I adore monster-catching games. I think more than any other aspect of games, I really like it when I get to use the abilities of the things I’m fighting against. It’s one of the reasons the Nintendo DS-era Castlevania games have such a fond place in my memory, and the pinnacle of this is the monster-catching genre. Of all of the games in this genre, the Dragon Quest Monsters (which used to be Dragon Warrior Monsters) stands out as a highlight from both a nostalgic perspective, and that we’ve not seen the series in the West in a very long time.
I almost feel like Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince was made for me specifically. While it’s not everything I wanted it to be, it does an excellent job of putting the monster catching and synthesising at the forefront of the game, and it’s also just really nice to have voice acting throughout, especially when compared to some other frontrunners in this genre.
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince kicks off with a cutscene showing you the history of Psaro, your protagonist for this game who is also the antagonist for Dragon Quest IV, and a mainstay end-game monster from Dragon Quest Monsters itself. For long-term fans, this is a great to chance to find out more about this cursed boss, but that doesn’t really play into my feelings on the game. I’m happy for those it matters to, though.
This does mean that, for me at least, aside from the general plot to beat up his dad, it’s kind of hard to identify with Psaro because he’s just sort of a nothing, which isn’t helped by his ongoing silence through the game. There are cutscenes where you get more backstory, and it’s touching enough, but the game is really just about making silly monsters fuse together into sillier monsters.
Monster breeding is what I’ve coming here for, and it’s this that Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince nails. I’d have liked a better story and better visuals, sure, but I really just want to spend way too much time smashing monsters together.
As you go through the game you’ll unlock tournaments to take down, which are basically how you check how strong you’re getting, and lots of regions you’ll unlock, each of which has hidden items and a small storyline that ties into the overarching narrative. Plus, each of these regions actually has four versions, because the seasons constantly change as you’re adventuring in The Dark Prince.
Each of the seasons changes not only the map – special points on the map become available or unavailable depending on the season – but the different monsters that you’ll encounter as well. It’s a good way to encourage going back to regions, and I’m a big fan of it.
Monster synthesis feels a lot more straight-forward, and a lot more fun now too. You still choose two monsters to put together, but you now have multiple options for that outcome to choose from, and you can see the rank of the resulting creation, so you can tell when you’re actually getting a stronger monster and climbing that power ladder. Plus, monsters can have three skill trees, and you get to choose which ones to give the offspring – they not only get half of the points that have been invested in any they inherit, but also half of the points that haven’t been spent too. It makes mixing monsters you love with ones you’ve only just caught a lot more rewarding.
