Commodore User
1st February 1987
Categories: Review: Software
Author: Kirk Rutter
Publisher: Software Projects
Machine: Commodore 64
Published in Commodore User #41
Escape From Singe's Castle
Last year Software Projects released a conversion of the famous laser disk arcade game Dragon's Lair, and now they've followed up the success of that with a sequel.
In the original, a malicious dragon ran off with the king's daughter and imprisoned her in a crystal ball with a short supply of air. Dirk the Daring came to the rescue, braving falling discs, burning ropes, a deadly weapons room and a nasty chequerboard among other perils. Soon after he married here, but it seems as if that's not enough for Dirk. He wants riches as well, so this time he's going back to the castle where a lizard king now holds sway over a pot of gold.
Once the game has loaded, using the same 'load-while-you-play' trick (which many other companies should have adopted but haven't) you find yourself confronted by more murderous perils. Dirk begins in the river caves, where he is swept along by rapids towards jagged boulders. Fortunately, someone's shining a torch since a light seems to flash guiding you through a safe route.
There's no more help for the rest of your mugger's journey. You emerge in the second sheet in Boulder Alley where for your avaraciousness you are chased by a large rock, Indiana Jones-style.
From then it's into the Throne Room where you find yourself embroiled in some of the traditional Dragon's Lair gameplay, moving the joystick around to dodge hands of fire and so on.
The pot of gold awaits you in the Dungeons of the Lizard King but you'll have to kill him first. Fail and he'll drag your carcass off the screen like a sack. If you manage to waste the rotten reptile and nab the gold you'll have to make your escape on a Magical Flying Horse. Trigger it ain't, and you'll find the stupid nag running you into walls. It would be more use to you as glue, but you're not given a choice between pasting things in a scrap book and escaping, so you have to make the best of the untrusty steed.
Before you ever make it out and bank your money in British Airways shares or whatever state asset the king's currently flogging off, there's another dungeon, some mystical mosaics and a spectacular last trial. The Mud Monsters is a huge volcanic area where the mud boils and comes alive in an attempt to stop you legging it with the dosh.
As a sequel, Escape From is a considerable improvement on the original. The irritating sequence which followed Dirk's death in Dragon's Lair where you crumble and reassemble slowly has been adjusted so you can skip straight back into the action by a couple of stabs on the fire button.
The graphics are also better, but the major improvement on the first game is in the area of sound. There's a Rob Hubbard tune for each test you have to fae, and eight Hubbard tunes in one game is pretty good value. In short, this will be of interest to newcomers and those of you who bought and enjoyed the original. Go for gold!
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