Thanks to the world we live in, we have great portable gaming devices that offer top-notch experiences wherever we are. Sure mobile gaming is fun, but nothing really compares to an immersive experience that a dedicated portable gaming device can offer. The latest adventure I experienced, was a remake of my all-time favorite RPG from the PlayStation days.
Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past is a great RPG, that really brings back the classic turn-based combat we all love.
Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past follows the story of a set of unique individuals, who imagine a world beyond their tiny island, and head out to find it. Along the way they come into contact with some rather strange scenarios, as they unlock new islands, each with their own past chapter to experience. Think of it as brief episodes of one massive adventure, where you can take each island in, in small chunks.
Each night I tried to fit in an hour to play through my current island, and then when I reached the next one, I saved and exited the game. The next day I found myself arriving early for a meeting, and quickly explored the next chapter of the game, before putting it on standby to continue later on.
The games does take a while to pick up, as half of it plays as sort of a prequel, and it is not until you are about 30 hours in, where you truly have all the game’s features at your disposal. To be quite frank, the game’s sheer size is beyond measure, as it is a pretty massive adventure that will span around 70 hours. Then again, you can tackle it all in chunks. Thanks to it being a remake, there is ample help on the internet to guide you through the game when things get a little tough. There were often times where I got completely lost because I got distracted by something on TV, and then had to google a guide to help me out. The game’s main story plays out exactly like the original, so do no be afraid to head onto the net for some help.
The best thing about the game, is the sheer beauty of it. The PS1 version was a great experience already, and the 3DS version is no simple remaster, you can see that character models, environments, and the world in general, looks stunning. Character’s hair moving while they run, and battle animations, are all fluid and really help you to get immersed into the experience. Running around a town and chatting to the townsfolk, just to hear what they have to say, is a great way to get some back story on the events taking place at the current time.
Then we have the other half of the game, the combat system. Without getting too carried away, the combat System in Dragon Quest is fantastic. Turn based combat has always been a staple in the Dragon Quest series, but Dragon Quest VII brings in the class system which lets you be as unique as possible. There are about 50 classes to choose from, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Some are more healers with lower health, while others bear the front of the combat with their protective qualities. While you play the game, you will explore more classes, and ways to play, with each to their own preferences.
There are times when the game drags a little, conversations between people get boring, and combat becomes a bit tedious. There is a blessing in disguise though, the “R and L” buttons. The game picks up the button as the select button while in combat and in a dialogue. This means that if you are over it, as I was at times, you can just spam the button, and you characters will just attack “automatically” and the text will pass quickly during the cutscene. I used this time to respond to texts and check my Snapchat ;).
Sure it is not meant to happen, but when you have to face off against 60 enemies to try and level up, and farm gold to buy new weapons and gear, things can get a little dull. This way you can carry on doing what you are doing in the other hand, while still playing the game.
In the end I fell in love with all the characters in the game, especially Maribel, who is one kickass female. She somehow manages to steal the show with her humour and fantastic character growth. You see her going from a scared girl, to a strong independent female who keeps everyone in line.
If you are looking for a great RPG that is easy to get into, and so much fun to play in small chunks whenever you have a free moment, then Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of a Forgotten Past is the game you are looking for.
This post was based off a copy of the game that was supplied to me from Nintendo
