Dragon Quest Builders

After hearing it mentioned on the Oct 12th Podcast that Dragon Quest Builders has a free demo on PS4, I had to give it a try.

It's quite a bit longer than I expected, but it stops right when things are picking up so it's definitely given me the itch to play some more. It hits the nostalgia beats HARD, especially if you played the original Dragon Warrior I back on the NES. Lots of places and plot points are mentioned, and if you remember anything from that game (especially the ending) you'll have an idea what's going on here.

I was in a bit of a silly mood playing it, so I decided to do my best (or worst, depending on who you ask) impression of the Battleblock Theater guy reading out the game's narration (there's no native VO). In typical Dragon Quest form, the script is wildly over-dramatic ("Only you have the power to Build and save civilization!")

If I had a billion dollars, I'd definitely pay to have that guy do the whole thing!

From what I've played so far, it doesn't feel like a full-priced game, but with the amount of content it seems they're going to put into it, I might just pull the trigger. The main thing holding me back is the lack of Multiplayer.

Has anyone else given it a try? What did you think? Did you find all the secret stuff spiced around the island?

I picked it up on release and have been playing it pretty steady the last couple nights. So far I am really enjoying it. The massive world, DQ nostalgia, and Minecraft style building gels really well together. Looking forward to putting some more time in tonight to see if I can wrap up the first chapter.

I've put about....15 hours into the game already. I just finished the first town. Based on what I've read there is 5 towns/chapters and then also some free play modes. I really love the game and certainly think it's worth it. The demo is just a taste because it doesn't even give you the hammer which opens up metal and wood working items.

Once you finish a town you move on to the next one and basically have to start over in health and items, but you keep the knowledge you gained(including some sword skills).

I only put in about an hour on Tuesday night, and have been itching to get the time to play more! I very much enjoyed what I have seen so far and am excited to see what else is in store.

One thing I ran into that bugged me: I accidentally dropped my first blueprint in the wrong spot (targeting is not a strength of this game...) and couldn't figure out how to pick it back up and move it. Wound up just building the workshop there, but it really irked me.

I played a demo, loved it, ended up purchasing the full thing, didn't get a chance to actually play it. Planning to play much more this weekend.

I've played maybe 5 hours so far, really enjoying it. Targeting is the only downside, as mentioned above.

Farscry wrote:

I only put in about an hour on Tuesday night, and have been itching to get the time to play more! I very much enjoyed what I have seen so far and am excited to see what else is in store.

One thing I ran into that bugged me: I accidentally dropped my first blueprint in the wrong spot (targeting is not a strength of this game...) and couldn't figure out how to pick it back up and move it. Wound up just building the workshop there, but it really irked me. ;)

Just tear it down an rebuild it after completely the quest. You 'lose' points but get them right back when it's finished again.

Farscry wrote:

One thing I ran into that bugged me: I accidentally dropped my first blueprint in the wrong spot (targeting is not a strength of this game...) and couldn't figure out how to pick it back up and move it. Wound up just building the workshop there, but it really irked me. ;)

hah! Same thing happened to me. I don't think you can actually pick them up again, but after I completed the quest I just razed it and rebuilt it where I wanted it. FWIW, the buildings don't actually have to be built exactly as the blueprints outline, they just need to contain all the items the blueprint lists.

There is a way to pick them back up, I've done it in the demo but don't remember how.

Anyone know if the demo save file carries over to the full game?

merphle wrote:

Anyone know if the demo save file carries over to the full game?

Sadly no. It goes a lot faster when you can skip through dialogue, though.

Speaking of which, if you go into the game settings and change dialogue speed to 1, it instantly fills the box when NPCs talk. It's nice.

How does it compare to say....Portal Knights?

Wrapped up the first chapter, and didn't realize there were several "secret" challenge objectives. That's cool, gives some replay value. The challenges unlock extra goodies in the free build mode.

The chapter finale was pretty cool:

Spoiler:

The big golem battle was interesting enough in that you don't fight it with regular weapons, but rather use bombs you built to attack it.

And the added quirk of having it attacking your village instead of your character was surprisingly effective. "NOBODY THROWS ROCKS AT A CHURCH IN MY TOWN!" *rage*

Seriously, I was more motivated to protect my village than I normally am to simply defeat a boss. That was surprisingly effective for making me buy in fully to a boss fight!

Starting into chapter 2 is intriguing. I do wish there was an in-game world map to reference; I never got a good sense of what ground chapter 1 covered other than knowing it's the Cantlin region. Chapter 2 is Rimuldar, which benefits from having a fairly distinct layout in the town's vicinity.

There is a world map.

Spoiler:

It's in a treasure chest in a cave on the side of an island, IIRC.

Sorry I can't remember more specifics.

Guys, this game is so much easier now that I can actually understand what people are saying! Now that I'm reading it in English, I can understand by the Japanese was so incomprehensible. Even the English is this weird mix of "archaic" speech and teenage slang. Now I feel less terrible about my Japanese skills! Haha!

I'm really loving this game. The opening town is obviously a tutorial area, but the game really starts opening up once metal-working becomes a thing. I find that I miss the precision of mouse-control when I'm trying to do something that would have been trivial in Minecraft but is difficult with targeting in DQB.

Despite this, I really love the cartoony art style and it's been a lot of fun to play DQ4 on my 3DS while I play this. So many call-backs to the original games. It really hits the zen building note that Minecraft had, but with just enough direction to give the game some structure.

For any DQ or Minecraft fan, I'd recommend it without hesitation.

I played this a bunch this weekend, I'm still in the original town but just got metal smithing unlocked.

Two things I learned, if you place a blueprint down and want to move it, press the touch pad while near it and there will be an option on the rigth side of the screen to remove it. Second once you get your charge attack you can use it while mining, makes getting ore SOOOO much easier.

Finishing up the second chapter, and this whole chapter has been dealing with status effects so I'm really curious what that means the boss will be like.

Coldstream wrote:

For any DQ or Minecraft fan, I'd recommend it without hesitation.

And if you like both, then this game is pretty much a must-buy in my opinion. I like Minecraft and love Dragon Quest, and this game is just a relaxing and engaging joy to play. I was worried it would merely be Minecraft with a Dragon Quest skin on top of it, but it really is an effective blending of the two games.

Just made it to chapter 3, still having a blast. I really like how everything changes between areas so you never know what to expect.

Spoiler:

The Condor was a much easier fight than the golem, at least for me. I looked up a video ahead of time to make sure I knew the "gimmick" to the fight, plus I gave up on trying to stop my town from being leveled.

I'm just about to wrap up Chapter 1, and really love it so much. It's a perfect, low key way to end my day. As others have said: DQ and Minecraft fans should definitely check out the very substantial demo

Chapter 3 is downright brutal. I've died more times than the previous two chapters combined.

Spoiler:

I starved to death multiple times until progressing the story enough to unlock a cooking recipe. (Succulent Cactus Steak! Yummy!) Very little in the way of materials to make either healing item, and I died multiple times during the first big monster attack on the town. The giant black scorpions were hitting hard enough to kill me in one or two hits, pair two together and then add two more for serious fun. All three of my townspeople went down fighting.

This game is super relaxing, I love it.

It took me an unreasonably long time to figure out the "right" way to set up a Watering Hole in chapter 2. Yowza, that was a bit finicky.

Still totally loving the game. It's far better than I ever imagined it could be.

I'm at the end of Chapter 1. Agree with others that it's a really relaxing game. It's not without challenge, but the fact that quest progression can be done in your own time means that I can just spend an hour building a rooftop picnic area (it's gorgeous )

My primary criticism is the combat. I never feel like I can hit enemies consistently. I'll often swing for a hit and the the next swing misses though it doesn't seem like either moved.

Bonus is that my 12 year old is also loving it and we're getting to be excited together.

I finished up chapter 1 yesterday, still loving it, but I do agree combat is it's weakest link, I ether swing and a miss or run directly in the enemy and take damage.

Fastmav347 wrote:

I finished up chapter 1 yesterday, still loving it, but I do agree combat is it's weakest link, I ether swing and a miss or run directly in the enemy and take damage.

I run into this problem constantly because I can never accurately gauge the attack range of my weapon. Getting better at it, but definetly not the game's strongest aspect.

Having trouble in chapter two, making a watering hole. I suspect the issue is the water source. I had a water crystal from when I first started the chapter, used that to make 10 blocks of water, but even with all the other stuff she mentions the room remains an empty room. Any wisdom for the weary?

Blind_Evil wrote:

Having trouble in chapter two, making a watering hole. I suspect the issue is the water source. I had a water crystal from when I first started the chapter, used that to make 10 blocks of water, but even with all the other stuff she mentions the room remains an empty room. Any wisdom for the weary?

Go back and talk to the quest giver and they will tell you exactly what you need to make the room register. I seem to recall you needed a fountain or something in the pool as well, but maybe that's later on.

Blind_Evil wrote:

Having trouble in chapter two, making a watering hole. I suspect the issue is the water source. I had a water crystal from when I first started the chapter, used that to make 10 blocks of water, but even with all the other stuff she mentions the room remains an empty room. Any wisdom for the weary?

That one was a pain in the butt because it was poorly explained in game.

You'll use the water crystal that was originally in your town, and it needs to be down on the same level as the water. You should actually (just to be on the safe side) make sure there are twelve "blocks" of water in the room, and make sure that the room is "flat" and that the door is on the same level as the surface of the water. I made the mistake initially of having a room with a lower level for the pool.

I haven't gotten any in-game time the last few days, left off late-ish in Chapter 2. I'm eager to continue when I can though, possibly tonight!

Thanks Farscry. I believe the door is one block above the water level.

Chapter 2 boss: ouch. This one's going to take some doing!