Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors

Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors is an exclusive title utilizes the Wii's motion-sensing controls as players use the Wii remote to slash, parry and blast their way through a land filled with trademark Dragon Quest foes.

We've been watching the Dragon Quest series on Wii since the very first unveiling, and now that Dragon Quest Swords is readying for US launch, we've got a chance to really sit down with the product, get personal with the design, and see what exactly DQ Swords has to offer both Wii newcomers, and longtime Dragon Quest fans. As you may have expected, the simplistic, Wii-mote only gameplay makes this one a great choice for the casual gamer (or future hardcore tots too young for traditional RPGs), but won't exactly offer a ton of challenge to the core DQ crowd.

Within every aspect of the game, DQ Swords is less a hardcore RPG, and more an entry level action game with RPG elements worked in. We're still pretty early on with the build (about five hours), and this isn't the time for our final review, but we can definitely see how Swords will be great for the right crowd, and a bit of a letdown for others. The entire game is handled in first-person display, including combat, exploration, and town portions. Since you're using just the Wii-mote, walking is handled with the d-pad only, and again, since it's Wii-mote only, you don't have the slick controls of dual analog or analog/IR movement found in more complex first-person games.

Since Swords is a simpler game though, it still works, minus some odd control gripes and the wish that players who do own a nunchuk could plug it in and get some added comfort. Dragon Quest Swords is based on a Japanese plug-and-play game, and while that alone could set some gamers off, we assure you it's far deeper than anything you could get with a $20 toy sword. On the design side, though, it's very similar to a plug-and-play experience, as you'll only need to concern yourself with moving forward on a set path through dungeons, branching off during key points in the level (sometimes a path will be blocked for a repeat playthrough later), and then attacking with motion controls and the Wii cursor. Since everything else is basically a vehicle to get to the battles, the fact that it's all very controlled and simplistic isn't actually a downer at all. Again, some hardcore gamers looking for Dragon Quest IX-like depth are going to be put off by it, but as a straight-up action/RPG template, DQ Swords does a much better job than games like Samurai Warriors: Katana.

We're previewed the game's controls before, but as a quick recap it basically encompasses only two buttons. With the A button, players can select any spot on the screen to use as a "target point" for their strikes. Locking in your intended starting point will decide where you stab, or how exactly your sword attacks vertically, horizontally, or diagonally during the battle. With the B button, players can bring up an IR-controlled shield. Block attacks and projectiles in the direct center of the shield and you'll score a perfect block. Let it hit the edges, however, and you'll start to wear down your equipment, later forcing you to repair or buy a new shield as chunks literally go missing from the block icon.

And since multiple party members is a must with the Dragon Quest series, Swords again simplifies things through an automated party member system. Based on settings, your different allies will either attack, heal, or defend following simple rules. You can have them cast at will, focus on a specific enemy, or use only the bare minimum items and magic to keep the team alive. Since we're down with more depth (especially since the core game is very simple and arcade-centric) we opt to use the manual control for these characters, tapping the right button on the d-pad to bring up a small control console for our selected partner. From there, a quick click will engage both light/dark magic, or initiate attacks then, and only then. It still boils down to just one added "partner" at a time though, and if that continues throughout the adventure it'll certainly be a bit too shallow for the hardcore crowd. Still, levels are kept for your main character, as well as all support fighters, so there's some strategy in who you decide to level up, and when.

Even the equipment and item management has been made easy to use for mainstream gamers, as the main character (referred to as "Blade" by the other characters) uses only direct attack weapons and standard 'soldier' equipment. That means you'll be working only with your sword, purchasing new base equipment or upgrading the weapon with gathered supplies in the forge mode, and dealing only with basic character outfitting. If an item is better stats-wise, but upgrade. If it isn't, save your cash, and wait for the game's single shop to update its inventory; it's just that simple.

There's still some choices to be had during forge mode though, as you can take different elements and combine them with weapons to create specific types of swords. I went with an ice theme, and have upgraded from a standard sword to a frost blade, and currently to a weapon called the "blizzard blade". If I wanted to use my limited assets on getting the electricity and fire blades as well, I'd simply buy more basic swords from the shop, and begin forging a new set of weaponry all over again.

Since we've now got the game in office, we'll begin going more in-depth with the story as we near the game's release. For our first actual sit down with the game though, we're having a blast, even if it is extremely simple compared to the traditional DQ experience we've been playing for years. What Swords does offer to gamers is an extremely polished product, as the music is beautiful, the whole game is supported with well executed voiceover, and the graphical presentation is some of the best we've seen on Wii, with some pretty impressive character models and smooth, beautiful animation. The game supports both 480p and 16:9 display as well.

Be sure to check back for more on Dragon Quest Swords as we near the game's release date.

This article was created in part from the excellent article at www.ign.com and we acknowledge their work.