Halcyon Dreams: The Legacy of Dragon's Lair

[@Blacktide77]

Rick Dyer's son here (Cory Dyer). This documentary is amazing, Rick loved it! It's reminds me of all the amazing things my father did in his youth that I mostly took for granted growing up.

[@discrot8568]

This comment was wonderful to see.

[@AzaleaJane]

Harry pin this please!

[@markdobbins8393]

I thought it was funny that this has 19 likes and is buried in the comments while a comment from a former Don Bluth employee has 3k likes and is featured prominently at the top of the comments section.

[@TheFormHater]

good shit that rick is still alive good for him

[@litch294]

@@markdobbins8393 the employee posted their comment when the video first came out while this was posted over a year later, so it's unsurprising fewer people saw it.

[@dermotoc9594]

Former Bluth employee here (I worked on Rock A Doodle through Penguin, 1988 - 93 in the Dublin studio). Loved the video. Poor Rick Dyer - but as you say, most of us are doomed to be forgotten, but cheer up, because in the long run we're ALL doomed to be forgotten ("One by one, we're all becoming shades"). Halt and Catch fire, indeed. I remember one day in the Dublin studio (around 1990), someone swung by my desk and said "come on up to the screening room, they're showing all the footage from Dragon's Lair and Space Ace". "What's that you say? I get to skip work for 30 minutes?" and off I went. The screen was pretty big, about 20ft wide. The footage played (30mm film if memory serves, it really looked beautiful). And in 4 or 5 minutes, it was all over. You wouldn't believe how quickly it went by. Even then, I knew there couldn't be much of a game to either project. So sad, I really wanted to sweat-dodge for 30 minutes, but it was only 5 or 6, and I had to get back to work. Depressing. Don't be too hard on Don for trying to squeeze some life out of DL/SA; they're the only properties he still owns. The rest of the films are property of studios and other entities (I don't think he even has rights to NIMH). Pretty lousy when you think of the amount of work and effort that went into the films, even the ones that weren't so good. You kids will never know how much work went into those things, with your laptops and your render engines and your pixel mashers. Try holding a 19 second 16 field pan scene under your arm when it's done on paper, you dorks. We destroyed forests. Oh, and the animation of 'Thayers' - god almighty, about as ugly as you could hope to get from the TV production pipeline of the period. Probably painted and drawn in some overseas sweatshop. Every naff cost cutting trick in the book, and uncomfortably similar to projects I worked on in the late 90s. Shudder.

[@stallfus]

dermot oc thanks for Rock o Doddle Do one of my favorites as a kid. It was in fact one of the first movies I ever saw and the fight in the beginning is one of my earliest memories. Interesting insight to the bluth world. Thank you.

[@1Piecer]

What happen to Rick Dyer after he lost everything? Did he pounce off? I hope he did, I really love people who work for their own dreams since am a dreamer too.

[@eclownaroundtown]

according to Wikipedia he's in real estate now

[@hbomberguy]

Thanks for the lovely comment and anecdotes!

[@hatthecat123]

Yeah I'm glad I'm a 2D animator with toonboom, even if it means I'm not as employable as a 3D animator or a cut out animator...but it's okay 2D animation gets that music video money. Also I don't know if you ever worked with 3D animators, rendering is not a joke...a girl I knew (before she died) re rendered shadow on a 1-2 second shot 15 times...she spend like 9 hours hovering over a computer.

[@AngryShooter]

Rick Dyer's wikipedia page is now more detailed then it was before, I suspect this video might have contributed to that, and that's simply wholesome.

[@JJ-qo7th]

Just went to have a look and went, "Oh shit, he made Time Traveler!" That weird arcade game where you're doing the Dragon's Lair thing, but with holograms and a cowboy.

[@DarthMeteos]

Even nicer: If you search Rick Dyer on Google, his page is now ahead of the hoaxer. This video has revived his place in history.

[@Tp_hedgelinghog]

Wow you're not kidding.

[@gorway6807]

we did it, Reddit

[@RedTail1-1]

Wikipedia is the worst place to go for information.

[@gorimbaud]

So I went to visit my sister this weekend, and she lives just a few miles from the National Videogame Museum in Frisco, TX. They do, in fact, have a Halcyon there, and it's huge! I got pictures.

[@ajjconcertat2am]

royaltimes thanks for posting this i was wondering if this was true, may visit it myself soon!

[@roger_talks]

Oh damn! Now I have to go to Texas!

[@MandaloreGaming]

This was a journey.

[@DwellersInCellars]

MandaloreGaming Didnt expect to see ya here, love your videos dude! Keep up the good work!

[@daniilhcl4825]

Great to see you here Mandalore. Keep up the good work, cheers from France !

[@serioussaitama4071]

Hello king of Limbo

[@Spartan31590]

it's fascinating how many consoles and games and IPs have just disappeared over the years. video games has a long and sometimes sad history

[@BrokenGodEnt]

you were a journey 😳

[@PhilosophyTube]

This video is like JonTron, without the...well. You know. I really like the message too, it's awesome to focus on the labourers

[@fluffy-hellhound]

Without the fast-paced humor?

[@cashnelson2306]

the unnecessary edgelord racism; thanks for playing though

[@edgarallanpoe8309]

+Cash Nelson I don't remember the racism in the video but alright

[@fluffy-hellhound]

+Cash Nelson Can you name one video by Jontron that contains, as you described, "edgelord racism?"

[@magicaljellyfish]

It's not from his official videos, he keeps his racism on the deep cuts

[@notpointed]

I looked at his wikipedia page now. And I think it's thanks to you that it is now more fleshed out. You're even cited as a source. (Number 9)

[@joshyoung1440]

Whose page?? Dragon Lair??? Oh I love Mr. Lair's work! I'm kidding. I thought it was funny. I know you meant famously underappreciated animator Don Bluth. I'm kidding again. I really don't know when to stop. I'll try now.

[@DrSpaceman42]

Tommy Tallarico sure did an excellent job

[@RedTail1-1]

Which is precisely why Wikipedia is an awful source of information and why you can't use it for legitimate research .. "source of our information? Some guy on KZbin said it, so it must be true" despite it actually being true, you have to see the problem there.

[@ColbyWanShinobi]

The song playing at 12:42 is "Say, Say, Say" by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson.

[@ed6705]

Hero.

[@t.watkins4509]

Which is totally NOT disco.

[@greenhowie]

Somehow I knew this would be in the comments. Thank

[@patrickrauh996]

True, Hero I looked in the comments bc i knew someone would write it

[@jackspnc]

I came down to put this in haha

[@dasirrlicht5415]

ONE I am sorry, Steward, i can not allow you to do that.

[@ymotle]

"sandbox"

[@Kobolds_in_a_trenchcoat]

Sup

[@gelatinocyte6270]

I love that your profile pic (as of this writing at least) is Hal9000

[@tkmachine]

“the truth is often very mundane, but maybe that’s ok” - hbomberguy on our philosophy in the 21st century

[@Solidnypan]

As I am another one of those Toby-Fox-wannabes, I have to say, this video hit me hard. It made me reconsider how I see my projects and how they fit into my life. It made me less afraid of what I'm doing, and after a break that lasted a couple of months, I came back to working on my game like it wasn't a big deal at all. Now I only want to focus on being happy just doing it at all. Thank you for that video, from the bottom of my heart.

[@inxendere]

How'd your game work out?

[@Solidnypan]

​@@inxendere Still struggling... and failing :). I had to focus on my day job as a designer, so most of the time I'm sick of making games in my free time. Nasty crunch, burnout... it's hard, but I'm not giving up. There's a nice GDC talk about making games as a cure for burnout - that's my new source of inspiration ;) I actually rewatched the video after I saw your question. I need that summary, the last bit, in my library of inspiring videos :)

[@ketavis3880]

@@Solidnypan Best of luck to you!

[@BarbarianGod]

@@Solidnypan Which GDC talk is that? I'd like to see it as well!

[@Solidnypan]

@@BarbarianGod Battling Burnout: The Side Project Ritual

[@thrillhouse_vanhouten]

The ending moral of the story was wonderful. I've always had an inexplicable love for films and documentaries about people who sank their entire life's work into something, only to have nothing to show for it. You've perfectly put the appeal of that kind of story into words here, and have shown me a new and memorable instance of these stories. Thanks bud, you always do great work and this is among your best!

[@wesleywyndam-pryce5305]

any recommendations for more stories of same type?

[@noradrenalin8062]

Who built the seven gates of Thebes? The history books give a list of kings. Did the kings carry the boulders? And the often destroyed Babylon? Who built it up again every time? In which houses of the golden Lima did the construction workers live? Where - on the night the Great Wall was finished - did the bricklayers go? The great Rome Is full of Triumph Arcs. Who did the Imperators triumph over? In oft-sung Byzantine were there only palaces for it's inhabitants? Even in the mythical Atlantis, in the night it sunk beneath the seas, the drowning were calling for their slaves Young Alexander conquered India. All by himself? Caesar defeated the Gauls. Didn't he bring at least a bring a cook with him? Philipp of Spain did cry when the Armada has sunken. Was no one else crying? Frederic II. triumphed in the Seven-Years-War. Who else triumphed? Every page a victory. Who cooked the meals to celebrate? Every decade a great man. Who payed their expanses? So many reports So many questions - "Questions of a reading Worker" by Bertholt Brecht, German playwright, 1935 from his exile in Denmark; roughly translated.

[@CodeOptimism]

- poem by Anonymous 🙃

[@Pineappolis]

Even roughly translated, it's a stunning, stunning poem. I wish my German was good enough to properly enjoy the original. A genuine, if _extremely_ late, thank you for sharing.

[@wlfteef]

thank you for sharing, what an amazing poem

[@FlorisGerber]

@@Pineappolis This translation is QUITE good. If @noradrenalin8062 did it themselves, they should be very proud. And there are chances, the common translations are not as good. Since this is an Hbomb Video, I will assume you have the fortitude for an example of this translation being good rather than completely accurate: The original poem starts like this: "Wer baute das siebentorige Theben" which, accurately translated would go: "who build the seven-gated Thebes" And while I would like that the strangeness of the original would be kept (siebentorig is not a normal word in german either), I agree with the change since you lose the Thebes - Torig alliteration anyway. Slight counterpoint: Brecht could have easily written "Wer baute die sieben Tore Thebens?" and he didn't. And hey, we got an alliteration in "did the Kings carry the boulders" that the original does not have, so we are even :)

[@Pineappolis]

@@FlorisGerber I can confirm that you exhibited exceptional judgement in assuming that I'll almost invariably prefer a translation style that prioritises romanticism and artistry over strict accuracy. How _absolutely_ did you find yourself on the money on that point? The three most beloved concerts I've ever attended have, to this point, been Runrig, Runrig and Runrig. I bring this up only because, for all that I adore them, they wear their love of music and of Scotland more proudly emblazoned on their sleeves than many bands, in history, could get away.

[@ezgoodnight]

It's interesting to rewatch this after the Oof video. As someone that is also sentimental about recent tech history, I like that you are telling these kind of stories. If I ever got a chance to talk to you I'd ask if you ever saw any of Jason Scott's documentaries.

[@MarkKreutzerPrimary]

Came here to say the same thing. Rewatching the Oof video for a third time, as I think is pretty regular for fans of Hbomb’s, the name Rick Dyer popped into my head and I remembered that Harris had done another video exploring ownership, authorship, and revisionism changing our historical memory of those things, and I wanted to see how the two videos function together. The Tallarico/Kuras video is a cool sort of spiritual sequel, a continuation of this video’s concerns examined by the same eyes half a decade later, and I think that’s awesome

[@Wote89]

I'm just gonna add for folks who come along later that both this one and the Oof video dovetail well with the Scanlines video on Director's Cuts. Y'know in case you're skimming the comments looking for further ideas on what to watch. :P

[@AceCluck]

​@@Wote89Thanks for the tip! I was doing exactly that, lol.

[@DrSpaceman42]

@@Wote89 💯

[@Tp_hedgelinghog]

​@Wote89 yeah, I feel like Harris didn't originally make his channel for documenting and making aware of the importance of authorship and communal work on art, but that's his core thing to do right now, hell even in the Fallout New Vegas and Deus Ex videos he talks about this subject.

[@onethirdofabrain]

"This is the only game you can be killed by wheat" I didn't need a game that hit my gluten free ass that close to home but okay

[@twinerism6536]

Beautiful essay. As an animator currently working with tv series, I've seen and worked on some amazing pilot episodes that unfortunately, will never see the the light of day by virtue of happening at the wrong time and place. What's worse, I've had to work on series that only succeed by virtue of being financed by a multi-billion dollar franchise. My advice to lovers of animation and new contemporary art-forms ( whether it's indie- games or story telling), please, try something new; and **talk about it**. Find that raw, uncut gem of charm in a mess of under-financed media and remember that, despite its lack of success, it likely provided the ground-work for the next triple A game that copied its formula. The amount of time those pioneers go un-credited and get their material literally pilfered from their still-cooling remains in the animation industry is a trend that major studios like to do.

[@claudiuscluver3787]

Any idea on how I do that? Sounds like I need tons of time for that. Practical question, not to take away from your advice. Maybe you have a tip?

[@ElVindicto]

21:23 I can't believe you made Jen illustrate you a fake goosebumps choose your own adventure book for a half second joke. Actually, yes I can. Thank you

[@girlfan]

Weirdfishhes I hadn't realized it was a fake goosebumps cover but I went to pause the video to go look at it and it's fucking hysterical

[@BagOfMagicFood]

​@@girlfan Ah, I had just assumed it was a real cover with only the word bubbles changed.

[@asrieldreemurr1988]

Number 69 the goosebumps ones is the title Xd

[@CynicalHistorian]

Using Jeffery of Monmouth as an example of the silliness of autuer theory is brilliant! I might use that sometime

[@bengercak8391]

Cipher, what are you doing here?

[@CynicalHistorian]

I am everywhere, watching, just waiting to leave a comment. mua haha

[@gregtaylor9806]

Right...how silly. Geoffrey only crafted a mythos which would inspire generations of storytellers and a nationstate (which wasn’t even really s thing yet, people like him made that possible) to eventually form an empire upon which the ‘sun never sets’. Would have been much less silly to remain in the conditions of Fedualism, Catholicism, and political subservience. Am I following you correctly?

[@Humorless_Wokescold]

I love that someone named Greg got super butthurt about this

[@j.b.booker7912]

@@gregtaylor9806 / or let a new system foment that couldve been much better than all of those and what we have now. So maybe Geoffrey is the cause of the state we are in now. That fucker. And do Catholicism and political subservience no longer exist? Especially today.

[@cinebst]

holy SHIT I owned the sequel, Shadoan, when I was a kid! It was a DVD copy, you played it with the TV remote. About halfway through the video I started to remember the damn thing, and wondering if I could possibly find footage of it on KZbin -- only for you to bring it up a few minutes later! Anyway. This was lovely. And it shined a light on a small mystery of my childhood, so that's cool.

[@TheSecondVersion]

33:42 - And the myth of Romulus includes the fact that he had a twin brother, Remus. Romulus killed Remus over a dispute, and then went on to take credit as the Great Founder of Rome, a city that bore his name. Sound familiar?

[@realwolfingen8896]

I really wanted to mention that as well, kinda shows that the romans were deep, they knew, Leaders are *often* fucking psychopaths, who murder their own brother to establish dominance. (As I remember, The dispute was Remus disrespecting a small stonewall Romulus made.) And its still true today, a "Leader" usually does not act kindly to those who critize them, and if they act chill, they probably get replaced by someone meaner and more powerhungry. esssentially: rules for Leaders by GCP-Grey.

[@bsh819]

@@realwolfingen8896 Oh they knew better than most. Their whole pantheon is a tribute to the fact.

[@happypants9428]

I was surprised that Hbomb didn’t go in that direction

[@Ridgwaycer]

The Tallorico event horizon stretches far and wide

[@sadman4291]

I bet his mother was very proud

[@victrosia]

Thayer's Quest CONTAINS: WHEAT

[@adaephon]

Talk about gluten intolerance.

[@Bluecho4]

And wheat byproducts.

[@PwnedDuck]

Theresa's Quest

[@ShootingStarNeo]

Night Vale was a warning

[@yukiepants]

a cereal killer. or perhaps a killer cereal.

[@yngv1]

I was a bit worried there was no mention of what Rick Dyer's up to these days, but I was happy to find he works as a realtor in Apple Tree Realty in Julian, California. Good for him. :)

[@inurokuwarz]

Give him 2 billion for Halcyon 2

[@adaptorperish1322]

Good to hear that. I always hate that when life cruelly punishes good people for trying to advance. Have a like, dude.

[@SkyeBlacke]

Went to the Video Game History Museum last year. Can confirm they do have a Halcyon.

[@zmdumpbox2340]

Hey Bomberguy. I had to listen to your closing statement twice, about how "pioneer" isn't an inherently positive term, that most of us are doomed to failure, that we can enjoy the humanizing effects of failure if we can treat those who failed as those worth remembering. It's a masterful documentary touch that you put us through 40 minutes of this failed gaming venture to set up the context for this message, and to deliver it at the end the way you did. This is indeed a legacy worth remembering as truthfully as possible. Also, something about the message touched me deeply, and a little part of me felt... relieved to hear you say it with such heart, understated as it may sound. (Is it because you're British?) As someone who has not done much of anything in life thanks to a deeply-instilled fear of failure (thus fear of success, other side of coin), this video is something I may have desperately needed. Because you remembered someone for their failure, and you respected and appreciated the legacy that failure left behind for 40 minutes (despite the criticisms you levied against it). It gives me hope that, even if statistically I likely won't ever receive that same treatment, it will still be okay to try and fail anyway. So thanks, H. Bomber Guy! Thank you very much for making this video, for the quality and passion you put into it, and its ultimately uplifting message. This honestly oughtta be required viewing in video game elective courses.

[@guitarsimon1]

“What do you want Rick?” literally sounds like Hitchhikers Guide dialogue come to life.

[@hestolemyballoons]

God damn. I really hope that, somehow, Rick Dyer sees this.

[@ZandoFox]

hestolemyballoons My question was, where is he today? This video was very good and important.

[@littlefieryone2825]

He did, there's a comment from his son a few comments up on my screen.

[@brennanr.697]

The bigfoot guy?

[@uncannyvalley2350]

2 years, and I was 2 weeks too late with that zinger ^^^

[@JeraspatFGF]

12:43 I'm not sure if this is the exact mix, but I'm pretty sure that's the Rare 12 Mix of Say, Say, Say by Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney.

[@maxsandstrom1476]

You're right! Here's the precise timestamp for the portion playing in the video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qoDUeIOFmKidgqs

[@bellcitah]

OH MY GOD IT IS THE SONG

[@LazyAceDia]

How the FUCK

[@cam9378]

Very impressive, damn.

[@a.holland2262]

Thank God. I recognized the song and just sat there humming it desperately. Thank you!

[@mdstevens0612]

"Introduction of our *home system* " OH ICARUS

[@nomukun1138]

A couple of nights ago I had a dream that I had rediscovered a Pink Floyd album called "Birds" that my dad introduced me to when I was a little kid. The album was bookended by a two-part song that was made into an animated feature. In the dream, remembering this old thing that I had forgotten and looking forward to seeing it again was an amazing feeling. It was weird to realize on waking that the nostalgia and complex details were completely made-up by my dreaming brain. Just like Space Pirates.

[@LilyoftheLake14]

"Description will be updated with sources soon!" -HBomberguy, 22 November 2017 "I think he may have forgotten..." -Me, 27 April 2019

[@yarion4774]

"Description will be updated with sources soon!" -HBomberguy, 22 November 2017

[@poprocks6576]

2020 and still nothing

[@Phizzy]

Did he delete the promise of sources? haha

[@MBCollector672]

This is extra funny now considering hbomb's most recently released video

[@unknownwake]

Holy shit this aged like milk

[@b0tster]

As a person spending all my free time making an indie game for android, that ending comment thoroughly fucked me up.

[@mollymcdade4031]

I was writing some of my novel at the time

[@sprotte6665]

as a person who has a hard time accepting her own failures, same. it's so good, wtf. I'm not crying, but smiling with slightly wet eyes. man.

[@bladedesoul]

As someone who has been a punk rock indie writer for over a decade - Just fucking do it. Don't worry about shit (unless you mortgaged your fucking house) artists are going to be neurotic, but reign that shit and be like Orpheus, eyes forward, don't worry about what might come up behind you and get you, just eyes forward and keep going. Worry about your work and good things will happen. If you pour your love into something, it will show and honestly, if you make something that YOU like, there are going to be other people out there who like it too. You might not be a millionaire, but who gives a shit. You will write or program something that other people will see and that kind of connection is magical. Break a leg.

[@b0tster]

bladedesoul I really appreciate that reply :) But don't worry about me, I've put way too much work in to give up now. My game will probably land a 6/10 at the highest and over the course of those 2 years I slowly started to realize and accept that. I am making this for me, after all. Since this a 'free time' game, I can afford to do whatever the hell I want, and with the (arguably overly) open system that is the Google play store, I can throw it onto the wind and be content with whatever happens

[@Spamhard]

You better let us all know what that game is once it's finished so we can play it.

[@Chaosian]

"'People have a habit of attributing a project to just one person', says Warren Spector, creator of Deus Ex"..

[@notsusan]

good quote but Warren Spector will always be "the dude who helped me and Nikola Tesla beat Rasputin and save the Martians" from Ultima Martian Dreams until the day i die

[@dixego]

Is Hbomb preemtively asking us to not forget him when he releases his game to no acclaim whatsoever?

[@StNick119]

Coming soon: Bomberman Guy H

[@AmalGraafstraDT]

Man... I just looked up Rick and gave him a call at his real estate office to let him know how much of an inspiration his work has been. He let me know something I was unaware of, but probably everyone else has already been aware of for some time - Netflix is making a Dragon's Lair movie ft. Ryan Reynolds as Dirk. Well blow my pants off Rick! I wished him all the success in the world and we hung up. Nice guy :)

[@Ujulahipobaka121]

Source: My ass

[@yoymate6316]

what made my heart sink the most was this line on dyer’s wikipedia page that hbomb didn’t even mention: he is now a realtor in julian, california. to think that such a passionately creative mind had to give up on his dreams and resort to one of the most reviled of jobs in some nondescript suburb… we as a world failed rick dyer, man

[@four-en-tee]

I mean, we don't have an obligation to buy his products. It is depressing that his history wasn't well preserved until 2017 though.

[@kevinbissinger]

Being a realtor is not a reviled position. It's an extremely lucrative one.

[@RM_VFX]

What's wrong with realtors? They're really useful when you want a house.

[@HavelockVetinarii]

You are thinking of landlords, not realtors :p

[@tituslafrombois1164]

​@@HavelockVetinarii nah, realtors are the car dealership salespeople of homes so they're still pieces of shit.

[@AdobadoFantastico]

Wow. This was so good. I feel compelled to share it with people who don't know or care about games in the slightest. I'm really impressed with the humanity in your treatment of this whole project.

[@davidfossard5689]

That picture is of a giant helping Merlin, not merlin himself using his bare hands, I know this is completely irrelevant but might as well annoy you with this slight correction.

[@lihe7385]

I really needed to see this right now. I'm sitting here at my company actually working on a game i know will probably not make much of an inpact, but I still want to do the best I can. And it is hard to keep up the motivation to do so, when you once had dreams of making something much bigger.

[@eccomi21]

I know this is three years old by now, but you've peaked my interest. Is the game out?

[@DarcOne13]

Late to this party, but, as a writer, that closing statement knocked me off my feet. I can't even. I'll probably fade into obscurity, too. But... so what? Stop doing what I love? Screw that.

[@froggysmith2555]

came back here after the tommy tallarico vid and i was right. the themes.....they match

[@justsomerandomname2067]

Exactly my thoughts

[@neonswitchblade]

You, too! So, when is H gonna finish his Saga? So far he's shined a light on Joey Kuras and Rick Dyer. He just needs one more...

[@Undlark]

Being an animator and hearing 'X director is so amazing, look at what they've done' is like hearing someone farting very loudly in a quiet room and you just feel like looking accusingly at them for letting that out, but knowing they probably couldn't help themselves. It makes an easy shorthand. Still, the amount of glorification we hand out to celebs like actors, directors, or even voice actors is ridiculously over simplifying the hundreds of peeps behind what made you fall in love with a fictional character or story. Truly, a lot of successful work could possibly derive from the right timing, and a well oiled team of workers, and a bit of luck.

[@fwedlovesbwead]

that is the most beautiful metaphor my eyes have ever had the pleasure of reading thank you

[@JackGraham]

As someone with basically no interest in video games, I just want to say that I found this film thrilling and moving. Thank you.

[@salokin3087]

Each time I think you've run out of good ideas Each time I'm wrong

[@0Advocat0]

I'm very much delighted to be wrong about this.

[@digitalutopia1]

I've always looked at it like this: If you create the things you want to see, it's never a waste. Even if nobody else likes it, you've still made a dream a reality

[@four-en-tee]

Bingo.

[@realfakegamer6139]

this is one of my favorite videos of all time. Rewatching it always seems to get my head on right when I'm feeling down. Thank you for making this!

[@droneforever]

Thayer's Quest was actually VERY common in arcades. My family moved around a lot in those couple of years and it was in every arcade I saw, even the tiny arcade in my hometown whose population was 30k. It was also a complete quarter-eating bastard, because there was indeed a time limit on making choices in the arcade version, a rather strict one in fact. Also Cliff Hanger was great, and I distinctly remember printing out the movesheet to beat the whole thing (look up the ridiculous "ninja fight" sequence"). What I don't remember is how I found a movesheet to print out since there certainly wasn't an internet in 1983 that I had access to. I know for certain I didn't get it from a magazine.

[@batmandalorian5504]

Was wondering how common Thayer's Quest was. It was in an arcade next to a pizza joint in the almost-country/far-western suburbs of Chicago where my Dad lived. Strangely enough I don't remember seeing it at the huge arcade that was closer to my Mom's house; that one got lots of Midway and Williams prototypes to test (I actually got to play that ultra-rare Pinball Circus there for a few weeks) so I guess I would have expected to see Thayer's Quest there as well. Maybe it was there, I just don't remember... It was an interesting game to play as it didn't have the joystick common to most arcade games but yeah it was rough on (my Dad's) wallet haha. Never got far in it. I thought Cliff Hanger was pretty cool as well. Well cool to look at. That game was brutal. I tried looking for anything related to a walkthrough circa 1980's but yeah nothing.

[@culwin]

No, it was definitely not "very common in arcades".

[@RobertIsLostInTheWires]

17:43 This is sending me back. I had a close friend who worked at Digital Leisure and was involved in their porting of Space Ace, Mad Dog McCree, and Dragon's Lair. He was so happy to be working on the PSHome Casino because it meant doing something that wasn't a re-release. Sheesh, I think I still have the copy of Thayer's Quest that he gave me.

[@sumknowbuddy9230]

You know who the real everyday heroes are? The people who support hbomberguy with funny names. You all are the reason I actually sit through the thank you at the end of every video.

[@shingshongshamalama]

This guy built a voice-command AI home console thirty years before Amazon Echo.

[@tgreaux5027]

Night Trap on the Sega CD was such a huge part of my childhood and one of the reasons I to this day am still a huge gaming nerd. I spent months trying to get a perfect run on Night Trap. My friend and I would stay up all night and one of us would have a notebook in hand and we would connect the Sega CD to the VCR and record our playthroughs, marking down every time and location of an Auger we missed, going back, again and again, watching and videotaping hundreds of playthroughs until we were able to make it all the way to the end, and with all of the timestamps and locations for all of the Augers written down we were finally able to get a perfect run on our 300th some odd playthrough. Let me tell you, two 10-year-old boys never felt so accomplished and genius before. We were so proud of ourselves we would literally show the tape of our perfect playthrough to other people, other people who could care less and found us obnoxious and off-putting, but I digress. What was I talking about again? Ah yes, so yesterday I had a waffle for breakfast, as was the style at the time. With syrup. So much syrup.

[@FinnA9X]

This is like JonTron, but well researched, about an interesting topic and not made by a racist.

[@charlx8979]

FinnAhern so not at all like jontron Because this shit is good

[@jernfuglen]

The most racist of racistic racists. All his videos reeks racism. And when I saw one of them I became a racist too.

[@eloujtimereaver4504]

You are right, JonTron was made by a racist, explains a lot. Unfortunately a lot of people were, it used to be pretty popular.

[@itsguidry8125]

you are not wrong

[@caicai135]

i still don't get why people call Jontron a racist, i missed that whole thing

[@GermanPeter]

Failed video games, consoles and game franchises really fascinate me for some reason, so this was really interesting! Beautiful video, excellent as always. I hope that my future video games get the recognition I want them to receive one day.

[@Zizzily]

Honestly, I'd like to think a bunch of regular, ordinary people working together to make something as big as the Roman Empire is a lot more amazing than it being done by one magical person. We need to remember more often just how much can be accomplished when a bunch of common people work together to make something wonderful happen. And, as being part of something big like that, even if you're not remembered by name, you're still remembered in some way. If Stonehenge wasn't built, would the people who built it be remembered at all? Sure, we don't know who built it, but we at least remember that a group of people came together to build this amazing thing, so in a way, aren't they immortal?

[@yilvoxe4017]

This is probably my 6th time rewatching this and honestly, as someone who devours video essays like nothing else, I think this is the best one. I just find it profound.

[@troyzilla]

The answer to @hbomberguy question at 12:43 "If anyone has a copy of this track, let me know immediately", the song is "Say, Say, Say" by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson (2:52 in the song to be exact). The funny thing his he asks for "disco" and this song is a 1983 pop song, not disco.

[@leeromneyrose8089]

OH MY GOD I had to scroll for ages to find this comment, thank you. It was driving me crazy!!! That song used to be one of my repeat listens for a number of reasons, but especially that harmonic in the outro.

[@stationshelter]

yeah put survivorship bias in the trash where it belongs

[@Eltima]

This video actually made me cry. The message of learning to appreciate the failures in life rang with me, as an eternal perfectionist. Thanks, I needed a good cry!

[@magikarpg]

I really like how you make jokes n stuff but what stands out in these videos is the sincerity.

[@jujucatjuca]

When you started talking about Romulus, going on about his awesome feats and how history remembers him, I thought you were setting up a point about Remus, who was also descended from the same source as Romulus and raised by the same wolf. I thought maybe you'd compare Romulus, the most memorable of the two, to Don Bluth; while Remus would be compared to Rick Dyer: the one who deserves to be remembered just as much but never is. And then you never mentioned Remus.

[@Edgar_A_Bro]

Well tbf the comparison wouldn't have worked. In the story of Romulus and Remus, Remus was murdered early in his life by his brother. It just doesn't fit because it implies Don Bluth had a direct hand in Ricks downfall.

[@jujucatjuca]

@@Edgar_A_Bro fair enough :v

[@Edgar_A_Bro]

@@jujucatjuca Still it is cool he got some recognition recently. He does have a wiki page now.

[@timothymclean]

Also, Remus is just as mythological as Romulus. The point hbomberguy was making at that point wasn't about two people working together, only one of whom got credit; it was about mythologized figures to whom the work of large groups was attributed.

[@MatthewMcVeagh]

I had the same thought.

[@adamjnotthecongressmanschi7026]

I’ve seen this at least five times and it always brings me to tears. This video is literally as moving as the ending of Carousel.

[@Corpse_House]

Fantastic video, as per usual. A sad story, but still pretty damn inspirational. Your little speech at the end is inspiring me to get back to work on my own game, and not worry so much about failure.

[@Cpt_Ace_Welt]

Why is everything you upload so good?

[@pendragonchen]

Quality over quantity.

[@naitoalerus9834]

Time and Effort

[@TC-sx2mg]

Soy has secret talent imbuing properties

[@JamesPeach]

Movember 2 Dismember Because he uploads once a month or twice a month.

[@discordant8543]

Movember 2 Dismember Months of effort

[@zacharybutler5944]

Apparently Rick Dyer is a realtor in California. Can someone try to get a link to this video to him?

[@torylva]

The last part about failure and working together... Man, it reminded me of a quote from Stormlight Archive. This quote really helped me through my darkest periods of depression. If even one person who reads this feels more hope, it was all worth it. Whoever you are, I am with you. We all are. “The most important words a man can say are, “I will do better.” These are not the most important words any man can say. I am a man, and they are what I needed to say. The ancient code of the Knights Radiant says “journey before destination.” Some may call it a simple platitude, but it is far more. A journey will have pain and failure. It is not only the steps forward that we must accept. It is the stumbles. The trials. The knowledge that we will fail. That we will hurt those around us. But if we stop, if we accept the person we are when we fall, the journey ends. That failure becomes our destination. To love the journey is to accept no such end. I have found, through painful experience, that the most important step a person can take is always the next one."

[@alexfyffe3457]

When I was in middle school in the mid-90s (maybe 96?), my best friend, Philip, loaned me Kingdom: The Far Reaches on PC. But it's funny, I had completely forgotten about this game until I happened to come across this video today. As soon as you started showing Thayer's Quest, I immediately recognized the characters and scenes, even though I never knew it as Thayer's Quest. Thank you for pulling this out of the dark corners of my mind and for your wonderful tribute to its creators. It's a strange feeling, regaining something you had completely lost and didn't even know you missed, like rummaging through the garage and finding a box of toys you haven't seen in over twenty years. Thanks again.

[@Dfunnyplayers]

"Every machine has had the same history-- a long record of sleepless nights and of poverty, of disillusions and of joys, of partial improvements discovered by several generations of nameless people who have added to the original invention, these little nothings, without which the most fertile idea would remain fruitless" - Peter Kropoptkin, The Conquest of bread

[@RobbPadgett]

Space Ace was my game. Once I finished it, kids would pay me to play the game so they could watch it all the way through.

[@GuerillaBunny]

That makes you one of the first professional gamers in history, if not THE first!

[@RobbPadgett]

Ha! That's true. If only it had paid more than a few quarters at a time! :)

[@stallfus]

Legend. You need your own movie

[@daneast]

I never had anyone pay me to play, but as a 10 year old I would finish the game with a crowd gathered around about. Once, while playing at the grocery store, my mom finished shopping and came out just as I won the game. I remember working my way out of the crowd of people around the machine, leaving them to watch the final scene without me. LOL

[@KahnShawnery]

Wow! I remember an arcade cabinet version of Thayer's Quest with a keyboard instead of standard arcade controls. This was in The Gold Mine arcade, Parkdale Mall, Beaumont, Texas. After Dragon's Lair success the arcade had a wide variety of laser disc and 'holographic' games. The Cagliostro game was there as well. It was surreal seeing Lupin many years after, I could not convince my friends that I had played the movie as an arcade game previously.

[@SeanTBarrett]

"Thayer Alconred" is such an odd name, it sets off my "try reading it backwards" alarm. That accomplishes nothing, but maybe it's an anagram? Hmm, very suspicious, all the letters of "Halcyon" appear in "Thayer Alconred"! Wow, ok, it MUST be an anagram. What are we left with after we remove "halcyon" from "thayer alconred"? Let's see... t... e... r... a... r... e... d... That's not a bad set of letters for anagramming. What can we make out of it? Uh... "retread". "Thayer Alconred" is an anagram of "Halcyon Retread". Nevermind.

[@shredjward]

I had the same instinct, unfortunately though my smooth brain; in contrast, rearranged it into Thay're LaCorned before giving up, and while it doesnt make a lick of sense it made me laugh

[@afish4086]

What about "Halcyon Treader"? Treading anew through the innovative Halcyon system.

[@joelle6362]

In the painting part, I think that's why I really like Adolph Menzel's paintings. They're not about gods or kings but about the working class, poor and hard working but they're also incredibly beautiful

[@rheaanthea]

This is by far the video you've seemed most comfortable on camera and even past that the premise and research rules so hard. It might be the best video you've done yet

[@topdamagewizard]

I was playing this on my PlayStation and my wife asked me "is that actually a game It looks so good." She said this about a game made in 1983 in 2017. That's how important Dragons lair is.

[@myami3733]

ps1 had a great version of time gal too, it was a thousand times better than saturn version.

[@cartergarcia3765]

you make videos sometimes that have nothing to do with me , my interests or my life. i put off watching this for a long while cause i couldn't justify sitting down for 40 minutes to learn about some obscure game which i'd never heard of. And even if i had heard of dragons lair, i don't play video games and never have. but you're such a talented story teller and a relentless researcher. I watch nearly everything you make through to the end anyway , without fail. I'm so thirsty for the good quality content you produce that i would watch a 1 hour video about the history of toilets if i saw it on your channel. That's how much i trust you as a creator. i want to say thank you. its sometimes hard to get into new things, and you make it beyond easy. learning new stuff is never boring or disengaging on this channel. Every topic you take on you bring to life, explore with passion and present with charm and wit. Thank you so much for the work you put into this channel , it really shows in the finished product.

[@ethanrichmond3992]

“I had 22 apprentices before you, they’re all dead now.”

[@Tudmoke]

I saw this in my subscriptions feed and thought "oh, look, it's another Dragon's Lair video. Harry's great, though, so I'll give it a shot." This took me on a ride I never could've expected. Bravo, honestly.

[@10dillrod]

this is probably my favorite video of yours most likely because im soon going to be entering the field of game design and never really thought about the very likely truth that whatever i create no matter how much passion i put into it has a high likelihood of just being another game that people forget about in a month or a year.

[@IbraheemM98]

I actually get really tired of great stories of amazing individuals. I almost cried at the end of this video, I'd honestly be a patron if I wasn't a broke college student.

[@Pineappolis]

21:20 Such a strange feeling evoked by the fact that the first choose-your-own-adventure book you mentioned was the only one I ever read. I found it in a bookcase in the cottage my family was staying at for our Summer holiday probably 25 years ago. Somehow the name and the cover art have remained pristine, if buried, in my memory this whole time.

[@justbeyondthecornerproduct3540]

This isn't my most watched Hbomberguy video (Hello, New Vegas and Sherlock) But, I think it's my favourite. It's a damn good documentary. The points about Romulus, Merlin, Vermeer and Dyer are so beautifully thought out and the thread of connection is so clear between all 4. This video is so artful, I love it.

[@GeoNeilUK]

You went overboard with the water references when you said "overboard" Also, you failed to mention Daphne, the emulator that'll run Dragon's Lair even on a Raspberry Pi! Rick Dyer's *home system* ...and now we know where the title comes from, it was just a shame they were stuck with CEDs and had to switch to Laserdiscs. I wonder if Rick Dyer's still around? I wonder if he stayed working in IT after RDI failed? I'd love to see the Halcyon emulated... I wonder if Daphne runs the games...? I'm surprised Thayer's Quest didn't come out on the Mega CD or PlayStation. Rick Dyer would be looking at the games industry now thinking "I predicted this, I should be a part of this" If only Rick waited 5 years... if only he waited until the Amiga and CDs... the CDTV!!! And... are there ~WOMZ~ in that gaming studio?!?! There were... ~WOMZ~ in muh vidya even back then?!?!?!?! _ThE fEmInAzI iNfIlTrAtIoN sTaRtEd EaRlIeR tHaN eXpEcTeD!!!! ThErE wAs NeVeR a SaFe SpAcE fOr TeH mEnZ!!!!!!!!!11111!!11_

[@horplemctweenbot5259]

Roberta Williams started King's Quest in 1984, and for a while was THE name of adventure gaming. (In fact, I was kinda amazed by how SIMILAR in gameplay, story, and flaws Dragon's Lair and Thayer's Quest were to King's Quest, even if the games themselves used drastically different formats and graphics. Story and gameplay I could sorta understand... but to have the same flaws, that's really interesting to me!) Women were always in gaming. And I know your ending paragraph was sarcastic, but enough people honestly believe it that it's kinda dismaying to me, when Roberta Williams owned my childhood! Alas, the Roberta Williams Anthology I owned got lost in my most recent move; the booklet that came with it had an old photo of her sitting at her computer in I think the 80s, and it was good to just see that, know that she was there.

[@Dtyn8]

This feels like a documentary. I loved every second. Well done!

[@taylormanes8113]

this is a really nice video. i like when u have those nice, uplifting endings. stay cool, hbomb.

[@Obstreperous_Octopus]

32:44 the main text of the wikipedia page for Rick Dyer ends with "Rick Dyer is currently a realtor based in Julian, California." That is genuinely heartbreaking. The man was a creative story teller who dreamt of sharing a fantasy adventure with the world... but failed and is now working a job with no creative or fantastical elements.

[@kaemonbonet4931]

Coming back to this year's later to see animators and developers talking about their experience is amazing

[@tinkerstink9846]

Your uploads feel like holidays like it’s “unimportant-yet-fascinating knowledge Christmas” every time you post a video.

[@hunterreedy7975]

Damn, evil SJW content AND wonderfully made game content?! I love you hbomerguy.

[@harrylane4]

Evil sjw game content 👌👌👌

[@angryninja]

Absolutely loved this video, what a wonderful message. I fancied myself an big animation and video game fan but had never thought of looking at Dragon's Lair in this way. I love the way you can be both critical of a game, yet still respectful of it's existence. I absolutely loathe "video game reviewers" who think screaming and shouting cuss words somehow qualifies as entertainment. Just some random thoughts: Wasn't Halcyon a name for a drug that was responsible for many overdoses? My secret guilty pleasure is when the different people across the UK make fun of each others accents. I love members of my extended family, but they live in Texas. If my plane crashed I would still try to get the hell out of there as fast as possible.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

24:50 When this was in the arcades, the final thing that happens is you going up against Sorsabal (which occurs elsewhere in the game you played). I think they did that just so the game had an 'ending' for the player to see even though it wasn't what they had in mind.

[@justinkroboth360]

That ending is still so poignant - it was my favorite moment out of anything you've done - well, up until the Lovecraft episode and ideas presented therein. I hope you never stop making videos, my friend.

[@ilovenierreplicant2983]

This was a really enjoyable video, and the way you ended off the video was strong. I really like this video.

[@alunarwaffle9495]

This message really resonated with me, so I would just like to say thanks for making this video and encouraging me to continue even though I know I may fail. I really needed that message right about now.

[@blocking94]

That Liverpool joke is going to hurt Shaun's feelings Hbomb. He's a sensitive soul.

[@steveslater7885]

This video has virtually re-written the phrase "Rome wasn't built in a day" for me. In my brain, it now has a whole new meaning.

[@adamkirby1]

This video is extremely good, I am so glad that hbomberguy single-handedly created KZbin videos so I could watch it. Seriously though this was an amazing vid and I learned a lot.

[@mesastreatexit]

that closing commentary was truly beautiful. thank you.

[@Nicky_Legs]

Man, I just love your videos! I don't even care what you decide to focus on. Each one is done with such time, care and consideration.

[@simposti8420]

Technically, a dubbing where you can hear the original audio is called a voice-over. These are two different forms of localization and voice-over was/is used in Eastern Europe as the primary form of localization. In Poland, for example you would have one old dude reading the translation for every character and people would think, this is normal.

[@Yoarashi]

Yup. Before the 90s, the voice-over approach to translation was pretty common outside Eastern Europe as well, especially with children's movies/shows, countries with low literacy rates, languages with relatively few speakers, and companies/countries that were generally broke af. Basically you would do a voice-over whenever a "proper" dub was not considered cost-effective, and/or subtitling (which costs peanuts in comparison) was not an option. Anyway, pretty funny for a native English-speaking dude to freak out about voice-overs when they're still commonly used in Anglophone countries. Most just don't realize it because they're used to hearing it in contexts like news reports and documentaries featuring a non-English-speaking interviewee.

[@harrylane4]

TIL

[@rbck8826]

Thats how it still is at donadld duck on christmas in sweden. They have had the same cartoons for decenia and watching it is a tradition. Even though the actuall cartoons arent that good.

[@GarrettRobinson]

I was interested the whole time, but like the last thirty seconds hit me with a sudden case of Emotions™️. Great video.

[@MisterDrBob]

"Geoffrey of Monmouth never left us. He just became a marketing consultant." DAAAAAAAAAMN.

[@sketchywest1176]

Y'know, I'm starting to think your patrons are purposely leaving silly names for the credits because they know you'll read them out loud.

[@andreag.c.1156]

What on earth would ever give you that idea?