After the latest Nintendo Direct, I was BEYOND pumped to play Dragon Quest VII & VIII, but I knew that I had a long wait to get to that. So I decided to look into older Dragon Quest games.
Now, I’ve already beaten Dragon Quest IX. And it was awesome. But this time, I was looking for more of a bare-bones RPG adventure. My committed RPG slot is taken up by Final Fantasy IX, so a smaller-scaled RPG sounded quite nice.
And that’s when I found the deal of a lifetime. Dragon Quest I. Only $2.99… But it was for my phone. Like… the full game, but on my phone. I’ve already talked about my qualms with this type of thing, but in the end, I bought it.
Yes, I beat it. It’s wonderful! It’s exactly what I wanted. I got to experience the world of Dragon Quest without drowning in hours of gameplay. In fact, I beat DQ1 in under 10 hours. To be completely honest, it was definitely a stripped-down RPG. But what would you expect? It was the first installment of the series, and it was originally released on the NES. But this remake/remodeling for mobile was utterly fantastic. Battles were short and sweet. The menu was easy to navigate, and the RPG elements were just enough to keep me hooked. I knew that this particular adventure wasn’t going to be long, but I absolutely sunk my teeth into this game. I explored the outer reaches of the continent. I accidently stumbled upon wild Green Dragons who swiftly obliterated me. But losing like that only made me want to play more. With only a couple minutes of grinding, I was a high enough level to hold my own against those dastardly dragons.
And with all the money I got from grinding, I was able to buy cool equipment like armor that restored my health with every step. And the best part is that I never had to worry about wasting my money. I didn’t lose myself in the weapon/armor customization. There were only a few options. And I could tell which items were the best because the stores looked like this:
- Iron Armor: $300
- Steel Armor: $1100
- Magic Armor: $7000
So yeah. I figured it out.
My biggest complaint is the same complaint I have with most RPGs. I just get friggin’ lost. I have no idea where to go. I have no idea if I’m going the right direction. I just want a hint or two to guide me along. And vague directions don’t help me. I’m dumb. Just tell me where to go.
But other than that, Dragon Quest 1 was a fantastic experience. I loved nearly everything about it, and I even loved playing on my phone. So maybe my eyes have been opened to a whole new worldddddd of gaming. (credit to Disney for that great song).
#107 is in the books. Maybe one day I’ll beat Final Fantasy IX.
I AM ROOT - Pebble Brown 
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