Dead Dragons Review

Dragons Aren’t Dead Yet

Not only have two KEMCO games appeared over the space of a couple of weeks, but they both feature the word “Dragon” in the title. On the back of Dragon Takers, does that mean we’re about to see dragons become the new cyberpunk? Well, it is difficult to say based on the appearance of two games, but here’s hoping, eh?

Now, I’m sure it will come as a shock to absolutely no one that Dead Dragons, the game we are being offered by KEMCO this time, is a retro styled JRPG, just for a change, and so the only question that remains to be answered is this: is it a game worth playing, or are you better off reaching for one of the many other KEMCO games that are kicking around on the Xbox store?

Well, come with me to a world where Dragons are not quite as dead as everyone hoped…

Retro Visuals and a Unique Battle System

You’ll discover that the presentation of Dead Dragons is very much in line with all the other KEMCO games that have come to market over the years. That means you’ll find a retro style, anime style characters and the need to go wandering around a world map/dungeon. There is absolutely nothing new here in the presentation, apart from the way the battle screen is presented. You see, here the change seems to be that the characters you control all enjoy fighting in single file, one after the other. This does look weird, until you realise that there is actually a game mechanic tied to this layout. And then it still looks odd. 

The audio is also minimal. Apart from the battle music and the various battle sound effects, that is pretty much it. You’ll not be shocked if I tell you that the narrative is also standard fare, with static characters being displayed alongside what they have to say. No shocks anywhere to be seen. 

A Dragon’s Curse: Unveiling the Story of Dead Dragons

The story is the usual kind of overblown high fantasy stuff we’ve come to know and love from KEMCO too. This time around we play as Will, a young man whose father believed that dragons were still alive and kicking, despite the fact that every last one was hunted down and killed 100 years ago. Even Will doesn’t believe in dragons, until he happens to meet one on top of a mountain, and while saving a young lady, he receives a Dragonscar on his back. 

As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Dragonscar continues to eat at Will’s life force, and the only way to get rid of it is to kill the dragon that put it there. There is an upside though, as the Dragonscar also gives Will extra powers, so not all bad! Can he be saved? Well, that is down to your choices. 

Strategic Manoeuvres

If you’ve ever played a KEMCO game, then you’ll be familiar with how Dead Dragons plays as well. However, it does come with a couple of little wrinkles that stand out. The first of these is the ”innovative Rotation Battle System”, which basically allows us to move our characters around in the single file queue they form. The positions in the queue are that of Vanguard, who is at the head of the line, the Middleguard (ran out of ideas here, I reckon) who is, believe it or not, in the middle, and finally the Rearguard, who is at the back. 

What this allows us to do is have the strongest or tankiest characters at the head of the line when an enemy attacks, as they take the most damage. Meanwhile, the front character also does the most damage with physical attacks, while the rear two positions are better suited to magic users, keeping them out of harm’s way. This actually works really well, and makes every fight pretty strategic, with the player needing to take into account when an enemy will attack and so on. 

Powerful Summons and Strategic Abilities

The second newish feature found in Dead Dragons is that of the Ruin Gauge, which when full allows Will (or other characters who you will meet on your journey) to use a powerful summon type attack for three turns, or until they die, whichever comes first. Choosing the right abilities to use when you have helpers to hand can turn the tide of the battle. On the plus side, when the Ruin Gauge attack is over, the rest of your team return fully healed… 

A Brutal Challenge

The problem with Dead Dragons though is in the difficulty, sadly. Usually, early stage KEMCO games are easily steamrollered, with auto-battle settings being sufficient to defeat early foes. Dead Dragons is an entirely different story, absolutely brutal, taking no prisoners. And this isn’t helped by the lack of anything resembling a tutorial.

As an example, I was really struggling with the third area in the game, left to poke around in the menu in an attempt to make some kind of difference. It was here where I discovered a feature called “Nurture” which allows you to spend points that you have earned in battles to upgrade various stats of your characters, be that attack or magic, healing or even special attacks. Obviously that made a huge difference, even if there is still a need to grind to get anywhere. 

And that is the issue with Dead Dragons – it is just too hard and rewards with so little that it feels like banging your head against a brick wall. I’ve played pretty much all of KEMCO’s Xbox releases, but can only really recommend this one to hardcore masochists. 

Your Links

Buy Dead Dragons on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/dead-dragons/9p9x6wh4rcl0