Last month, Square Enix announced a new Dragon Quest browser game titled Dragon Quest: Monster Parade which is called a “real time adventure parade” with many monsters from the series. Square Enix has released a bunch of browser games and while the business model has been well covered, how do these games actually play? Let’s take a look at Dragon Quest: Monster Parade and find out.
Dragon Quest: Monster Parade will focus on caravan adventures similar to Dragon Quest Monsters: Caravan Heart for the Game Boy Advance. The game’s story starts when the King of Dreams gathers “Caravan Masters” from around the world to send them out on a journey to find the reincarnation of an ancient shrine maiden.
Ever since he was a child, the silver-haired protagonist always dreamed of one day becoming a Caravan Master. His wish came true when the village elder asked if he’d like to take on the king’s request to find the young lady.
The goal in Dragon Quest: Monster Parade is simple, all you have to do is march your way from the start to the end with your caravan of friendly monsters who can take out foes that get in the way. Your monsters will always march in a straight line. It’s up to you, the Caravan Master, to pick them up and place them in front of incoming enemies by clicking and dragging.
Once you reach the end, a result screen will show how many monsters you defeated and any treasure acquired. This is followed by “Scout Chance” opportunity, where you’ll get to try recruiting monsters to join your caravan crew.
Similar to Dragon Quest Monsters: Caravan Heart, your caravan can only hold a certain amount of weight. Each monster in the caravan makes the caravan heavier and you can see the amount of weight taken up in the parade setup screen. Stats underneath the monsters show their health points, magic points, rarity rank, and their weight indicated on the right part of their stats.
Some of the stronger monsters will be heavier, so players have to decide on whether it’s more beneficial to have several weaker monsters or a few tough ones.
The field map consists of several stages and villages. As you explore further on the map, your caravan will encounter tougher enemies, so it’ll be important to always have a reliable party of monsters on your side.
An open-beta phase for Dragon Quest:Monster Parade will be starting on August 22nd. While you’re waiting you can watch a gameplay demo here.
