Super Light RPG
1 Player
System: Android
Developer: Square Enix
Year of Release: 2015
I should not be able to play this game. It was released in Singapore, meaning it has a full English translation, but isn't officially released. Of course it is free to play, and if you can find the apk files for it you can easily install it on your android device and give it a shot. It's a strange feeling getting to play a new Dragon Quest in English, especially when even with a full English translation they still don't give it to us. Square Enix, you guys are scum bags. I speak for the entire West when I ask that you stop holding Dragon Quest games hostage, but of course you won't listen. Damn.
Dragon Quest Monster Super Light has a seriously apt title, though it honestly is less "super light" than Final Fantasy Record Keeper, a game I can't help but draw comparisons to. Dragon Quest Monsters is a spin-off series where the focus is shifted from the heroes, to a monster tamer and monster collecting. Many confuse it for a Pokemon rip-off, but the mechanic actually hails from Dragon Quest V, predating Pokemon (and really they all owe Shin Megami Tensei in the monster collecting regard). Instead of actively catching monsters though, you hope they join you after fights, feeding them might help sway them, but it's mostly up to chance. The other major feature of the series is monster breeding, increasing the level cap and stat potential, as well as usually creating a brand new monster to play with.
Super Light does a surprisingly job of sticking close to the franchise roots, while still managing to match the free to play mold. As opposed to Record Keeper, there are actual dungeons to explore! They're super light, if you will, but they are there! You simply swipe in the direction you wish to move, and that's it. You can find some healing items, but if you don't use them in that dungeon they get sold in the end. I have found no way to increase the likelihood of monsters joining my crew, and rare monsters seem very difficult to recruit. There is a magic map tombola, which is free under circumstances I've yet to figure out, but usually costs "gems", or the premium currency you can pay for, or naturally accrue in small chunks. These send you against one random enemy, who seems to be guaranteed to join you.
There's a world map you traverse via menus, which lets you pick your dungeon and that's the majority of the game. By the sixth area I wound up having some serious trouble beat the bosses. It might have to due with the fact I just didn't have any spells they were weak to, but I started getting wrecked routinely. I don't ever spend money on these sorts of games, especially one not technically available in my country, so I'm not sure if this the paywall, or if I'm just sucking.
As for your monsters, breeding doesn't seem to be around really. First, you can only hold so many monsters, you can let go extras and earn some paltry cash, or you can send them to the sparring ring, where they give some extra exp to a monster of your choosing, but run off afterwards. Buddy boosts is a way to combine the same monsters, ranking them up and increasing their potential overall. Lastly ovolution (??) is a system where you can upgrade your monsters, with these egg creatures that I've found exactly one of in all my travels. Combat is your typical Dragon Quest Monsters affair, you can cast spells, attack, defend, etc. They do tell you if an enemy is immune/weak to/strong against various attacks which is handy.
So, is this game worth picking up? Uh. Maybe? If you really love Dragon Quest Monsters, and have played through the original two, and have checked out, or are uninterested in, Caravan Hearts, or the Joker games, this might be worth looking into. Be mindful that you'll have to manually install the game which can be annoying, and I'm not sure if it's just my shitty phone, or since the game is technically foreign, but I tend to have a lot of crashing problems. Haven't lost any progress, but it's annoying when the game keeps stalling at random. The gameplay is there, but it is undeniably a shell of it's true glory. Plus it's disheartening seeing a fully English Dragon Quest title that isn't officially released over here, what the fuck Square Enix?
If you want to give this a shot this youtube video by Lord Roto explains how to get it working, he offers his invite code, but really, you should use mine, we both benefit and I'm sure he's gotten plenty of love already! Just enter: xzC9HHAQ when you first start up the game, you'll know when.
No comments:
Post a Comment