A Dragon's ReQuest

So, I've recently played a brand-new Indie RPG, called A Dragon’s ReQuest, which was made by 1 of my favorite developers, Large Battleship Studios (headed and predominantly populated by a gentleman going by Saint Bomber).  As expected, I loved it, and so, although the game did figure heavily in my last rant about the developer in a more general sense, I want to write a rant more specifically recommending ADRQ to you all.  

A Dragon’s ReQuest is a mostly linear adventure which uses the framework, narrative style, and tropes of 16-bit JRPGs, paying homage to the classics of that most formative of eras for the genre (as is probably obvious from the name),* but also standing as a save-the-world adventure in its own right.  This means that the game is a fairly large departure from Large Battleship Studios’s first couple offerings--Embric of Wulfhammer’s Castle was a non-linear and very personal story of life, love, emotional growth, and hope for its protagonist, while Quantum Entanglement is a love story minoring in psychology set against a survival-horror.  Great games, and much of what one might expect from a dedicated Indie creator (hell, EoWC was fairly formative to the very development of the Indie RPG scene!), but certainly not the classic, save-the-world fantasy ventures signature to the RPG genre.

But happily, the best traits of Saint Bomber’s style and purpose as a creator translate well to the classic RPG style.  In fact, it transitions so well to the standard adventure format that most of what I can say to praise the game is really just a rehash of the praise I’ve given to Saint Bomber’s first couple creations.  In no small part due to his remarkable tenacity for party member banter and character development, the cast is interesting, quirky, and engaging throughout, and each member maintains relevance to the story and group dynamic through to the end just as naturally in this 40-hour-game as did the casts of LBS’s previous small ventures.  The constant tongue-in-cheek RPG humor that endears Saint Bomber’s narrative style to a genre enthusiast like myself is on full display, as always, and has only all the more material to work with in a longer adventure like this.  As ever, there’s the extremely poignant emotional moments, the involving, touching, and genuine development of friendship and romantic love, and the ever-present weight of past traumas that we all carry with us in 1 form or another, signature elements that make Saint Bomber’s casts so real and fascinating.

And throughout the game, there’s that peculiar, fascinating, haunting weight in the way that its major heroes and villains interact, which is something that seems very nearly unique to Saint Bomber’s approach to writing and describing the human condition.  Something careful and subtle in the way that his creations’ words and thoughts mingle with the feelings they show.  It’s always been hard to describe this quality of this developer’s games, because it’s a certain emotional heaviness that looms over all that transpires in the game, but it’s not simply the recurring theme of psychological trauma.  Related, perhaps, but not the same thing, not strong or clear enough.

But I think I’ve finally figured out what it is that seems to forever be present in the stories that Saint Bomber weaves, and the characters that color them.  There’s a certain moment in the show The Good Place, in which protagonist Eleanor Shellstrop describes the human condition in terms of how people carry on in the face of mortality, that has stuck with me: “All humans are aware of death.  So we’re all a little bit sad, all the time.”  And that seems like a good way to describe the characters that Saint Bomber creates, only I feel like it’s not the ever-present understanding of one’s own impermanence in this case, but rather, the sad knowledge that those around one will not be there forever.  With the smiles beneath characters’ eyes that always look ever so slightly wistful or reserved, and humor and emotional earnestness always tinged ever so slightly with the echo of hurt, Large Battleship Studios titles are stories told with that tiny little sadness present because the ones that we love will inevitably be parted from us someday.  And A Dragon’s ReQuest is no exception to this signature pervading ambiance.

So anyway, yes, A Dragon’s ReQuest is great, mostly for the same reasons that Embric of Wuflhammer’s Castle and Quantum Entanglement are great.  The transition to a more traditional long, semi-linear RPG adventure format did not hinder Saint Bomber’s style at all.  And it’s a solid RPG adventure in its own right, too, with all the world-saving fanfare, complex magical lore, plot twists and complications, obstacles to be surmounted, ancient legends and heroes and villains, and other such favorite tropes of the classic JRPG.  

The game uses these conventions as a means to be a light deconstruction of the genre, too, which I also like; it makes ADRQ feel like an homage with a purpose.  ADRQ’s actually working the technical advancement of the RPG genre from its humble beginnings 8-bit beginnings to its current state into the game and lore, with protagonist Hinoki remarking at times about how simple and unremarkable the tools and abilities of ancient heroes can seem compared to the advanced abilities and resources of present-day adventurers.  Much of the game’s background and lore is eventually revealed to be a symbolic representation of the manner in which games become larger, more complex, and more impressive by building upon the innovations of their predecessors.  A Dragon’s ReQuest is not only an homage to the early days of RPGs, it’s also a tribute and light examination of the way RPGs have grown over time, which makes it especially appealing to a long-time fan who’s watched that happen firsthand, like myself.  But it’s also done with a light enough touch that a player doesn’t have to be in her/his 40s to enjoy and appreciate the game’s many best qualities, too, so that’s another point in ADRQ’s favor.

Now, as always when recommending a Large Battleship Studios title, a heads-up is in order: A Dragon’s ReQuest contains some explicit sexual content.  But you ARE given the option at the start of the game to have that content turned off, so, as with previous titles, that shouldn’t necessarily discourage you from playing ADRQ if you’re not comfortable with such things.  With that said, although explicit stuff can be turned off, the subject of sex is very pervasive (perversive?) throughout the game, far more than it was in Quantum Entanglement and Embric of Wulfhammer’s Castle--it's meant to be a part of the game's discourse. Sex is a part of the way characters express friendship, care, and love in ADRQ, as well as a way to deal with the tension and find enjoyment in the journey.

Well, why not, really? Isn’t that somewhat realistic? If we so frequently accept the ludicrous notion that all these other RPG adventuring parties go about chastely denying themselves for months on end, even as they develop crushes on each other and indulge in romance and put themselves under the most intense psychological stress of their lives, surely we can allow for a rare example of the other side of things with a much more open, and frankly probably far more healthy, embracing of sex.  Some of the most meaningful and moving scenes in ADRQ involve the characters expressing themselves sexually, in fact.  And even when the game’s being more ribald than insightful, its fanservice and indulgence usually doesn’t feel insulting or especially crass, because the characters aren’t treated like objects and it’s not being used as part of the narrative stable of tricks to entice your base human instincts into spending money.  If you ask me, an outright, explicit sex scene in A Dragon’s ReQuest just for the fun of it is still far less tawdry and demeaning to its cast and audience than some cheap PG-13 hot springs gag in a Tales of game, or the girls being harassed into putting themselves on display in bathing suits during SMT Persona 4’s camping trip, because the ADRQ girls are treated by their creator like actual human beings, who are having a good time for their own sake.

At any rate, Saint Bomber once told me that, with Embric of Wulfhammer’s Castle, he set out to make a sexy game with heart, and wound up creating a heartful game with sex--A Dragon’s ReQuest seems to be a more successful stab at that first ratio.  It rarely bothered me while playing,** and I’d encourage an open mind because it would be a shame to limit oneself enough to miss a really good RPG, but nonetheless, you’ve been forewarned on this matter.

In a related matter, I DO have to, for the sake of fairness, also make note that most of the women involved in the game’s big, encompassing romance are, well...blood-related.  Reasonably distantly, mind you!  The protagonist’s grandmother was also the great-grandmother of 2 of her love interests, which...I mean, I can’t say I love this fact, but on the other hand, second cousins and first cousins once removed (which is what this apparently is; on the plus side, I’ve finally figured out who the fuck The Great Gatsby’s Daisy is to Nick thanks to my pre-rant research for this game) are fairly safely genetically separated.  And the romances in this game, and the way they develop the characters involved therein, are really genuine and good, more than enough to warrant some open-mindedness, I’d say.  I’ve seen far more closely-related, far less worthwhile romances from certain other RPGs, that’s for sure.  Hell, considering that the game’s a big love letter to classic RPGs stuffed with references and such, the fact that these girls are mildly related might merely be A Dragon’s ReQuest’s way of paying homage to Fire Emblem.

Still, if I’m going to make fun of FE’s absolute, insatiable need to fantasize about brothers and sisters porking and make that a part of its narrative, and beat that dead horse every time the subject comes up, it’d hardly be honest not to acknowledge that there’s a hint of incest (a hintcest?) just because I happen to like this game developer better.  It didn’t particularly bother me past an initial raised eyebrow, and again, the game and the romantic interactions contained therein are great enough that I’d continue to recommend open-mindedness, but if moderately distanced relations being in love is a line you don’t cross as an audience, then A Dragon’s ReQuest won’t be your game.

Those are the biggest caveats to my recommendation, though, and I think that they won’t be stumbling blocks for, like, 95% of RPG fans.  Really, I found the fact that the sound effect for canceling out of menus is some woman saying “No” to be way more of a distracting matter than any of the adult elements, and that’s about as tiny a nitpicky complaint as they come.  A Dragon’s ReQuest is another thoughtful, emotional, fun example of Saint Bomber’s creative talents, sure to provoke wholehearted chuckles, heartful yearnings, and teary-eyed sniffles in you, that pleasantly pays homage to and even lightly deconstructs the classics and tenets of its genre.  And it’s free, to boot!  While SquareEnix and Bethesda and their like will charge you $70 for slipshod narrative trainwrecks and lazy unexamined dumpster-fodder, Large Battleship Studios is not just offering you an RPG that’s actually really good, but cheerfully giving it away!  I heartily recommend A Dragon’s ReQuest; go grab it and give it a try!
















* Although I’ll say right now, if Saint Bomber’s aim was to pay respects to and create a game inspired by Dragon Quest, then the man failed utterly and completely.  ADRQ is an RPG whose well-written cast of memorable individuals has great and perceivable depth and development, as well as constant relevance to and interaction with the plot--a plot which is thoughtful, interesting, and fun.  I can’t think of a game less like the average Dragon Quest.


** Although the giant-climbing part felt like maybe a bit much, if I’m being honest.