Fire Dragon
Description
Fire Dragon is an arcade-style action game where players guide a small helmet-shaped character named Polcon after his interplanetary trade ship, the Bolmeus, crashes on Planet Zeva. Stranded in hostile territory, Polcon must survive across dozens of single-screen stages (50 on the Toshiba Pasopia-7, 200 on the NEC PC-8801, and 300 on the Sony SMC-777) by unleashing the power of a newly hatched fire dragon.
At the start of each stage, the dragon emerges from its egg and begins consuming a fiery trail of energy known as kayaku. By controlling the flow of this fire line - slowing it, speeding it up, or stopping it altogether - players guide the dragon into enemies scattered across the level. Foes include the likes of Gaji Gaji the beast, the faulty robot RQ-77, Bobulon the ghost, and Gleezar, a rolling bomb that explodes on contact. Defeating all active enemies and destroying Gleezar spawners clears the stage and moves Polcon to the next level.
Contact with hazards temporarily stuns Polcon, while being caught by enemies or dragons consumes one of the player’s eggs, limiting the number of dragons available. Managing the fire line is crucial: its speed can be adjusted at will, allowing careful positioning to trap enemies or unleash rapid attacks. The game balances action with resource management, as losing all eggs ends the journey.