Developer: Sega Publisher: Working Designs Released: 11/30/96 Genre: Strategy
Strategy games have always been my blind spot. Be it real time strategy or simulation, for the longest time I could not get into the genre. Maybe it stems from trying to play Shingen the Ruler and Nobunaga’s Ambition without the instruction manual. Those games are nigh incomprehensible without the encyclopedia sized booklets they came with. But while I grew to appreciate their strategy RPG counterparts I avoided games like Romance of the Three Kingdoms like the plague. Dragon Force gave me a newfound appreciation for the genre and is a perfect entry point in my opinion. Its spectacle and gameplay make it one of my favorite strategy games to this day.
Long ago the world of Legendra was under attack by the dark god Madruk. The star dragon Harsgalt, alongside his eight chosen warriors of the Dragon Force appeared to stop him. Unfortunately personal disputes among the Dragon Force caused them to fall apart, leaving the dragon to fight Madruk alone. After a long battle Harsgalt only had enough power to seal Madruk away. Three hundred years pass and the seal begins to weaken and now a new Dragon Force must rise to stop Madruk once and for all.
The story and setup of Dragon Force is quite unique. Although there are eight rulers they all follow the same general plot. That being said there are enough unique story events for each monarch that give back story to the many generals under your command that it is worth playing multiple times. The game is not especially story heavy until its second half once the Dragon Force has been assembled but considering the sheer number of characters and events the localization was a herculean task. Kudos to Working Designs for taking it on when I’m sure most would have passed, including Sega.
Where to begin? Dragon Force is unlike any other strategy game out there. At the start you pick one of six monarchs who each start out in a different part of the map. All monarchs begin with five generals and three castles, with the ultimate objective being to unite the Dragon Force. This basically means subjugating each kingdom. The order you do so is left in your hands, making the game different every time. The path to conquest is different depending on the character; Leon is smack dab in the middle of the continent and frequently under assault from three sides! Meanwhile Junon and Wein begin in remote areas that allow you to slowly spread outward.
What makes it so unique is that at the same time you are making moves everyone else is doing so too. The world map is alive with activity, as rulers send their generals to fight each other. If you watch you will see rulers lose castles and gain new generals regardless of your actions. In fact it is advantageous to let them battle among themselves and swoop in when it is convenient. They can’t totally subjugate one another, only you can, but it is still fascinating to see in action.
This is only one aspect of the game. After about ten minutes or so the domestic affairs portion begins. Here you can give awards or items to your generals, search and fortify castles under your command and even convince captured generals to come to your side. While it may seem tedious domestic affairs are important to making the game easier. You need to stay on top of outfitting characters, seeing who is ready to desert and ensuring their loyalty since anyone who leaves keeps everything you have given them, including levels. There is nothing worse than building up someone with 100 dragon men under their command only to face them as an enemy later.
I’ve mentioned generals numerous times. Generals are the backbone of the entire game and come in many stripes. All generals are class based, like ninjas, spirit users, and paladins. The class informs their abilities and behavior during combat. Spirit users spells focus on decimating enemy armies but they are more likely to run from a duel. Dragons and samurai excel at duels while thieves are not as sturdy. There are well over 100 unique generals, most with distinct personalities. You may not remember every face but will remember certain characters like Rudger and Gaul.
While the generals and their abilities stand out the backbone of the game’s strategy comes in managing their troops. All generals command a set of troops, be it soldiers, cavalry, zombies, and even harpies. There are ten in total with a hierarchy of strengths and weaknesses. The number of troops under their command can be increased up to 100 with awards but that is not important. Exploiting the hierarchy can enable a group of twenty samurai to take out one hundred dragons for instance. That is also dependent on your formation.
Dragon Force offers a large number of formations depending on your command level. The different options such as offense, defense, and breach will arrange your troops differently. The game will show which formation the enemy is using, allowing you to counter. Even though the number of options is not high there is enough flexibility to offer depth. No one formation is overpowered; in fact the wrong choice can be disastrous. There is nothing more embarrassing than to see ninety harpies decimated by twenty soldiers. The fact that this can happen at all shows the depth of the game’s systems.
I’ve described a bevy of features yet can still confidently say that Dragon Force still remains accessible. The game eases you in to its numerous systems and outside of probably Leon allows you expand at your own pace. It does start to feel unwieldy as you conquer most of the world and have to juggle dozens of generals and their needs. But by that point you should have a full grasp of the game’s mechanics. Once you understand it there are ways to game the system somewhat that will make life easier. My only complaint is that once you’ve beaten the other monarchs the game will take its time initiating the next events. This means multiple ten minute periods of spinning your wheels waiting for the game to move on. But in the grand scheme of things it is minor.
In Closing
Dragon Force is one of the best strategy games of all time. It is fun, accessible, has tons of replay value and is completely engrossing. If you have even a passing interest in the genre you need this game. Sadly it is hard to find and the PS2 re-release is Japan only. If you do find it at a respectable price don’t hesitate. Buy this game.
