Blue Dragon Plus FF Tactics= cool new DS game!
Blue Dragon was a game that came out a couple of years ago on the xbox 360. It was lauded as the first decent Japanese Role Playing Game (JRPG as it will be now referred to). It was an epic journey that came on 3 dvd`s and was created by one of the creative genius’s behind the Final Fantasy series and the character creator being the Dragon Ball series of anime.
The engaging story will keep you hooked to the final cut-scene
Playing like a traditional JRPG, it reminded us all of the glory days of Final Fantasy VII, but without the random encounters and with a story not quite as engaging.
Blue Dragon was also noted for its stunning FMV cut-scenes and humour. It was also great fun, and filled the gap till the next great JRPG.
So, when Blue Dragon Plus for DS landed on my doormat, I didn’t read the blurb on the back of the box, and chucked the instruction booklet in the bin. Why I hear you ask. Well, because I had played the original Blue Dragon on 360 and being a veteran of all things RPG, I figured this would be a walk in the park.
Now the main difference to this and the original is that the original was a traditional,. Turn based affair when it came to combat. Plus on the other hand, throws a massive curve ball in that the battling is all in real time. Also at the start of a battle, the mission conditions are set out and you can move all or individual units around the battle screen as you see fit. You also find that the enemy have a very annoying habit of stealing the items from the various chests littered about the battle screen- now is it just me, or is that just not cricket.
Story wise, this game follows on from the original, and the events occur one year after the end of the first game. On the 360 the graphics were excellent, and likewise for this version. At times the screens can get a little crowded, but using the shoulder buttons to spin the screen round ensures you can pick out your characters even if they are hidden behind a large boss character.
This is a cracking little game, and suits the dual screen functionality of the DS. Many hours of happy adventuring is guaranteed, just don’t expect to have a quick go now and again. The engaging story will keep you hooked to the final cut-scene. Another minus point for you casual gamers out there is the rather steep difficulty curve…no matter how hard I tried, I could never seem to snag all the booty from any of the levels, the AI seemed to be one step ahead.
The Bad: screen can get crowded at times, dificulty level can be pretty harsh.
Silver Y Award