Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter

"A hidden gem"

The basic concept of all breath of fire games has always been simple: a boy named Ryu, who also happens to have the ability to transform into a dragon meets a girl named Nina, who always sports a pair of wings. They go off on a journey and eventually they save the world after great personal sacrifice. The gameplay has always been equally simplistic, as you generally go to a town, talk to the villagers and maybe gather a few items, then it was off to a dungeon for turn-based combat that consisted primarily of menu-scrolling and tediously leveling up. During difficult encounters, the player could transform Ryu into a dragon, thus more easily overcoming the enemy. This system of gameplay is typical of console-based RPG’s of old, and the basic concept lost its originality over the course of being re-used for each of the games, despite Capcoms attempts at giving the story different twists and new angles, and including an increasing number of mini-games through the first four titles. To be utterly honest, this reviewer used to steer clear of all Breath Of Fire titles, considering them the epitome of mediocrity (well, maybe not part two...). Then came Breath Of Fire: Dragon Quarter.

Breath Of Fire: Dragon Quarter takes a tired formula and enlivens it by creating a Survival-RPG . I say this because the entire game is a race against the clock to survive-against not only those who oppose you, but more importantly, against yourself! Early in the game Ryu gains his ability to become a dragon, par regular for the series. However, this time it is very different, as his abilities come with a counter that appears on the top of your screen, beginning at zero. Every move you make, each time you call upon the power of the dragon in a battle, this counter increases in increments. Without giving too much of the plot away, Ryu is fighting for control of his own body with the dragon, and when that counter reaches 100% he loses, and YOU DIE.

“Oh, no! Will I have to restart the whole game if this happens?!!!” You may be thinking. But fear not, as there is a new system of saving incorporated in the game that allows you to return to a previous save if this happens. What’s more, you gain a type of experience known as “party experience,” that will transfer over to your previous save, allowing for more powerful characters and if you use this feature properly you can also keep the items you acquired in a special locker which will also carry over to your save (and your money carries over, too). Also, new story scenarios are unlocked, thickening up the plot of the game. And on top of all this, the plot is rather interesting this time around, but I’ll get into that and more of the gameplay elements in my scoring portion of this review. Speaking of which...

Gameplay (7/10)

The gameplay in this game is not that of a typical RPG. The enemies are displayed on-screen for you to encounter, so there are no random battles. Furthermore, the game allows you to utilize items such as traps and bait before a battle begins, thus adding an element of strategy. This element continues in the way that your characters have action points and a movement radius, similar to some strategy games. Basically, you don’t just choose an attack and let it fly, you position your characters in a way that works with your strategy, and attack in accordance. There is also another complex element I touched upon in the introduction, that being the use of an interesting system of saving that involves occasionally re-starting but more often than not restoring your game (again, returning to a previous save spot but with more experience, items and money). It is also worth mentioning that you need a Save Token to utilize the save points, and these are hard to come by. However, if you need to leave the game for any reason it allows you the option of temporarily saving the game at any time. This is like pausing, but you can turn your system off. Just be aware that once the save is loaded, it’s gone. This system is not for the casual gamer, but for one who is interested in putting in the time to learn it (this is reflected in the score). This reviewer was initially disappointed in this game due to this, and at first didn’t give the game a real chance. But once the system is learned, it is well worth it and incredibly fun.

Story (10/10)

Did I say that the typical Breath Of Fire storyline was fairly average? Well, this one’s the exception. It follows the same basic concept of the earlier titles and yet it is so much more. The story-telling is powerful and emotion-provoking, the characters are vivid and the rivalry that takes place throughout the course of the game between Ryu and another main character is both bitter and sad. To try to sum the story up here would be doing it a discredit, and for that matter it is worth experiencing for ones self. This could have been an excellent anime.

Graphics/Sound (7/10)

The graphics in this game are cell-shaded and you’ll either love them or hate them. The backgrounds are very dark to match the storyline but the characters, in contrast, are very cartoonish. The music creates a nice dark and urgent mood, however at the same time there are no tracks that really stick in one’s mind.

Playtime/Replayability (9/10)

The actual game is fairly short as far as RPG’s go, being only between 15 and 25 hours. However, the game is meant to be replayed, and rewards you for doing so, unlocking story sequences and new portions of the various dungeons you encounter. So really, the game could provide you with hundreds of hours of gameplay, or just in the ballpark of 20, depending on whether or not you’re a completionist.

Rent or Buy?

This is a tough one, as the game is definitely not for everyone. However, it is such an original masterpiece that it is at least worth trying. So I would have to say that one should rent it and if they feel it is for them, than buy it. But don’t pass a judgement on it until you give it a chance. I did, and as a consequence I almost missed out on what has become one of my favorite games.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/28/04