The JRPG Dragon Fantasy Book II continues the story started in Dragon Fantasy Book I which came out on both PlayStation 3 and PS Vita in April of this year. Unlike the first game, which was done in an 8-bit graphic style and paid homage to the Nintendo era, Dragon Fantasy Book II instead focuses on imitating the graphics and game-play mechanics the great RPGs from the time of the Super Nintendo. While there are many enjoyable and positive things to say about The Muteki Corporation’s latest offering, there are a few things that keep the experience from being everything it could be. Keep reading to see our full review.

As reported in our recent preview, Dragon Fantasy Book II picks up immediately following the events of the first game. We join Ogden and company as they continue, in classic JRPG style, on their quest to save the world from evil. The story in the game is nothing new and veterans of similar games will not be surprised by many of the story beats. Having said that, the adventure is still enjoyable and the writers use humor to keep everything feeling fresh. Like the first game, Dragon Fantasy Book II covers 3 chapters of the overall story, but this time around there is no discernible starting or stopping point for each chapter. While it is not necessary to have played the original game to enjoy the story, I highly recommend it if you have a chance. There are many references to the original 3 chapters that could easily be missed without the experience of playing through Dragon Fantasy Book I.

Not only does the game regularly refer to the story from the first game, but the game is also chock full of references, quotes, and nods to other video games, movies, and television. I personally noted references to Resident Evil, Cthulu Saves the World, Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Batman, and Parks and Rec. These references inundate the player the entire time and I am positive I missed more of them than I picked up on.

Dragon Fantasy Book II has many game-play mechanics and graphics that are very reminiscent of classic RPGs like Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VI (Final Fantasy III in the United States), Lufia II,  and Earthbound. Random encounters are out and enemies are now on the screen and battle commences when your character and the enemy touch each other. Once you get within range enemies will notice your presence and move towards your player, so if you wish to avoid combat you have to either avoid getting close to an enemy or be ready to run around them.  Enemies will chase you for a time if you run past them and if you encounter another group of enemies before they stop chasing you they will join in the fray. This can lead to some crowded and difficult battles so take care if choosing to avoid combat. I did encounter a few non-boss battles that were unavoidable and were triggered when reaching a certain part of the map, but these were few and far between. Battles are turn-based and in a direct nod to Chrono Trigger many skills and spells will only hit enemies that are either in a direct line or bunched closely together. The player’s party is limited to 4 (either characters or monsters), but it did not seem there was a limit to the amount of enemies you can encounter so attacks that target multiple enemies are extremely useful. Experience points awarded at the end of each battle serve to level your characters and as they earn new levels they will learn new skills and spells.

One of the more interesting features in the game allows you to capture almost any monster and add them to your party to use in battle.  To capture an enemy the player must first weaken them through attacks and then use either a skill or a net which comes in different levels of quality (think poke balls from Pokemon). Once you capture a monster they are either added immediately to your party (if you have less then four) or are sent away to a tavern to await the next time you arrive. Once a monster is in your party you can change their equipment, control them directly in battle, and they learn new skills as they level-up just like a normal party member.

Graphically, the game is very similar to the RPGs I listed above and the character models reminded me forcibly of the oft-forgotten Secret of Evermore. Having said that, the graphics seem fuzzy and less clean (especially when viewed on an HDTV) then the classic Super Nintendo games they are modeled after. Unfortunately, that is only the beginning of the technical issues that detracted from my experience with the game. The game froze on me several times which forced me to do a hard restart of my PlayStation 3 each time. I also encountered several issues with clipping, especially when it came to the characters in my party. This happened most often when I had monsters in my party as the regular party members would participate and move during cut-scenes, but the monsters would sit still (even if that meant being on top of another character or other object) while the scene played out. However, the most distracting issue with the game was a regular drop in framerate that occurred when entering new rooms. The game regularly stutters in these situations and it can be very frustrating especially when you are attempting to move through a screen quickly. There is also a significant amount of stuttering during battles when spell effects are used. Hopefully many of these issues can and will be fixed through patches post release.

The main campaign took me approximately 11 hours to complete (all on PlayStation 3), but with the addition of capturing monsters, sidequests,  bounties, and a brand new crafting system it would be quite easy to put significantly more time into seeing everything the game has to offer. Dragon Fantasy Book II is a very entertaining and enjoyable to game to play, but there are several issues that can cause frustration. Still, I truly enjoyed my time with the classic-looking RPG. If you can look past technical issues, then you should definitely pick up Dragon Fantasy Book II when it releases on the PlayStation Network on Tuesday, September 11th for both the PlayStation 3 and the PS Vita.

Editor’s Note:

Dragon Fantasy Book II features Cross-Buy, allowing you to purchase the title for $14.99 for both PS3 and PS Vita. During launch week, PS+ members get the game for $11.99. The game also incorporates Cross-Save and Cross-Play, allowing you start the game on the PS3 and continuing it on the Vita.

Discuss:

Will you be buying Dragon Fantasy Book II?