again to destroy the nights.
LAUGHING HORSEMAN
When the horseman appears, move LEFT. When he appears again, move LEFT
again. The third time he appears, move RIGHT, then RIGHT again to jump
into the hole and escape.
CRUMBLING CATWALK
Move UP and UP again to avoid plummeting to your death. When you reach
a fork, move DOWN to duck the bats, and SWORD at the bats. Quickly run
RIGHT, then jump RIGHT to escape.
MORE BATS
SWORD at the bats to get them out of your way and run LEFT. When the
stairs begin to crumble, move LEFT to jump across. SWORD the giant bat
which will appear and move LEFT through the door.
THE LIZARD KING
Uh oh! Dirk has lost his sword! Better go get it! Move LEFT to follow
the sword, then as Dirk reaches the end of each hallway, move RIGHT,
RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT, and RIGHT (there are 5 hallways). Finally, Dirk will
reach the end of the line. Move UP to get the sword, and SWORD to swing
it. Dirk will drop his sword. LEFT to retrieve it, and lunge RIGHT at the
lizard king. Duck by moving DOWN and swing the SWORD to finish the reptile
off.
DRINK ME
Don't do it! Move RIGHT.
CHECKERBOARD FLOOR
As soon as the floor begins to vanish, jump DOWN, then UP, UP again
quickly, and immediately go through the LEFT door.
DIRK'S REALLY GOT BALLS
The timing is important here, but there's a pretty good window of time
in which to move. To run past each of the six balls rolling past, move
DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN as the ball passes Dirk, then UP to
jump over the hole inconveniently placed at the end of the corridor.
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT
For the rapids, wait until Dirk enters the light-colored stream in the
center of the screen, then move UP, UP, UP, and UP. For the whirlpools,
move away from danger (obviously): RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT. When the boat
crashes, grab the chain to the RIGHT.
THE MUDMEN
This scene is long, but easy. SWORD at the mudmen as soon as they
appear, then move UP, UP, UP, UP, UP, UP, UP, UP, UP every time the scene
changes. At the end, move UP to jump over the lava.
CRYSTAL BALL
Dirk's hat and sword are gone and there's electricity all around.
What's a wayfarer to do? Immediately, jump RIGHT. When the scene changes,
jump UP, then RIGHT into the throne. The throne will spin around and
electricity will follow. Run RIGHT away from the electricity.
GREEN SLIME
When the pot boils over, avoid the slime by jumping UP. When it comes
to life, SWORD it. For that matter, SWORD the fellow coming out of the pot
as well. Move RIGHT out of the room to safety.
ELECTRIC CAGE
A cage will clamp down around Dirk and electricity will begin
approaching him. Move UP away from the electricity and UP again through
the hyperactive door. Watch the bridge Dirk approaches. Once lava has
spouted three times, quickly run LEFT.
Look out, Dirk! You've reached...
THE DRAGON'S LAIR
Take a deep breath. Here we go. After Dirk survey's the room and the
shot cuts back to him, move UP to steady the falling debris. Dirk will
jump around on a few boxes a bit: move LEFT once he reaches the one on the
right, then move LEFT again at the bottom of the pile of gold to avoid the
dragon's fire. The dragon will pretend to go back to sleep and some
pottery will begin to fall: move DOWN to catch it. Listen to Daphne she
really wants to be saved.
Uh oh! The dragon is awake now, and he's pissed! When he chases Dirk
behind the green pillar, move DOWN immediately. When Dirk begins to duck,
duck lower by moving DOWN again. Finally, move LEFT when dirk ducks close
to the ground. When the scene shifts to Dirk running away from behind,
jump UP behind a pile of gold. You're behind another pillar: move DOWN to
run away, then RIGHT when the scene shifts to another behind-shot of Dirk.
There's the magic sword! Get it! Run up to it with SWORD, and remove it
with SWORD as well. The dragon is hot (pardon the pun) on your heels, so
SWORD a third time to deflect the flame. When Singe raises his tail, move
LEFT out of the way, ready the SWORD, and throw it at Singe with a final
fateful SWORD. Whew!
Congratulations! You've slain Singe and rescued Daphne. Give Daphne a
kiss and watch the credits roll: the ending credits are nicely-done and a
commercial for Space Ace (not yet available as I write this in early
October 1994, as far as I know) shows up at the end.
This walkthrough is Copyright 1994 Steve Derby: distribute freely in its
entirety. No modifications, please. Dragon's Lair is Copyright 1983, 1993
Don Bluth and Readysoft.
