Customer Reviews

The Legend of Dragoon

5 star:		(253)
4 star:		(67)
3 star:		(42)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(24)

 

 

The Legend of Dragoon has a very innovative battle system that uses combination attacks called "additions". This is innovative partly because it does require constant concentration and precise timing to execute. Basically, additions allow your characters to increase the damage caused by their physical attacks. You have to push the controller buttons at the precise moment in order to execute these additions. And, do not expect to master all of the additions for any of the characters. The most powerful additions require too many timed button presses to execute reliably.

The story is fairly standard RPG material. You play as the main character, Dart. Dart is on a journey to avenge the destruction of his village and the death of his parents. Along the way, he meets up with some very eccentric adventurers who follow him on his quests for their own personal reasons. What starts out as a journey for revenge turns out to be something more significant. As the story unfolds, it turns out that what people have believed for 10,000 years may not be the actual truth. What God had in mind for humans may not be in our best interest. Dart and company travel across three nations to try and unravel the mystery.

This game is a very good alternative to the Final Fantasy series for those who love to hack, slash, bash, and cast spells. The battle system here is much better than Final Fantasy X's. This is perhaps the most sophisticated RPG for the original playstation. Playing the game in a PS2 supposedly gives the graphics a boost, but I have not had a chance to compare them side by side. I can say that on a PS2, the graphics are very good. The soundtrack sounds great and the variety is wide enough so that the game is pleasant to play for long hours at a time. I believe it took me over 100 hours to finish the game and the side quests.

If you are looking for an RPG that is extremely well designed, you have found it! Here in Legend of Dragoon, you take controll of Dart, a guy on a quest to avenge the death of his parents. I must say that the battle system is one of the best I've ever seen...period. You take the standard three characters into battle with you. They have the usual commands: Attack, Defend, Item, and Run. But The Attack command is much different. By using this, you gain access to that character's special attacks. When the boxes align right on top of the attacker, a tap of the X button causes the character to attack again. You continue until the character executes the special attack. But enemies can counter attack during this sequence. Then the lines turn red, it's a sign to hit the O button rather X to block and keep attacking. But this isn't the end. The more you fight, the more SP (Spirit Points) you obtain. When you have at least one, you gain access to yet another command, Dragoon. When you select this, that character will transform into a Dragoon. Depending on how many SPs you have, the number of turns you remain in that form is determined. In this new form, your character dons really cool armor and wings. They now only have access to two commands, but they are the best you have. The first is Attack, but it's different from before. You now have a circle on the right side of the screen with a mark on the top. When you press the X button, a light will move clockwise around the side like a clock on steroids. Pressing X when the light meets the mark will increase your power. When finished, your character will pummel the target with devistating attacks. The next command enables you to cast spells. Depending on the character and level, different types of magic are avalible. The only real problem with the game are it's graphics. The backgrounds are great, but the characters could look better, although they still look okay. Also, the spells take almost as long as the Guardian Force summons in Final Fantasy VIII. Other than that, I highly suggest this to anybody looking for an RPG with a Final Fantasy type atmosphere, yet a highly original and addictive battle system.

The Legend of Dragoon is the best RPG ever made for any game system. The graphics surpass even those of Final Fantasy VIII. The game itself has an extremely immersive storyline. After you get into the game a little, you get the ability to transform into a "Dragoon" during battle, (Similar to the "Limit Breaks" of the Final Fantasy games) Which is a warrior that has the power of a dragon. each magic spell has a cinema that is completely different from the one before, unlike Final Fantasy where each character kind of had their own little motion that they went through to cast a spell, Also there are things called "additions" that when you hit the attack button at a certain time you will unleash a devastating barrage of attacks. I reccomend this game for anyone who loves RPG's it is the best game I have ever played. It will take some doing for any future titles to even come close to what this game achieves. Did I mention that all the cutscenes have voice acting, and when you cast a spell or correctly achieve the addition that the character yells the name of the spell or addition.

Many people dislike Legend Of Dragoon, for various reasons. However, I couldnt believe the poor judgements people made on this game! As soon as I popped "Disc 1" into my Playstation, and watched the breath-taking opening scene, I knew this game was for me. The characters are beautifully detailed. From Dart, the mysterious young man, who is on a journey to pursue the Black Monster, to the lively Meru, the peppy dancer. The main villian often skips around a bit. There are shocking surprises throughout the game. The awesome looking towns, are full of Rich color. The battle system is simply unique, and you must press X at certain times, in order to execute a special move. The sound is impressive, and a few favorites of mine include the opening theme, and the World Map themes. The game expands on four Discs, with gameplay estimated up to 80 hours! The amazing plot will keep you on the edge of your chair, all the way from the beggining to the end! If you enjoyed Legend Of Legaia,or any other RPG then this game should be at the top of your shopping list...

For all those who played and loved Final Fantasy VII, here is the sequal you've been waiting for! 3D redering background graghics, and select targeting,(meaning that when you attack with your sword, whip etc. you can target the waist, arm etc.) you'll love this game! Ohh and did I forget to mention that Legand of Dragoon is made by sony. Also, the difference between FF7 and LD is that remember those limit breaks, well now you have Dragoons. This is where you transform into a monster of that certain charecter, and as your charecter and your party get stronger, you're Dragoons learn new moves. Aside from the great graphics, Lengand of Dragoon seems to [draw] you into the story, and leaves you hanging on what's going to happen next. You'll also love the cinematic scenes!

Legend of Dragoon is awesome. In fact, in my opinion, it's the only game worthy to compete with Squaresoft's Final Fantasy series.

After playing most RPGs, I think, "It needed this," or, "It could have done without that." This is most likely because after playing Final Fantasy, you're spoiled. The Legend of Dragoon, however, doesn't make me think those things, yet it's also not a mere FF rip-off.

The story, which should be the basis of all RPGs, is excellent: you take on the role of a young man (that's right, MAN, not hyperactive 13-year-old) as he tries to avenge the death of his parents. While he does this, two empires are waging war with each other and he gets caught in the middle.

The battle system is very different, combining turn-based combat with timed button presses. You can also transform into "Dragoons" and unleash powerful magic and physical attacks.

Graphically, Dragoon is up to par with FFVIII. The characters (who are realistically proportioned; no gigantic heads) move on pre-rendered backrounds that generally have a lot going on in them, which creates a realistic world rather than a still picture. The cinemas are gorgeous, and they actually have solid voice acting too!

So in short, RPG gamers give Dragoon a try. You're in for a treat.

The Legend of Dragoon is an awesome game that centers around a man in red armor (Dart) and the band of people he joins on his quest. It begins with a story of revenge for the death of his parents, but quickly morphs into battle scenes where he fights to save his friends, and eventually, a small love story works its way into the plot. Don't worry guys, it doesn't interfere the battle sequences. This game is tough in some parts, and easier in others, but it's well worth the money. You get a lot of challenging fights and you must solve puzzles in some areas to progress. The graphics are pretty good and personally, (DONT FLIP ON ME!!) I like this game a lot more than any of the Final Fantasies, except for FFX. I really liked this game a lot, and I own over 400 games for PS, PS2 and PC. This game is addicting, I come home and play for hours. You should get at least 40 hours of gameplay. By the way, the opening scenes made me mad the first time I played, but once you get past the beginning, you get 2 actually play the game. This game has a very involved plot, one of the better plots of RPG's. I hope this helped!

Where to begin... I have read many reviews about this game. Some reviews that I have seen build this game up with positive comments but don't do it any justice. The majority of the reviews that I have read about "Legend of Dragoon" were so harsh I wonder what makes these people RPG fans at all. I have owned this game since its release back in June 2000. I was even able to complete the game within a month or so. To be totally honest I have thoroughly enjoyed this game.

You play as a mercenary named "Dart" who is approximately 20 years of age. As the story begins war is quickly breaking out across the nation. Dart being somewhat naive hears about the arising conflict but takes it as no more than a rumor...until his village has been literally burnt to the ground. His long time childhood friend Shana is also taken captive and sent to the Hellena Prison. Dart then takes it upon himself to infiltrate this enemy fortress to get her back. Little does he know that by doing so he will have volunteered to bring an end to this war and the evil super-powers behind it.

I enjoy this game firstly for its creativity. Being an expressed fan of dragons and chivalry, I find myself easily immersed in this great game. The graphics are easily as great as those of Final Fantasy VII. The FMV sequences are breath-taking. The storyline in my opinion is very good. I enjoyed trying to figure out the many twists in the plot. That is one of the things that kept me playing...just to find out what kind of secrets the characters were hiding from one another. The battle system is quite enjoyable. Sony uses what they call an "addition" system. This where the classic turn-based RPG is brought into the real-time combat world. When your character moves in to strike the enemy you need to push the attack button a certain time to initiate another attack and so which can eventually turn into a devastating combo attack. Granted this can become tedious after putting many hours under your belt, but where would the experience of the battle be without it? Having one of your characters turn into a dragoon is much like Final Fantasy's limit breaks, but not only does your character gain immense attacking power but some impressive magical abilities. Not too mention some sweet armor.

Just about all the reviews I have read have compared Legend of Dragoon to many of Square's games. Square is renowned for their ability to produce amazing RPG's. Final Fantasy is where it all began! After nine Final Fantasy games something new (with a twist of lemon) can be a breath of fresh air to rekindle the RPG flames. I highly recommend this great game to any heart and soul RPG player.

"Legend of Dragoon" is similar to Final Fantasy games in that the battles are turn-based; involve weapons, items, and spells; and players get the option to levil up their characters for stronger attacks and more HP. On it's own, it is a fun, satisfying, and worthwile game. But it definitely doesn't hold a candle to the FF games.

Though the battle system is familiar to any RPG fan, it is the graphics that really give this game the edge. Boasting "3 years in the making, with a design team of over 100", their efforts were well spent. The battles are challenging enough, while the enemies are challenging and diverse. In terms of control, it is similar to most of the FF games, so it doesn't take long to master battles and manouvering. As the game progresses, the characters get stronger, allowing them to inflict even more damage. Overall, this is a challenging and rewarding game.

But sadly, this game is tainted by a few minor flaws. The cliched "Unlock the mysteries of the past" plot is nothing we haven't seen before, add to this the paper thin characters that we couldn't care less about. There are some technical flaws that need addressing. First, the number is items that can be carried. Why is it that you can carry 256 "Armed" items (weapons and armor) but you can only cary 32 standard items (like healing potions and cure potions, which is what you most often need)? Another flaw is that, unlike the free roaming of FF games, you are confined to the dotted lines on the world map. So there is little room for exploration. One thing that particularly bugged me about this game is that the plot is so linear, meaning that the side quests that we enjoyed with Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy 3 are not prevelant here.

But these are minor flaws, considering that the point of the game is to fight until the end to save innocent people from bloodshed. This is not a deeply involved RPG, but rather more like an action game with RPG undertones. Not bad at all.

While it's not very original, The Legend of Dragoon is an addicting and highly entertaining RPG worth playing.

Graphics 7/10: The backrounds are pretty nice and the FMV's are simply amazing, however, the battle graphics and character models seem outdated. And the designs of the Dragoon armors are pretty horrible.

Gameplay 8/10: The gameplay is basically the same as any RPG you would play, however, the battle system is quite different... it uses "Additions" where you have to press the X button at the right time to allflict more damage and complete your combo. As you progress you will gain more combos, magic, etc... The battles heavily rely on combos and attacking and magic isn't used as much as you would hope, however, it's very fun and isn't boring like many of the RPGS out there.

Music 7/10: Most of it is forgettable, however certain themes definently stand out.

Sound 9/10: Nothing to worry about... however, their is voice acting during the FMV's.

Control 10/10: Spot-on, nuff' said.

Story 7/10: It basically revolves around Dart looking for the "Black Monster" who destroyed two of his hometowns which caused the death of his parents. Along the way you'll meet up with other characters, particulary Dart's childhood friend Shana who he considers his "baby sister". Along the way, many conflicts arise and yada yada... you become dragoons, etc..... you know what I mean. It's an overall above average plot that held my interest the whole way through, however, the first disc is pretty tedious. The 2nd disc is AMAZING though. Just get past that first disc :).

Replaybility 9/10: The game is probably long enough for most of you people out there. It's 4 discs and probably will take you fairly long to beat it. The game is pretty huge... there are litterally TONS of places to go. That includes towns, castles, dungeons... etc.. The game is pretty linear but then again, most console RPG's are.

Fun Factor 9/10: Very fun, very addicting, very entertaining... what else do you need to know?

Overall 8/10: An overall above-average RPG definently worth buying. The game may seem dull at first because of the tedious first Disc... but after that, the game COMPLETELY redeems itself on the 2nd disc. I mean it, the 2nd disc is amazing. It's a very happy part of the game that focuses more on the characters personalities. A lot of things happen as well :). So in the end, I liked the game alot. At first I thought it was a piece of [junk] but once I finished that first disc and finally played through the 2nd one, I was happy as anyone could possibly be. So if you like console RPGS in general, just go get this game!