Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap is out now
Fire it up
So here's a thing I've never heard of up until now. Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap [official site] is a remake of a Sega Master System platformer from 1989, and it's out now on PC. Our Alec played a little bit for this week's Unknown Pleasures but perhaps you missed that (for shame!). Am I just going to annoy people if I say that the reason I haven't heard of it is that it came out before I was born? Well, there you go, I've said it.
Anyway, below is the release trailer, showing it as a cutesy platformer in which you, Wonder Boy, are cursed by a dragon and turned into a variety of animals, each of which has their own ability.
This remake has a new hand-drawn art style and fresh soundtrack, but if you really want to ramp up the nostalgia you can switch to the original version on the fly, as Alice explained here.
It's non-linear as well, and different parts of the world open up as you progress. And here's something cool: password codes from the original release will work in it. Just on the off chance that you neatly filed away scribbled notes on '80s games for such an occasion. Come to think of it, does that mean I should be doing just that for games I'm playing now in anticipation of a 2035 remake?
You can pick it up on Steam, GOG, and Humble Bundle for £14.99.