Dragon Quest VII Reimagined
Review
A World of Adventure Awaits
by Camrin Santchi
reviewed on PC
What is Out There?
Dragon Quest is one of the biggest JRPGs of all time, up there with Final Fantasy (also a Square Enix property) and Pokemon. A predilection for puns and alliteration, monsters and characters designed by the late, great Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball fame, and stories that run the gamut from silly to heart-wrenching, it's safe to say that Dragon Quest is a very big deal in the turn based RPG market and has been for forty years now.
Dragon Quest VII originally released in 2000 with the tagline Fragments of the Forgotten Past on the PS1, had a 3DS remake in 2016, and now hits modern consoles as Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined, which uses a new art design that brings the world to life in a beautiful, charming style inspired by dioramas and figures- the creators actually created real physical dioramas that they recreated in the game, in a stunning creative move.
Set Sail
Players of Reimagined take the role of a fisherman's son who feels the call to adventure and a desire to roam beyond the island that they call home- the only problem is that their island appears to be the only land in an entire world of ocean. Despite this, your protagonist and his friends Prince Kiefer and Maribel feel there must be something else out there, they just have to find it.
And find it they do. The core gameplay loop of Reimagined involves finding fragments of stone tablets- upon completing one, the party are transported through time and space to another island, typically beset by some form of strife like monster attacks or something else entirely. Upon solving the problems in the past, when the party returns to the present the island mysteriously appears as if it had always been there, giving a new area to search for further tablets and continue the cycle of putting the pieces of the world back together. The islands are all their own independent area for the most part, all tying into the overarching story that revolves around the reason the world is fragmented.
Take Up Arms
Combat in Reimagined is turn based, as is Dragon Quest tradition, but Reimagined takes everything a step further by playing with the Vocation mechanic. Originally introduced in Dragon Quest III, the Vocation act as additional roles that the party can learn after a certain point in the story. Vocations level up independently of the character level, and can provide additional skills and spells that help fit certain roles. Each Vocation also has a 'Worked Up' ability with differing effects, which can usually aid in turning the tide of battle at key moments.
Reimagined introduces a mechanic to Vocations called 'Moonlighting', which allows characters to have two Vocations selected at once, allowing the player to mix and match to find what best suits their specific playstyle and aid in building an effective party. This Moonlighting mechanic is quite the change from the Vocation system as we see it in other games, but this reviewer finds it to be a refreshing addition, and it allows for further party customization by mixing and matching to find what works best for the player.
Lost to the Void
Unfortunately, Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined reimagines some content of the original game straight out of existence. Some islands are entirely gone that previously existed in the 2000 and 2016 versions, in an attempt to streamline an admittedly very long game - supposedly the PS1 version averaged 80+ hours, and the 3DS version is usually treated as being 30-40 hours thanks to a lot of the streamlining that was done. Reimagined is a delightful game, so the fact that there could have been even more Dragon Quest but there wasn't is a bit of a disappointment.
Gather Your Party and Venture Forth
Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined is full of everything that fans have adored about the Dragon Quest series since its inception in 1986, from the absolutely iconic intro theme to the charming character design, the easy to get a feel of turn based combat, the witty writing, and the compelling story that runs the full gambit of emotions. The cut content is a shame, but what is there is definitely a delight. For anyone that loves JRPGs, this is an easy pickup as you venture into a world and bring it back from the brink.
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9.2
fun score
Pros
Charming Diorama Style, Moonlighting, Music
Cons
Cut and Altered Content
