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Old King Aetheried was a merry old soul, and a merry
soul was he. He called for his pipe, and he called for
his bowl -- and then, all of a sudden, some mean and
ugly dragon came along and trudged off with his voluptuous
young daughter. Before the sun had disappeared behind
the trees, the dragon delivered an ultimatum -- if the
King didn't hand over his treasure, his daughter would
fry.
The
king was rather put out about this, so he set about
finding a hero to rescue his beloved. All the local
knights wimped out -- bar one, Dirk the Dating, champion
of good and destroyer of evil! He wasn't scared of a
silly old dragon, oh no, he donned the most resilient
suit of armour money could buy, and prepared to go to
her rescue . . .
So
the storyline goes in Software Projects new arcade conversion.
Nine of the scenes which appeared in the original machine
have been converted, and are loaded in one at a time
as you play. Consequently, when you finish a
screen the next one is waiting for you. And when you
start playing that one, the next bit loads in -- and
so on! Here's a breakdown of the nine screens:
THE
FALLING DISK
Dirk
has leapt onto a disk which has suddenly started to
plummet down a deep hole. Using forced perspective to
depict the scene, you have to make sure that Dirk stays
on the disk while the dragon's minions are hell-bent
on blowing him off. If you stay on the disk long enough
it stops, allowing you to leap off -- if you're quick
enough!
SKULL
HALLWAY
This
scene is very similar to its arcade counterpart. Dirk
has found himself in a hallway, doors either side of
him. Suddenly, they open, and skulls and giant skeletons
begin to attack. Using his trusty sword and some nifty
footwork, he either has to dodge or slay the marauding
meanies.
THE
BURNING ROPES
This
scene is like a screen from a classic platform game.
A fire is raging below Dirk and he has to reach the
top of the screen by swinging from the ropes between
platforms, before the fire catches up with him. Time
is of the essence since the fire is eating away at the
platforms.
THE
WEAPONS ROOM
Dirk
has inadvertently strolled into the dragon's haunted
weapons room. Large sprites are used to portray the
action as Dirk avoids or destroys the flying menaces.
RAMPS
AND GIDDY GOONS
A
series of ramps form the route to the next screen, but
unfortunately they are guarded by the evil Goons. Don't
pause too long to battle with them, since the ramps
disappear and Dirk falls to his doom . . .
THE
TENTACLE ROOM
Dirk
is happily walking through an innocent-looking room
when all of a sudden large serpents appear through the
cracks in the walls and ceiling. Kill them or be crushed
by their deadly coils.
THE
SECOND DISK
Exactly
the same as the first scene.
THE
DEADLY CHECKERBOARD
Play
Singe's champion knight at a deadly game. You must chase
him around a giant checkerboard and slay him. But the
beast is turning the squares into deadly pools of fire
which have to be avoided if you are to stay alive.
SLAYING
THE DRAGON
Once
again, large sprites portray the scene as Dirk and Singe
meet in a final confrontation -- the prize is the princess.
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