We're big fans of the preposterously titled Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below, which released back in 2015. Crafted by Omega Force - the studio behind the all of the Warriors games - it melds the role-playing elements that you'd expect of a Dragon Quest title with typical Dynasty Warriors action. The result is an accessible, charming action RPG that's a lot of fun to play - and it seems as though its upcoming sequel won't be any different.
The more predictably named Dragon Quest Heroes II launches later this month on PlayStation 4, but if you want an early look at it, there's a playable demo out right now on the PlayStation Store. Keen to see how the sequel compares to its predecessor, we nabbed said demo and smashed monsters until our thumbs ached. As you can probably tell from the title of this article, we came away reasonably impressed.
For those who haven't been keeping up with the game (it released in Japan last year), Dragon Quest Heroes II thrusts its established gameplay into a more open setting. Environments aren't completely open, but large maps are yours to explore at your leisure. The demo emphasises this point by giving you access to the cheekily named Greena Pastures, a chunk of land populated by colourful creatures.
Immediately, the open space and the ability to wander around without constantly being thrown into combat conjures a sense of adventure that the first game lacks. Instead of simply moving from one battleground to the next via a map, you now travel from location to location, fighting monsters, stumbling across treasure, and completing side quests as you go. It's a change of pace that could end up working especially well.
The combat hasn't been tampered with too much, but a slew of new characters should at least keep things feeling somewhat fresh. Basic combos are incredibly easy to pull off, while holding down R1 opens up your current character's special moves. Seeing big damage numbers pop out of your enemies as you unleash your most powerful techniques is still super satisfying, and coup de grace finishers are still a sight to behold.
At this point, we don't see any reason why Dragon Quest Heroes II shouldn't be able to better its predecessor. As long as its open environments don't outstay their welcome and combat retains its edge, this should be a thoroughly enjoyable adventure.
Have you given the Dragon Quest Heroes II demo a try? Embark on a journey into the comments section below.
Comments 12
yeah i played the demo and it was fun, can't wait for the full game to be released
I watched my kid play the first game for an hour and I played the demo for 10 minutes last night, and neither has seemed like a mosuo game to me like I was expecting. I'm sure there will be more interesting battles to come, but so far I haven't seen the dozens of enemies on screen at once like In other games I've played - Hyrule Warriors, Gundam, Samurai Heroes.
I'll play them both at some point, I still like DQ, but I'm still expecting 50 enemies at once at some point, just not sure I'll ever get it.
Looks like Link...
Sounds great!Loved the first so will definitely love the second,no demo needed to convince me.
Oh snap, I forgot a demo was just released. Looks like I should download it and give it a shot.
Added to my DL thank you PS!
@ShogunRok Downloaded the demo and played it tonight and I love it. I am looking to pick it up here in a few weeks I just have one question how is multiplayer being handled? Is it online only, online and couch co-op?
Already downloaded the demo, will play it tonight.
I'll have to play the demo. Loved the first one on PS4, and still wish the original Dragon Warrior game will be re-released, as I don't have an NES that works anymore. Up until then, I'm still curious about Dragon Quest Builders, but since I absolutely can't stand Minecraft (except I loved the Minecraft Story Mode game), but like Terraria, and I've heard that Dragon Quest Builders is like Minecraft, it's a waiting game to see if it's worth it for me.
@JLPick I can't stand Minecraft either apart from Story Mode but Dragon Quest Builders is an amazing game!It has the same feel as an old Dragon Quest rpg apart from the fact you are building stuff (obviously).it has a proper story,funny dialogue and some hilarious characters that all give you plenty of side missions.
I find Minecraft boring and tedious but I spent at least 60 hours just on the main campaign of Builders
@Tasuki I think it's online co-op only.
@Wazeddie22 Thanks, will definitely check it out!!!
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