Blazing Dragons (video game)
A dragon must earn knighthood to rescue his princess.
Blazing Dragons is a 1996 point-and-click adventure game developed by the Illusions Gaming Company and published by Crystal Dynamics for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. It is adapted from the television series of the same name, which is based on the legend of King Arthur. The player controls an anthropomorphic dragon named Flicker, who must become a knight to win the hand of Princess Flame.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Illusions Gaming Company
- Publisher
- Crystal Dynamics
- Director
- Darren Bartlett
- Producer
- Matthew Seymour
- Designer
- Matthew Seymour
- Frederick J. Schiller
- Russell Lingo
- Artist
- Yoriko Ito, Russell Lingo
- Writer
- Frederick J. Schiller
- Programmer
- Matt Gilbert, Chuck Woo
Facts from the source article.
Synopsis
As Flicker, the player collects objects and interacts with dragon and human characters to solve puzzles. The player can never reach a game over or a point where a puzzle cannot be solved. The overall quest is to become a dragon knight, compete in the grand tournament, and win Princess Flame's heart, but an evil human plot to kidnap her is discovered.
Plot
Sir George and his magician Mervin plot to conquer Camelhot and exterminate dragons. After a failed siege, Sir George declares the Black Dragon will win the dragon tournament, whose winner marries Flame and becomes king. Flicker, a young inventor, loves Flame but is rejected for lacking knighthood. While rescuing knights investigating the Black Dragon, Flicker finds it is mechanical and sabotages it. Sir Loungealot takes credit, prompting Flame to leave, and she is kidnapped by Sir George and Mervin. The Chancellor, secretly working for Sir George, steals Flicker's invention so Sir George builds Black Dragon II. Flicker has jester Trivet impersonate Flame. Flicker infiltrates Castle Grim disguised as Sir George, frees Flame, and destroys Black Dragon II. His deception is exposed, and he rescues the knights to earn respect. He gains knighthood at the Cave of Dilemma and reaches the tournament final, defeating Sir Loungealot. Sir George and Mervin invade with a newer Black Dragon; Flicker destroys it. Mervin accidentally fuses Sir George with the machine into Black Dragon III. Sir George swallows Flicker, Mervin, and King All-Fire, but Flicker cuts the power supply, destroying the machine and reverting Sir George. The machine lands on the Chancellor. King All-Fire asks Flicker to marry Flame, which he accepts.
Development
Originally called Dragons of the Square Table in 1995, the game was retooled to match the Canadian TV series and hit PlayStation and Saturn in late 1996. Its humor and writing take heavy cues from Monty Python, with Terry Jones lending his voice alongside a large cast including Cheech Marin and Harry Shearer.
Reception
Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the PlayStation version an 8 out of 10, praising the humor and challenging puzzles, and noting the built-in hint feature opens the game to all skill levels. GamePro's Scary Larry commented positively on animation and voice acting accents but found puzzles too difficult and said the game is too similar to Discworld. Next Generation reviewed it roughly six months later, remarking the game is mostly enjoyable, praising Cheech Marin and Harry Shearer's acting, but noting frequent load times make it out-of-place on consoles. GameSpot reviewing the Saturn version said it is not particularly impressive but is fun with obscure puzzles and oddball characters. Rob Allsetter of Sega Saturn Magazine panned the game, calling the humor, plot, interface, graphics, and voice acting awful.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who directed Blazing Dragons (video game)?
Blazing Dragons was directed by Darren Bartlett.
Who designed Blazing Dragons (video game)?
Blazing Dragons was designed by Matthew Seymour, Frederick J. Schiller and Russell Lingo.
Who composed the music for Blazing Dragons (video game)?
The music for Blazing Dragons was composed by John Lawrence.
Is Blazing Dragons (video game) single-player or multiplayer?
Blazing Dragons offers single-player play.
More in Point-and-Click Adventure Games of the 1990s
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