Title: Dragon Quest Builders
Platform: PS4, PS Vita, Switch (Reviewed)
Genre: Action RPG, Sandbox
Developer: Square Enix
Publisher: Square Enix
Release Date: October 11, 2016 (PS4, PS Vita) February 9, 2018 (Switch)
Dragon Quest Builders is an action RPG/Sandbox game set in the world from the first Dragon Quest game. And it offers a lot of the building game aspects most Minecraft-like games have but, you know, with actual charm. Specifically, the kind you’d expect from the more recent Dragon Quest games; at least, the ones that actually make it here.
Dragon Quest Builders isn’t the first time we’ve been back to a ruined Alefgard. It’s just the first time that such a game left Japan. Regardless, the localization for Dragon Quest games in general is a highlight, even if it becomes a bit hard to follow references to other games given the number of different localization teams that have worked on the series. Dragon Quest Builders is no different in that regard; while it’s not too hard to follow changes since Dragon Quest was not a large game by today’s standards, there are a few changes here and there.
And while Builders certainly has more in the story department going for it than it’s direct reference game, it’s not much more than you’d expect from the series. That said, I applaud them for basing a game on the old speculative fiction prompt “What if?”. In this case, the “what if?” determines that the hero from the original game took the Dragonlord’s offer to rule half the world. The story isn’t elaborate as RPG tales go, but it fits well, and that is its strength.
Since almost the entirety of the game revolves around a flow of materials to build things, I need to make note of drop rates. Sometimes, certain things just don’t drop when you need them. Sapphires in Chapter 2 being a big deal, while some other items become so common you hardly need to farm them. And that’s really the only reason to kill monsters; other than when they pester you.
Sometimes, though, combat is a bit difficult to judge. Specifically, your distance from an enemy. This really ties into the camera, which I’ll get into in a bit, but you’ll occasionally be left flailing at air. Since it’s technically not the actual focus of the game, as you don’t gain experience from fighting, it’s mostly forgivable.
As far as building is concerned, they give you a fair bit of ability in that regard. You can place blocks in just about every way you’d like, so log as you are building upwards. Other than that, the only ability I’d love to see in the sequel is a less clunky means of placing a single layer of blocks at ground level.
Aside from a few rooms characters ask you to build, you’ll probably only make the necessities most of the time. Which is a shame, as some of the rooms give you boosts, like an increase to passive regen. The other sad thing is that it’s oddly difficult to automate defense of your towns; a few more options would’ve been great in that regard.
The game controls as well as it possibly can. Sometimes jumps can be a bit fiddly. That said, it’s good practice to carry some common junk blocks around to place as needed for tricky jumps. And I’ve beaten around the bush as long as I could. The camera, more than anything else, is what you’ll fight in the game.
And to be fair, that’s no one’s fault; it’s the way it is because it has to be. But it gets noticeably worse in any enclosed space. That is why it’s best to make rooms taller than needed for them to be considered rooms by the game. If you don’t, you’ll build up an inadequate amount, and the room in question becomes difficult to navigate.
Thankfully, most rooms don’t have too much in them, but kitchens and combination workshops become a nightmare of interactable objects.
The game’s soundtrack is something of a “best of” early Dragon Quest games. Which isn’t a problem: the soundtracks are a highlight of pretty much any game in the series. The one sad thing is that we, and by that I mean those outside of Japan, are stuck with a midi soundrack, just like with the 3DS versions of Dragon Quest VII and VIII.
This is entirely due to how Koichi Sugiyama is with licencing the music he composes, and it’s not the sort of thing you can really fix. Well, other than if those responsible at SE finally pony up some better synths. Still I’m glad the game gave me one of my favorites, in the final chapter no less.
One of the nicest things about the switch version of the game is that, aside from performance, they took the time to fix a few things. The free build mode gives you the ability to ride on a Sabercat, for one. But most importantly, they fixed the chapter challenges. On the PS4 and Vita, each chapter had a speedrun challenge; difficult under the best situations, and terrible in a game that’s mostly about taking your time and building.
Especially as free build mode recipes were locked behind these challenges. Now, they’re challenges based on the number of types of items made, and are much easier to do by just playing the game. Add in portability and that makes this the best version of the game to own.
So, would I recommend Dragon Quest Builders? Yes, but I am a huge Dragon Quest mark. As far as these gather and build games are concerned, though, It’s probably my favorite as far as actual play is concerned. If you own a Switch and don’t have one of the previous versions, I’d argue it’s worth a purchase.
“Despite a few hiccups, Dragon Quest Builders is a great nostalgia kick for Dragon Quest fans.”
Final Score:
4/5
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