Dragon Quest VII Reimagined Review (Part 1/2)

Introduction:

I got into the Dragon Quest franchise right around the time Persona 5 released in the West, which means I’ve been a Dragon Quest fan for almost a decade now. Like many of you can probably relate, when you’re first getting into a game series, those first four or five games hit the hardest. I’ve been chasing the high of Dragon Quest III, IV, V, and VIII for many years now. Don’t get wrong, I enjoyed XI and the HD-2D remakes we’ve been getting. DQIII HD-2D is in my personal top 5 games of the franchise. I thought last years I+II HD-2D were fun, but overall imbalanced. The remake of DQI didn’t feel probably balanced for that games uniquely solitary protagonist. DQII was by far the better of the two games, but I still ran into moments of frustrating difficulty spikes; and this is coming from a guy who loves grinding in JRPGs.

After playing roughly 20 hours of the 3DS remake of Dragon Quest VII and 10 hours of the PlayStation original, I dropped the game twice. But the game has always lingered in my mind. DQVII is the first game in the series to not feature muscular warriors as the band of heroes. Instead, you simply play as a group of children from a small town who dream of adventure. Unfortunately, Dragon Quest VII was one of those games that begged for a strategy guide. And the 3DS version was better in that regard, but still suffered from some pacing issues and choppy visuals.

Dragon Quest VII Reimagined seeks to amend all issues with this grand tale. And as proudly declared in the title, this isn’t just a remake- it’s a reimagining.

Presentation:

For a series that’s forty years old, you would think there would be more than just six mainline games that use 3D graphics. Luckily, VII Reimagined is the sixth in that bunch. The game goes for a sort of “toys to life” aesthetic, where the characters almost seem like animated action figures. Luckily, this doesn’t come off as creepy or weird, except in the case of Keifer who many people claim looks like Matt Damon from Team America (which I kind of agree with). There’s specific instances of intense detail like the textures of protagonists hat, and wooden houses. The lighting is different in both the past and present. The past is shown in a faded, slightly brown and muted tone. The present is much brighter and therefore happier feeling.

I love the way this game looks the most in battles. Seeing these classic Akira Toriyama designs encapsulated in 3D models feels so pleasing to the eye. And again, this isn’t a very common occurance. Other than the PS2 remake of DQV, DQVII, DQIX, DQX and XI- there aren’t many 3D DQ games. One of those games I just listed was an MMO that never left Japan, and another one is a DS game, which uh….didn’t have the best graphics. So there’s really not a lot of games in the series that look this stunning (unless you’re a sucker for pixel art like me).

The music from deceased legend Koichi Sugiyama still holds up quite strong. Yes, I know he’s a controversial figure depending on who you talk to- but the mans music is integral to the Dragon Quest spirit. His compositions here are some of the most iconic within the series, and I find myself playing them in my head over and over again. Like with many DQ games, you’ll be hearing the same town theme, overworld theme, and battle theme over and over and over again- so we’re lucky that they’re this good.

This might just be recency bias or my starvation of 3D Dragon Quest speaking, but I think this is my favorite looking game in the franchise in a long time. Again, I love the HD-2D style, but this toy-like atmosphere is just so fitting for Dragon Quest VII in particular. It’s the type of JRPG that makes you want to snuggle up with a blanket and some tea.

Gameplay:

Believe it or not, this is where Dragon Quest VII was criticized the most during its initial release. It might seem odd when you consider how traditional and arguably repetitive the series is. In the PS1 original, it took roughly two hours to enter your first fight! In this newest version, they cut it down to about twenty-five minutes. There’s also an entire job class system called “Vocations” within the game. Believe it or not, it took players roughly twenty hours to even begin using the Vocation system in both the PS1 and 3DS versions which is genuinely a bit of bad design. If an RPG is built around a job system, you want to give players access to it as soon as possible a la Final Fantasy V and Metaphor Refantazio.

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Other than Vocations, DQVII features the standard turn-based combat the series has been known for ever since its Famicom debut. I would argue that the defining and unique feature of DQVII is in its “Stone Tablet” hunt. In order to proceed in Dragon Quest VII, you need to find different colored stone tablets that unlock the next area. In the original PS1 version, players could spend hours looking for the next tablet. You see, these incredibly important tablets could be hidden in any chest or nook and cranny. And while both the PS1 and 3DS version had a hint system to try and help players find these tablets, it just wasn’t very fun. It would make more sense if bosses dropped these tablets and players could find optional tablets for optional quests hidden within the world. But that’s not how DQVII was designed.

In this Reimagined version, players would have to struggle to not find these tablets. It’s much more streamlined and easy to work with. So far I’ve only had to explore blindly for a tablet once. My biggest piece of advice is don’t be in a rush. Make sure you explore every house and keep an eye out for a blue exclamation mark icon. I’m sure some purists will argue that making the tablets too easy to collect kills some of the adventure and wonder of the original game. I respect that take, but don’t personally agree since I don’t think the system was well implemented to begin with.

I mentioned how Dragon Quest I+II HD-2D felt imbalanced to me. It was mostly in DQI, but damn I’ve never struggled in this series as much as I did in that game. In DQVII Reimagined, the game feels pretty easy. Now full disclosure, I preordered the special edition which gave me some powerful early game gear, so I’m sure that’s where most of my ease comes from. It’s only been in the last hour or so of my game time where I’ve gotten to an area with threatening enemies, but I still haven’t died once so far. I know a lot of people will complain and say the games too easy, but there’s actually a lot of difficulty settings you can tinker around with. I’m playing on all of the normal settings. As somebody who has played the SNES and DS games of the series, Dragon Quest has come a long way in terms of quality of life features and difficulty. Again, some may hate this newfound easiness, but I don’t fully agree. It’s nice being able to Zoom indoors or automatically defeat foes far weaker than me. The one thing I think modern DQ screws up is death. I also noticed this in I+II remake, but with the autosaving and allies reviving upon exiting battle, death feels pointless in these games. In the older games, death was something you seriously wanted to avoid because finding an Yggdrasil Leaf was extremely hard. And Zing could be unreliable. But you don’t really have to worry about that in modern DQ games.

While DQVII Reimagined is on the easier side (at least in normal mode) I think it adds to the cozy vibe provided by the art style.

Story:

I don't want to say too much about the story here because I actually find it quite charming . Essentially, you play as a group of children who grew up in a small fishing town. This town is located on a small island in the middle of a vast empty ocean. The people of this island have tried exploring the ocean to find other islands and people to no avail. This entire planet is covered in water and only has one small island. You play as a son of a fisherman who is best friends with the local prince, Keifer. You and Keifer have a strong desire for adventure. One day, the two of you discover that maybe there actually were more islands in the world. I won't say much more than that. What I do like about the pacing of this game is that it feels quite episodic. Instead of one long singular story, you are going through multiple miniature stories, and I find that it gives the game an almost “Saturday morning cartoon” atmosphere which I love.

I think there's a part of me that understands why this game was remade think there's a part of me that understands why this game was remade twice. Much like with Dragon Quest V, there's just something about Dragon Quest VII that perfectly encapsulates the spirit of adventure and wonder.

Overall First Thoughts:

I mentioned in the beginning of my review that I have been missing the feeling I had when I beat my first few Dragon Quest games. I can safely say that Dragon Quest VII Reimagined has reignited the spark deep inside of me. I once again feel a deep magic, wonder, and love for the series. And I am so glad to be reminded why I am such a diehard fan of this franchise. I am deeply hopeful that once I dive into the vocation system that this game could honestly crack my top three games in the series. I really hope there aren't any crazy difficulty spikes or any obnoxious stone tablet hunts. I will be back with my final thoughts for this review when I finish the game.

Come back for Part 2 and my score on Dragon Quest VII Reimagined!