The people at Square Enix decided to give one of their main RPG franchises a change. This time the role-playing takes a back seat because Dragon Quest Builders presents a new aesthetic style and a gameplay similar to Minecraft.
Along with Final Fantasy, the Dragon Quest series is one of the most important RPG franchises in Japan. From its first installment thirty years ago, the series has evolved on different consoles, handhelds, and even mobile devices. One of its latest entries is Dragon Quest Builders, a title already available in Japan since January 2016, which caught attention for its aesthetic style and gameplay with construction elements similar to Minecraft and Terraria. The adventure takes place in Alefgard, the world of the original Dragon Quest.
A Story Reborn from the Original
In fact, Dragon Quest Builders is based on an alternative ending of the first Dragon Quest: before the final battle, the hero accepts the suggestion of the evil Dragonlord, where each rules a half of the world. But that is actually a trap, and the hero is eliminated; then the world is dominated by monsters. Over time, a new hero (that is, you) appears to revive the desolate world, starting the adventure. The gameplay is Minecraft style, where players have to gather materials in order to rebuild the land of Alefgard from scratch.
As can be seen in the video, the hero stands before a field of blocks where he can build various structures based on the materials he possesses. Stone, wood, fruits, and plants are just some of the different materials you can collect to use when building. Even known Dragon Quest monsters appear, like the cute Slimes. Following the Minecraft theme, the hero has a health bar and must eat food over time to survive. For now, this game is an interesting change for an RPG series. We'll see what the final result will be. Dragon Quest Builders is being developed by Square Enix and will be available on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita starting in October 2016.
