Dragon (WARRIOR) 8, especially on Android

The Core Video Games Forum
#1

When I played the demo for D(W)8 on Playstation 2 many years ago, I remember it being rather slow. It also seemed like the kind of game where you needed to play for a long amount of time to accomplish anything reasonable.

Now, the Dragon WARRIOR games are getting released on Android. I just played through the first one, for the first time since I was like four years old, and I’m starting the second one which I’ve never played. Assuming the third one isn’t out in time, I’m thinking about moving straight to D(W)8 (since I’ve already played D(W)4).

So, for those of you who’ve played it, and especially the Android version, is it a good port, or are the controls frustrating? Do you find that it’s good to play on little 15-minute breaks? If you haven’t played the Android port, can you weigh in on whether or not you think the game is good to play in mostly bite-sized chunks (and the occasional hour or two on weekends)?

#2

I would be surprised if DQ8 on android was significantly different from the one on iOS.

What made me ask (and receive!) a refund for DQ8 was that the game was a port of the Japanese version, meaning no voice acting and no orchestrated soundtrack. These were so good on PS2 they were automatic non-starters and I was VERY angry because these were so unbelievably good and contributed so much to my experience. With that said, it looks and plays very well, I have to concede they ported the mechanics well (for the first half hour). DQ8’s the best game in the series imo. Since you didn’t get accustomed to the things I mentioned, you may very well enjoy the port.

#3

Yeah, the lack of the soundtrack and the VA is a pretty harsh mark against it, but you do gain portability without the need of diving into the sketchy realm of emulators. Also, I think they did away with the 3rd person view in battles which is probably more of a pro than a con considering how much the character/attack animations slowed down the pace of the battle (compared to earlier games at least; its actually not that bad either way).

That said, the game does indeed start off a bit slow. Once you get your third character things pick up a bit, but the first quest regarding the fortune teller is really dull compared to the rest of the game (its more or less a glorified tutorial).

Also, its highly suggested that you build your MC towards Swords and Courage and with enough in Spears to gain either Thunder or Lightning Thrust, Yangus towards either Axes or Scythes (if he goes this route, make sure to pick up the Axes Hatchet Man anyways) with a sprinkling of Humanity on the side, Jessica towards Whips and Staffs, and Angelo towards Staffs and either Swords or Bows.

Edit: Good luck with DQ2 by the way. Let us know when you hit the Road to Rhone (or whatever they’re calling it these days). Also, its better to refer to the Dragon Quest series as such because it makes it easier to distinguish between the series proper and that upcoming Dragon Warriors spin-off (or alternatively Dragon Quest Warriors versus Dragon Warrior Warriors which is just ridiculous).

#4

Square-Enix basically had the easiest job on the planet with porting DQ8 to iOS and they managed to screw that up.

#5

They probably just used the Japanese version and called it a day. After all, its the version that the fanbase (the one that matters at least) has nostalgia for.

[STRIKE]Then again, maybe there was a technical issue that they couldn’t deal with.[/STRIKE] Nah. It’s probably the first one.

#6

DQ2 wasn’t that hard though, was it? I hope the Android version of DQ3 plays well because it was a fantastic remake.

#7

If you’re playing any version other than the NES one, its really outdated but still ‘fairly’ manageable. If you’re talking about the NES version, then you’re in for a slog.

Either way though, its the one with Rhone and its infamous Road to. Its also the first game in the series to sport a ship and it shows.

#8

Well, it helps knowing where you’re going. NES DQs were harder in general (quelle surprise).

#9

Well, I beat Dragon (WARRIOR) 2 today, finally. There is no “Rhone” in the Android version, but I’m betting you’re talking about the cave that leads to Rendarak, the final area of the game where you can find Hargon’s castle. That was annoying, but it didn’t take much time to get through it.

Honestly, what got me stuck for a long time (I searched for weeks and then quit for weeks), was finding out how to get to Slewse…uh, I don’t know what it’s called in any other version. But, it’s the town that has the tailor, and he makes the Dress that is the best armor in the game. I finished literally everything else before it, to the point where when I went to that town and finished that tower, all that was left was for me to get to Rendarak, grind up a bit (for the best equipment I could buy), then beat the game.

This works out, though, cos Dragon (WARRIOR) 3 has been released on Android since then. I’ll be starting that game soon.

#10

Road to Rendark/Rhone’s biggest problem is that unless you’re mapping it out or have a guide handy, its very easy to get caught in a pitfall trap and sent back to the far end of the floor with the jacked up Zombie encounter rate. You then have to burn a couple of minuets to get back to the room you were in before and hope you can recall the layout enough to know where not to step this time.

Also, I’m speaking from the NES version myself which made Rhone/Rendark far far worse since equipment in that version isn’t nearly as good as later versions (I mean, seriously; look at this shit) and even capped out, passing through the cave is a slog due to your MC being the only one actually combat viable and not liable to be killed outright.

Of course Rendark/Rhone itself is its own special kind of hell since enemies can happily one shot your guys (with Critical Hits and Whack spells for your MC) and you have exactly one person who can revive outside of a church and one Leaf of the World Tree/Yggdrasil Leaf to use in case of an emergency.

But yeah, trying to find things on the high seas really sucks since your only in-game clues are those warp gates that take you to the ‘general vicinity’ of certain key locations and otherwise sailing back and forth while minding the tile sets.

#11

Don’t get me wrong, the cave to Rendarak was the most annoying dungeon in the game. But, I expect really old RPGs to have dungeons with random pits, ridiculous labyrinthine maze rooms and all that other crap. It probably also helped that, since I was stuck before that point for quite a long time, I was probably in really good shape, level-wise. I can’t even imagine what that place (and Rendarak) would have been like if I got there levels below where I had reached them.

Also, it does sound like some things were changed; both of the casters can bring people back to life now, and very infrequently do the “kill everyone” spells work. Except for this one enemy that casts a spell that sacrifices itself to kill you. That one works seriously every time. That was rough.

#12

Did they also change up how Zoom or Return worked from the original? Because in the original version, you were warped back to the last Church you saved in and guess what you had to do if you wasted your one Leaf of the World Tree/Yggdrasil Leaf after saving in Rhone/Rendark. Backtrack back through the Road to Rhone/Rendark, then back to your ship, then all the way back to that one island where you originally got your previous Leaves of the World Tree/Yggdrasil Leaves then Zoom/Return back to Rhone/Rendark (or reset because screw that noise; unless you had to use it just to get to Rhone/Rendark, in which case “Have a nice trip, drip!”).

Also, I wasn’t too pissed off about going through that in DQ2 because I kinda expected that, and I had been through worse by then (thanks Phantasy Star 2). Of course, I didn’t exactly appreciate having to go through that all over again in Beyond the Beyond a few years later (on top of all the other terrible dungeons that game made you suffer through).

#13

Yeah, that was definitely changed. There’s a spell called “Evac”, for one, which lets you exit a dungeon. And, Zoom now teleports you to any town. I never kept a Yggdrasil Leaf in my inventory, because honestly, if my two casters died, I was in deep shit anyways.