It's really hard for me to look at the above cover. While hardly problematic in itself, something about this localized box art for Dragon Quest II -- Dragon Warrior II in the States -- irks me more than the one for the first, which is mighty odd considering they both subscribe to the 80's style of realistic medieval fantasy. Could it be the exaggerated chest for the Princess of Moonbrooke, or that at this point I'm far, far too accustomed to Akira Toriyama's signature artwork for the series?
Ah, yes, that's more like it. And the answer is apparent as well: as much as the NES Dragon Warrior covers attempt to present the games as no-nonsense affairs, the goofy enemies obviously suggest a more tongue-in-cheek affair, and thus it's insanely difficult imagining the American art having any agency in our imaginations. Naturally, Toriyama's art is the way to go, so let us not tarry upon such incongruities.
Anyway, Dragon Quest II is often cited alongside the original as being the two Dragon Quest classics that aged the most: while there are some notable upgrades from the archaic original (no more stairs button!), it's still mired in antiquated methods of progression bound to frustrate modern players, be they relying on vague hints from Elizabethan-speaking villagers or searching every last inch of a tiny shrine to locate a legendary trinket. Meanwhile, like most other NES RPGs, party members are guaranteed to miss attacks should their selected foe already be felled, and yes, NPCs still tend to block the inns and shops in their never-ending quest to waste our time.
Of course, improvements are improvements, and we shall begin with those. For one thing, Dragon Quest II is once again subject to localized upgrades as Dragon Warrior II, and while we hardly witness anything gameplay-related like the original (barring battery saves, as opposed to the Japanese password system), that they forged an entirely new title screen and extended opening scene is still mighty impressive for NES; both are very cinematic efforts, a manner of visual storytelling entirely absent from the first entry, and while sadly the latter doesn't extend itself as such throughout the rest of the game, that we witness Moonbrooke's actual fall makes for a compelling start.
Needless to say, Dragon Quest II doesn't feel nearly as confined or linear as the original. Yes, there's still a ton of grinding to do, but it no longer feels like the only thing you're compelled to do, and so there's much more incentive for exploration and engaging in non-linearity. True, the reliance on townspeople hints and pixel hunts may render it a tad overwhelming, but the pacing resembles actual progression as opposed to a circular grindfest, so it doesn't grow nearly as repetitive.
It's best to describe Dragon Quest II's upgrades as imbalance of positives and negatives; for instance, take the game's overall QOL. Say you're stuck in a monster-filled tower with low HP, but you don't have the MP to cast Outside, so how do you escape? The solution is ingenious and delightfully cartoonish: you simply jump off! Meanwhile, the inventory system is as outdated as ever: you can only carry one of each item, and there's precious little space in your party members' inventories.
Speaking of parties, Dragon Quest II is not a solitary affair like the original, as the protagonist's cousins join his quest to form a team. The results aren't perfect: both join at level 1 and so are easy pickings for higher-leveled monsters, and the Prince of Cannock's limited weapon range renders him all but useless by the end, but it doesn't necessarily detract from the gameplay in itself. As parties are a core feature for every subsequent sequel, it's only natural the first game including it has some growing pains, so I welcome it regardless (I also shan't spoil how the Princess of Moonbrooke joins the party, although every online summary for the game renders that practically impossible to avoid; shame, given how clever it is).
I imagine, however, it's those pratfalls that led to citations claiming Dragon Quest II is the most difficult of the series. As I'm still only midway through Dragon Quest III, I can hardly vouch for such a claim, but I can see it panning out: with only two useful party members, the inequality in combat becomes painfully obvious, with the final Rhone region being particularly arduous in having the Prince of Midenhall doing all the heavy-lifting against Green Dragons, Bullwongs and King Orcs (that, and the one-two-three punch of three different areas to traverse, although thankfully the brief overworld section includes a healing/saving shrine). And that's not even getting into the final boss and his Healall spell, which...well, the spell's name speaks for itself. Really, the point is it's hard, but not necessarily for the right reasons (as in, they're design oversights more so than a well-balanced rise into difficulty).
Thankfully, there are other things here and there that aren't affected by such processes; for instance, the music is again helmed by Koichi Sugiyama, whose dubious political beliefs rain more than a little on our enjoyment, but regardless, his score must be discussed. Given its emphasis on a party as opposed to the solitary journey of the original Dragon Quest, it's only natural it takes on a more upbeat tone. We witness this first in the playful Menu theme, greeting us with such jubilant joy that practically begs us to join in on the fun, which is reason alone for me to suspect this particular tune serves as fierce nostalgia for old-timer fans.
There are other great songs; if I must pick a favorite, it's surely the Shrine theme and how it echoes an ancient lullaby passed down through time, and I was never not hypnotized whenever I came across their isolated refuges. However, it's the contrast between the two overworld themes that interests me most: I personally prefer the original for better representing the more "active" theme of this game's score, yet there's no denying the party version complements that "musical storytelling" theme I mentioned earlier: the regal-esque feel doesn't feel as adventurous, yet it does instill a sense of completion that accompanies the rest of your journey. Attributing musical subjectivity to the aforementioned "highs and lows" thing feels off even if I think other RPGs did shifting overworld themes better (Tales of the Abyss's three overworld themes, for one, although maybe it's also not fair to compare more modern instrumentation with chiptunes), but it's interesting in the way they complement each other.
The 8-bit graphics are more or less unchanged, so I'll focus instead on a certain visual discovery that took me completely off-guard: the Sorcerer enemies. Upon my first encounter, I instantly felt a twinge of recognition, and it wasn't until I ran into them a couple more times I knew what I was seeing: Dragon Ball! My days of ritually scanning the background characters in Toriyama's manga masterpiece had paid off, and as it turns out, there's other Dragon Quest monsters who competed in the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai (there's actually another combatant who bears the same bat symbol as the Sorcerer, so I liked imagining they were a gang partaking in the tournament). As the relevant chapters came out not even two months later, I suppose Toriyama wanted to pay tribute to a game he loved playing!
To summarize, Dragon Quest II is a game that takes enough steps to be better and more relevant than its primitive progenitor, but there's enough missteps pegging it firmly within the typical frustrations of an 8-bit RPG. I'm not particularly disappointed by this -- if anything, I give it props for not falling into the all-too-common 8-bit era trap of revamping itself into an entirely different genre as a sequel, which is enough to grant it a "great" rating from me -- but much as I enjoyed it, it's difficult to recommend it to anyone other than patient gaming historians. Perhaps the remakes iron out the kinks down the road? As I won't be playing those for quite some time, I take my greatest pleasure in knowing the best is yet to come.
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