Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince Reviews
For my first Dragon Quest Monster game and first Dragon Quest title in a very long time, I have to say I had mixed emotions. You have this trailed and tested turn-based combat with the monster-focused gameplay loop which is enjoyable but then it feels ruined with the dull storyline and performance issue that makes playing this game on the Switch frustrating. The Nintendo Switch has been out for a while now, so making games perfectly for it shouldn’t be an issue.
While its best ideas are held back by its lack of refinement, the adventure remains surprisingly compelling, even as you’re wasting hours away on levelling up your favourite monsters, and experimenting with battle tactics. It doesn’t quite live up to its competitors in the monster-catching genre, but it’s certainly a memorable game, and one defined by its devotion to being fun, silly, and wonderfully weird.
While Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince offers a serviceable and sometimes fun narrative and gameplay, the overall experience is unfortunately bogged down by its performance issues and the lack of simple yet essential features.
There are over 500 monsters in Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, and over 40 hours of main story to trudge through. Fans will get a lot of bang for their buck, but expect to wince at the presentation which is embarrassingly low for Dragon Quest standards. The battles in the colosseums are a little tense to watch as the AIs smack each other around, but are otherwise tedious. The substance of Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is in being the coach to a team of cartoony-looking Toriyama monsters.
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is a middling entry into a once legendary spin-off series. For every element or system the game nails, there's a confusing design decision that holds them back. While The Dark Prince is far from terrible, it doesn't reach the heights of recent entries into this storied franchise.
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince has a deep combat and monster breeding system that can become addictive if you're willing to overlook the very low quality of almost all of its sections: graphics, sound, story, level design, and development. Only recommended for those looking for a serious alternative to Pokémon.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
This new Dragon Quest part is fun for new players, but also for gamers who have been fans of the series for years and have been looking forward to a sequel/Spin-off. This strategy RPG distinguishes itself from its peers in several areas and is easy to play. The game is smooth enough to pick up quickly, but complicated enough to spend hours playing. Highly recommended if you are looking for hours of entertainment with the possibility of extra content and online expansion
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Dragon Quest Monsters: Prince of Shadows has a few things going for it, but overall I found it rather average. I'm a long-time fan of the main series, and I don't think this one can hold a candle to Dragon Quest XI. If you're looking for a game in this genre, you'd be better served by a Shin Megami Tensei V or a Persona 5.
Review in French | Read full review
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince's significant performance issues unfortunately sap a lot of the joy out of the game's core loop of exploration and grinding, detracting from an otherwise solid monster-collecting experience. However, if you're able to overlook its painful opening hours and sloppy storytelling, there's a decent, comforting game lurking under the surface. Hardcore Dragon Quest lovers will find hours of grindy RPG goodness to enjoy and a colourful, varied world to get lost in – though certainly one far less polished than fans of the series would usually expect.
Years after the release of the previous iteration of the Monsters genre, The Dark Prince had the opportunity to rejuvenate the historic playful formula of the spin-off and ferry it to still unexplored lands. Despite the predictions, however, the development team seems to have almost completely given up on the idea of renewing the mechanics of recruiting monsters and especially the combat system of the product, which appears tired and dated.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince offers a mixed gaming experience. As someone who likes to collect monsters the breeding system caught my attention and it’s fun to catch and collect all the different monsters. However, the game falls short in terms of narrative depth, sporting outdated graphics and encountering performance issues. So I only recommend it to fans of the series and hope they improve their character writing and the overall game performance for the next title.
Review in German | Read full review
"Sometimes too simple despite the variety of monsters."
Review in Finnish | Read full review
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it has the best mechanics and combat the Dragon Quest series has ever seen, with the monster-focused gameplay loop providing endless fun. On the other hand, overcommitment to the silent protagonist trope and shocking performance issues drag the experience down significantly. Although held back by dated hardware and dated design choices, The Dark Prince is one worth courting.
Dragon Quest Monster The Dark Prince does very little to differentiate itself from the great number of similar games on the market, and still does everything right if you look at its bestiary and its gameplay loop. Therefore, it can be recommended to anyone looking for a good (but no great) monster catching RPG.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince forgoes complexity in favor of creating an accessible and enjoyable gaming experience.
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince from developer Armor Project brings an enjoyable monster collecting and fighting gameplay blueprint to the Dragon Quest world, but falls short in its shallow narrative and humdrum visuals.
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is fun enough to give frustrated Pokémon fans a solid alternative.
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is an enjoyable monster-catching RPG that combines charming visuals with addictive gameplay to make for a genuinely gripping experience, making it feel like the long wait since the last entry to leave Japan has been worth it. Even so, its general lack of ambition and struggles with performance issues hold it back from greatness-it's very good, but it's also definitely got its issues. If you're at all a fan of Dragon Quest or monster-catching RPGs, we'd suggest you pick this one up, though perhaps wait a few months to see if Square can sort out the worst of its performance issues.
By rigidly following Dragon Quest traditions, we end up with flat, cartoonish characters who inhabit a repetitive, cyclical world. But The Dark Prince plays to its strengths to deliver a solid RPG experience with a cozy narrative seasoned by a long list of charismatic creatures and entertaining dungeons.
Overall DQM: The Dark Prince is a fine and serviceable game that would be a perfect pick up for any Dragon Quest fan. Also fans of games like Pokemon or Yokai watch may get a kick out of the gameplay, but do not expect a deeper battle system like those games. Other than that I would find it hard to recommend to a casual player especially if performance is not patched. I personally hope this sells well enough that we see future games in this story get a western English release!