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    Dragon Quest A Retrospective on my first playthrough of DQXIS

    January 26, 2020

    Dragon Quest A Retrospective on my first playthrough of DQXIS

    A Retrospective on my first playthrough of DQXIS

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 06:17 AM PST

    tl:dr (cause this is a long one): DQXIS is a fun game with memorable characters and a memorable world, and only loses steam in the final act.

    I just beat XIS's post-game bonus boss, effectively finishing my fist (semi blind) campaign at 160 hours. As this is my first Dragon Quest game, I thought I'd give my thoughts on my experience, and the ups and downs of my cumulative play time. This is a minor spoiler retrospective, as a heads up.

    Before I start, I want to say that I went into this game with only the knowledge that Hero was in Smash Ultimate, and a passing understanding of Dragon Quest mechanics from a playthrough of IV on YouTube. I had no idea about the more intricate mechanics of the game (Fun-Sized Forge, pep powers, character building). When presented with draconian options, I shied away from all of them, afraid that I'd run into a roadblock, look up strategies online, and spoil myself with mid to end game story beats. In short, I came in with basic knowledge, and chose the most basic options for the game.

    What happened next?

    I ended up loving almost every second of this game...but not without a few personal stumbling blocks along the way.

    The introduction is a bit slow, but after that, the game absolutely took off. Enemy designs run the gamut from cute to intimidating to eerie, and no enemy type feels derivative of another. My personal favorite monster class is the spitzfire and its recolors, mixing adorable and badass into one big ball of fluff and hate. The locales visited are all very distinct; most RPG's I've tried have some incredibly forgettable towns and dungeons, yet at the end of this game, I feel I could recite them all by heart. Weapon choice starts limited, but grows larger and larger as the story progresses. In most RPGs I've played (which isn't a lot, mind) every character could only use one weapon, it was a breath of fresh air to have some characters who could spec into multiple weapon types. Erdrea isn't just big, it's dense, and chock full of regional flavor and tone.

    Speaking of characters, the supporting cast of XIS is immaculate. The game presents you with a party that appears to be nothing but a stereotype, then expands their character to really make you care for them. Got a roguish thief who only seems to be in it for the loot? Turns out he's roaming the world out of guilt for not being able to save his not-dead dead sister. A flamboyant clown who's abilities make him seem even more provocative? He's an AWOL knight who ditched his training to pursue a career in entertainment and fears his mentor won't understand his path. Even flat characters without an exciting backstory absolutely get more interesting over the course of their adventure as events unfolded.

    The biggest story beat in this game is by far the Fall of Yggdrasil, and I want to praise the game for showing off the ramifications of the literal source of the afterlife die. I know that the side stories weren't in the original version of the game, but they add a ton of depth here. Towns are getting ransacked by simple fishermen, a warrior city is converted to a casino, and an entire kingdom is flattened almost overnight. Smoldering boulders tossed from the impact are scattered all over the world. One of the party characters literally dies to save the others. The apocalypse is real in the second act, and I felt the overwhelming despair that hung over Erdrea and the party.

    The quality of the second act, unfortunately, really brings down the quality of the third act by comparison, and this one of my major complaints about this game. After losing so much and building so much character depth, only for it to retcon everything and give me the same lighthearted world I saw just before Yggdrasil fell kinda put a brake on my momentum. The story transitions from a story about restoring a broken world (that still isn't fully healed by the end, continuing to give impact to the fall) to a generic save the world plot. Not helping matters was the amount of grinding I had to do to stand a chance against the final act final boss and bonus bosses. It wasn't just exp grinding, since that was easy enough to do with the token and money farming methods widely known online. However, grinding for seeds and materials severely dampened my joy to face the final post game bosses.

    Aside from the third act, XIS is absurdly good at feeding you information and mechanics as you need them. When I thought my progression was going to be limited by levels, character building let me made a highly customizable party of my choice to play around with and experiment on (until, of course, the third act, where nearly everyone's trees are maxed anyways). When I started to feel under-equipped, Erik gave me a means to make your own equipment. As fan of games that let you make, improve, and hoard a plethora of armor and weapons (a la Monster Hunter and Breath of the Wild), I really enjoyed the forge. When I felt that battles were starting to become stale, Pep up and pep powers added an extra layer of depth and excitement to the game. I especially enjoyed how pep powers weren't just attack skills; they could affect every aspect of battle.

    submitted by /u/Chourakki
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    When you receive a mean e-mail at work

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 12:58 PM PST

    Is there some way to see what skill scales of what stat?

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 09:27 AM PST

    I'm redoing my equipment and i'd like to know what to focus for which character, Sylvando has some skills where the scaling is a mystery, and then there's Flame Slash, which i assume has a bonus from magical might, but it's not really explained anywhere

    submitted by /u/Shileka
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    35 hours into my first Dragon Quest and it's everything I wish Final Fantasy still was

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 01:25 PM PST

    I've been playing Dragon Quest XI for about a week now. I picked it up on a whim, at the start of a three-day weekend last week, and by the time that weekend ended, I had decided that I really, really liked it. It's also the first Dragon Quest I've ever played and I'm not sure how that happened.

    I used to love Final Fantasy, during what we'll call the series' "golden age". FFIX was the very first game that told a story I resonated with. It was also the last Final Fantasy to have that impact on me, because slowly but surely, the whole series kind of started to loose sight of what made it memorable to begin with.

    Quick! What was your favorite thing about FFVIII? Or how about IV? I'm guessing you said something along the lines of "characters" or "story", right? Because I'm guessing you don't love IV for its photorealism. Well, someone go tell SquareEnix that, because they've been really confused for a long time now.

    I'm not trying to hate on the newer entries in the series. If you love XV, I'm not going to argue that you shouldn't. But I will argue that Final Fantasy has changed a lot and whatever it is now isn't for me. Memorable characters and engaging stories feel like they took a backseat a long time ago, when SquareEnix decided that the real reason games like VII are remembered so fondly, was because of the flashy graphics that have aged flawlessly.

    By now, Final Fantasy games aren't really recognizable anymore. They come with bloated, overly-complicated combat mechanics that change - sometimes drastically - between every entry. You can't see the whole story in a game you bought, now important events happen off-screen and are conveyed to us through clips from the spinoff movie, which you can also go buy if you want the full narrative. Characters aren't people anymore, they're robots that say things like, "We must complete the focus the fal'cie gave us, or we'll transform from l'cie into c'eith!"

    I know it sounds like I'm bagging on Final Fantasy, but what I'm trying to say is I'm just disappointed in it, because for all of the desperate reinventions and complicated storylines, it hasn't once come close to recreating those same feelings it gave me years ago. Honestly, I kind of figured I'd never experience those exact feelings again with an RPG.

    Then I bought Dragon Quest XI for basically no reason.

    I didn't know much about the series. I knew it existed, I knew Toriyama did the art design. That's about it. I didn't realize that it had been around for so long, or that while Final Fantasy spent the last 17 years disappointing me, Dragon Quest was apparently over here, quietly plunking along, mostly unabated, for decades.

    Last night, Rab and Jade officially joined my crew of wandering misfits. I knew they were coming, but I wasn't exactly sure what they'd be like. At a glance, I figured grumpy, little, old guy and his taciturn bodyguard. Then I actually met them and found out that wasn't at all who they are. I couldn't have even guessed at their real identities, or that those identities would provide some of the most emotional moments I'd so far seen in the game. Moments that were so much more human to me than Final Fantasy had been in a while.

    Then we got on a boat and drove around a world map, looking for the next neat little town where I'd fight some new monsters, level a bit, and buy new equipment for everyone. It was awesome.

    Those last two paragraphs are basically everything I've wanted and all I've needed in a Final Fantasy game for a long time now, but knew they'd never do again. I could see people complaining that parts of Dragon Quest XI might feel antiquated, that looking at stats and level-grinding is boring. I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I'll gladly take that over flashy combat that I honestly can't figure out how exactly to control, or a silent protagonist from a sleepy village over a brooding, frowny character that delivers pretentious, nearly-inhuman lines of dialogue.

    I know this is a long, rambling post. I've been bouncing these thoughts around in my head all week and I kind of needed to articulate them. I've been enjoying reading up on the history of the series and it just amazes me that I'd never tried it until now.

    At 35 hours in, I'm thrilled to see the rest of what this story has to offer. When I'm done, I just may have to go back and catch up on what I've been missing out on for like, thirty years.

    submitted by /u/Thesadzombie
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    I haven't gotten so frustrated for a game in a while but I'm done now

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 12:01 AM PST

    Playing through the Wetlock scenario in DQ7

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 04:31 AM PST

    This whole scenario is amazing. This is the only numbered game I haven't played and it's mad that Dragon Quest can still surprise me with such a simple cool concept that has twisted multiple times!

    submitted by /u/tabstis
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    I think I wasted a wish (dragon quest xi)

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 11:00 AM PST

    I did the trial of the sage and said no to the wish, I know you can get all 5 normally but can I still get the one I declined or have I permanently scuffed my game

    submitted by /u/AdamTheScottish
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    If 9 were to be remade, how do you think square Enix could handle the character system (probably the thing I’ve seen complained about the most with that game)

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 07:45 AM PST

    A possibility would be to have certain characters from the game be party members. My ideas:

    Ivor is the first party member, joins very early on, and since he has a pretty standoffish personality, he could have a fairly deep character arc

    Patty's party planning place would be useless in this game, so I imagine she'd be used as the second.

    Perhaps wally from wormwood creek could end up joining the party, as the village becomes more open to foreigners

    What do you think of this idea, and what other characters do you think could end up joining the party at some point in the game?

    submitted by /u/AmberDragon6666
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    I was attacked by 7 metal slimes. All but one proceeded to flee on the first turn.

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 03:52 PM PST

    They should've been a little more clear about the rules

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 02:19 PM PST

    Dragon Quest XII, When?

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 08:23 PM PST

    Dragon Quest XI was my first in this series thanks to a lucky surprise gift. I've been enjoying it a lot.

    I looked it up and the prior game was released 5 years before this one. Is it reasonable to expect Dragon Quest XII to take as long in development?

    submitted by /u/vagrant_cat
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    Act 2 (SPOILERS)

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 01:14 AM PST

    Just arrived in Act 2, I guess. What about chests and barrels/pots? Do I need to search every corner of the map for new ones (as I did previously) or they are the same as before, so no new chests and barres/pots don't give anything more?

    submitted by /u/Barone1976
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    How to get a roulette jackpot in the Switch version of XI?

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 04:58 PM PST

    What's the best way to get the Jackpot on the roulette tables?

    I've seen a few videos and guides like the 12/14 method, the talking to the bunny girl and the betting on all, but so many people claim they work and don't, and very little of them clarify which versions it works on and which don't.

    So if any can give any advice or at least clarify things a bit, it would be really appreciated.

    submitted by /u/Davidk9292
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    DQ 11 PC MOD

    Posted: 26 Jan 2020 12:23 AM PST

    Will be there a Japanese dub mod for pc? I'm itching to play this but can't get really into the english dub sounds off sorry.

    submitted by /u/Burikiyaro
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    Any players of the Japanese version of dragon quest of the stars got any advice for us new western players?

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 03:38 PM PST

    I remember downloading the Japanese version when it came out but have completely forgotten everything. Does anyone who has played it a bit more intensively have any advice for us lot eagerly awaiting the 25th of February?

    submitted by /u/navelfluff86
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    DQXI Hero fanart! @plutotides on Twitter

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 12:42 PM PST

    Pokey moment.

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 08:11 PM PST

    (spoiler) Bug in Recipe Book?

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 11:00 PM PST

    Not showing in Info (an earing for every element).

    submitted by /u/Chiiiiizz
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    3DS Remakes DLC

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 10:31 PM PST

    Hi!

    I never got a chance to play the Dragon Quest VII and Dragon Quest VIII remakes for the 3DS and I'm looking to play them. I'm seeing mention of DLC/online features for both games. Is that DLC still available, and if not, is much being missed?

    submitted by /u/_Suneski_
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    DQ11 Casino Question (Spoilers!)

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 10:26 PM PST

    Hi,

    So, when I got to the Casino I had to play slot machines for about 3-4Hours to get a Jackpot in metal Mode and get enough coins to buy everything.

    --Spoiler below--

    Now I visited new Octagonia forthe first time and entered the casino, started playing on a slot machine and instantly got metal mode and 5(!!!) Jackpots in my 10 metal mode turns. Also lots of 3/4 times "7" and 5x Coin Trove

    Have I just been really really lucky there or are the chances in that casino just different?

    just wondering lol, canf believe I'm that lucky

    Edit: Spinned my last metal mode round, got free spins and another 5 Jackpots. Wtf is hapenning, I made like 300.000 Tokens in 10 minutes lol

    submitted by /u/jeNova-
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    DQ11 finished

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 06:17 PM PST

    I finally finish DQ11 and I love the ending. So do you guys know when DQ 12 or at least any DQ remake will come out?

    submitted by /u/TheELord
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    Wow slots are good!

    Posted: 25 Jan 2020 02:22 PM PST

    Deciding to waste some time at the casino before heading out to fight a sea monster. I'd been using slime quest just for the auto option and it was ok but not amazing. Decided to give slots a try but involved too much clicking (or holding, I could only get turbo to work when holding it and my thumb says no to that!) but with a trusty hairband I've just made 50,000 tokens whilst sorting out some dnd stuff! (probably 2 hrs max, didn't hit a single jackpot sadly)

    Reminds me of playing dq8 when I was younger using a hairband to run into walls for the alchemy pot!

    So glad I got dq11, and I don't understand how people are finishing in under 100 hrs! I'm at 40+ and am pretty sure I'm no where near the mid game!

    submitted by /u/snoozinghamster
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