Round Up: The First Impressions Of Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince Are In

It's kinda odd that not a single website has reviewed this game yet especially when just about every other game gets reviews even if bad.

Planning to grab it sometime next year. Really wish SE would have ported DQIV to Switch to go along with this release but oh well.

I am primarily just waiting patiently for Dragon Quest XII. I adored Dragon Quest XII and I cannot wait for the newest entry. The franchise as a whole is my comfort food of gaming. The impeccable and memorable soundtrack, interesting characters, and innocence abound keeps my soul happy.

I didn't care much for the game, but seeing those positive reviews makes me want to get it.

As someone who likes DQ4 a lot, I don't get the same dark vibe here with the character design and the vibe of the trailers. I don't want to spoil anything, but if this game is faithful to DQ4...it should be dark. If the story is really in line with DQ4 I'm definitly getting this.

Glad to see the game getting good reviews though this does remind me a bit of MHS2 being a great monster collecting RPG but still having some performance issues like frame rate drops.

one of the reviews i saw said it was given the pokemon treatment not the best visuals and frame rate issues..

enjoying the demo,
but weird they didn't put more effort into the visuals, as they clearly have done with other Dragon Quest games, as that was an opportunity to get out ahead of Pokemon in one aspect.

@Joker1234 That's because there is an embargo. But it's strange that it lasts until after the release date.

@jobvd that’s because the game is not very good and they want to hide it as long as possible.

@Zeroo That is exactly what I expect. It seems to have bad graphics and bad performance.

Tried the demo yesterday and it IS for me. I'm trying not to start anything too big until Christmas, but I love DQ so this'll be going high above the backlog

So Nintendolife is now just picking random commentary from the internet for these review rounds ups now??

The demo absolutely did not click with me. I thought the seasons mechanic wasn't very clever despite the game feeling proud enough of it to show it first and foremost. I hope others can enjoy it though, it seems quality.

I’ve realised that every dragon quest game is one that will be highly overrated in review scores due to it’s legacy, so it’ll probably review amazingly and then be just okay in practice. Dragon quest music, dragon quest monster designs, they both just completely miss the mark for this to work out I think, but the voice acting was surprisingly amazing in the demo. Might give the demo another go sometime but I’m in no rush.

What is SE doing with Dragon Quest, I wonder? DQXI was MARVELOUS in every way, and it was a more demanding game than this and Treasures, and these games are technically mediocre.
It seems all their resources go to Final Fantasy, and that's a shame...

Yet another monster collecting game which gets compared to Pokemon. Wish people would understand that Pokemon didn't invent the concept of Monster collecting, and would figure out how harmful it is to go comparing these sorts of games to pokemon. Its how series like Fossil Fighters or Yokai Watch ended up dying in the West.

As for the game itself, I tried to play the demo but it didn't quite click with me. The combat seemed kind of clunky, and same with the UI for it.

@the_beaver Ehh.. XI is what made me never want to touch a main series DQ game again. I genuinely don't get how it was seen as one of the best JRPGs, when so much of it was just super generic. The music was awful, the visuals were decent, and the gameplay was like any other bog standard RPG. Story and characters were pretty much so plain that I could see where the plot was heading from hours before the huge twist unfolded.

No clue if the series has any better entries, but I'm a lot less likely to try given what I've experienced with XI.

I would love to play the game but guess what?? In Portugal they didn't deliver the game on stores in launch day. Can't say it's incompetence from square or from they delivery company. I'm really frustrated about this and I'm seriously thinking about not buying the game anymore.

I'm liking the game a lot, but "frames drop for 3 seconds every 40 minutes of play" is plainly dishonest, or the person just doesn't have eyes.

I’ve never gotten into Dragon Quest so I’ll be skipping this. But judging by the quotes in this article, it sounds like people really like it, so hopefully fans of this series end up enjoying this game.

@Zeroo After reading the article, it’s seems like a good game despite the graphics and the frame rate. So there’s probably another reason as to why they didn’t send out review codes.

This one completely flew by me. I'd love to play, but I already have so many other games to get to!

Maybe next year.

@JagGentlemann Some people are more sensitive to framerate dips than others.

It's a good game but the more you play the more negative things I'm finding, first of all the visuals and framerate are quite poor, you wouldn't expect this from the guys who made DQ11s. Then there's the combat which is now starting to feel too easy and uninteresting, 90% of fights you literally just sit there and watch them fight, there's no picking of moves to do or targeting monsters etc they just do everything on their own from attacking, buffing and healing. Finally the season changing gimmick is quite cool but I think it changes way too quickly.

I don't believe this game is better than Pokémon in any way, Pokémon is more strategic and fun to explore. I'd even rate Yo Kai Watch, SMT 5 and World of Final Fantasy as better monster collecting games.

@UltimateOtaku91 You can choose the moves one by one outside tournaments. Unless you meant that the combat gets so easy that it's not necessary to do so.

@JagGentlemann Yeah sorry I meant a bit of both as in Tournaments you can't choose moves and normal fights whilst exploring the map dont encourage you to pick moves as it's quite easy unless you fight a Large monster.

i don't know, the game looks so bad and the demo also had a very bad reception... i think this article tries to make the game better than it actually is, i wonder if nintendo life gets money from SE for this...

Would this be a good version for someone new to the series? I never got around to playing earlier editions, but it seems interesting enough.

@UltimateOtaku91 I'd say you wanna fight bosses with direct orders too, and mobs sometimes so you're not wasting MP or if you're training weaker monsters. I understand the want for harder mobs (they should've added a hard mode) but considering how much you have to grind to make the best monsters I also understand the decision to not make it an ordeal.

@Zeroo
Or maybe they want that everyone try the game cuz theres a demo for everyone and make their own conclusión if the game is worth it or not.

@johnedwin the demo alone looks better then any Pokemon on switch. & the frame rate is way more consistent

@johnedwin I'd say Pokémon Scarlet and Violet had more bugs/glitches and bad background fps but this game has bad dips normally and doesn't look great at all. I'd say Pokémon Sword and Shield has better graphics than this game tbf, whilst S/V is maybe on par but that game was pure open world whilst Dragon Quest Monsters isnt.

My guess is they didn't send out codes until launch day, which from SE is a bit odd. I do plan to try the demo at some point to see if it's for me, but likely not until sometime next year. Too many games to play already.

I'm wanting to gradually play through the "better" DQ spinoffs. So far I've played Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime and the demo of Dragon Quest Builders 2 (full game soon!). I've quite enjoyed both. I might get Treasures on the Switch eventually if I find it for very cheap.

That second to last featured comment is how I basically feel about the game.
I've tried the demo for a bit and the graphics and performance are rather poor. The aesthetic is somewhat interesting, but the textures for each area are so underwhelming. The draw distance for objects and monsters is surprisingly short. Dragon Quest XI looked amazing so God knows why they couldn't make a game like this look similar. Must be a different team.
That said, I like the monster designs and the mechanics seem fun. I do want to try capturing each monster once, so I do think I'll get the game. Just not now and certainly not for £50.
Hopefully it'll be like Three Houses and the next time the studio tries making a home console game, the graphics will improve a lot.

The demo was so repetitive and dull.

when a game is not reviewed until launch day that is always a bad sign for the game..

It overall sounds like a good game. I don't care much about graphics and while I am a little picky about consistent frame rates, I'm forgiving in that area. I'll probably pick it up much later though. I haven't been in much of a Dragon Quest mood lately. I'll see how I feel when DQ3 HD comes out.

@Joker1234 Sites were only sent copies on release day.
I suspect we won’t see any reviews for a while yet.

@Tyranexx You’re spot on.
I know a reviewer who was only given a code on release day.

I really loved the Demo.
But will wait a while, there are just too many games i want.

Great so far alot of Grinding if you expect to win at the tournaments games. Got alot of grinding now rescure the Elf girl but the skeletons need to level up more just fighting them and need to catch one of them. But the team points are two low right now. Grinding and more Grinding alot of work to level up. Now Lvl 11 but man that Elf world needs more grinding. ugh....

@Tyranexx the builders games are awesome. Treasures is really bad

Excited to have my copy come in. Performance issues are concerning, but can’t be much worse than how my copy of DQ9 is running(consistent 10-15 fps lol)

Interestingly, a lot of the criticism I’ve noticed is from folks who haven’t really dived into this type of Monster raising before. Much like the Digimon games, there’s less focus on a challenge or combat, and more just jacking up stats and filling out the bestiary. The long and short of it is, its a grindy game and definitely a very niche one. You’re not getting the quality combat you’ll get in something like SMT or Pokemon. Regardless, as someone who loves Dragon Quest and the monster raising in these games, I think I’ll have a great time.

@HeeHo I wondered. I figured if the codes were sent out earlier, we would've seen at least a few impressions before the game launched.

@Sciqueen DQB2 has earned a full playthrough after my time with the demo. I have thought about getting the first Dragon Quest Builders as well. I may eventually, though a lot of online feedback indicates DQB2 is the better experience. No real continuity either.

As for Dragon Quest Treasures, I'll need to see that one at $20 USD or below before biting. Online feedback ranges from somewhat decent to meh; apparently it's fun but simple and can become repetitive fairly quickly. Part of the reason I was considering it was it was the closest the Switch had to DQ Monsters at the time...but now we have this game.

I just got this as a birthday gift, hopefully, I'll enjoy playing it.

@Tyranexx the first builders game is still great fun but is more about the story and its split into chapters so you start a new base each time. I would play it because its different from the sequel.

I haven't played the dark prince but I will say treasures is nothing like dragon warrior monsters. You have to use the same 3 monsters because they are the only ones with abilities you need to explore the boring samey maps. They attack enemies automatically and it's a nightmare trying to get them to stop attacking enemies stronger than them because you have no control over them

"Imagine a Pokémon game with customizing any abilities to any monster"

So, a Pokémon game.

Jokes aside, I've watched a stream of someone who's already a fair bit into the game and I gotta say, this is another Monster Hunter Stories where people will throw the idiotic "issa bettuh Pokeymang gehm" around for a game that's NOTHING like Pokémon outside of the monster raising aspect. Both games also seem to be (well, in MHS' case I can confidently say it IS like this) incredibly bland, boring JRPGs without much actual depth.

It looks like a fun game. I'll pick up a copy next year sometime.

There are already reviews on Youtube channels, and they say it's a pretty good game, a worth iteration in the DQ Monsters series and a really fun monster hunting game.

@Zeroo Bullseye. It’s like gaming publications everywhere are having a giant parent-teacher conference to figure out how to soften the blow of how much the game sucks to the inevitable swarms of angry children.

I will get this game, just not now and certainly not at these prices.

It's also hard to respect a game that releases very expensive day 1 DLC that essentially makes the standard game much easier.

Pay to win DLC in singleplayer games is lame (I know there's a multiplayer mode but still).

P.S. There are way more monster catching games besides just this and Pokemon. For those unaware SMT III and V are very very good monster/demon catching games and I especially recommend them if you want a more complex and mature/dark theme to contrast the Pokemon-esque "sunshine and butterflies" theme these games typically portray.

Gotta say I'm absolutely loving my time with it! It's exactly what I was wanting from a new Monsters game

Now if only we could get that DQ 10 Offline...

@Sciqueen Hmm....I might grab the first Dragon Quest Builders at some point as well then. 2 was more recommended to me, but I might check out its predecessor's demo at some point too.

As for Treasures...I gotta say that does indeed back up the "boring and repetitive" commentary I've read elsewhere. Did you finish the game by chance? Any other aspects you enjoyed or disliked?

I do appreciate the feedback.

Tried dragon quest 11 on switch.. music was aweful, made it hard to play. Tried treasures aswell... way to kiddy and boring. I dont see myself even trying this game. Everyone said the dragon quest games are phenomenal... i dont see it.

@VoidofLight Yeah, it makes no sense to compare a new monster collecting game to the most popular monster collecting game. /s

@Crono1973 The comparisons are what killed two different series that were nothing like Pokemon. Its a hurtful sentiment to make, especially when the most popular game isn’t the only game in the category. People have called games like Shin Megami Tensei a “pokemon clone,” when SMT came before pokemon.

@KnightsTemplar try the dragon quest builders demo on eshop. Those games are amazing imo