REVIEW: Dragon Quest VII: Fragments Of The Forgotten Past

I can’t remember the last time I sat down to spend time with a Dragon Quest title. No really, it’s been years since Dragon Quest VIII took over my life for nearly a month. The series has been experiencing a revitalization on the Nintendo 3DS with more and more titles releasing here in the west; by releasing these brilliant JRPGs here, more people get to experience the Dragon Quest series for the first time.

Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past is a remake of the same game from 2000. The original was on PlayStation and I remember the marketing for this game being everywhere in many magazines I would read. Unfortunately, I never tried playing it as even then, the release schedule of games included both the PlayStation 2 and Dreamcast coming into my home. The good thing is, this is a proper remake and the effort shows.

While Dragon Quest is immensely popular in Japan, the series never hit such highs here. The series has seen a revival here.

Those who are looking for an RPG have a good opportunity to sink their teeth into here with a game that can take upwards of 100 hours to complete. This isn’t an exaggeration either, the original was known for its run-time. If you want to get everything in the game, expect to double your playtime after that.

Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past sees our protagonist gain the ability to travel into the past. The world used to have many continents and a vastly different world to what the present is like. The hero and his party are asked to save each of the continents in the past. Each continent has a contained story that is separate from the other. With each fragment collected by the party, more of the world is unlocked.

I adored the different approach to story telling Dragon Quest VII takes on, the world and the NPC’s are given backstory. The game flourishes with is vignette style of story telling giving the game bite-sized treats with each story thread. Few of these threads overstay their welcome during the long journey in Dragon Quest VII.

The artwork of Akira Toriyama is synonymous with Dragon Ball but Dragon Quest is one of the lucky few to adapt the same style for their games.

The battle system is dated by today’s standards but the remake allowed for minor changes that benefit the game. The random encounters of the original are gone and enemies are now on screen for you to battle.

The class system of Dragon Quest VII is excellent and has become a favorite in my books. There’s much to unlock, and as well as monster classes that are variations of other jobs. It’s a solid system that’s a pleasure to unlock.

Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past is a stellar production. I was personally divided on Dragon Quest IX back on the Nintendo DS, so to be allowed to Dragon Quest VII in 2016 with a remake is great.  The genre itself will always be special to me, but there’s nothing quite like a Dragon Quest game. Just make sure to take some breaks, okay? You’re in for a journey and who knows when you’ll be back.