DRAGON QUEST VIII: Journey of the Cursed King

It is getting close to winter time and that is when I get the itch, and with good reason. Around this time of the year Square Enix releases an epic RPG for me to sink my teeth into. While I am sorely disappointed that this year the game is not Final Fantasy XII, I am pleased that I get to try a game series that is so popular in Japan, that it eclipses the popularity of the Final Fantasy series. The series I am referring is the Dragon Quest, and this year the game that is released is Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King. If you are a fan of RPG games then I suggest that you go pick up this game as soon as possible because it is a game that will not leave your PlayStation 2 until it is complete.

The story for Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King goes like this: a long ago a scepter was created that had extraordinary magical powers, and it was sealed away inside a castle. One day a twisted jester known as Dhoulmagus broke the seal and awakened its terrible powers. In the process he put a curse upon the entire kingdom. To taunt the king and the princess this jester changed their bodies and turned them into different forms, and as for the rest of the kingdom, time has been frozen. There is only one person who escaped any effects of the curse, which is the hero (you). It is up to the player to restore the kingdom back to normal and stop this malicious jester. Are you up to this challenge?

The characters in your party are as fleshed out as they can be. The hero of the story is a former royal guard who had to leave his kingdom when a curse was placed upon it. He is proficient with swords, spears, and boomerangs. Yangus is a former bandit and a turn of events placed him and the hero together. He is a very physical powerful man that is good at using axes, clubs, and scythes in combat. Jessica is the only daughter of a rich family from a small village; she is good at combat spell as well as using blades, whips, and staves. Angelo is a Templar knight who has sworn an oath to protect, but he prefers to gamble and flirt with women. He is very good at using swords, bows, and good at using recovery spells. As the game goes on, players will be able to level up each of the characters skills to make their own unique team that fits their personality the best.

Since this game is really huge there are other forms of transportation that players can use instead of walking everywhere. One is a Great Sabrecats - these animals can take players anywhere that they can already get to, but with one huge difference. They can get you to these places ten times faster by using their great speed. If you want to sail around the world players will have to get their hands on a ship, which opens up a whole new avenue to explore. Another thing about ships is that you can still get attacked while you are on them so you will still have to be careful.

One good thing about this game is that it has a day and night schedule that affects the gameplay. As time passes, players will notice that their surroundings will have changed slightly as well as people’s behavior. For instance at night you might get some information from certain characters that you would have not received if you asked them in the morning. This could be because they have been to the local bar and had a few drinks and are more inclined to relate to you information. Also at night players will notice that they will encounter stronger monsters, which is good because they will give you more experience points, which helps you level up faster.

There is one thing that I always want to know about an RPG is how the battle engine is. The reason for this is that since players will be spending a lot of time fighting various creatures to level up you will want an game that has a fun and interactive battle engine. Well I can say that the battle engine for this game is really well done. There are a variety of different things that players can do. If you find enemies that are weaker than you and you don’t want to fight then, all you can do is intimidate them and they might flee as well as drop various items. Players also have various things they can do such as attack, use items, various abilities, defend, or use magic against the enemies.

An interesting thing about this game is how you save. The save point in this game is the various churches in the area, which provide more services then saving. What I mean is if you are poisoned or have various other ailments, if you don’t have the item to correct this you must go to the church, make a small donation, and they will cure you. I didn’t know this at first because I am used to going to an inn, falling asleep but being fully recovered in the process. So in order to get back to 100% players will have to visit more then one place. I thought that this was a unique and interesting way of doing it, since it stands out from many other games in area.

Once players boot up the game they will be able to tell that the artist Akira Toriyama, famous for his work in the Dragon Ball franchise, did the character and enemy designs. This makes the game have a very anime feel to it and is perfectly complemented with the graphical style of the entire game. The look of the game is very nice, since the world has a more “realistic” feel to it, but the characters that inhabit it are cel-shaded so it gives it a nice contrast and makes it look like an anime cartoon. The characters themselves are really highly detailed especially when it comes to equipping various items on characters. Different equipment will affect how the character looks during battle, with various textures for the weapons in the game. The clothes do not have that much affect on the characters other then your female companion.

The sound for this game is equally as good as the graphics. I found that the voice acting really complements the game and its characters. The characters at times have a whinny pitch to them but it is easily overlooked. The voice acting really helps bring these characters alive to the players and makes the game feel much more authentic. Not only that but players also be treated to a nice musical score that accompanies the entire game. The sound effects also complement the game as you heard the various battle cries and weapons clashing.

While you wouldn’t think that this game couldn’t get any better the developers at Square Enix put in a little treat in this game. Included with every single copy of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, players will find a demo disk of Final Fantasy XII! I was ecstatic when I opened up the game box and found out this little item. After all these years players will get to see what the deal is with Final Fantasy XII and see that it is truly been worth the long wait that we have had to endure. The only downer about this addition is that it is not the full game and that we will have to wait just a little longer to get the full game in our hands.

Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King is rated Teen for alcohol references, fantasy violence, simulated gambling, mild language, and suggestive themes. The game will take up 177KB on your memory card for game saves.

Gameplay: 7.8
If you have ever played an RPG then you will know what to expect out of this game. You will have to go to various towns, find different missions to help people out. As you help people out you will get tips and clues about how to get your overall mission complete. While the story is slow to start off in the beginning it really picks up later on and the battle engine for this game is equally as good and strong.

Graphics: 9.2
The graphics for Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed are really great. The blend of cel-shading with the more realistic, yet light-hearted, world works really well. Akira Toriyama did a great job with all of the character and enemy designs as it makes players feel like they are playing an interactive anime cartoon.

Sound: 9.1
The voice actors did a really good job with bring the characters to life and giving the game a more realistic and natural flow to it. The music is also really good and will keep players entertained for hours as they go through the world of Dragon Quest VIII.

Difficulty: Medium
Just like any role-playing game, Dragon Quest VIII has its fair share of easy and difficult moments. If players spend time leveling up their characters then the game will go much easier for them. On the other hand, if they try to just blast through the game, they will find out that it will take them much longer and it will be very difficult for them, especially later on in the game.

Concept: 9.5
I really like how this game was played. I have never played a Dragon Quest game before, so I really didn’t know what was new in the series, luckily the instruction booklet was kind enough to say what is new, and having these additions I found was very helpful throughout the entire game. Another reason why this category gets such a high points is that the developers included a copy of Final Fantasy XII in there, and giving away free demos of highly anticipated games is always a plus!

Overall: 9.2
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King is a great RPG game that should be in any gamer’s collection. This game offers classic RPG elements that gamers have come to know and love. Also who can forget the free demo of Final Fantasy XII. This is another great reason to purchase this already great game.