The Dragon Quest series is one of the most venerable RPG franchises to ever come out of Japan. The first title—also called Dragon Warrior in the States—was released in 1986 on the NES. Since then, there have been numerous main series installments, with an 11th one planned for a 2016 debut.

However, there have also been a number of Dragon Quest spin-offs over the last three decades, and that's exactly where Dragon Quest Heroes comes in. Shedding the turn-based combat of the main series, Heroes is a full-scale action RPG with an emphasis on hacking, slashing and flashy finishing moves.

The game unites Dragon Quest heroes from throughout the series' history as they band together to vanquish an army of monsters from the Kingdom of Arba.

Purists may balk at the sight of a Dragon Quest game that actually puts an emphasis on action, but if you can get past the breaking of a few RPG commandments, this game proves to be a fun diversion worth buying into.

Gameplay

As I opened up the case for Dragon Quest Heroes and saw the adorable anime faces staring back at me, I wondered how an all-ages title like this could make noise in a video game landscape dominated by military shooters, open-world epics and expansive AAA blockbusters.

After the first hour, my prediction was beginning to come true: Heroes was a simplistic action RPG with unresponsive enemy AI and weak combat.

Then things began to pick up in the second hour—I was getting the hang of the upgrade system, the combat was becoming more strategic and the villains evolved from foot-tall blobs into towering cyclopes' with the ability to wipe out my whole team with a mere swat of the hand.

By the fifth hour, I had a squad of upgraded heroes, each with unique abilities and combat skills, and we were squaring off against a world of ghouls, goblins, zombies and giants in a lush, cartoonish epic.

Square's Dragon Quest Heroes is simplistic, yet deceptively deep. It's a throwback action RPG in the vein of Dynasty Warriors, but in addition to wiping out hordes of monsters, there's a deep rabbit hole of strategy for savvier players.

Tanks, ranged fighters, mages and speed strikers fill out the roster of characters to choose from as you customize Heroes to your play style. And that's just scratching the surface of the combat—there are also spells, potions and monster medals that you can use to help you gain the advantage on your opponent. All of this works in conjunction seamlessly, and the game does a better job than most of actually teaching you the basics of everything.

The game's different features and layers open up gradually, but it won't take long to get your characters to a point where they're doing away with dozens of foes at a time with a few well-timed speciality moves.

Therein lies the big problem with Heroes, though: the hordes of villains. Each mission you take on does begin to feel repetitive after a while; you'll find yourself defending countless generators, doors and characters from the near-endless amount of villains trying to destroy them. Sometimes these hordes just don't seem to end, and you may find yourself wishing that it just would.

Heroes is for the real grinder—the type of player that doesn't mind clearing out room after room of enemies as you progress and upgrade your characters to the point of near-invincibility.

While all of the hacking and slashing might be a shock to the system for some fans of the series, the deep upgrade system still has a lot of meat on the bone for the JRPG aficionado. There are plenty of moves to upgrade (all of which are conveniently mapped out with easy controls), power-up accessories to choose from and armor to build up. The game is fairly simple if you want it to be, but if you're invested in getting the most out of your characters and abilities, the options are pretty robust.

Graphics

Dragon Age Heroes certainly doesn't look at all impressive when you first begin. You're thrown into a fairly basic dungeon with few abilities and some innocuous enemies—it almost looks last-gen. But as the story progresses and the enemies get more advanced and your finishing moves become more advanced, Heroes begins to really pop.

Towering giants and punishing special abilities fill the screen with well-rendered effects and lush details. The world of Heroes also begins to open up as the story advances, with the game's cartoonish world bringing some nice eye candy to the fast-paced combat.

Heroes never rivals the looks of a AAA title, but for what the game sets out to do, the graphics never lag behind the action on the screen.

Story

The actual plot of Heroes opens up with a horde of monsters attacking the Kingdom of Arba. You're immediately tasked with picking a main character to control: Luceus and Aurora.

As you complete objectives and take on missions, more members of your team are unlocked and you begin to unravel the mystery behind these monsters and figure out how to stop them.

Obviously the story isn't the most cohesive—it takes bits of Norse mythology with the World Tree and combines them with the Dragon Quest mythos. However, there's a lot of plot dumps, exposition and text reading that you'll be forgiven for not wanting to scroll through with a fine-toothed comb.

Still, despite the convoluted nature of any action RPG plot, Heroes moves along at an energetic pace, and the cast of characters you meet along the way is ridiculous in all the right ways. It never reaches Kingdom Hearts levels of confusion, but a degree in Dragon Quest 101 isn't necessary to enjoy the gameplay in Heroes.

Conclusion

Dragon Quest Heroes is a game that is much better than it has any right to be. By combining clean, simple combat with a deep upgrade system, Square has crafted a title that is a real change of pace from everything else on the shelf.

Heroes is bright, welcoming and completely addictive—don't scoff at the all-ages world or hack-and-slash gameplay, because this game gets more things right than its more high-profile competition.

Pros

• Tight combat • Deep customization options • Diverse roster of characters • Appropriate for multiple play styles

Cons

• Repetitive missions • Not much room for exploration • Graphics are pretty but not exceptional • Hack-and-slash gameplay may turn off fans of the series

This game was reviewed on a PS4.

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