Recently, developer Lizardcube celebrated the three year anniversary of the release of their action-adventure platformer Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap. The game, which was a remake of the original 1989 Wonder Boy III, released for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 as well as Windows PC, Mac OS, Linux, iOS and Android. It was originally released for console on April 18, 2017.
On Twitter, Lizardcube thanked their fans for contributing to Dragon Trap’s success. They expressed that they were “very humbled” that the game had reached over half a million players. Additionally, Lizardcube stated that, without Dragon’s Trap, they would not have been able to obtain other retro game licenses, such as that of Streets of Rage. (Streets of Rage 4, Lizardcube’s contribution to the series, will be releasing on April 30.)
We're very humbled that The Dragon's Trap was such a success (~half a million players)! Our first contribution to carrying the retro sega flame 🔥 And it enabled us to approach an ever bigger licence, Streets of Rage. Who knows where we will be in 3 years? Thank you all!
— Lizardcube #ThirdGame (@lizardcube) April 18, 2020
The remake of Dragon’s Trap, which features hand-drawn music and all-new visuals, stars a player character who has been cursed to turn into a Lizard-Man. They must travel throughout the land searching for a way to restore their human form. In addition to the base Lizard-Man state, players are also able to acquire Mouse-Man, Hawk-Man, Piranha-Man, and Lion-Man forms. The remake also includes the ability to play as a female version of the main character, known as “Wonder Girl”.
Dragon’s Trap received generally favorable reviews, with the upgrades to the original’s aesthetics and programming especially garnering praise. In particular, Pop Culture Bandit called the remake “a delightful love letter to one of the most enjoyable games of the 8-bit era”. The Switch version sold more copies than any other version of the title combined.
You can purchase Dragon’s Trap for any of the systems listed above. If you’re looking for more retro goodness from Lizardcube, be sure to check out Streets of Rage 4 debuting later this month.
Have you been enjoying Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap? Let us know!
