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Review: Dirk is back in 'Dragon's Lair HD'By Marc Saltzman  "Dragon's Lair HD" is a fun -- albeit short -- romp down memory lane. YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSIt's been 23 years since Dirk the Daring first vowed to rescue Princess Daphne from the clutches of a nasty dragon, Singe. As the world's first laserdisc arcade game, "Dragon's Lair" looked more like a Saturday morning cartoon than a video game, created by former Disney animator Don Bluth ("An American Tail," "The Land Before Time") with lead game designer and programmer, Rick Dyer. Millions of gamers dumped quarter after quarter to control the brave but dopey knight, and many home-based versions have surfaced over the years for computers, video game systems and even DVD players. But this week, publisher Digital Leisure begins selling a new PC version, the first with high-definition video. To create "Dragon's Lair HD," the company says a sophisticated film transfer technology was employed to preserve the original Cel animation. Plus, for the first time, the game's audio was remastered in 5.1 surround sound. The result is a gorgeous but short-lived and pricey adventure that will likely appeal only to those with a sentimental soft spot for the 1983 arcade game. Players must guide the knight through treacherous traps laid by an evil wizard, Mordoc. As with the original game, Dirk must run, jump and slash his sword through a number of scenes that take place in and outside a mammoth castle. But the game is barely interactive as the animated sequences simply play out depending on which way you push Dirk -- unlike most video games where you freely control the protagonist. Much of the game relies on memorizing the task at hand and getting the timing right in your movement, such as swinging across a fiery chasm, running from giant rolling balls or defeating ghosts with cunning swordsmanship. The "death" animations are humorously over-the-top, such as being squeezed by a snake or having your face attacked by a giant spider. At least "Dragon's Lair HD" is simple to play: the four arrow buttons on your keyboard move Dirk left, right, up or down, while the space bar is reserved for swinging his sword. A DVD-ROM drive is required to play, but most PCs purchased over the past few years have this installed. To ensure smooth performance, gamers have many viewing options: anamorphic (4:3 aspect ratio, with 1,440 x 1,080 lines of resolution); full screen (5:4 aspect ratio, with 1,280 x 1,024 lines of resolution); or wide screen (16:9 aspect ratio, with 1,920 x 1,080 lines of resolution). Depending on the quality of your monitor and video card, you can also choose normal, high or extreme quality for each of these three options. If the video still looks choppy, players can choose to copy the entire game to their hard drive, which can then be accessed faster than a DVD-ROM drive. Depending on the quality you choose, the hard drive space required ranges from 600 megabytes to 1.6 gigabytes. You can also select the original arcade classic or an alternative "Home" version with extra scenes (such as one on a drawbridge at the beginning of the game). This disc also ships with an optional "Watch" mode, where you can sit back and enjoy the animation without having to play at all. "Dragon's Lair HD" is easily the finest reproduction of the coin-operated classic, but at $50, it's a pricey pick -- not to mention the game can be completed in less than 15 minutes if you know all the moves. Yes, you read this correctly: 15 minutes. But for nostalgic gamers with deep pockets, it's a fun -- albeit short -- romp down memory lane. 
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