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The Lowdown
Pros: Dragon Force is still the best title to initiate those in
strategy/simulation RPGs.
Cons: The game demands patience while you wait for battles to end, troops
to move and soldiers to train.
 Purchase
at Play-Asia
 Purchase
at Lik-Sang
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Back on the Sega Saturn is a true classic that goes for upwards of a
hundred smackers on eBay. Not Panzer Dragoon Saga, but one of the first
RPGs for the system Dragon Force. Published by Working Designs in the
US, Dragon Force was a big title for a small system base. Maybe the game
will garner the attention it deserves after being re-released as part of
Sega's Ages collection.If you never played Dragon Force before it's
one part Dynasty Warriors, one part Sim City 2000 and one part Fire
Emblem. Sounds like an odd mix for a strategy RPG, but it works in a big
way. You start out by selecting one of eight leaders who lives on the
warring continent Legendra. Want to be a master wizard then Reinhart of
Tradnor is your man? Or is being a war hungry Viking and select Goldark
of Fandaria. Along with different officers and troops, each monarch has
a different amount of starting land. The cold leader Junon is well
protected in the top right corner of the map protected by water and a
long walk to her castle. Poor Leon gets the short straw, he's smack in
the middle open to attack from all sides. Each ruler is a slightly
different experience, which gives Dragon Force a fair amount of replay
value.
Why all the fighting? Well there's a plot about a dark god called
Marduk who's going to take over all the land. There are some shrines to
seek out and the unification of the rulers in one group. It's fair for a
fantasy story, but not going to win any awards. The gameplay is what
makes this title shine. Most strategy games require a commitment to play
through. You're going to wade through menus. Sit through pages of story
text. Plus there are those hour long battles to fight. Dragon Force
really does away with a lot of these mechanics and softens up the genre.
First let's look at the battles. Each battle lasts for a maximum of 99
seconds. You have a general with your troops on one side and your
opponent with their troops on the other. As the battle begins you select
a formation for your massive army, which can reach up to a hundred
warriors. Once the formation is set you can't directly control each
troop. Instead you shout commands like move forward, retreat or pincer
attack. If you want to be active you can shout more commands or utilize
your general's special attacks. Or you can sit back and watch your army
slash through fifty dragon sprites. Either way there's something
satisfying in watching two sprite armies duel to the death.
There is depth to the system. A complex rock-paper-scissors system is
set up with each troop type to make sure no single troop is invincible.
Your run of the mill soldier is exceptional against archers and mages,
but when he's against harpies forget about it. In return harpies can't
stand a hail of fire from archers. It goes beyond just this small set of
troops. Dragon Force adds a bunch of other fantasy fighters like
horsemen, monks, samurai, zombies and dragons.
Outside of combat there's a continent to rule. By setting out units
with up to five generals you can aggressively attack other fortresses.
However, the computer isn't sleeping. Each individual continent is off
to the same goal, battling each other in the process. The world comes
alive as you watch computer controlled victories occur. In between each
seized castle requires players to refill their soldier stock. Since the
game has a set time for soldiers to become available there is a fair
amount of downtime. As you progress further in the game you'll be
waiting even longer to fill up a hundred troops for each general. This
is where the game can get a little frustrating, since there is no way to
speed up time. Time passes and weeks go by. Each week you're given a
chance to maintain your kingdom. You can give audience to captured
generals, in hopes that they will join your cause. Or spend time
searching the castle grounds looking for new items. The simulation
aspect of Dragon Force works well between the midst of battle.
Since this is a Sega Ages series we'd expect to see some improvements
over the original Saturn release. Some of the graphics have been cleaned
up. Sprites look less pixelated and there is no slowdown during battles.
Otherwise it still appears to be the same Saturn title. What Sega did
add was voice acting. It's a nice touch, but Dragon Force doesn't need
voice acting to be fun. What could have been added were new troops that
were in Dragon Force II. Or for that matter just throw in Dragon Force
II.
What you're really buying when you get Dragon Force is a classic game
that blends fast action and the strategy RPG genre. If you haven't
played this game before go out and get it. If you have played it, I'm
sure your copy is on order.
The story is in Japanese, with Japanese voice actors. Although what
makes the game so difficult for importers is that it's entirely in kanji
with no helpful furigana. Kanji based menus make Dragon Force really
difficult to even play unless you have a working understanding of
Japanese.
US Bound?
Sega of America has yet to announce any plans to bring this over and
that's a real shame.
Overall
Dragon Force remains a classic to this day. No game has ever managed
to blend strategy and the thrill of watching your line of harpies shred
through a group of soldiers.
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