Drakengard
Massive hands-on impressions, story and character details and over 110 gorgeous screens of our new favorite dragon riding beat-em-up.
Published: February 4, 2004
While the Square Enix merger took place quite a while ago, all of the big releases thus far from the amalgamated superdeveloper/publisher have come from the Square camp -- even Star Ocean 3, which was all but done almost a year ago, has yet to see the light of day. Finally, though the first evidence of the Enix side of things is getting a chance to shine.
Drakengard, better known as Drag-On Dragoon until it arrived here in the States (and we think the name chance, while still a little odd, is a bit less funky), is best described as Dynasty Warriors meets Panzer Dragoon meets Drakan. Presented through three distinct gameplay styles, air-to-air, air-to-ground and straight ground-based modes (the latter two of which can be toggled at any time during strafing runs), Drakengard manages to weave some interesting action into a sprawling, epic storyline.
Fantasy games aren't exactly lacking in the story department most times, nor are they particularly stodgy when fleshing out their world, so it's no huge surprise that Drakengard has quite a yarn to spin when it comes to detailing the people and places in its dragon-friendly semi-medieval universe. In fact, there's more than a little to take in and in classic Japanese adventure game style, plenty of the characters and places are rather tough to keep straight, so we'll make this as painless and simple as possible.
Caim, the young man you'll be controlling during your stint through Drakengard's realm, is a young man born into royalty. Under the Alliance, his family enjoys a decent life, and he and his sister, Furiae, are relatively well kept. This peaceful existence quickly crumbles when the Empire, once a faction of the Alliance, spins off and declares all-out war against its former leaders; while enlisted in the Empire's armed forces, Caim learns that the army's castle is under attack and his sister residing inside in danger. Critically wounded while, trying to storm the castle and rescue his sister, Caim is forced to make a pact with a similarly injured dragon. The deal bonds their souls, exchanging them between bodies, and leaves Caim's movements stunted, as well as striking him completely mute.
Now unable to speak, and handicapped, Caim must work with the dragon to unravel the mystery surrounding the Empire's turn to war. What the two soon discover only serves to fuel the dragon's hatred for mankind and their quest to become ultimately powerful through technology, and reveals that somehow his sister, the Empire, mythical seeds of resurrection and their ties to a god are stronger than anyone could have imagined. While we don't normally condone doing this, Square Enix has provided plenty of details regarding characters that we haven't yet digested, so in the interest of laying everything out, we'll give it to you as they've given it to us:
Caim
Age: 24
Crest location: Tongue
Former prince of a small kingdom that was destroyed by the Empire's mysterious power. He sacrificed his voice to save his life and make a pact with the Red Dragon. Though Caim wishes to save his sister Furiae, he is hesitant to make a pact with the same kind of creature that killed his parents. Caim has endured much brutality and hardship in his life, he is greatly embittered. Although he claims to fight for his sister's fate and to avenge his parents' death, in truth he battles to quell the anger inside him.
Red Dragon
Age: Unknown
Dragons are acknowledged by other beasts to be the supreme species. Thus the Red Dragon, though levelheaded, is quite arrogant and believes that he can destroy anything with great ease. He disdains humans for their misguided belief that they can surpass dragons through technological advancements. Despite these feelings, he is forced to make an arrangement with Caim to save his own life.
Inuart
Age:20
Crest Location: Neck
Son of an aristocrat and childhood friend of Caim and Furiae, Inuart is known for his captivating singing voice and gift for the harp. He has grown up feeling inferior to Caim, and to prove himself he often takes on duties he cannot handle. When overwhelmed, he panics and ends up not being able to do anything at all. During these times, Inuart needs something to cling to, some way to regain his footing. His fiancé, Furiae, is that support. Without her, Inuart would be completely lost.
Furiae
Age: 19
Growing up royalty and fiercely protected by Caim and Inuart, Furiae has lived a sheltered life. The only real hardship she has encountered is Inuart's instability. Nonetheless, their love is deep and they keep each other in high spirits. The once privileged girl is burdened with the appearance of a crest on her body. Everything changes, forever...
Leonard
Age: 32
Crest Location: Eyes
Even with his forbidden obsession Leonard has a peaceful heart, avoiding violence whenever possible. Faerie is contracted to Leonard and does more harm than good, ridiculing him for his weakness.
Arioch
Age: 24
Crest Location: Lower abdomen (Womb)
Having lost her husband and children to the empire, Arioch has lost her sanity. She ambles the world aimlessly slaughtering for the pure joy of it. Salamander and Undine are her contracted monsters.
Verdelet
Age: 72
Crest Location: Head
The only one who can speak to the goddess directly. Separated from the army, he is quite influenetial and is a cleargyman who speaks to make himself look good. When in danger, he reveals his self-centeredness by looking out for his own welfare.
Seere
Age: 6
Crest location: Entire body
Loved dearly by his mother he feels much guilt about accepting it wholly and not considering his sibling. He withstands any kind of violence acted towards him, perhaps somehow due to his mother's love. Still very much
a child, he refers to his contracted monster as "friend".
Exactly what relevance the above referenced crests have is something that remains to be seen, but luckily, we've been able to spend ample time with a demo that will be presumably available to the public shortly (if not already). While the game does offer plenty in the way of action, it's the RPG-based experience and character growth systems that had us all giddy. As Caim and the dragon grow, they gain new abilities and in the case of the dragon, undergo physical changes as well. Caim's repertoire of weapons upgrade in appearance as they gain experience with use, and certain weapons are more useful in different situations (though it's entirely possible and in our case usual to just blow through the game with the same weapon most of the time).
Actually changing weapons changes Caim's combos and special attacks, which also upgrade as the weapons grow stronger. Caim's attachment to the dragon and the contract they share is not unique. While actual soul-level bonds aren't common, contracted monsters are, and throughout the game, characters can be summoned and swapped out, bringing with them their own moves and contracted allies.
Settling in with the demo, we digested the two major forms of combat in the game, a short air-to-air battle that demonstrated the Red Dragon's ability to barrel roll, pull quick 180s, and lock onto multiple targets, Panzer Dragoon-style. The dragon's surprisingly female voice was thick with disdain for the creates that man had created (in this case, two massive single-eyed golems that could fare huge lances of energy at us). A tap of the X button would result in a short speed dash, and locking onto multiple enemies or firing off a more powerful single fire breath was as simple as holding down square or tapping it, respectively. A massive screen-filling super attack was possible once the green special meter had filled completely.
After a short stint taking out the golems, things dropped to a lower altitude and allowed us to play around with the strafing and on-ground combat controls. Tapping select allows Caim to mount and dismount the dragon at any time, though for the purposes of the demo, it was usually best to take out the swarms of enemies while on dragonback. Tapping L1 or R1 would allow for quick dashes left or right (this also applied to the air-to-air controls), and hitting both would allow for a quick turn around, just as it did while in the dogfight mode. The same special attack that let unleashed dozens of homing arcs of fire in the air changed to a massive fire breath attack that looked gorgeous and leveled throngs of enemies in a single strike.
Once on foot, Caim was relatively agile. He could unleash his own special attack, though it worked best when in a crowd as part of a combo. Combos themselves were a simple matter of tapping the square button repeatedly, so the overall feel will be plenty familiar for those used to playing the Dynasty Warriors games. A tap of the X button makes him jump, and jumping attacks are as easy as combining X and square. Holding the R2 button opened up a simple to use jog wheel that allowed Caim to cycle weapons. Pressing down on the right analog stick (R3) in all modes opened up a status screen that displayed experience, mission goals and levels for all the weapons, as well as an all too handy map for tracking necessary targets.
All of the modes control more or less with the same fluidity. While the demo we played was painfully short, it was definitely enough to get us teased into wanting more. Until we get our hands on full code, you'll have to make do with the almost 80 screens showcasing everything from the games aforementioned gameplay modes to the hour-plus of CG. We'll have more impressions as soon as we get proper code.
Drakengard, better known as Drag-On Dragoon until it arrived here in the States (and we think the name chance, while still a little odd, is a bit less funky), is best described as Dynasty Warriors meets Panzer Dragoon meets Drakan. Presented through three distinct gameplay styles, air-to-air, air-to-ground and straight ground-based modes (the latter two of which can be toggled at any time during strafing runs), Drakengard manages to weave some interesting action into a sprawling, epic storyline.
Fantasy games aren't exactly lacking in the story department most times, nor are they particularly stodgy when fleshing out their world, so it's no huge surprise that Drakengard has quite a yarn to spin when it comes to detailing the people and places in its dragon-friendly semi-medieval universe. In fact, there's more than a little to take in and in classic Japanese adventure game style, plenty of the characters and places are rather tough to keep straight, so we'll make this as painless and simple as possible.
Caim, the young man you'll be controlling during your stint through Drakengard's realm, is a young man born into royalty. Under the Alliance, his family enjoys a decent life, and he and his sister, Furiae, are relatively well kept. This peaceful existence quickly crumbles when the Empire, once a faction of the Alliance, spins off and declares all-out war against its former leaders; while enlisted in the Empire's armed forces, Caim learns that the army's castle is under attack and his sister residing inside in danger. Critically wounded while, trying to storm the castle and rescue his sister, Caim is forced to make a pact with a similarly injured dragon. The deal bonds their souls, exchanging them between bodies, and leaves Caim's movements stunted, as well as striking him completely mute.
Now unable to speak, and handicapped, Caim must work with the dragon to unravel the mystery surrounding the Empire's turn to war. What the two soon discover only serves to fuel the dragon's hatred for mankind and their quest to become ultimately powerful through technology, and reveals that somehow his sister, the Empire, mythical seeds of resurrection and their ties to a god are stronger than anyone could have imagined. While we don't normally condone doing this, Square Enix has provided plenty of details regarding characters that we haven't yet digested, so in the interest of laying everything out, we'll give it to you as they've given it to us:
Caim
Age: 24
Crest location: Tongue
Former prince of a small kingdom that was destroyed by the Empire's mysterious power. He sacrificed his voice to save his life and make a pact with the Red Dragon. Though Caim wishes to save his sister Furiae, he is hesitant to make a pact with the same kind of creature that killed his parents. Caim has endured much brutality and hardship in his life, he is greatly embittered. Although he claims to fight for his sister's fate and to avenge his parents' death, in truth he battles to quell the anger inside him.
Red Dragon
Age: Unknown
Dragons are acknowledged by other beasts to be the supreme species. Thus the Red Dragon, though levelheaded, is quite arrogant and believes that he can destroy anything with great ease. He disdains humans for their misguided belief that they can surpass dragons through technological advancements. Despite these feelings, he is forced to make an arrangement with Caim to save his own life.
Inuart
Age:20
Crest Location: Neck
Son of an aristocrat and childhood friend of Caim and Furiae, Inuart is known for his captivating singing voice and gift for the harp. He has grown up feeling inferior to Caim, and to prove himself he often takes on duties he cannot handle. When overwhelmed, he panics and ends up not being able to do anything at all. During these times, Inuart needs something to cling to, some way to regain his footing. His fiancé, Furiae, is that support. Without her, Inuart would be completely lost.
Furiae
Age: 19
Growing up royalty and fiercely protected by Caim and Inuart, Furiae has lived a sheltered life. The only real hardship she has encountered is Inuart's instability. Nonetheless, their love is deep and they keep each other in high spirits. The once privileged girl is burdened with the appearance of a crest on her body. Everything changes, forever...
Leonard
Age: 32
Crest Location: Eyes
Even with his forbidden obsession Leonard has a peaceful heart, avoiding violence whenever possible. Faerie is contracted to Leonard and does more harm than good, ridiculing him for his weakness.
Arioch
Age: 24
Crest Location: Lower abdomen (Womb)
Having lost her husband and children to the empire, Arioch has lost her sanity. She ambles the world aimlessly slaughtering for the pure joy of it. Salamander and Undine are her contracted monsters.
Verdelet
Age: 72
Crest Location: Head
The only one who can speak to the goddess directly. Separated from the army, he is quite influenetial and is a cleargyman who speaks to make himself look good. When in danger, he reveals his self-centeredness by looking out for his own welfare.
Seere
Age: 6
Crest location: Entire body
Loved dearly by his mother he feels much guilt about accepting it wholly and not considering his sibling. He withstands any kind of violence acted towards him, perhaps somehow due to his mother's love. Still very much
a child, he refers to his contracted monster as "friend".
Exactly what relevance the above referenced crests have is something that remains to be seen, but luckily, we've been able to spend ample time with a demo that will be presumably available to the public shortly (if not already). While the game does offer plenty in the way of action, it's the RPG-based experience and character growth systems that had us all giddy. As Caim and the dragon grow, they gain new abilities and in the case of the dragon, undergo physical changes as well. Caim's repertoire of weapons upgrade in appearance as they gain experience with use, and certain weapons are more useful in different situations (though it's entirely possible and in our case usual to just blow through the game with the same weapon most of the time).
Actually changing weapons changes Caim's combos and special attacks, which also upgrade as the weapons grow stronger. Caim's attachment to the dragon and the contract they share is not unique. While actual soul-level bonds aren't common, contracted monsters are, and throughout the game, characters can be summoned and swapped out, bringing with them their own moves and contracted allies.
Settling in with the demo, we digested the two major forms of combat in the game, a short air-to-air battle that demonstrated the Red Dragon's ability to barrel roll, pull quick 180s, and lock onto multiple targets, Panzer Dragoon-style. The dragon's surprisingly female voice was thick with disdain for the creates that man had created (in this case, two massive single-eyed golems that could fare huge lances of energy at us). A tap of the X button would result in a short speed dash, and locking onto multiple enemies or firing off a more powerful single fire breath was as simple as holding down square or tapping it, respectively. A massive screen-filling super attack was possible once the green special meter had filled completely.
After a short stint taking out the golems, things dropped to a lower altitude and allowed us to play around with the strafing and on-ground combat controls. Tapping select allows Caim to mount and dismount the dragon at any time, though for the purposes of the demo, it was usually best to take out the swarms of enemies while on dragonback. Tapping L1 or R1 would allow for quick dashes left or right (this also applied to the air-to-air controls), and hitting both would allow for a quick turn around, just as it did while in the dogfight mode. The same special attack that let unleashed dozens of homing arcs of fire in the air changed to a massive fire breath attack that looked gorgeous and leveled throngs of enemies in a single strike.
Once on foot, Caim was relatively agile. He could unleash his own special attack, though it worked best when in a crowd as part of a combo. Combos themselves were a simple matter of tapping the square button repeatedly, so the overall feel will be plenty familiar for those used to playing the Dynasty Warriors games. A tap of the X button makes him jump, and jumping attacks are as easy as combining X and square. Holding the R2 button opened up a simple to use jog wheel that allowed Caim to cycle weapons. Pressing down on the right analog stick (R3) in all modes opened up a status screen that displayed experience, mission goals and levels for all the weapons, as well as an all too handy map for tracking necessary targets.
All of the modes control more or less with the same fluidity. While the demo we played was painfully short, it was definitely enough to get us teased into wanting more. Until we get our hands on full code, you'll have to make do with the almost 80 screens showcasing everything from the games aforementioned gameplay modes to the hour-plus of CG. We'll have more impressions as soon as we get proper code.
