"Beautiful... not what you'd think, though..."

First of all, I've been playing RPGs for a while now, and sure, this is the first real DQ game that I've played in English, but this was no disappointment. It looks and plays a whole bunch like some games I made with RPG maker... but where it lacks in luster compared to say, FF8, it makes up for in other, more important aspects.

Gameplay: 8/10
Not as good as some games like Star Ocean 2, but still very snazzy and addictive. I love the epic feel to it, the classsic everything and of course, the job system. The sub quests and mini-games are also top-notch, as expected. I bet you Dias would've loved this game.

Story: 8.5/10
Good, but leaves a lot of holes throughout. Nice finish, though, although I'd rather not spoil it for any of you actually going to play the game. If you liked any of the 3 latest Final Fantasies, don't expect too much, because remember, this is probably just the last, best effort at the end of a long, great, classic series. The game is pleasant throughout, and has many cute little stories to keep in mind, altogether tying up the whole experience.

Audio Visual: 6.75/10
An effort at classsic-mixed-with-modern not done too well. Even pumped up with the PS2's power, it looks and sounds rather bland and leaves something to be desired. Don't hold your breath, it's not high-tech stuff, and even the FMVs are only so-so, but the music almost nakes up for the poor visuals. If only they made it anime à la Chrono Trigger Remake...

Replayability: 5/10
Let me be frank with you: There are a few redeeming qualities, like the park, the monster classes and the imigrant town, but altogether they don't make up for anything. But what RPGs really had replayability anyways?

Overall: (NOT an average) 9/10
Great game, really... it manages to be 100+ hours at least, without getting anywhere but scratching the surface. It's got depth in gameplay, story and just about EVERYTHING like you've never seen, heard of, or imagined. If fancy graphics is the price to be payed for quality gaming, and ANY level of difficulty in an RPG made after the death of the SNES, this is THE GAME to play. It may not feel like a classic, but ''Classic'' is just an understatement for this game. If you're into RPGs, get this game, but if you're into cool graphics and all that BS, go out and get yourself some crap-ass eyecandy like DoA or something. (No offense to DoA fans, but I mean that's got SO much better than DQ7's) ;)



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