Dragon's Crown (PS3/PSN)

The skies opened up, angelic voices sang, and the gods and goddesses of old bestowed there blessings upon me the day that I received the code for the upcoming release of "Dragon's Crown"! Just kidding, but even so it was a blessed event to me. I've been longing to get my hands on this game for what seems to be an eternity, and to be lucky enough to get early access to it was a privilege indeed. Both myself, and the staff at Atlus have been dropping hints for the past two months (or so) about how cool of an experience it was going to be. The fact that the pre-order bonus comes with a most excellent artbook is alone a testament to the effort Atlus has poured into the marketing/creation of this game. Keep in mind that Atlus, and Vanillaware titles are few, and far between so getting them while you can is definitely a wise decision. Most of you out there will know that Atlus's game releases/co-releases are usually gems, and end up with cult followings becoming harder to find as time passes. This is why I stressed so much to pre-order the game. Not only will doing so get you the game (PS Vita/PS3) itself, but by pre-ordering it you will also get a limited edition artbook with art by Vanillaware's George Kamitani. It's a win-win situation.

Dragon's Crown, the Playstation exclusive is a unique dungeon brawling RPG that plays heavily on the mythical references, and legends of George Kamitani's/Vanillaware's own artistic, and ancient world. It not only includes an overlying theme of a fantasy storytelling filled with clever voice acting, and onscreen dialogue, but also includes suggestive tributes to a wide variety of other different entertainment (Disney, LOTR ...) based sources. It's basically an all encompassing fairytale adventure that's filled to the brim with wonderful living art which was brought to life by the masterful George Kamitani himself. You'll find that every detail found within the game from the character design to the lavish fantasy stages all come to life as a living works of art. It is this living masterpiece, and quest oriented tale of a fabled relic (the Dragon's Crown) that are the basis for the entire 120 hour length experience.

The game itself follows the story of an adventurer, who is chosen via an intricate customization menu, and named by you at the beginning of the initial game setup. This adventurer which can be one of six different types (Fighter, Elf, Amazon, Wizard, Sorceress, Dwarf) ultimately finds himself/herself in a fantastical land known as "Hydeland". Through quest completion you slowly unravel a twisted plot relating to certain Hydelandians, and their involvement with an ancient relic known as the "Dragon's Crown". It is this Dragonic crown that also doubles as the game's title. As a hired adventurer it is your job to get to the bottom of the lost relic's mystery, and put an end to the troubles bothering the people of Hydeland. In order to do so you will need to interact repeatedly with the small cast of unusual characters found within the game's world. Your actions, reactions to certain tasks that are asked of you along the way will change the outcome of the story (slightly/monumentally) as well as add to the quests that are made available to you throughout your playthrough. Your job as a hired hand is to fulfill all requests, and tasks that are asked of you (with the exception of a few multiple choice events) as well as complete the story that unfolds via your every interaction. This of course is done through repetitive character dialogue interactions as well as the clearing of creature, and boss infested locations.

As most of you know by now "Dragon's Crown" the game is meant to be a co-op experience. Whether you go about it with accompanying AI companions, or have other players join in you'll find that the overall experience is more tolerable in the company of three additional players/characters. Since it is a co-op heavy experience you'll find that the game relies greatly on the company you choose to take with you. You'll find that you are able to go solo, or that you can also leave character slots open for offline/online allies to join in. By opting to leave an open invitation instead of assigning resurrected AI adventurers you will be able to to have other online gamers join in on your quests/requests later on in the game. Keep in mind that the online options are only made available towards the end of your first playthrough, just before you confront the final boss. After that you can join others, or have others join you as you see fit.

With, or without the aid of online companions you will ultimately play through a total of 9 stages during your initial "NORMAL" playthrough of "Dragon's Crown". It is after this initial playthrough that the online options will finally be made available to you. During the last stretch of the game following the completion of the final 9th stage you will be sent back through the initial 9 stages to gather talismans for a final boss encounter. In order to gain the talismans you will need to take the alternate "B" route which was made available after stage 9. Each stage has their own "B-Route" at this point which will lead to an entirely new boss battle. These bosses are worlds harder than the ones you first encountered, so keep that in mind when taking them on. After successfully obtaining all 9 talismans, and defeating the final boss you will be able to start a new game in "HARD". This will obviously be more difficult of a playthrough, but with your well equipped adventurer, and stronger AI/Online allies you should stand a fighting chance. Following your completion of "HARD" mode you will unlock an even more difficult setting known as "INFERNO". It's this "INFERNO" mode that will definitely test your skills the most in "Dragon's Crown". The reward for daring to play "INFERNO" mode is that you can increase your character's level/rank cap to "lvl.99". In "NORMAL" mode your level/rank cap is "lvl.35", so this is definitely a goal to shoot for. 

The in-game world of "Dragon's Crown" features a virtual cornucopia of options for the six available character classes. Each class of character whether it's the arcane (boob heavy) Sorceress, the muscle bound Dwarf, the agile Elf, the masculine Amazon, the knightly Fighter, or the long haired Wizard all have their own unique in-game capabilities/abilities. The melee class characters such as the 'Fighter', and the 'Dwarf' rely mostly on their brute combat strength to deal damage to their onscreen foes. The Armored 'Fighter' can wield in his huge hands both a shield, and a sword/axe with which he can dispatch, or defend against enemies. Disarmed he can also use his armored fists as a deadly weapon to effectively deal damage. Like the 'Fighter', the 'Dwarf' can also carry a weapon (namely an axe). His attack damage however doesn't come solely from his melee strikes, but also from explosives that he carries in a satchel as well as item boosts that enhance his attacks/defenses. While the 'Amazon' sort of falls into the same category as the 'Fighter', and the 'Dwarf' her attacks are entirely unique. Unlike her male counterparts though the strength of her attack damage is based on combined strikes, and the application of a single use item called "War Paint". The more she attacks a creature the higher the damage that is inflicted. Of course the 'War Paint' amplifies her damage output as well by creating clones of herself that also attack the onscreen enemies.

The two magic users (Sorceress/Wizard) on the other hand are physically weak as one would suppose, but at the same time they are strong with their available magic spells/attacks. While the two magicians are of opposite genders they both have basically the same abilities. For example you'll find that both the Sorceress, and the Wizard possess the ability to animate certain things. The wizard is blessed with the power to turn crates into living tree allies while the Sorceress will animate the remains of fallen warriors which are randomly scattered amongst the stages of the various locations. Aside from that both the Sorceress, and the Wizard can use limited use spells to deal damage to multiple enemies, or even heal/protect allies. According to the game both the Sorceress, and the Wizard are reserved for expert gamers.

Lastly you'll find that the 'Elf' is in standalone class of her own. While she does deal damage with combo heavy melee attacks she mainly uses her weapon of choice (The Bow) to inflict the more substantial damage to the creatures before her. Her quiver which contains a limited amount of arrows can be refilled by defeating the enemies you shot them with, or by collecting extra quivers that are contained within crates. Like the rest of the characters available the Elf can use earned skill points to gain new skills which will benefit her when in battle. Skills for each individual character come in two upgradeable varieties. In one menu you can upgrade character specific skills, and in another menu you can upgrade universal skills, known as "Common Skills". After you play a little ways into the game you will unlock an area called the "Adventurer's Guild" in which requests can be taken on, and skills can be upgraded after you've successfully cleared a stage. Clearing a stage within the game requires that you kill all of the creatures within including the final boss. In doing so you will be rewarded skill points with which you can learn/upgrade skills at the Guild as well as obtain spoils (weapons. shields, attachments) which you can "Appraise" for a fee, and attach to your chosen character for in-game use.

Skills within the guild menu appear in the form of artistic Tarot cards, and will benefit each character in a select variety of ways. The 'Fighter' for example can learn/upgrade destructive sword based attacks, and can even improve on more defensive perks such as the "effectiveness" of his shield. The "Common" skills which every character can use will improve on things such as the effectiveness of the food/health items you consume ("Nutritionist"), or even turn collected gold/loot into health ("Wealth to Health"). Without spoiling too much more I will say that there are plenty of skills to learn in both the character specific skill menus as well as the common ones. Most of the skills can be upgraded up to 5 times, or more. Keep in mind that each characters' skills will mostly be used to add beneficial damage/resistance output to attacks, and defenses (with the exception of special attack skills) especially when it comes down to the character specific skills. Being the upgradeable system that it is obtainable skills will add a good bit of replay value to your playthrough/s, and allow you to create the perfect adventurer.

Being the RPG experience that it is you'll find that "Dragon's Crown" includes all the familiar upgradeable attributes (HP, LP, MGR, ...), and interchangeable equipment options that such a genre would have. The attributes of each character basically level up as the character gains experience. Leveling up, or gaining experience within the game is mostly based on your earned score which is tallied up at the end of a completed stage. This score measurement takes in account all the treasure, and hidden loot you were able to acquire during your stage playthrough. Not only will gathering treasure increase your odds of leveling up further, but killing enemies will also add to your final results. This collective score will be tallied up with other end of stage bonuses (Kill Boss w/o Dying, Don't Take Damage ...) for a final score, and attribute leveling. Other methods for gaining experience, and leveling up include the completion of Guild "Requests" which also serve as means to unlock gallery art within the game. The world of Hydeland is overflowing with lucrative opportunities. Taking advantage of such options is a must if you hope to defeat the game's final boss, and the creatures that are contained within the more difficult stages.

One thing you should know about the weapon, and equipment obtained through the treasure chests within the stages of Hydeland is that they come in a variety of different strengths/durability, and that they often times include bonus perks of their own. The weapon/equipment system in the game goes by an alphabetical order that a lot of Japanese RPGS (JRPGS) utilize these days. This system ranks the weapons/equipment alphabetically (S, A-E) based on their overall effectiveness. The "S" rank weapons/equipment are of the highest quality, and usually contain multiple additional effects (HP+, Resistance To Elemental Attacks, Resistance To Enemy Types ...) that will benefit the character in some form, or fashion. The "A" ranked items are second best to the "S" ranked ones, and also have the potential to include added effects. As you go down in alphabetical order the equipment grows weaker, and is often times void of additional bonus effects (with some exceptions). You'll also find that the attachable weapons/equipment/accessories found in the game have a certain durability, and must be repaired at the proper in-game shop for a fee otherwise they will be rendered useless on the battlefield.

Loot gathering plays a huge role in character development since it makes otherwise unattainable weapons/equipment available to you, and your created character/s. Oddly enough though gathering loot, and hidden treasure within the confines of the game's stages is not as simple as just walking up to a treasure chest, and clicking a specific button. Each character in the game has with them a thief named "Ronnie" who aids in such tasks. Ronnie has a very specific set of skills which allow him to unlock/reveal things. In order to control Ronnie's actions you will use a finger pointing cursor that is assigned to the movements of the "R. Thumbstick". By placing the colored hand shaped cursor on doors, chests, or sparkling hidden items you can click on them, and have Ronnie unlock/expose what is hidden. The more hidden items to be found are displayed onscreen as sparkling icons are located mainly in background objects, and will only become noticeable if you pass the cursor over them. As such waving the hand/cursor over an entire area is definitely the ideal thing to do, especially if you aim to gain the highest score possible, and gain access to the better equipment.

Another interesting in-game feature pertaining to characters is the ability to resurrect bones that you gather from the stages of Hydeland. These bone piles, or remains can be taken to the "Canaan Temple" where a priest will in turn either bury, or resurrect the fallen adventurer at your request. By choosing to resurrect a recently deceased character you can have them accompany you during your playthrough/s. Resurrecting, or burying fallen adventurers can be applied to both AI/offline skeletons as well as created online gamers' skeletons. Once resurrected you can have them accompany you as AI allies regardless of their online origins. Having additional allies will definitely help in the completion of more difficult areas, and you need to keep in mind that as you level up the bosses you have previously fought against also level up in difficulty. You should also note that like your own equipped characters, lost adventurers also have certain skills, and weapons/equipment to use in battle. Choosing who to resurrect, and who to bury greatly depends on how beneficial they'll be for you in battle scenarios. As I said before, there's definitely more power in numbers, and keeping that in mind will do you good.

You'll also find that some dead characters/bone piles within the game leave hints as to their burial/resurrection preferences via a thought bubble that holds their final remarks. It's best to not only pay attention to that, but to also look over the characters skills, and equipment before deciding on whether, or not to bury them. If you do choose to bury a fallen adventurer you could possibly inherit a special item as a token of their appreciation, so definitely keep that in mind. All bones found within the locales of Hydeland have with them a final remark floating above their rotten corpses. These final comments can range from the more ironic to the insanely silly. Even the character's names can be humorous at times. Take for example, the Lvl. 19 Dwarf named "Jesus" that I resurrected. Upon bringing him back to life I got a very funny response saying, "Ha! Ha! Thanks!". Speaking of which, all characters will thank you in some dialogue driven manner as well that reflects their overall gratitude for your kind/selfish act. The same applies to the preset dialogue that online gamers assign to their character creations. Like item purchase in the game (via certain shops) the resurrection prayer/process will require some exchanged money for the service.

Lastly, but certainly not least I'd like to go over the character creation process. When you first get into "Dragon's Crown" you'll find that you are able to choose one of six character types who are all sitting at a pub table making merry with one another. These previously mentioned characters (Fighter, Sorceress, Dwarf, Wizard, Amazon, Elf) all have a set of customizable options that are both character specific, and universal in nature. You can take on any of the available options in any order, but first on the list is their 'Name'. Naming your Dragon's Crown adventurer is not as straightforward as you'd imagine though. Sure, you do have to come up with a name that fits within the letterbox, but the way in which you can create the name is definitely unique to this particular game. Atlus/Vanillaware has saw fit to not only let the gamer create a unique name, but they have also incorporated some letter altering options as well. You can adjust the height, width, and even the angle of the letters contained within your newly created name. No matter what your character's name ends up being it can be shown with added flair.

Along with the naming options comes the actual appearance changes that can also be chosen. For example, each character has a select number of uniquely titled color palette swaps that can be applied for added in-game personalization. Some characters have more subtle changes that alter their appearances in a slight way such as with hair color, or outfit color changes while characters like the Dwarf, and Elf can change skin color. In this way you can make your creation a more personal one when setting them up. Another interesting character customization option is the voice option. Currently there's only two voice types to choose from including the more traditional English, and Japanese languages. With the free DLC that comes out on launch day though you will gain additional "Narration" options including character specific voice overs.The game is originally set to a male narrator's voice similar to the one found in Konami's "Castlevania: Lord of Shadows" series.

Lastly you'll find that the developer has added a set of quotation customization options that coincide with the character resurrection dialogue/text interactions within the game. There's a quote that goes along with the event of a resurrected adventurer joining your group, a resurrected character quote for the ally selection menu (appears when your cursor crosses over the character's avatar), a quote/response from the resurrected adventurer after the resurrection process has been completed, and a quote from fallen adventurers that are displayed in a quotation above the character's skeletal remains. I had tons of fun coming up with things for my characters to say. In fact I even used some LOTR (Lord of the Ring) quotes for my Elf who just so happens to be named "Legolass" (Lol!). While you can get as creative as you like there are some limits to what your character can, or cannot say. This includes the blocking of inappropriate words, and an actual quote length limitation.

Now onto the Online discussion ...

Online in "Dragon's Crown" is an entirely different experience than what most online games offer these days. When you first get into the game you will not be able to access the online options though. As odd as this is, Atlus/Vanillaware has seen fit to add this feature just before the final quest for the talismans during the final stretch of the game. In a way it is fitting since the bosses you will encounter are much stronger than before, and having AI allies alongside you won't really cut it during these particular encounters. Having stronger player controlled allies will definitely benefit you more in the long run. As such I found this end of the game online feature to be quite the ingenious add-on.

Another unique addition to the online co-op options is the ability to gather the remains of actual gamers' characters during the stage playthroughs. As with the fallen AI remains you can choose to either resurrect, or bury the collected skeletons at the "Canaan Temple". When visiting the priest for a resurrection prayer, or burial purposes regarding your newly collected gamer creations you will notice that their quotes are intact as well as their online ID, their equipment, and their skills. Most of the time it will benefit you greatly to resurrect these player made creations, but keep in mind they can be quite pricey to revive.

During my online playthrough I did notice a little lag, but it was nothing game breaking. I also took note that a lot of the gamers who I joined up with, and who joined me were either fellow journalists, or Japanese gamers. It was cool to be able to gather the remains of fallen Japanese created characters as their dialogue was also written in Japanese script. I imagine the language differences will be the same for European countries as well. One thing to keep in mind when joining online gamers, or allowing online gamers to join you is that the enemies, and bosses will be worlds stronger than the were before. You'll also find that you are more likely to die before, and during the boss battles in an online scenario.

Something else interesting that I should share with you is the fact that once you reach the last stretch of your gaming playthrough you will find that not only do you encounter the stronger enemies, but that the enemies you come across are also more numerous. Traps, and and other stage features will also change making your once easy playthroughs all the more difficult. Even boss battles will be ramped up in difficulty. All of this comes into play within the offline, and online modes of the game during the last set of requests. Before I conclude the review I should also mention that in order to turn off the online options you will have to restart the game. Each time you initially reach the magic gate (transport), or stable you will be prompted/asked whether, or not you wish to take your game online. Your choice at that point will determine whether, or not online allies can join you for the duration of time you remain in the game. If you want to go solo with an AI party tagging along be sure to assign them during your Tavern setup, and set the "Join" option off (press "TRIANGLE") as it will keep online adventurers from intruding on your playthrough. Keep in mind that the "Tavern" acts as your starting hub as well as your ally access point, and save point within the game.

Aside from co-op gameplay, and general online interactions you'll find that Vanillaware has also incorporated their love for exotic meals within the online portion of the game (Think "Muramasa: the Demon Blade", but on a grander scale). If you choose to continue your adventure online after defeating a boss instead of opting to return to town you will be taken to a meal cooking mini-game called "Camp". Camp is basically a cooking site with a vast assortment of exotic foods, and spices laid out upon a large table with pots, and pans assigned to each individual player. The goal of this mini-game is to add food to the frying pan, or pot, cook it, place it on your tin plate, and eat it with the utensil provided. By doing so your character will gain additional stats which will come into play the next round. This act of stat boosting is called "Extending" within the world of Dragon's Crown. That is why you'll see some equipment that boost certain stats after "Extending". In a way the "Camp" mini-game is a competitive event in that it will show the end results in a leaderboard fashion listing the total stat boosts gained by each player.

For those of you who are seeking out online friends to join in there is an option for doing so. Towards the end of your initial 9 stage playthrough you will unlock an accessible in-town variation to the Magic Gate transporter. This alternate method of traversing the locales of Hydeland is known as "The Stables", and for a fee you can choose to use the stables instead of the Magic Gate portal to go to your destination of choice. Thanks to my friend, and fellow journalist @ZQuestion I was able to find out that by waiting in the stable area of town you can actually allow only friends to join in. While it will set you back some gold coins it's nice to have allies you personally know along with you for the adventure.

Now onto the verdict ...

There's definitely plenty of of things to occupy your time with in "Dragon's Crown". Whether your online gaming with random players from across the globe, playing offline with a band of AI adventurers, completing requests, advancing the story to finality, or leveling up your character/s as much as possible you'll find that nothing is set in stone, and that you are free to do as you wish, when you wish. For all those trophy hounds out there you'll be glad to know that there's plenty of interesting trophies to gain, and for all those art enthusiasts out there you'll find that the game is a living/breathing George Kamitani masterpiece which contains additional art that can be unlocked through Adventurer's Guild request completion.

In short this game can be as lengthy, or as quickly completed as you desire. A full (All Character Completion) playthrough, should you choose to make the most it, will give you an impressive total of 120 hours worth of gameplay. It definitely tops a lot of other RPGs in the marketplace both past, and present. I highly suggest you take your time, and enjoy everything that the game has to offer. In doing so you will not only get more out of the experience, but you will also get your money's worth out of it. As of today it is still not too late to pre-order a copy for the purpose of getting that limited edition "George Kamitani" artbook. The US release date is (August 6, 2013). Unfortunately for those in Japan though the release date has already come, and gone. I highly suggest you pre-order the game before it is too late, so you can get that art book. It's all about the art my friend!