Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age Definitive Edition for every platform! (including Xbox Game Pass)

[Paulando]

No, I totally get it. I think I played it not long after Breath of the Wild and the stiff movement and restrictive environments were pretty jarring, then you get a horse and it’s no better.

 

I mean yeah, it’s an old-school JRPG with some modern spit and polish, but the beautiful and pretty open-looking environments suggest otherwise. Made me want more.

[deerokus]

4 minutes ago, Paulando said:

No, I totally get it. I think I played it not long after Breath of the Wild and the stiff movement and restrictive environments were pretty jarring, then you get a horse and it’s no better.

 

I mean yeah, it’s an old-school JRPG, but the beautiful and pretty open-looking environments suggest otherwise. Made me want more.

It's like saying Manchester City aren't as good as the Kansas City Chiefs.

[Paulando]

1 minute ago, deerokus said:

It's like saying Manchester City aren't as good as the Kansas City Chiefs.

How is it?

[deerokus]

Because they're so different but there's some very distant shared DNA.

[ZOK]

Just now, deerokus said:

It's like saying Manchester City aren't as good as the Kansas City Chiefs.

All games are simply pastimes, why do you think they can’t be compared? Halo is a better game than Frogger, and I wouldn’t start crying if someone made the observation.

[Kayin Amoh]

What the fuck has this thread become

[ZOK]

15 minutes ago, Kayin Amoh said:

What the fuck has this thread become

If you don’t like my thread, don’t post in it! 

[Calashnikov]

As I understand it, DQ XI is supposed to be like some big anniversary celebration of a series that is defined by its pure distilled JRPG simplicity. People love this shit. There’d have been riots in the streets of Tokyo if they took theee Big Trad Daddy JRPG and turned it into some all-singing, all-dancing BOTW-style open world physics sandbox.

 

This excellent Mark Brown video goes some way to explaining how Dragon Quest, and the JRPG in general, came to be, and why they are the way they are:

 

 

“a distillation of a distillation of a distillation” 🧐 

 

It’s all very fascinating.

[ZOK]

I’ll watch that I think. I am quite enjoying it, all in all.

[Laters]

Started this the other day as it's free with Plus. Seems rather charming so far.

Watched a little bit of a review vid, and the guy mentions it's the sort of game people would play for 30 mins after taking a bath each night. Just something to chill with and enjoy the story before hitting the sack. 

 

Disappointed with the combat when I compare it to Elden Ring though...

[BitterToad]

Well look I’m 25 minutes into Dragon Quest XI and so far it’s a massive disappointment. The shooting is nowhere near as good as DOOM Eternal, the driving leaves a lot to be desired compared to Burnout Paradise and puzzles wise? Well, it’s no The Witness let’s say that. I don’t seem to be able to make the boy sleep with prostitutes and then run over them to get my money back? Like, I’m all for “traditional” but what am I even playing this for if there’s no seamless transition from planet to space? 
 

Absolute shite so far. 

[KRP]

22 hours ago, Calashnikov said:

Po faced? The auld yin gets rumbled with scud books ffs

That’s true, there is a lot of good character stuff, and watching some reviews I am looking back on it quite fondly now. 

Not sure I can put my finger on what my beef with the game was, maybe it was just too long in the end? I couldn’t face the third act in the end. 

[KRP]

1 hour ago, BitterToad said:

Well look I’m 25 minutes into Dragon Quest XI and so far it’s a massive disappointment. The shooting is nowhere near as good as DOOM Eternal, the driving leaves a lot to be desired compared to Burnout Paradise and puzzles wise? Well, it’s no The Witness let’s say that. I don’t seem to be able to make the boy sleep with prostitutes and then run over them to get my money back? Like, I’m all for “traditional” but what am I even playing this for if there’s no seamless transition from planet to space? 
 

Absolute shite so far. 

tbf you can sleep with a sex worker 

[ZOK]

10 hours ago, BitterToad said:

Well look I’m 25 minutes into Dragon Quest XI and so far it’s a massive disappointment. The shooting is nowhere near as good as DOOM Eternal, the driving leaves a lot to be desired compared to Burnout Paradise and puzzles wise? Well, it’s no The Witness let’s say that. I don’t seem to be able to make the boy sleep with prostitutes and then run over them to get my money back? Like, I’m all for “traditional” but what am I even playing this for if there’s no seamless transition from planet to space? 
 

Absolute shite so far. 

I’m sure you intended that to be very pithy and amusing, but it just comes across like you’re a hysterical fanboy who has had the game you’ve decided to take as your waifu cruelly insulted.

 

I know it may come as a surprise, but it is entirely legitimate to criticise games that share look, feel and mechanics, even when they are not two copies of exactly the same game. Let’s look at what I wrote that has got you all in such a frenzy:

 

21 hours ago, ZOK said:

Yes, it’s nice music but there’s like three minutes of it.

 

I found the home village section a bit annoying - I want to go exploring everywhere like in BOTW but you just can’t jump properly - here’s a fence you can jump, and next to it is a fence you can’t jump, same height. Why? Nobody knows!

 

Then I got on the horse and it was again impossible not to compare it unfavourably with BOTW again. I’m going to give it another go tonight but it feels like not the sort of game I’m going to enjoy, mainly because I’ve been spoiled by the best and they seem so similar.

 

Now, like it or not, but that does not mean I’m comparing an rpg with an fps, or the other leaden comparisons you and Pete are laboriously making. I’m comparing two simple things that you can do in two very similar games. BOTW does these things well, this game does not. Perhaps if you couldn’t jump around a 3D environment or ride a horse in it I’d be making an unfair comparison - but I’m not.

 

Please understand, I’m not saying you’re no longer allowed to cuddle your Gemma pillow at night as a consequence - it’s a good game, and I’m having fun with it. But I am comparing it to other games that exist, and it’s not as good as some of them, sorry.

[BitterToad]

2 hours ago, ZOK said:

I’m sure you intended that to be very pithy and amusing, but it just comes across like you’re a hysterical fanboy who has had the game you’ve decided to take as your waifu cruelly insulted.

 

I know it may come as a surprise, but it is entirely legitimate to criticise games that share look, feel and mechanics, even when they are not two copies of exactly the same game. Let’s look at what I wrote that has got you all in such a frenzy:

 

 

Now, like it or not, but that does not mean I’m comparing an rpg with an fps, or the other leaden comparisons you and Pete are laboriously making. I’m comparing two simple things that you can do in two very similar games. BOTW does these things well, this game does not. Perhaps if you couldn’t jump around a 3D environment or ride a horse in it I’d be making an unfair comparison - but I’m not.

 

Please understand, I’m not saying you’re no longer allowed to cuddle your Gemma pillow at night as a consequence - it’s a good game, and I’m having fun with it. But I am comparing it to other games that exist, and it’s not as good as some of them, sorry.

I tried to get that old man and the ninja girl into a Tetris line but it simply didn't work and they're both still there so I have decided to return Dragon Quest XI. 

[ZOK]

1 minute ago, BitterToad said:

I tried to get that old man and the ninja girl into a Tetris line but it simply didn't work and they're both still there so I have decided to return Dragon Quest XI. 

Mate, do yourself a favour and give it up. This is patter is piss weak, honestly.

[Gabe]

4 hours ago, ZOK said:

I’m sure you intended that to be very pithy and amusing, but it just comes across like you’re a hysterical fanboy who has had the game you’ve decided to take as your waifu cruelly insulted.

 

I know it may come as a surprise, but it is entirely legitimate to criticise games that share look, feel and mechanics, even when they are not two copies of exactly the same game. Let’s look at what I wrote that has got you all in such a frenzy:

 

 

Now, like it or not, but that does not mean I’m comparing an rpg with an fps, or the other leaden comparisons you and Pete are laboriously making. I’m comparing two simple things that you can do in two very similar games. BOTW does these things well, this game does not. Perhaps if you couldn’t jump around a 3D environment or ride a horse in it I’d be making an unfair comparison - but I’m not.

 

Please understand, I’m not saying you’re no longer allowed to cuddle your Gemma pillow at night as a consequence - it’s a good game, and I’m having fun with it. But I am comparing it to other games that exist, and it’s not as good as some of them, sorry.

I'm not sure many people would say they have similar mechanics just because you can jump and ride a horse, especially given the relative importance of those actions in each of the games; not so much in DQ, where traversal is just to get you from plot point to plot point, whereas it is very important in an open-world game where a lot time is spent navigating the world and, as such, needs to be more engaging for players.

[ZOK]

That’s why they are similar mechanics, not exactly the same mechanics. One thing puts me in mind of the other and draws an unfavourable comparison.

 

It’s really not that controversial.

[Quest]

That Square-Enix were able to demake the entire game with a top-down, pixel-art style and more or less keep the entire thing intact does give away that DQXI is essentially a thirty year old game playing out with a veneer of modern presentation. That's not a flaw to me and I love it for what it is, but I don't think ZOK's being unreasonable to feel that it often tantalises the player with actions that can't be performed and landscapes that can't be traversed in the ways a player might expect of a game these days.

[ZOK]

And again, I am having a lot of fun with it. I got to the bit where the opening credits roll and was tempted to get the credit card out, but I think there is loads of the demo left yet.

[meatbin]

  

On 25/10/2022 at 14:52, ZOK said:

...getting yourself in an internet tizzy over nothing.

 

On 25/10/2022 at 17:36, ZOK said:

If you don’t like my thread, don’t post in it! 

 

[Vorgot]

I play this to death for a while, then put it down, then pick it back up again. Currently working though Act II, completing the Defeated Monsters list, doing quests and levelling up.

 

It's like putting on a comfy pair of slippers. It's such a traditional JRPG and I love it for it. 

 

Act I is very linear, Act II is a bit more open, you can do stuff in any order you want it seems so far. Don't get the BotW comparisons, they are very different games. Action RPGs v traditional turn based RPGs, they are very different beasts. Love them both, but expect a very different experience from them

[b00dles]

I think the DQ games are great and I really enjoy their nostalgia trip aspect but with some great QoL and aesthetic improvements. 

 

I've played so many of them and/ or spin offs that all those level up musical stings, or battle victory etc are really stuck in my brain. 

 

I also think that's another reason I like yakuza LaD so much, what with all the jrpg (and DQ) nods.

 

Weirdly, it was probably this one that cemented it, I must have played a lot more of them than I fully realised on zsnes or what have you.

[Vorgot]

31 minutes ago, b00dles said:

I think the DQ games are great and I really enjoy their nostalgia trip aspect but with some great QoL and aesthetic improvements. 

 

I've played so many of them and/ or spin offs that all those level up musical stings, or battle victory etc are really stuck in my brain. 

 

I also think that's another reason I like yakuza LaD so much, what with all the jrpg (and DQ) nods.

 

Weirdly, it was probably this one that cemented it, I must have played a lot more of them than I fully realised on zsnes or what have you.

 

I've got the fanfare set as my ringtone (God help me I'm 50). Going to start DQ Builders 2 shortly, and am still working through 7 and 8 on the 3DS. As I said, its comfort gaming!

 

[b00dles]

5 minutes ago, Vorgot said:

 

I've got the fanfare set as my ringtone (God help me I'm 50). Going to start DQ Builders 2 shortly, and am still working through 7 and 8 on the 3DS. As I said, its comfort gaming!

 

I'm playing dq builders 2 at the mo myself

 

I even installed that musou one before I realised what it was. 

[Vorgot]

7 minutes ago, b00dles said:

I'm playing dq builders 2 at the mo myself

 

I even installed that musou one before I realised what it was. 

It’s one on my wish list as I enjoyed both the hyrule warriors games. Needs to be cheap though

[ZOK]

As I’m now a Dragon Quest expert, I can state with some certainty the best Dragon Quest game is Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime.

[b00dles]

50 minutes ago, Vorgot said:

It’s one on my wish list as I enjoyed both the hyrule warriors games. Needs to be cheap though

I'm assuming you aren't on PlayStation as it was included in the premium plus thingy recently, which is why I installed it to have a look. 

[Vorgot]

13 minutes ago, b00dles said:

I'm assuming you aren't on PlayStation as it was included in the premium plus thingy recently, which is why I installed it to have a look. 

 

I am on PS5, but don't have premium plus, too many other games to play at the moment

[b00dles]

46 minutes ago, Vorgot said:

 

I am on PS5, but don't have premium plus, too many other games to play at the moment

Furry muff. 

I already got the dq DS games out of the way at release so it was a pleasant surprise to see those dq games on plus. 

 

I'd been meaning to get dq builders 2 after spending an inordinate amount of time making a stupidly long mine cart ride which took at least 11 minutes (iirc) to travel the length of in the original. 

 

I've got a horrible impending sense of doom that I'll do it all over again but even longer and more unnecessary in this one.