Step forth brave warrior. The destiny of the world of Legendra lies solely in your hands. Play as one of eight warlords, each with a unique storyline, to conquer the evil forces of Madruk in this incredible role playing/strategy game.
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It’s inevitable for different media to draw inspiration and influence one another, and Dragon Force was released in the wake of Mel Gibson’s Braveheart Oscar win in 1996, and captured the same spirit of the movie’s epic battles with a side-scrolling battle system with armies that could go up to 100 troops on each side - each unit individually rendered.
For me, no other battle opening sequence in the 32-bit era was as epic as Dragon Force at its best - with the battles starting with the general’s dialogue before scrolling through the entire battlefield over both armies (which were epic when it was 100 vs. 100 battles), to the opposing general and ending by a loud battle roar to commence the battle - the epic-ness of that sequence gave me chills even after 8 playthroughs with all 8 playable characters, and remains one of my favorite moments in gaming!
For me, no other battle opening sequence in the 32-bit era was as epic as Dragon Force at its best - with the battles starting with the general’s dialogue before scrolling through the entire battlefield over both armies (which were epic when it was 100 vs. 100 battles), to the opposing general and ending by a loud battle roar to commence the battle - the epic-ness of that sequence gave me chills even after 8 playthroughs with all 8 playable characters, and remains one of my favorite moments in gaming!
Still distinct in the strategy RPG space and interesting. It can be thrilling to direct 100v100 sprite army battles, issue commands, and chip away at opposing commander health. The story is generally good, though some threads and characters are underdeveloped.
Some aspects of the gameplay haven't aged well: general movement on the map is sloooooow, key actions during the domestic segments (fortifying / searching castles, captive / general interactions, etc.) are repetitive and cumbersome, and just choosing the right troop type can make many battles easy. The late game can also leave you hanging with no indication of what to do next for weeks at a time.
This game is rewarding if you make time to learn its ropes and rhythm. Once I got a feel for how Dragon Force plays, I couldn't put it down!
Some aspects of the gameplay haven't aged well: general movement on the map is sloooooow, key actions during the domestic segments (fortifying / searching castles, captive / general interactions, etc.) are repetitive and cumbersome, and just choosing the right troop type can make many battles easy. The late game can also leave you hanging with no indication of what to do next for weeks at a time.
This game is rewarding if you make time to learn its ropes and rhythm. Once I got a feel for how Dragon Force plays, I couldn't put it down!
This is one where the fun value overwhelms any shortcomings. Yes the narrative is just okay, and the gameplay is a little repetitive, but very few games are just as fun to pick up and play as Dragon Force is. Choose a nation, build an army, go fight bad guys who may or may not actually be bad guys, meet weird characters, make friends with a vampire, make friends with a dragon. It was the reason I bought a Saturn and I still pick this up every few years.
A lot of interesting ideas but it wasn't that fun to play. Feels like something that would be great if they kept making more and more.
This game is amazing! It packs amazing tactical RPG and strategy, and also quick plays. Has lots to see, many routs to choose. Great game, really.
This review contains spoilers
RTS meets RPG combat!
Pros: really nice character art. Interesting and unique combat. 8 main chars have mostly good writing. Working Designs pop culture jokes/ grammatical standards.
Cons: Every other character than the 8 warriors of the Dragon Force have no relevance to the plot. Eg Cinna fights for Junon, Manoa fights for Teiris, they're sisters, but this relationship is never explored. The concept of "conqueor everyone" is a bit unrealistic when you all fight together at the end. Couldn't they just make some sort of Proto-U.N.? Less of an issue in Teiris's route which I played, and you can negoitiate more. A permanent mid battle save would be ideal. DF2 has this, but that game has many other issues. Overall the combat/art/music is good, but the story/characters are underdeveloped.
Pros: really nice character art. Interesting and unique combat. 8 main chars have mostly good writing. Working Designs pop culture jokes/ grammatical standards.
Cons: Every other character than the 8 warriors of the Dragon Force have no relevance to the plot. Eg Cinna fights for Junon, Manoa fights for Teiris, they're sisters, but this relationship is never explored. The concept of "conqueor everyone" is a bit unrealistic when you all fight together at the end. Couldn't they just make some sort of Proto-U.N.? Less of an issue in Teiris's route which I played, and you can negoitiate more. A permanent mid battle save would be ideal. DF2 has this, but that game has many other issues. Overall the combat/art/music is good, but the story/characters are underdeveloped.