Is DRAGON QUEST 1 still worth playing? - Nintendo Switch Review

So back in September, Nintendo and Square-Enix graced us with a whole slew of Dragon Quest game releases on the eShop. I'm only now making a review for DQ1, but better late than never! To the two people actually reading this description, I hereby command you to buy all of them. Main Hero in Smash Bros. Turn your Animal Crossing island into a DQ world map. BECOME ONE OF US.

[@deemoyeah]

I scrolled down and was surprised you don't have at least 100k subs. You're content is great, dude

[@BokoBub]

Man, I freaking wish! Only 99,865 more to go. :')

[@Yahya-vk2we]

@@BokoBub don’t give up

[@evanthegameboy]

I played 1, 2, and 3 all in a row and man was that magical. Have some fun with those.

[@BokoBub]

I played a decent chunk of II already and already started working on a review. I can’t wait for III though! I played a bit of that not long ago and I can already see it’s gonna be something special.

[@erickraus4447]

One of the best reviews I've watched on KZbin. Brilliantly explained and evaluated. Great job.

[@gump3316]

Oh course it’s worth playing. I’m in it.

[@BokoBub]

TFW your hero watches one of your videos.

[@BokoBub]

Poorly aged comment.

[@ozmond]

@@BokoBub lol

[@wwecollin]

Never played dragon quest. Went to japan twice and it was so big there. I just bought it on my switch because of this video. Great channel. You def. deserve more subs!

[@BokoBub]

That's so awesome to hear! I hope you get around to some of the later games in the series someday. There's some truly outstanding content there!

[@Light23K]

You don’t need to go to Japan to know it’s big there. I’ve known that since the SNES days or maybe even the NES days. It’s bigger than final fantasy in those days.

[@SkyGuyJedi]

man I absolutely love this game still

[@BokoBub]

This remake really does hold up well. (Spoilers for the video, whoops.) I can't wait to play through the rest of the trilogy!

[@Dinobolt1]

I played the Game Boy Color release of 1 and 2 as a child and had great fun with both, until I maxed out my party's levels in II and still got smacked around by the monsters. I recently got a Nintendo Switch, and the Dragon Quest 1-3 set was one of the highest on my list of must buy games. I got it in yesterday, and started on I today with the intent of playing through all 3 games in chronological order. I got all the way to level 7 before I had to stop. I personally think it's still a great game, and appreciate what it did for RPGs which are my favorite video game genre.

[@BokoBub]

Playing the trilogy on Switch was a really fun time for me. I was surprised by how much I liked the second game! I'd like to try the GBC version someday down the line.

[@naxoxz]

I first tried this series on my 3DS with Dragon Quest VIII and fell in love with the game. The pace and the atmosphere were just perfect, the voice acting was great (JAP dub) and a traditional turn based combat system combined with full 3D exploration gave the game an unique charm that pulls you over. I'm glad to know that the early games are worth playing, I'd love to try DQ XI on steam but, between certain Final Fantasy, Tales and another RPG games that I have on standby I don't think I have the time right now, but I'm going to ask anyways, after DQ VIII which one do you personally recommend playing? Love the content btw, I'm your 205th sub I hope you make it big.

[@BokoBub]

I absolutely recommend Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride. It's only about 30 hours long, so it's not as much of a time investment as some of the other games like XI. It's generally considered to have the strongest story in the whole series. They even recently made a movie (Dragon Quest: Your Story) based on DQV because of how iconic its plot is. Without giving too much away, you start out as a small child who gradually grows up throughout the game, gets married, and has children who also become party members. It's a deeply personal tale about the main character and everything he deals with in his lifetime. Super powerful and gripping stuff that's not often tackled in video games. From a gameplay perspective, its main "gimmick" is that you can recruit monsters to join your party (this game predates Pokemon!) which is a super fun feature to play with. I had a Metal Slime in my party that was basically indestructible against everything thrown at it! The best version of the game is the DS/iOS version. If you can't track down a reasonably priced copy of the DS version, the mobile version is perfectly valid. I'm currently replaying the game on my iPad and it looks absolutely gorgeous on that big HD screen and it plays flawlessly. And of course, if you have a hundred hours to spare, Dragon Quest XI S is an absolute masterpiece that is not to be missed. If you loved VIII, you'll love XI S just as much! Thanks a ton for subscribing! Hopefully I'll start making more vids sometime in the near future.

[@arneni7464]

You are underrated dude! Awesome video, have a sub! ;)

[@BokoBub]

Thanks, my dude!

[@dwrussell96]

I played a lot of Pokémon growing up. I saw this for the iPhone for only 2.99, so I decided to try it out. Now all my Pokémon muscle memory is kicking in again. It’s addicting.

[@BokoBub]

Oh yeah, all the one-on-one combat is very Pokemon-esque. I'd like to see more turn based RPG devs give their take on the 1v1 approach to battles.

[@kennethkitchens88]

Thanks for the review

[@you_broke_up_with_knives]

Thank you, you have helped me to decide to buy this game :)

[@BokoBub]

I hope you enjoy it! :)

[@TheSkullKlownTSK]

Great game. I love how old school it is and once you get stronge you feel like you accomplish getting more powerful not like other RPG games. DQ is the og of hard as hell RPG and im so here for it

[@goldenphonautogram6141]

Excellent video! I just became your 300th sub.

[@BokoBub]

How on earth did I make it to 300?! Thanks a ton and congratulations! I hope to make more content in the not-too-distant future.

[@chonkydonkyexplains4778]

Hey, you’re pretty good! You should make more videos. I’d love to see you do more old RPGs - whether they’re worth revisiting.

[@BokoBub]

Thanks! I'm actually working on a similar video for Phantasy Star right now. Whether I actually finish it is another question altogether!

[@kentstate1244]

@@BokoBub Wow, Phantasy Star and 2 you could sink years into, good luck!

[@Eazy-ERyder]

The Dragon Warrior/Quest games are ALWAYS Worth it. I love the originals AND remakes! Can't wait for the new DQ III remake on the switch

[@BokoBub]

Same, I cannot wait to play that HD-2D remake!

[@anonamatron]

Hi from two years into the future! That remake is so... Uh... Not here yet?

[@mcdubbzy4304]

Bahahaha! Awesome video my man! Currently LIVE on Trovo at the moment and a supporter asked if I ever played this before... And of course.. You made me LOL fr fr! LOL He said "I dont know why someone thought it was a good idea to SCREW IT UP for the Switch version" LMFAO! Thank you for the solid laugh! Great video! We all enjoyed it!

[@gevodanl7082]

I was surprised by how fun dragon quest 1 was when I played it even though it came out decades ago. Paying attention to the NPC’s dialogue was really refreshing and it should be done more often instead of just saying where we have to go next. However, I gladly used the emulator’s accelerator for fights and grinding, because this game can be extremely slow sometimes.

[@BokoBub]

It definitely would've benefited from a speed-up button like the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters had!

[@donut7238]

Nice video, thank you!

[@BokoBub]

Thank YOU!

[@Vadrio]

Nice review.

[@MichaelW52883]

Trying to play Dragon quest 1 on snes damn the grind is real. Never played 1 before this i'm kinda enjoying it a little but enemy encounters seem far more frequent than I'm use to

[@BokoBub]

Yeah, this is pretty much Grinding: The Game, but it's short enough that it's worth playing through to the end. Dragon Quest II (SNES/Switch version) is far less focused on grinding, even through the encounter rate is more or less the same. At least you get a spell that allows you to repel weaker enemies. Dragon Quest III is only grind heavy in the postgame (or if you're switching jobs, which you probably won't wanna do until the postgame anyways.) If you're enjoying DQ1, you'll definitely enjoy DQ2 and DQ3, so try and stick with it! :)

[@mikeylovespizza4012]

I finished this game for the 1st time over the holidays. It was a bit short but still fun.

[@BokoBub]

Awesome to hear. I hope you play 2 and 3, because they're even better!

[@o-SPECTRE-o]

What a great review. Thank you, I bought it.

[@BokoBub]

Enjoy the series, dude!

[@anonamatron]

I played the SNES remake, and then wanted to play the NES original again since it's harder. A couple days later I got the itch to play the SNES one again since i had an idea for a very quick run through of the game.. So... Yeah, its worth playing. I had fun with it. I come back to this game every once in a while and play it by far the most of the series.

[@yabukiman4273]

It's funny, I knew Dragon Quest was, for nowadays standards, pretty old-fashioned. I mean, an RPG with only one character? But I gave it a chance as it was on sale, and it gave me a pretty good time, specially playing at night; I could travel the map and battle enemies with simple actions, I played in a very relaxed way, and I really liked it. Then I bought II and III and I fell in love with the series.

[@BokoBub]

That's awesome to hear!! The games only get better and better, so I hope you have a wonderful time with them.

[@JackpotToys]

I loved playing the first game on the NES. It’s real hard for me to get into this look, and I would’ve liked to try 2 and 3. The original was so spooky and the enemies frightening in the graphics at the time, leaving a lot to imagine, where as these are so clean and comical. Still a great game, just tough to look at for me. Nice video!

[@BokoBub]

If you haven't heard, 3 is getting a remake with really nice pixel graphics that looks waaaay better than this game. It's definitely got a lot more atmosphere. Check out the trailer if you haven't seen it, since it looks like its gonna be the best way to play that game!

[@JackpotToys]

@@BokoBubthanks so much! I just might!!!

[@ozmond]

Absolutely

[@leobgoo6350]

5:18 The Glitch South of the starting point to help with the grind 👍

[@BokoBub]

So glad they didn't "fix" the glitch in this version.

[@Morgil27]

Glad to see I'm not the only one who likes to play grind-heavy RPGs on handheld consoles while watching TV. Also glad to see I'm not alone in hating the GBC version's localization.

[@BokoBub]

Yeah, the GBC localization is *fine* but it's completely lacking in personality. The series' modern localizations are incredible!

[@koalafan1576]

I feel like this is a mix between Zelda and Pokémon.

[@BokoBub]

And your feeling is right! Pokemon was actually directly inspired by Dragon Quest, namely the fifth game, which allowed you to have monsters join your party. And on that note, the Dragon Quest Monsters spinoff series was inspired by Pokemon, creating a perfect cricle of inspiration.

[@AKM-vo9lw]

Yes.

[@La-Li-Lu-Le-Loo]

I remember watching my cousin play Dragon Quest 3 back in the day always kind of bug me that you couldn't see your characters fighting.

[@BokoBub]

Thankfully, in the upcoming Dragon Quest 3 remake, you can see your characters in battle at last!

[@celexityzr]

Not me finding DQ1 confusing when my primary game is DQ9

[@damasake]

Do you write your maps in a blind playthrough?

[@BokoBub]

The areas in this version of the game are pretty straight forward and hard to get lost in, so I didn't need any sort of map on hand.

[@anthonystarke893]

Yes

[@theIJPmexican]

great video

[@BokoBub]

Thanks, dude!

[@Kyle-ii4fp]

This is a good game, not going in with a guide and not lost I checked out the nes version (dragon warrior) using emulation, and it's the same game but things are just simplified in a good way in the switch version but it's the same game.

[@BokoBub]

I know the final dungeon was completely redesigned from the original NES game to be less... awful, I guess. I'm not sure if any other dungeons were changed though.

[@Derekrife1]

1 is worth playing but only if you beat it, because then you can say "I beat Dragon Quest." And even then, it's only like 4 hours long and costs two bucks. If you end up playing all the old classic DQ games (1-6) I'd say play them on mobile. For the most part they serve as pretty definitive editions.

[@vladimirtomin8223]

When he walks down his face looks like Luigi’s

[@BokoBub]

Oh my gosh. I can't unsee it.

[@TheGameStampede]

That's a better graphics than nes version! Huge improvement.

[@BokoBub]

Oh, definitely! As far as NES graphics go, the first 4 DQ games were on the uglier end. Even the GBC versions of 1-3 looked so much better, despite also being 8-bit.

[@tolben4006]

Thanks for the review, it was very good. I watched everything and gave you a like.

[@BokoBub]

Thanks!

[@peterplaysbass]

It's weird that there's a bank. I grew up on this game on the NES and this style looks weird to me. I love the battle backgrounds, though.

[@turbotoby95]

cool vids man. Feel like we're on a similar path. Let me know if you wanna do a collab video, would love to chat more!

[@ashleyburns6752]

£2.59 on sale right now, worth a go I think

[@BokoBub]

Definitely!

[@darkhalf9134]

It's currently on sale for a little over $3.50 but when I use my gold points I can get it for $3.02 so might just buy it later today when I get home from work. I have a backlog of games so who knows when I will get to playing it though. I would like to get the physical switch copy that has 1 as well as 2 and 3 which is like $50 on eBay. $3 for the game to see if I like it is a must and if I like it I will get the physical copy to get 2 and 3.

[@BokoBub]

I don't know if you heard, but DQIII is getting a full remake in the style of Octopath Traveler. I'd hold off on playing that game until that version releases!

[@gabrielbalderrama2002]

Playing this game bashing A for every battle is boring. Try to use some of the spells as Hurt for the first levels, sleep, stopspell, and hurtmore does OHKO most enemies

[@ntplusofficial]

Holy moly, how did the iOS version end up looking better than this? :(

[@BokoBub]

I don't know what they were thinking with these "updated" sprites. Thankfully, the upcoming DQIII remake looks great. Wish we could get the whole trilogy in that style.

[@Dw7freak]

I actually found that the game looks better in handheld mode. The lower resolution helps make those stand-out new sprites look a little more consistent with the SNES backgrounds.

[@BokoBub]

That's good to hear! I hadn't noticed myself, since I only played handheld mode when I was watching TV or whatever while grinding.

[@Dw7freak]

@@BokoBub I played DQ3 almost exclusively in handheld mode because of that. It could also just be a smaller screen combined with the lower resolution. I haven't tried reducing the system's docked resolution to 720p, yet.

[@BokoBub]

@@Dw7freak Since I played the trilogy back-to-back-to-back, I think I became completely numb to the odd character sprites by the time I got to DQIII. The sprites are a lot smaller in DQIII than they are in the first two games, so that probably helped!

[@mjf8897]

I just wish they would update it and fix the janky scrolling. also - let me speed up battles please

[@BokoBub]

Well, in this game's case, the battles rarely last longer than a few seconds. Holding down the confirm button in battle even simulates a turbo button!

[@blinkingred]

I hate how they destroyed the character sprites. GAH. I wish they would patch it.

[@BokoBub]

Yeah, definitely a baffling design choice considering this is otherwise a direct port of the mobile version, which used much better sprites. This is from around the same time Square-Enix released those infamous horrible, cheap-looking versions of Final Fantasy IV-VI. With the upcoming DQIII remake and the recent Final Fantasy pixel remasters, I guess you could say Square-Enix is learning from their mistakes.

[@plasmaaxis356]

Dragon Quest 2 review when? 🤔

[@BokoBub]

Hopefully someday! Here's a mini-review in the meantime: I loved every second of it.

[@LobsterFusion]

I’ve been wanting to try the DQ series for a while now an am thinking of picking this up. I don’t mind grinding for exp, i actually kind of enjoy it. Not too pleased seeing a dog get shot half way through the review though. Was not expecting that and I’m not a fan.

[@BokoBub]

It's definitely worth a try! Be sure to check out the Dragon Quest 35th Anniversary livestream on May 26th, since they'll likely announce some ports of older DQ games. Also, don't worry about the dog. His vest was bulletproof and he gets right back up for some good ol' fashion vengeance.

[@LobsterFusion]

Oddly enough I can watch movies that are incredibly violent where people are bludgeoned and torn to shreds. Put an animal into the equation and I just can’t do it. 😭 Thanks for the info on the DQ Live stream too. Will check it out for sure. It would be neat if they released the other games for Switch too.

[@Keithustus]

You know that almost every animal besides humans dies by being eaten right? Being shot sounds like a great alternative.

[@BokoBub]

@@Keithustus In other words, it's time to crush societal norms and become food.

[@IBEBIGRAY]

You are going to be a millionaire! Because your content and over all presentation is amazing!! When I looked at you subs!! I was like what!!! Give it time you will catch on!! Then u will remember what I said!!! ;)

[@BokoBub]

If only I had the willpower to pump out a consistent stream of videos!

[@IBEBIGRAY]

@@BokoBub I understand because I work then when I get home I'm so exhausted to start my own business! But I will never give up on having a business of my own! I guess we have to dig deep and just go for it! ;)

[@Light23K]

Yes it’s still worth playing. A good game will always be good. This is not food where it spoils when time passes.

[@Derpderpson123]

I hated the new sprite design and just emulated it on my pspsgo

[@jessethekid3]

I was today years old when I found out this is the same as my favorite game dragon warrior 🤦‍♂️

[@BokoBub]

Yep, we got Dragon Warrior 1-4 in America, they skipped 5 and 6, then we got Dragon Warrior 7. After that, they finally dropped the "Warrior" name and started calling them Dragon "Quest" like in Japan starting with 8. They only called it "Warrior" over here to begin with to avoid copyright conflict with a Dungeons & Dragons expansion called Dragon Quest at the time.

[@sharklee5469]

Final fantasy also so hard

[@BokoBub]

Can't believe I still haven't played the first game. Hope the pixel remaster comes to consoles soon!

[@Antnj81]

I hate how some of these enemy portraits look. They look very lazy and stock

[@MrFaloso]

i prefer the OG version, the switch versions arent even animated, a step back.

[@BokoBub]

What's animated in the original that's not in the Switch version?

[@MrFaloso]

@@BokoBub the monsters, its just a PNG in the switch games, while the SNES version has attack animations for every enemy

[@BokoBub]

@@MrFaloso Oh, I never played the SNES version. Only the original NES version and then the mobile and Switch versions.

[@rod9527]

@@MrFaloso thats the case with III, DQ I and II on the SFC didnt featured full screen battles and animations, It's the DQIII switch version that sucks, I and II are pretty much identical.

[@MrFaloso]

@@rod9527 oh thats great news, i completely wrote off 1 and 2 after buying III, thanks :)

[@thepit7868]

Just emulate em, unless their full on dq11-style remasters it ain't worth the cash.

[@MrPsyren99]

I'm not poor and can afford to buy games