Dead Dragons review

When it comes to role-playing, few publishers are as wildly prolific as Kemco. Since shifting away from the Top Gear series and quirky action titles like Kid Klown in Crazy Chase, the Hiroshima-based company has been releasing RPGs at a rapid-fire pace. Over the last fifteen years, Kemco has released more than 80 different adventures, and ported these across a multitude of hardware platforms. But here’s the thing: the quality of these efforts has been universally mediocre.

Largely, that’s the case with Dead Dragons, the latest work from MAGITEC, the developer behind undistinguished RPGs like Grinsia, Grace of Letoile, Chrome Wolf, and Ancient Phantasma. From jerky scrolling, generic tilesets, linear dungeons and combat deviances that are rather dull, Dragons consistently feels like an insipid imitation of SNES-era role-playing.

Will of the Dragon

Dead Dragons premise undoubtedly has potential, with a prologue detailing a war between humans and dragons causing the latter to seemingly become extinct. Despite not being seen for over a century, there’s a rumor of a surviving creature, causing a village guard named Will to investigate. The adventure attempts some salient plot points, with the lead providing substantiation for his father’s fruitless research. But Will mostly grows statistically rather than emotionally, making for a rather lackluster twenty-hour trek.

For better or worse, combat has a few peculiarities. The Rotation Battle System has your party members line up in an orderly queue, with players able to change the order to protect their allies, seize the advantage of a heavy-hitter, or exploit the bonuses associated with the Battle Cells they’re standing on. Meanwhile, Downshot provides a bonus for attacking a randomized weak point. Guess correctly several times and you’ll fill the Ruin Guage, allowing you to temporarily summon sub-characters and revitalize your allies’ health.

Monotony is as Threatening as Any Boss

While battles and character portraits cultivate a bit of visual charm, far too much of Dead Dragons is lifeless. From the humdrum rewards found in treasure chests, dull dungeons, and the occasional need for backtracking, there’s an inventory of ill-fated design decisions. Several times, I wandered around aimlessly, as the game won’t remind players where to do next. Chase down Dead Dragons only if you have an appetite for a flavorless adventure.

Dead Dragons was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.