Early Moments of Dragon Quest 8 are Magical

Last year we took a look at Dragon Quest 7, and we loved it! It fit so perfectly on the 3DS, and with the multitude of updates, things were better than ever before. I think the same can be said about Dragon Quest 8, and while we don’t have our full review up yet – it just came in this morning – we can point to a few things!

Graphics

Graphics has never been an issue with these Dragon Quest reboots on the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. Once again, things are looking better than ever, and we even noticed a slight graphical enhancement playing on the New 3DS XL; for the record, it looked fine on my regular 3DS and my 2DS as well.

Audio

One of the finer points of the Dragon Quest series is the fantastic audio, and once again that charm is on display with this 3DS reboot. Although the original is only – ha, I said only! – just over a decade old, something very familiar, yet very different, comes at me out of my 3DS speakers. I’d have to go back to the original PS2 title to see if things have been changed. It sounds different enough to likely be the case, but yet so familiar. Regardless, the audio in Dragon Quest 8 only adds to the overall experience.

Your Traditional RPG

RPG’s today are always trying to implement the next biggest thing, but I’ve often wondered if that is what gamers really want. Dragon Quest 8 on the 3DS reverts back to the original, somewhat simplistic although still very deep, turn based combat, but after fiddling around with it for a number of hours, I begin to realize that traditional RPG titles are still very relevant today; more titles should revert BACK to this style, and could reap some big rewards for doing so.

3DS Value

In Canada, Dragon Quest 8 will release for 49.99 at retail and in the eShop, and I’m going to assume the version in the US will land between 39.99 and 44.99. Whatever price you might pay on launch day will be worth it. Not only is all the original charm from the original on display again, but you will get roughly 80 hours of entertainment for your hard earned money, something that cannot be said for numerous new releases today. If you are on the fence, peruse the internet and watch a few videos and read some more reviews and thoughts. Even if you are new to the genre, this is a great place to pick up and go!