Dq11? Wtf?

Just wondering why this particular game is covered here?

I enjoy it. But:

It is a single-story cartoon that requires almost zero choice and consequence.

I'm having fun with it. I'm simply surprised that the usual anti-console, anti-non-handholding RPG guys are OK with this.

It's… OK… I have barely thought out how I am building my party, except that it seems smart to spec them into different weapon types.

Outside of that? It's an OK cartoon that has gateways. You have to fight beyond XYZ monster every once in a while, but otherwise, it's just grind out some levels and advance the exact same story EVERY OTHER DQ11 PLAYER will experience.

Anyway, I'll likely finish it as it is charming and nicely produced. But otherwise?

It's a cartoon on rails. Why is this game so loved on RPGWatch?

Seems weird to me that you would take the time to finish a 50+ hour game if you're that lukewarm about it. Why not move on to something better?

Originally Posted by Ovenall
Why is this game so loved on RPGWatch?

I assure you I don't love it. Can't speak about others.
Wrote in another thread, this is the first and the last dq game I bought. Not buying another unless it drops respawns and stupid camp checkpoints.
Thanks to modders, irritating MIDI music was replaced with proper scores and ESC acting as ALT+F4 idiocy with arrows vs wasd confusion was "fixed" - shame on the publisher.

DQ series has always been like that. Simple story and simple execution but the fans love it. It must have its charms but I've never played one of the older ones long enough to really get into it.

Even as a big DQ fan I don't really love it, it's kind of just ok for me. Some of the changes actually take away from things I liked about previous DQ games. But given that it's a major RPG release, I'm not sure why anyone would be surprised that RPGWatch is covering it.

I haven't tried this yet, but I know I will at some point. Why it's covered is probably connect to why there is a jrpg sub-forum here, some people enjoy that genre and want to talk about it with others.

Only played one or two the games in it's long development history. So I really can't say I hate them but find I enjoy playing JRPGs a lot less then I was a kid nowadays.

Maybe it's the whole teenager saves the world again cliche.

Originally Posted by Ovenall
It is a single-story cartoon that requires almost zero choice and consequence.

Sounds like a JRPG to me. Much less character customization and choice makes it easier to do a really good, deep story about the characters. Whether they will actually do so or not depends on the game.

Like I posted on the other thread, the game is simple but it gives me the same "feels" as warm fuzzy cartoon on Sunday morning

Carebears and My Little Pony on Sky's Fun Factory 20ish years ago?

It's covered because it's a RPG and you can play it on a PC. The site is not against JRPGs, just games that are not on PCs.

As for why it's so loved? I don't know, I'm playing it and I'm liking it, but it's not going to win any innovation awards, it's very by-the-book. It's also rather easy if you don't change the difficulty of the game (which you can only do at the beginning). I ignore most encounters so I don't level too much, to keep boss battles interesting, and it's worked so far, boss battles have been enjoyable and challenging. I like the crafting system, the art style, etc. It's a good game overall.

I've hated every Dragon Quest game I attempted to play, considering the whole approach such a light RPG experience that it felt like it was for kids who never played an RPG before. But I really like the art style here and the much more grown up look and third-person mechanics, not unlike Zelda:BotW which I loved but found overlong to the point that I grew bored and quit after the 2nd megaboss. I might play DQXI someday, contrary to my vow to never play another DQ game after that last one on the NintendoDS.