Zemania
I was once again very much charmed by the colorful character cast. It really felt like watching a big adventure anime. I also loved how the story used many nekketsu/shounen tropes that I'm especially weak to...
1995
Awesome game ! So many great points but the two that impacted me the most are the soundtrack and the time-travel system. The latter is very well thought and it makes the narrative threads so much fun to follow. It's as if you're chasing them instead of them coming to you.
2004
It was pretty fun and the emulation made the whole grind system more enjoyable. Obviously not the best DQ I've played, but it was much interesting to see where the series began.
Stopped it at Charlock Castle. I'll probably get back on it on Switch because the SNES version didn't age well at all (still watched the ending on ytb tho). The progression in game and the archaic mechanics are just unbearable... It's a shame because I loved how the story felt way more mature and tragic than DQ1's. The soundtrack was once again wonderfully immersive.
When I first researched stuff online about Dragon Quest 3, I stumbled upon an urban legend saying that the Japanese government had to make a law preventing Square Enix from releasing its games during weekdays because too many people were skipping school and work to get the games. This intrigued me: can a game cause societal disturbances of such scale? During my playthrough, I multiple times felt astonished by the genius creativity behind this game. There's a major step up from what DQ2 has done and switching to Switch port instead of SNES emulation added to the shock.
Excellent narrative combined with amazing soundtrack and great character designs. However the gameplay felt awful. Whether it was the repetitive dumb fights – if you want to switch to turn-based actions, you also have to shift to easy mode – or the "corridor-like" level-desgins... I can't wait to play the original game and all its spin-offs to fully experience the ride because I really fell in love with this story.
My favorite DQ character cast tied with DQ11's. I played it on my phone (and it felt surprisingly fine) so I could enjoy the party chat. The plot and dungeons are even more complex than DQ3's, I love it. There's so many things to do and places to explore... A magnificent experience once again !
1997
Beautiful and intuitive backgrounds but the 3D settings aged very badly. The character models are ridiculous. The materia system is very nice to use and I liked the way it was used both as script and gameplay elements. The French translation sucks, what a shame. The universe developed, the themes covered and the characters that put them together are all incredible.
It surprises me how much lore there is to make use of in FFVII. Zack is an endearing character.
An immersive (perfect sound design, interesting world-building...) and contemplative game, whose goal is to make you feel the calm and serenity of a walk in the wild. Nature is deprived of (almost) all civilization since the Calamity. Only ruins remain, allowing you to imagine as you want what happened, hence the quest for memories. The shrines and dungeons are very clever and fun to go through.
X: Engaging story with satisfying reveals, inspiring narrative themes, and beautiful soundtrack. It's a shame the gameplay was so slow-paced. Although some characters felt a bit bland, their interactions felt truly genuine and I think that's the most important. / X-2: Less interest in this one. I'll still remember the 1000 words concert (moved me a lot) and the "sad" ending that felt more accurate to what FFX wanted to achieve imo.
The story is captivating and the characters' relationship with Abel feels sincere and genuine. The monster-collecting concept is very interesting both in terms of gameplay and narration: traveling alone, growing up around monsters... Narratively, I notice a lot of nods (voluntary or not) to some of my favorite works such as The Count of Monte Cristo or Dragon Ball. But DQ5 has something unique, more than any other opus in the saga... By far the greatest story in a Dragon Quest game.
Nice story, enjoyable gameplay, fun character dynamics : a good game (+ the cover is beautiful)
Epic fights, great soundtrack, that's it.
Features some tropes I love (seeking revenge, fighting fate, facing total defeat...) and interesting themes (overcoming mind-body dualism, the cycle of hatred and revenge, the meaning of war, God, free will, and fate). With such subjects and ending, a Nietzschean comparison with FF10 cannot be avoided. Dialogues are well-written (and Japanese VAs did a fantastic job); visuals and soundtracks are beautiful; exploration is enjoyable.