Dragon Quest 11

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Tue Sep 04, 2018 9:20 pm

!!!!! I didn’t realize it was coming out today. Installing and super excited. Reviews seem to indicate this is a good port so pc seemed like a no brainer. 47 on gmg.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 12:41 am

It is awesome. Buy it. The game has such a calming effect on me.

Freyland · Post by **Freyland** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 1:40 am

Octavious wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 12:41 am It is awesome. Buy it. The game has such a calming effect on me.

Liar. Your Forum Avatar would have changed.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 7:08 am

I haven't played a Dragon's Quest game since the original on my NES. Has it changed much?

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 8:11 am

Paingod wrote:I haven't played a Dragon's Quest game since the original on my NES. Has it changed much?

It’s a lot like Dragon Quest 8 if you played that. Very pretty gfx. Fun monsters. Fun turn based old school combat. And it’s long game too. 70 hours to beat the main story.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 8:16 am

I'll have to look deeper into it. My last experience was, literally, with the NES version back in 1986.

However, I have really fond memories of it and wouldn't mind a wildly updated yet familiar nostalgic feel. I may not pay $60 for that feeling, though.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 11:36 am

I've put a couple hours in so far, and it's a blast.

I put a few impressions on Gaming Trend, but here's an overview of things I love:

Lots of ease of use features to cut down on typical JRPG grind.

- Monsters can be avoided, fought, surprised, etc. You choose when and how you encounter things. I haven't played enough to know how much or how little you need to fight to keep at an ideal level, but so far I just fight when I want to fight.

- No more hitting A to talk to every single townsperson. Folks that are just "flavor text" have their dialogue balloons pop up automatically when you get near. It saves so much time. Quest givers are clearly marked. Plot-centric dialogue providers are also clearly marked.

- Combat pacing is fantastic. Battles are fast for a turn-based system. While there are a lot of cool combat animations, they're quick and don't impede the flow. I actually don't mind fighting random overworld encounters because I can breeze through them so quickly.

The visuals are wonderful, and the towns are so intricately detailed that I don't mind the "city exploration" I usually hate in other JRPGs. Lots of little goodies like jars and treasure chests tucked everywhere to reward the curious.

The only two flaws I can think of so far are the inventory system which is a little clunky, and the soundtrack is not blowing me away. Other than that, it's a very polished 2018 coat of paint on a classic JRPG mechanic. If you loved Dragon Quest VIII like I did, this is a must buy.

P.S. One more thing I love - none of that unnecessarily complex battle system bullshit that other JRPGs seem to love. It's just fight, magic, and some pre-built AI tactics you can put in. No learning arcane currencies and gem slotting and all that other crap. No constant rotation of characters to keep them all leveled up - they all level up whether they are in combat or not. There is a skill tree, but it's simple to understand, easy to use, and I think I read that you can respec any time. Total breath of fresh air to see a JRPG getting back to the basics.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 12:23 pm

Yup you can respec for a reasonable cost. I was happy to see that as I don't want to get 40 hours in and realize I did it all wrong.

That's a certain charm to this series that no other game has. I giddy just listening to the opening intro music.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 12:33 pm

FYI if you want to watch the best review ever watch this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iTbUGItU0s&t=1940s

It's really really long, but super entertaining.

Skinypupy · Post by **Skinypupy** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 1:24 pm

YellowKing wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 11:36 am I've put a couple hours in so far, and it's a blast.

I put a few impressions on Gaming Trend, but here's an overview of things I love:

Lots of ease of use features to cut down on typical JRPG grind.

- Monsters can be avoided, fought, surprised, etc. You choose when and how you encounter things. I haven't played enough to know how much or how little you need to fight to keep at an ideal level, but so far I just fight when I want to fight.

- No more hitting A to talk to every single townsperson. Folks that are just "flavor text" have their dialogue balloons pop up automatically when you get near. It saves so much time. Quest givers are clearly marked. Plot-centric dialogue providers are also clearly marked.

- Combat pacing is fantastic. Battles are fast for a turn-based system. While there are a lot of cool combat animations, they're quick and don't impede the flow. I actually don't mind fighting random overworld encounters because I can breeze through them so quickly.

The visuals are wonderful, and the towns are so intricately detailed that I don't mind the "city exploration" I usually hate in other JRPGs. Lots of little goodies like jars and treasure chests tucked everywhere to reward the curious.

The only two flaws I can think of so far are the inventory system which is a little clunky, and the soundtrack is not blowing me away. Other than that, it's a very polished 2018 coat of paint on a classic JRPG mechanic. If you loved Dragon Quest VIII like I did, this is a must buy.

P.S. One more thing I love - none of that unnecessarily complex battle system bullshit that other JRPGs seem to love. It's just fight, magic, and some pre-built AI tactics you can put in. No learning arcane currencies and gem slotting and all that other crap. No constant rotation of characters to keep them all leveled up - they all level up whether they are in combat or not. There is a skill tree, but it's simple to understand, easy to use, and I think I read that you can respec any time. Total breath of fresh air to see a JRPG getting back to the basics.

I played for a couple hours last night, and came away with similar thoughts on it. If you're not already an old-school JRPG fan, this won't do anything to change your mind. If you enjoy the genre, however, this feels like a wonderful example of it done nearly to perfection.

It's funny, I've always been much more of a Final Fantasy than a Dragon Quest fan. Yet I still get a major rush of nostalgia whenever I hear the DQ theme.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 1:37 pm

Damn forum effect. I was just about to buy Spider-Man on Friday; I don't have room for Dragon Quest. Downloading now.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:01 pm

I hope spider man sucks as I need to stop buying stuff.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:04 pm

Double post

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:06 pm

Octavious wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:01 pm I hope spider man sucks as I need to stop buying stuff.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:10 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:06 pm
Octavious wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:01 pm I hope spider man sucks as I need to stop buying stuff.

Damn it... Damn it all!!!!!!!!

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:13 pm

1 out of 10 are 10 out of 10, and 9 out of 10 are 9 out of 10.

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:16 pm

Spider-Man is PS4 only right? Can't be tempted to buy it if I don't have a PS4

Freyland · Post by **Freyland** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:18 pm

Bingo.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:18 pm

IceBear wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:16 pm Spider-Man is PS4 only right? Can't be tempted to buy it if I don't have a PS4

Correct

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:44 pm

IceBear wrote:Spider-Man is PS4 only right? Can't be tempted to buy it if I don't have a PS4

But can you be tempted to buy a PS4?

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 3:22 pm

Ralph-Wiggum wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:44 pm
IceBear wrote:Spider-Man is PS4 only right? Can't be tempted to buy it if I don't have a PS4
But can you be tempted to buy a PS4?

Pro.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 3:25 pm

coopasonic wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 3:22 pm
Ralph-Wiggum wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:44 pm
IceBear wrote:Spider-Man is PS4 only right? Can't be tempted to buy it if I don't have a PS4
But can you be tempted to buy a PS4?
Pro.

Spider-Man version

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 3:56 pm

Spider-man need his own thread.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 4:02 pm

Octavious wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 3:56 pm Spider-man need his own thread.

I blame wonderpug.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 4:05 pm

Fun fact: if you rearrange the letters of all the Dragon Quest series titles it can spell out "Spider-Man PS4".

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 8:35 pm

wonderpug wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 4:05 pm Fun fact: if you rearrange the letters of all the Dragon Quest series titles it can spell out "Spider-Man PS4".

Ok, I lol'd.

Baroquen · Post by **Baroquen** » Wed Sep 05, 2018 11:02 pm

wonderpug wrote: ↑Wed Sep 05, 2018 4:05 pm Fun fact: if you rearrange the letters of all the Dragon Quest series titles it can spell out "Spider-Man PS4".

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 10:00 am

I just want to say my favorite enemies so far are called "Sham Hatwiches" and they are pigs in giant witch hats.

One quick observation - the game is super easy for the first couple of hours or so. As in "Just keep hitting A" easy. However, stick it out. By the time you get to the first real dungeon/boss things pick up quite a bit. It's still not difficult, but you'll finally start burning through health potions.

Honestly I don't mind the lower difficulty as 80+ hour games are hard enough for me to finish as it is. It's kind of nice having a JRPG that doesn't really require grinding.

Sepiche · Post by **Sepiche** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 10:25 am

Looking forward to giving this a try, but unfortunately there's something wrong with Steam and whenever I'm logged into the client or a browser and try to view the store page for DQ11 it hangs and throws an error.

Hopefully they actually get to my support ticket eventually.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 11:04 am

A lot of people recommend playing on the hard mode. I might switch it but not sure. Planning on playing a bunch this weekend.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 11:06 am

YellowKing wrote: ↑Fri Sep 07, 2018 10:00 am I just want to say my favorite enemies so far are called "Sham Hatwiches" and they are pigs in giant witch hats.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 11:35 am

YellowKing wrote: ↑Fri Sep 07, 2018 10:00 am I just want to say my favorite enemies so far are called "Sham Hatwiches" and they are pigs in giant witch hats.

I initially reverse translated that back to "ham shatwiches".

That's not better.

Dramatist · Post by **Dramatist** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 11:50 am

This came in the mail yesterday and I had the day off so I played all afternoon and had fun.

I have only played DQ9 on the DS but I played that game for 400 hours.

Here’s hoping I get to at least 100 on this.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sepiche · Post by **Sepiche** » Fri Sep 07, 2018 2:36 pm

Sepiche wrote: ↑Fri Sep 07, 2018 10:25 am Looking forward to giving this a try, but unfortunately there's something wrong with Steam and whenever I'm logged into the client or a browser and try to view the store page for DQ11 it hangs and throws an error.

Hopefully they actually get to my support ticket eventually.

Thanks to coopasonic reminding me I could get a Steam key off Green Man Gaming I went ahead and picked it up there.

After 2 weeks of travel, cleaning, and hosting in-laws I'll finally have a couple evenings to myself to relax, and now I have a new RPG to disappear into for a while.

Baroquen · Post by **Baroquen** » Sun Sep 09, 2018 8:50 pm

I bought this a couple days back. Haven't been a DQ since 1 and 2 on some Game Boy or another. Haven't played any of them since maybe back on the PS2? Though I have played spin-offs like DQ Builder and DQ Heroes (and played Torneko the Last Hope a lot). Anyway, the reviews on here sounded like I would enjoy it and I have so far.

I can see a lot of YK's positive impressions so far. The game is graphically simple, but sharp and pretty. Pacing seems enjoyable, and I enjoy finding the extra pots and chests when exploring. I like the conversation guide colors, and the map is helpful when looking for harvesting spots.

I can understand the complaints that it's a little too linear, as it really leads you from one scene to another (at least early on), but regardless, I'm enjoying it a lot so far. Off to play some more after finishing here. Thanks OO Forum effect!

Skinypupy · Post by **Skinypupy** » Sun Sep 09, 2018 11:11 pm

I'm about 10 hours in. A few thoughts:

- Story is interesting enough, but just barely. It mostly just feels like one big JRPG cliche, but the characters have enough personality to keep things moving.

- While DQ 11 looks really good, it also feels very...sparse. In it's defense, the last two games I played (Monster Hunter World and AC Origins) were both extremely detailed games with lots of freedom. DQ XI - with it's very minimal detail and invisible walls - is simply a very jarring change.

- Character models and animations are superb, but the music is disappointingly average. Voice work is good (especially Sylvando), but Erik's accent really bugs me, for some reason.

- Combat is the exact same thing we've seen in DQ games for 30 some odd years now. How much that style appeals to you will largely determine whether or not you'll enjoy this game.

- Not too crazy about the whole "Pep" mechanic. If there were some sort of gauge that tells me how close each character was to triggering Pep status, then maybe it could be used strategically. As is, it feels frustratingly random. For example, I've got two quests which ask me to use a skill that requires three separate characters to be in Pep status at the same time. It's been hours now, and that has yet to happen.

- I didn't notice any difficulty level settings when I started the game, so I assume I'm playing on Normal. The biggest challenge is balancing how many enemies you fight vs. skip. Fight too many, and the grind becomes a chore. Fight too few, and you'll be underleveled. I haven't quite found that sweet spot yet, and have needed to grind levels a couple times to get past bosses.

I'd give it a 6 out of 8 tentacles so far. I like it, but don't really love it. Hoping the story gets a little more interesting, as I can't imagine the combat and scenery alone are going to keep me engaged for 80'ish hours.

Sepiche · Post by **Sepiche** » Mon Sep 10, 2018 10:54 am

I'm enjoying it. Good, old school RPG fun with a shiny new package.

How much you enjoy old style turn based combat and linear progression will probably be the main sticking points.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Mon Sep 10, 2018 1:07 pm

Hard mode settings are under Draconian Quest when you start the game. I believe it was on the bottom right. I also think this can be turned on after you start the game, but I haven't looked yet myself.

Suitably Ironic Moniker · Mon Sep 10, 2018 1:22 pm

Octavious wrote: ↑Mon Sep 10, 2018 1:07 pm Hard mode settings are under Draconian Quest when you start the game. I believe it was on the bottom right. I also think this can be turned on after you start the game, but I haven't looked yet myself.

You can turn the "Draconian Quest" options off at churches, but you can only activate them at the start of the game.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Mon Sep 10, 2018 2:22 pm

Suitably Ironic Moniker wrote: ↑Mon Sep 10, 2018 1:22 pm
Octavious wrote: ↑Mon Sep 10, 2018 1:07 pm Hard mode settings are under Draconian Quest when you start the game. I believe it was on the bottom right. I also think this can be turned on after you start the game, but I haven't looked yet myself.
You can turn the "Draconian Quest" options off at churches, but you can only activate them at the start of the game.

Ah bummer I figured you could turn it on too.