"Everyone's gonna hate me for this..."

Please, please, PLEASE do not bite my head off. I'm only a scared 13 year old boy who has been frustrated one too many times by this game. Let me review, at least.

Graphics:

Very good. The colors are bright, the towns are detailed, and the monsters show a lot of personality. I think the graphics in Dragon Warrior 1 are better than in DW2, only because of the battle backgrounds. But otherwise, they're generally the same. I think that in DW2, there was a background for the final boss, but I am unsure.

Graphics of DW1 get a 9/10.
Graphics of DW2 get an 8/10.

Sound:

The sound is not exactly a godsend, but it isn't terrible either. I much prefer the music of Dragon Warrior 1 than to 2, especially in battle (whenever I try to play a battle, my brother screams ''Christmas Tree! Christmas Tree!'' at the top of his lungs when the track reaches a certain part - don't ask). The sound effects in both are almost nonexistent - the thwock when a staff connects and a slashing noise when a sword hits. There are extremely few tracks in either game.

Sound of DW1 gets an 8/10.
Sound of DW2 gets a 7/10.

Game Design/Play:

Uh oh. This is where both games go crashing to the ground. The biggest flaw in both games is generally you are abandoned with little money, crappy equipment, and absolutely no idea where you are supposed to go, showing especially badly in DW1. Important items are nearly impossible to find. I had to frequently use a guide to help me find key items. DW2 has the option of controlling three characters, but it doesn't do you much good, because the prince is useless and the princess gets beaten up way too much. Once you have learned the location of an item you are looking for, it is extremely easy to procure and you usually don't have to fight anything or solve a puzzle. Also, the dungeons are confusing - they loop around, there are useless passages that waste your time, and precious few treasures to find or opportunities to heal. The monsters are way too hard, doing scores of damage unless you have leveled up your characters to huge power.

Game Design/Play for DW1 gets a 5/10
Game Design/Play for DW2 gets a 7/10

Replayability:

Another unfortunately weak point, neither of the games warrant much of a replay.

Replayability for both gets a 5/10

Overall: DW1 and 2 are a nice, if not frustrating, time killer for a while, but once it has been beaten, it will be seeing some shelf time. And just so you know I'm not biased...I loved Dragon Warrior III. See ya.

Dragon Warrior 1 and 2 gets a 6/10.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/05/01, Updated 02/09/03