Dragon's Crown: An Unexpected Surprise.

     For me, Dragon's Crown was the kind of game I had heard of but never really followed much. It was cool to see some of the screenshots but I didn't give the game a whole lot of thought. However, as the release date got closer and more info and video footage of the game was released my attention towards the game increased. I began to really want to know more about this game and after playing it I am very happy I did. Like the title of this review says, Dragon's Crown was an unexpected surprise.

     Dragon's Crown is available for both the PS3 and the PS Vita, and while it does not offer cross-buy or cross-play, it does offer cross-save. Although like most people, I wish it had cross-play and buy. I played the PS Vita version and in my opinion this game was made for the PS Vita. I'll get more into why I think that in the controls section. For now, let's get into the story. I don't want to spoil it so I'll try and keep it brief.

     The story of Dragon's Crown puts you in the role of one of six characters. You find yourself in a small town and learn about a magical treasure known as...well, the Dragon's Crown. Evil sorcerers want to use the Dragon's Crown to unleash a powerful dragon and destroy/rule the world. It's up to you to fight your way through various dungeons, crypts, forests, ruins, etc. and get the Dragon's Crown before the evil forces do. When starting out you will be playing alone, but can find the bones of fallen heroes, resurrect them, and have AI controlled companions to help you. Once you reach a certain point in the main story line (roughly around 8-9 hours) you will unlock a network or multiplayer mode. You can choose to have random people join your game or have friends play with you in four player co-op. 

     As mentioned above you have your choice of six different (and I do mean different) character classes. The classes are: the fighter, dwarf, amazon, wizard, sorceress, and elf. Each class has different attacks, weapons, strengths, and weaknesses. The fighter, dwarf, and amazon are your brute force melee classes. The fighter looks like a knight, wears full armor, and wields a large sword and shield. The dwarf is short and slow, but very strong and can duel wield weapons. The amazon is a tower of a woman who uses large, two-handed weapons to deal damage. The elf is quick, agile, and uses a bow and arrows as her main attacks. Up close she can deal some damage with quick melee attacks. Both the wizard and sorceress are the magic users of the classes. The wizard can unleash some massive damage from fire, shock, and ice attacks. While the sorceress can summon minions and curse enemies. Naturally, the wizard and sorceress are weakest when it comes to strength and melee combat.

     The character classes are one area where Dragon's Crown shines. The character classes play so differently it gives players a lot to re-playability. Plus, when you get into an online group with friends it's important to have a variety of classes to fight enemies. Some classes will take a bit more practice to get a hang of than others though. When you first choose your character you can customize them by selecting different color schemes and giving them a unique name. Unfortunately this is about the only true customization you can do. Yes you will find new weapons and gear, but the gear you collect isn't really shown off. It's not a huge deal, but being able to really customize your look would have been nice.

     Throughout the game you will find yourself in different locations and battling a wide range of enemies and of course bosses. You will complete main story quests and also be able to pick up side quests to earn even more xp, skill points, and loot. Speaking of loot, this game has tons of it. So if you're a loot gathering fan you'll love it. Just like any good RPG, you will earn xp and level up your character. Each time you level up you earn skill points that can be used to unlock and upgrade skills that are both specific to your class and general skills.

     Earlier I said I felt this game was made for the PS Vita and it's mainly due to the controls. Now this isn't to say the PS3 version isn't good because they are identical. For me, being able to simply tap a treasure chest to have it opened, or tap a spot to uncover a hidden item on the touch screen just works so well and seems to be easier than having to scroll the cursor with the thumb sticks. Plus the game just feels good on the PS Vita. However, there's no argument that the game looks amazing on a big screen. The control scheme is fairly easy to get a hang of, but mapping out items can take a little getting use to. Graphically the game is simply gorgeous looking. It looks like a living painting as environments, spells, and characters are detailed in vibrant colors. The game also features some nice fantasy orchestral music too.

     Dragon's Crown is a great game for any fan of action, RPG, side scrollers, and dungeon crawling games. The side scrolling, beat-em-up style fits right in with classics like Golden Axe and Double Dragon. There is a lot of re-playability with dungeons having different paths, bosses, tons of loot, and good times with friends in co-op. The only "negative" I found with the PS Vita version is when the battle gets really chaotic and there is a lot going on there are times of slight lag, but nothing that made the game bad or unplayable. PS3 or PS Vita, it doesn't matter. Get this game and enjoy it!

Final Verdict: 9/10

Written by: Alter Ego 83