Dragons Lair - By sjp1966

* What did you enjoy most about bringing this classic game to Blu-Ray?

I suppose the first high point was when we initially received the transferred HD video and saw the quality -- the definition of the lines and the vivid colours -- we were totally amazed.  Paul Gold handled all the interview production including being at the video shoot so I (David Foster) didn't get to see any of the interview or commentaries until Paul had done the final edit. So when I did see it I was surprised with some of the new tidbits that came out in the discussions between Don Bluth, Gary Goldmand and Rick Dyer -- I thought I already knew all the history! And finally after about 8 months of coding, to finally be able to play the full game in HD on a big television made all the effort worthwhile.

* What are your plans, if any, for additions to the Dragons Lair franchise?

There are no plans currently for new products but we do have Space Ace and Dragon's Lair coming to HD in the future.   Don Bluth and Gary Goldman have been working on a script for a Dragon's Lair movie and if that comes to pass then I believe there will be renewed interest in developing some new game material.

* As developers, what do you think of Nintendo's Wii?

If you had asked before its release, we would have dismissed it off-hand because of its limited graphics but now, having seen it, the controller is really genius and adds a whole new dimension to playing games.  We think it would be a great fit with our American Laser Games light gun shooting games.   We're trying to get Nintendo's attention so we can get a development kit.

* What games are you guys playing at the moment (when you get time)?

We're actually playing a lot of Space Ace as I write this ;)
 

* what (if any) input did the creators of the original Dragons Lair have in this game?   

It was more a case of us bringing the HD concept to them.  They were really shocked when they saw the quality of the video and heard the 5.1 surround mix we created from the mono audio track. They were very open to do the interviews and commentary that are in the release.

* Are you planning to port the game to any other platforms such as the Xbox 360?  

Yes, the HD DVD version is pretty much done and will be released before the end of the year.  It will require the HD add-on drive from Microsoft.  We're also working on some other interesting platforms that I can't mention at the moment.

* Is there any intention of doing a similar conversion for Space Ace?  

Absolutely! We've got all the Space Ace video transferred and we're in development now for the PC, Blu-ray and HD DVD formats.

* What was your favourite home conversion of the original Dragon's Lair?  

I think the Amiga version was the most ground-breaking as no one thought it was possible to play video on the Amiga.  The first DVD release in 1998 was great as it was laser disc quality and again, nobody thought DVD could handle playing a game. The Dragon's Lair 20th Anniversary collection was great as it had some great extras including a new scene that we out together from the cutting room floor materials.  But I would have to saw the Blu-ray version really has it all -- great graphics, arcade authentic gameplay, interviews and commentary.

* what's your favourite game of all time?

I'm old school.  When I was in my formative years I played a lot of Pole Position in the arcades -- it has an awesome (for its day) 3D view as you raced.  I couldn't get enough -- it stole all my quarters.
 

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About sjp1966

I think it was around 1979 when I tried to sneak into the local Odeon cinema to see Ridley Scott’s Alien that I started to become more aware of movies and finding out what I liked in terms of genre. But somewhat surprisingly even at that young age I was enjoying some of the older films such as Forbidden Planet.

It was not until I was given my first DVD that the bug hit me. And it was all down to a mate giving me a Region 1 version of “The Matrix” as his player was only a region 2. From there it has been a mainly constant purchasing process to increase my collection which currently sits at 1000+ individual movies and television episodes; although invelos which only counts per barcode shows it as 485.

I have been on the Digital Lard site since its earlier incantation DVD Lard, and after a period of time took the plunge into doing reviews and this is what I currently do.

My favourite genres are mainly Action/Adventure, Horror, Sci-Fi and Mystery although I do like films from other genres too.

Ten of my favourites film are (in no particular order) Alien, Aliens, 12 Angry Men (1957), Forbidden Planet, The Thing, Jaws, Blade Runner, 300, Full Metal Jacket, Forrest Gump, Although there are plenty more movies that I could list here.

Favourite actors at the moment would be Christian Bale, Christopher Walken, Johnny Depp, Basil Rathbone, Samuel L Jackson, Favourite directors are David Fincher and Ridley Scott.