Published by Developed by Released Platforms |
Genre Perspective Gameplay Setting Narrative |
Description
The year is 2053, and Los Angeles has turned into a grim place ruled by crime and corruption. William 'Blade' Hunter is a private detective who once was a police officer. He is asked to investigate a horrible murder of the mayor's daughter, whose body was mutilated. As Hunter begins to search for clues that would help him solve the crime, he uncovers a conspiracy involving a deadly drug and a powerful criminal syndicate behind it.Rise of the Dragon is a futuristic first-person adventure game. The game's visuals are reminiscent of a comic book, with digitized photos of actors and hand-painted backgrounds. Unlike most other adventure games of the time, it relies less on inventory puzzles and more on specific choices made by the player. The game has an internal clock and requires the player to plan the protagonist's moves ahead in order to be in the right place at the right time. Dialogues with multiple choices are utilized as a gameplay tool; a wrong choice will often lead to a premature end of the adventure.
There are two side-scrolling action sequences in the game; both can be bypassed without penalty if the player character dies several times in a row. The Sega CD version does not allow the player to skip these sequences. In addition, it uses a different color palette with a greenish tint, and has voice-overs for the dialogues.
Screenshots
Promo Images
Alternate Titles
- "RoTD" -- Common abbreviation
- "Rise of the Dragon: A Blade Hunter Mystery" -- referenced on the manual cover
- "Blade Hunter: Rise of the Dragon" -- Working title
- "ライズ オブ ザ ドラゴン ~ブレイド・ハンター・ミステリー~" -- Japanese spelling
Part of the Following Groups
- Dynamix Game Development System (DGDS) games
- Gameplay feature: Multiple endings
- Games made into comics
- Physical Bonus Content: Comic
- Setting: City - Los Angeles
User Reviews
Tech-Noir | DOS | Zovni (10627) |
Hey, have you forgotten your key again?!.. | DOS | Unicorn Lynx (181445) |
Dark Sci-Fi Crime thriller with some mature content | SEGA CD | browned (126) |
Novel story-telling technique + clichéd story = above average game. | DOS | RussS (819) |
You're so... green | SEGA CD | Katakis | カタキス (42834) |
One interactive Sci-Fi novel that wont leave you untouched | Amiga | Birjer Rosenkrantz (4) |
The future doesn't look good for LA | DOS | Katakis | カタキス (42834) |
An immersive world that completely captures your interest without frustrating your intellect. | DOS | Trixter (9115) |
Not as good as it claims to be | DOS | Boston Low (90) |
Better and Worse than the DOS version | SEGA CD | Jessie Cook (24) |
Critic Reviews
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt) | Amiga | Nov, 1991 | 10 out of 12 | 83 |
Adventure Classic Gaming | DOS | May 08, 2007 | 4 out of 5 | 80 |
Sega-16.com | SEGA CD | Oct 13, 2005 | 8 out of 10 | 80 |
HonestGamers (Staff reviews only) | DOS | Jan 17, 2007 | 8 out of 10 | 80 |
Game Informer Magazine | SEGA CD | Mar, 2003 | 7.75 out of 10 | 78 |
Game Players | SEGA CD | Jun, 1994 | 77 out of 100 | 77 |
Joker Verlag präsentiert: Sonderheft | Amiga | 1993 | 74 out of 100 | 74 |
PC-Spiele '92 | DOS | 1991 | 7 out of 10 | 70 |
The Good Old Days (Staff Reviews only) | Amiga | Oct 12, 2004 | 4 out of 6 | 67 |
Computer Gaming World (CGW) | DOS | Feb, 1991 | Unscored | Unscored |
Forums
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Trivia
Development
Rise of the Dragon appears to have been coded in Turbo C++.Messages
Messages hidden in the main executable:Boy, am I tired. Better get some sleep in about an hour.
You have chosen to run the game with only %s bytes of memory! You are on your own! (this is presumably when the user has decided to run the game without enough free DOS memory available)
References
- One of the patrons in the Pleasure dome is named "FU BAR".
- David Wolf makes an appearance outside the Pleasure Dome--he strolls past in a tuxedo if you wait long enough. (David Wolf was the main hero of Dynamix's earlier game David Wolf: Secret Agent.)
- In Heart of China, another game from Dynamix, if you talk to some people in Ho's bar, some people will say "Bahumat lives!". A reference to the main villain in Rise of the Dragon.
SEGA CD version
The Sega CD has automatically-converted graphics from the 256-color originals, but (probably due to the Sega's limited color palette and palette restrictions) everything has a green cast. Check screenshots for comparison. Also some things were cut from the game: an ammo clip besides a telephone, all but one strippers in the bar and a sequence in which the protagonist has sex.Versions
Rise of the Dragon was released in two separate packages for the PC: A 256-color VGA/MCGA version that took up about 7 megabytes, and an EGA/CGA version that, understandably, took up half that size. The 16-color EGA version, on the other hand, has mostly redrawn graphics based on the 256-color originals.Awards
- Computer Gaming World
- November 1991 (Issue #88) – Special Award for Artistic Achievement
- November 1996 (15th Anniversary Issue) - #83 in the “150 Best Games of All Time” list
- November 1996 (15th anniversary issue) – #12 Most Innovative Computer Game
Related Web Sites
- Game Nostalgia (Provides extensive background info for Rise of the Dragon, pictures of the cast, full credits with shots and info about the design team, specific details about the game, various goodies, all musical themes, shots of every location in the game, saved games, a list of reviews, including a "nostalgic "review and tech specs.)
DOS Credits (19 people)
17 developers, 2 thanks
Designer and Director:
Art Director:
Conceptual Art and Characters:
Game Development System:
Artists:
Programmers:
Arcade Programming:
Audio Director:
Music and Sounds:
Original Score:
Dialogue and Text:
Original Story:
Quality Assurance Manager:
Documentation Design, Layout and Writing by:
Special Thanks to:
Art Director:
Conceptual Art and Characters:
Game Development System:
Artists:
Programmers:
Arcade Programming:
Audio Director:
Music and Sounds:
Original Score:
Dialogue and Text:
Original Story:
Quality Assurance Manager:
Documentation Design, Layout and Writing by:
Special Thanks to: