Dragon Quest, XI for some but first for me
One aspect of the game that made me appreciate it even more.
Japanese roleplaying games (JRPGs) were always a part of my life. The name Dragon Quest wasn’t completely new to me, I’ve heard friends and youtube personalities mention it with praise, but there was never the opportunity to try a game in the series. A Playstation sale, around November 2018, pointed me in the direction of Dragon Quest XI… and I’m glad I made the purchase.
The first few hours felt like a normal JRPG, an interesting plot and solid groundwork for the game. I was enjoying it until everything changed. I encountered Sham Hatwitches. This enemy design in particular made me fall in love with the game. Look at them!
Why would I kill such cute and adorable creatures? (Source: https://bit.ly/2SxjjAM)
Usually enemies are supposed to look menacing or have this mean look to them, but here you’re fighting tiny boars with a witch hat that has a face on it. It was unexpected to face these cute enemies, I mean, why are they so fierce? Is the hat controlling the tiny boars? Are they actually witches making me softhearted so they could strike? I have so many questions but all I can do is love them for their cuteness (And slash them with my sword with some magic casting on top).
The art of the game is lead by Akira Toriyama, famously known for creating Dragon Ball. The result is beautiful all around. The story is also well written and have some awesome twists to it. I won’t get into details, for spoiler reasons, but the story delivers until the very end (up to the first credits and true ending after).
Dragon Quest XI is a gem that keeps on giving. It’s a surprising adventure that exceeded my expectations. As I finished the game with a little more than 100 hours, there were still a few thing to do in case I wanted to go for the platinum trophy. There’re a lot of aspects and nuances about the game that I didn’t mention here. Playing this franchise for the first time definitely makes me wanna play other Dragon Quest games. If you never played a game on the series or still have doubts on it, I highly recommend playing XI. You’re in for a good time.