This game review is powered by Honor Play with it’s Kirin 970 AI chipset | 6.3-inch Fullview display | GPU Turbo
Developed By: Cygames
Published By: Nintendo Co., Ltd.
Platforms: iOS / Android
Reviewed On: Honor Play (Android)
Dragalia Lost caught our attention when it was announced last month, so we decided to give it a try and review this game. Dragalia Lost is a story driven action RPG, that is rare to be found for the mobile platform. Best part is, the game is free to play, with a gacha system for its characters that involves micro-transaction.
Engaging story that drives you forward
It is rare to find a mobile game that is story driven nowadays. Nintendo and Cygames decided to bring us a quality RPG game to the mobile platform with an interesting plot. The story takes place in a kingdom named Alberia, where royal members of the kingdom has the ability of Dragon Transformation once they form a pact with a Dragon.
The game comes with 4 choices of display language (English, Japanese, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese) and 2 choices of voice over language (English and Japanese). Most of the missions will start and end with a cut scene that comes fully voiced and with a unique presentation of story narration that makes the player keen to find out what happen next. But worry not, if the player decides to skip the cut scene, the game does have a summarised text version of what happens in the mission and the player will still be able to keep track of the story.
The quality of the story is definitely on par with any “triple A” RPG title on console or handheld. Besides pushing through the main story, the game also has special events that players can farm for materials. Players can also choose to co-op with either friends or open it up to public players to get assistance in progressing difficult missions.
Graphics and Control
Dragalia Lost may not be the prettiest looking game, but it adopts a rather attractive method to make it look distinctive. The characters are presented in “chibi” style in menu, team selection, as well as in combat. While in other screens such as cut scenes, the game uses an anime style artwork.
The controls are simple and easy to get a hold of by players. To move the character, the player just has to hold and drag towards the direction that they want to head towards. Tapping on the screen will perform a normal attack, while certain skills requires different actions such as pressing on the screen for a set time. Players can switch out any of the team of 4, by just tapping on the character avatar positioned conveniently at the bottom left of the display. The Skill button and Dragon Transformation button are also presented in the screen with a unique logo to easier differentiate between Dragon and skills.
Game With Gacha System, Yet It Is Fine To F2P
The game uses Gacha system for characters and dragons which allows the player to draw with either Wyrmite or Diamantium(micro-transaction currency). Some may wonder if this game is playable for F2P players, or it is a pay-to-win kind of game. Luckily, Dragalia Lost is absolutely playable for those who don’t plan to invest in the game. The game comes with daily login bonuses, that includes Wyrmite. Upon completion of each missions, players will be rewarded with Wyrmite too. On top of that, if players complete some of the mission achievement, extra Wyrmite will be given as well.
The summon system also guarantees a 4 star character or dragon when player performs a tenfold summon. If the the player does not get a 5 star character or dragon in the summon, the rate for 5 star prize will increase. A 5 star is guaranteed during the 10th tenfold summon if the player has not before. The 5 star appearance rate will reset once the player has obtained a 5 star from the summon.
Last But Not Least, Nice And Catchy Music
One of the things that interested me the most in this game is definitely the music. I was totally attached to the game’s music starting from the installation of the game. Based on my findings on the internet, most of the music in this game are from Daoko, a famous Japanese female singer. The theme in the main menu had been looping in my mind ever since I started this game. The OST from Dragalia Lost will definitely be in my playlist if they happen to release it.
Verdict
I was surprised by Nintendo with a quality release on the mobile platform that can rival the console or handheld. The game is capable of bringing this brand new IP to new heights with the quality of its story, music, and the game play. If you are a fan of the JRPG genre, I strongly recommend you to try this game. I am sure you will be hooked to the game like me, especially the sublime music.
