| Escape from Singe's Castle | |
|---|---|
|   | |
| Publisher(s) | Software Projects (8 bit, Europe), Electronic Arts (Commodore 64, USA), ReadySoft (16 bit) | 
| Series | Dragon's Lair | 
| Platform(s) | Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amiga, Atari ST, MS-DOS, Mac OS, Apple IIGS | 
| Release | 1987 (8-bit) 1989 (16-bit)  | 
| Mode(s) | Single-player | 
Escape from Singe's Castle, also known as Dragon's Lair Part II - Escape From Singe's Castle, is a 1987 video game from Software Projects. The game is sometimes referred to as Dragon's Lair II, but is not the official arcade sequel Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp .
Players control Dirk the Daring, the player character from Dragon's Lair , who has returned to the lair of Singe the dragon in order to claim a pot of gold. Singe has laid traps throughout his lair, forcing players to guide Dirk across a number of differently themed screens in order to steal the gold and escape. [1] In the 8 bit versions, there are eight different levels.
In the 16-bit version, Dirk is supposed to rescue Daphne again, this time from the Shapeshifter. Unlike the earlier 8-bit version, this is a cartoon-based interactive movie, like its predecessor, where the player is supposed to choose the correct movement for Dirk in the right time. [2]
Bethesda Softworks developed the MS-DOS version of the game in 1989. [3] [4]
An Apple IIGS version had reportedly been completed by ReadySoft and scheduled to be released in 1991 (manuals from other ports list detailed IIGS-specific loading instructions and features), [5] but was never publicly released. In 2022, decades later with the original ReadySoft port still missing or lost, Brutal Deluxe created and released a new Apple IIGS port based on the PC version. [6]
| Publication | Score | 
|---|---|
| Amiga Action | 66% | 
| Amtix! | 94% [7] | 
| Computer Gamer | 94% [8] | 
| Zzap! | 90% [9] | 
| Computer and Video Games | 80% [10] | 
| Commodore User | 8/10 [11] | 
| Aktueller Software Markt | 9/11 [12] | 
| Amiga Computing | 85% [13] | 
| The Games Machine | 80% [14] | 
Allen L. Greenberg reviewed the ReadySoft game for Computer Gaming World , and stated that "Dragon's Lair II: Escape From Singe's Castle is an odd creature, an exceptional program which suffers from uninteresting game-play." [2]