Game Reviews

The Dragon Quest series is one of the true old souls within the realm of role-playing games, with its standard features lovingly reiterated in each release. There is always the signature art style of Dragonball creator Akira Toriyama, an expansive world with many continents to visit, and hidden treasures to unearth. There are always slimes. While the series holds firmly to its roots, down to the user interface and battle sound effects, Dragon Quest: Sentinels of the Starry Skies introduces some new twists like multiplayer and nonrandom encounters that build on those old formulas. The result is unlikely to convert those who don't already enjoy these lengthy adventures, but the game is a glowing reminder that this grand old RPG style still holds up after all these years, and fans are going to have a great time.

You are a Celestrian, a blessed being with wings and a halo who dwells high above the mortal realm. After completing an apprenticeship under your master, you become the guardian of a small village. It is the duty of Celestrians to look out for their fragile charges, keeping them free from harm and answering their fervent prayers while remaining invisible to human eyes. A calamity causes you to be thrown from your lofty home and strips you of your angel-like trappings. Now you are visible and vulnerable--mortal in appearance if not in truth--and it falls to you to explore the world below and hopefully find a way to restore your divine powers.

The character creation process allows you to choose your gender and then your overall build and appearance from a selection of options. Once you're ready to add three companions to your party roster, you can apply the same selection process to recruitment to personalize them somewhat as well. All the character art has that Dragonball flavor, but your group is truly defined by its gear. There's a wealth of different types of armor to equip that goes well beyond the tired territory of chain mail and leather boots. Fishnet stockings and high heels, T-shirts and jeans, boxers and briefs are only the beginning of a wardrobe filled with all sorts of madness. You'll have characters in full-plate armor next to compatriots with equally powerful gear that look like they should be going swimming instead. It keeps equipment gathering interesting in a way that goes beyond increasing your stats and allows you to indulge in some truly horrible and hysterical fashion sense.