Dragon's Lair was released in June 1983, but it was a full six years in the making. It was created by Rick Dyer of Advanced Microcomputer Systems (AMS), Don Bluth of Bluth Studios, and Cinematronics. For Dragon's Lair, Bluth Studios produced 22 minutes of cel animation at a cost of 1.3 million dollars. To keep costs low, they decided to pitch in and do some of the voice acting themselves. Sound engineer Dan Molina was the voice of Dirk the Daring, and Vera Lanpher, head of assistant animators, was the voice of Princess Daphne. The narrator was Michael Rye, and the musical score was created by Christopher Stone.

Dragon's Lair was a hit from the start. With over 30 million dollars in sales in the first 40 days, and grossing more than 32 million dollars in the first eight months in the arcades, it seemed unstoppable. A line of merchandise was issued featuring Dirk and Daphne, and Ruby-Spears Enterprises produced a Saturday morning cartoon based on the game. The TV show debuted in the fall of 1984 on ABC and lasted only one season. There was also a Dragon's Lair animated feature film that was planned, storyboarded, and written in 1984, but never yet put into production. The film was to be called Dragon's Lair: The Legend, exploring the background of Dirk and how he meets Daphne, as a darker, more developed story.