A nice break from the norm
During the game, you play as a slime who must rescue the inhabitants of his town, who have all been stolen and locked away in chests. The plot never becomes too complex, and returning these slimes is your main goal through-out the entire game.
The gameplay is simple at first, but later becomes a bit more complex. As the main character, you can jump, float, elacto-blast and throw items. Just the D-Pad and two buttons are ever used during gameplay, making for quick learning. You spend time grabbing monsters and items to return to town, and solving a few puzzles here and there. The gameplay style is closely related to old-school Zelda titles.
The complex gameplay comes in the form of Tank Battles, the meat of Rocket Slime. You equip your tank with ammo collected through your adventures, and later on, with a crew of slimes or monsters you've managed to collect. Ammo does different damage, and some do effects that can turn the tide of battle. The ammo pours out of chutes in your tank, and you collect it and then launch it out of the high or low cannon. Your crew can be told to do one of their two "functions", helping you defeat the enemy. Loading ammo isn't all you can do, as you can also step outside to battle enemies, or invide their tank and cause havoc.
The sound-track is familiar to any that have ventured into the Dragon Quest realm before, so therefore, it's amazing. Up-beat tunes and fitting sound effects crowd Rocket Slime, creating a pleasant, enjoyable atmosphere.
The graphics are nothing special, but they do the game justice. Cartoon-style sprites run about performing actions, and while nothing fancy, still looks good. Many characters are recognizable from the other Dragon Quest games too.
The game is rather short, about 10 to 12 hours to blaze through the main story. Tons of replay value exists, including collecting all the monsters, ammo, and recipes you can. Multiplayer exists, so this extra time won't go unrewarded. Only one save file exists though, so if you want to play through the story again, you'll have to delete everything.
Overall, Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime is a great break from normal games. Blending Action, Adventure and RPG-elements, the game will keep you hooked. Fans of Dragon Quest games will obviously get more out of the title, but newcomers will enjoy the simplistic yet enjoyable gameplay. Definately worth purchasing, especially if you can find some friends to battle against.