Enix finally shows up, but is it
too late?
By Mike Tidwell, RPGamer Writer
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The hero, young, but eager |
Dragon Quest is very arguably the best console RPG series, rivaling Final
Fantasy for the top
spot. These two series have been running side by side for many years,
dating back to the first
of each series. Both made very early appearances on the Nintendo
Entertainment System, both captured
the hearts of thousands of players at the very first glimpse. As time
passed, both series released one
sequel after another, almost side by side, each company pushed the other
to make the next game more
innovative and creative. This continued up the the sixth game in each
series, both games using the same
basic technology, but each dazzling and captivating players in its own
way.
And then Enix fell quiet as Square released the mega-hit Final Fantasy
VII. Enix has not released a Dragon
Quest to the US for five years, as Square has relased three in the same
time span. While the Japanese market
enjoyed Dragon Quest V and VI, even they could not understand Enix's
resistance to challenge Square
once again. Fans around the world wonder if this is the end of a great
rivarly.
And then, we hear a call in the distant horizon; Enix reveals the very
first glimpse into the next game to
carry the Dragon Quest name. They will follow the trend to use Full
Motion Video (FMV), like many other
games are beginning to do. Enix has stated that they will use FMV in a
much different manner, keeping the
audience a player, and not a movie watcher. By making smaller FMVs, it
is hoped that the player will
always be in control of the game. As Dragon Quest games have always been
a first person story, this is
very important.
Enix will follow another trend by using polygons, instead of sprites.
This is the major trend in today's
market, and Enix surprised no one by making this change. The
capabilities that polygons offer to
programmers to create a real three-dimesnional enviornment are too
enticing to leave out. Towns and
villages come alive as people living in each area interact with your
party, and building have a more
prominent sense of structure.
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A towering castle. Yours, or yours to
conquer? |
Enix also wants to change the way the story flows. All previous Dragon
Quest's have had a very linear
story, with exact goals, and rewards. Enix's Yuuji Horii had this to say
about the upcoming storyline:
"Instead of a game you'll want to finish quickly to conclude the story, I
want it to be a game you want
to play forever and not have it end." This is major improvement on the
previous titles, and comes
closer to the genre of "Role Playing", since you have far more choice in
what the goals should be.
One difficulty with a first person RPG is the lack of real background for
the other characters. It is
extremely difficult to build a background on any character except for the
main one, since the story
has to focus on you, the main character. However, Enix has done a decent
job with this in the past,
and that trend looks to continue.
This is what is known about the characters so far:
- You, the Hero : As all other Dragon Quest games, the hero has no
name until you start the
game. You were raised in a small fishing village, you have a small
dragon-like creature. Little
else is known about your character.
- Marybelle : She is the daughter of the head fisherman of your town.
She will follow you more
because she doesn't want to be left out, than because she is interested
in you, or what you do.
- Keefer Gran : Prince of the Granestado nation. You befriend him
early in your journeys,
and he treats you like his own brother.
Nothing else has been released, but so far, it looks
like Enix is a follower, not a leader as
before. Granted, there is not much to base this on, but first
impressions make all the difference.
RPGamer will be on top of all the latest news and information about
Dragon Quest VII.
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