Imaginative, amusing, and enthralling
I want GOOD characters with interesting personalities. I want a game that offers some challenge, and the chance to personalize the heroes to my liking. I want a story line that leaves me wondering ‘what next?’. So far, Dragon Quest VIII has given me all this, and more.
To start off with, the game doesn’t explain the full situation from the start. Indeed, there have been SEVERAL flashbacks in the time I’ve played, and they help to develop the characters all that much more. Sure some could arguably be left out, or added to the start of the game, rather then latter on. However the breakup offered though the use of occasional flashbacks, rather then one large introduction means you don’t spend forever getting into the game. (Something that the start of DQVII was guilty of.) Instead, you get to build up the past of all the characters as you play along the game. And in some cases it works a LOT better this way. There are some characters you would tend to dislike from the start if you knew everything. Using the ‘drop hints as you go along’ approach allows you to see many sides of the characters, and helps to develop them that much more over time. Indeed, I find this evolution helps to create more realistic characters that you see develop and change.
Even the bosses you run into have their own personalities, and back stories, as do a number of NPCs, something that’s not often approached in other RPGs. A lot of games really may ignore all but one or two NPCs, and just throw them in when absolutely needed. And quite often the bosses are just stronger then normal fights, unless you reach a story lined major boss. However in DQVIII, the bosses, even those who aren’t key bosses seem to have their own personalities, or reasons for being the way they are. They aren’t just some generic monster thrown in your way with no more class then a super powered being.
Side quests are also, to an extent, present. The usual mini medal collector is in the game, although it seems the prizes are fewer then before. However even this has been evolved in a way different from all the different metal kings. How, I’m not saying, but when you reach the place, you’ll know it.
The only other side quest I’ve found to date involves a monster battle pit. You get to round up your own collection of ‘infamous monsters’ and build a team to battle in the arena, very similar in some respects to the arena in Dragon Warrior Monsters. You don’t get to control your monsters, but if you draw the right team, you don’t need to worry.
Traveling the over world dose take some getting used to, as this is the first DQ game where you don’t have an overhead view. More that you have a view behind the hero, which makes traveling difficult sometimes. Things get much easier when you get the world map, but it would be nice if you got it earlier then you did. With the way the camera works, I think it would have been great to have it from the start, and I find myself referencing a secondary map quite often to figure out the world. I would have to say, this is truly the game’s biggest drawback.
The game’s challenge rises at a reasonable pace. That is to say, it’s always hard enough to be something of a challenge, but if you’re cautious it won’t kill you. The skills on the skill tree can either help or hinder, depending on how you choose to grow your character, but that leaves a LOT of room for personalization as well. The one big disappointment is that the points are limited, and you can only enter so many into a given skill at once.
Hype is one thing I’ve yet to quite figure out. There seems to be some trick to reaching full tension, but what that is, I don’t know as I’ve never managed it. No denying the skill is useful, as each ‘tension growth’ seems to double the damage you cause. The only drawback is if your hyped character misses their turn for some reason, you loose it all, still a very useful skill on bosses.
Overall, it’s a great game, with an amazing storyline that leaves you wondering what is going on. Every time things start to make sense, there’s some twist to leave you wondering all over again. It’s nice to see a game where I don’t always know what’s going on, something that has rarely happened with the games I play.
If you’re looking for a great RPG, I strongly recommend you pick this game up. The story’s great, the characters are amusing, especially their interactions with one another, and the game’s as challenging as you choose to make it.