If you were looking forward to an action-packed side-scrolling beat'em up with RPG aspects, then look no further this game has it all. Guys and Girls, the game I am referring to is absolutely awesome and looks visually stunning too. If you are a semi-old school gamer and had the opportunity to play side scrolling adventure games such as "D&D: Shadows over Mystara" This title is definitely worth picking up. I am talking about non other than the highly anticipated "Dragon's Crown" Atlus' side-scrolling adventure action game that is available for purchase on the Sony Vita and PS3 consoles.
Having played 10+ hours I can say there is enough depth and character combinations that make this game a diamond among today's arcade offerings. Choose from 5 playable character classes: Fighter, Elf, Sorceress, Dwarf or Wizard each with it's own style and game play with enough talents and shared traits to make the game not so overwhelming and simple enough to pickup and play regardless of which level of gamer you are. The game play is mainly action beat'em up based which involves combos and skill sets to assist in your adventures. Loot rewarded from treasure chests and boss battles is instanced between players so it eliminates the "ninja looters" from multiplayer games.
Multiplayer is also enjoyable and is unlocked after progressing through the first part of the game, this ensures that all players will have access to all zones and allows players enough time to gain familiartiy with their chosen class before teaming up with others to combat the dark forces. This game has enough RPG aspects to satisfy those looking for character advancement too, characters gain levels and skill-points which can be uniquely allocated to suit the players play-style, it also will add re playability for the more hardcore players. Multiplayer is not mandatory as you can easily fill the vacant party spots with NPC players, but be forewarned that the AI is rather "blunt" and will blindly step into traps directly. I did not find this a problem on normal mode, but could see it becoming a little frustrating when attempting the higher level of difficulty levels. The story fits rather well, and presents an old-school simple feel like your older arcade games that unravels the more you progress into the game.
Graphically, Dragon's Crown has few rivals in the artistic department, if you are a fan of side-scrollers/beat'em ups and also like beautifully fluid like animations this game is a definite must play, there are some points where so much is happening on screen that the Vita may feel like it's slightly struggling with all the graphical activity but this is barely detrimental to the overall experience.
Overall, people this game is very well put together and enjoyable by players of all levels so long as you enjoy beat'em up side scroller games. I will definitely be playing this one a good deal more and would not hesitate to recommend this to RPG fans too. Dragon's Crown definitely rate's an impressive 8.5/10 in my opinion, and those wanting to pickup a copy can do so from the links below. Thanks for reading guys and girls, happy gaming and see you soon.
-C
