Dragon Quest XI was an exceptional chapter, appreciated by audiences and critics alike thanks to its ability to evolve without distorting the essence of the series. One year after the release of the PlayStation 4 version, the long-awaited version for Nintendo Switch will finally arrive on September 27th, entitled Dragon Quest XI S Definitive Edition. This is not a mere port for Nintendo's hybrid console, but an edition that introduces a lot of new features and unreleased content such as to make it attractive even to fans who have played and finished the PS4 version.
Thanks to Nintendo we were able to get a preview of this version of the game to test all the improvements which, as we will see, are by no means few.
The first thing that catches the eye, or rather the ear, is that the music now features an orchestral version, even if they can be substituted at any time with the original ones, if preferred. Remaining on the audio theme, however, the same goes for dubbing, previously limited only to the English one, but which can now be changed in favor of the Japanese one.
In terms of gameplay, the most important implementations are those related to the "quality of life" or the introduction of some simplifications that improve the gaming experience. The first of these is the ability to use the Forge at any time. For the uninitiated, the Forge is a game mechanic that allows our hero to craft items and equipment. In the original version it was accessible only and exclusively in the camps.
Same goes for the horse, which can now be called up anywhere on the map, except of course in the cities. Among other things, in addition to horses, you can unlock new animals and monsters to ride.
As per the recent tradition of Square Enix ports, too Dragon Quest XI sees the possibility of speeding up the fighting up to three times more than normal. This is especially suited to all those players interested in optimizing the grind times of experience points (historically very long in the Dragon Quest series) or to speed up the progression of the game especially for those who had already finished the game in its previous edition.
Just thinking about the veteran players of this eleventh chapter, Square Enix has introduced the ability to start the game in extreme mode, which increases the level of challenge and requires more attention to be able to continue the adventure. But for those who love more targeted and difficult challenges, this Dragon Quest XI S presents draconic challenges, or configurations that allow you to enable malus to face the game in a different way. Some of these penalties are based on not being able to buy anything from shops, not being able to change equipment, reduced experience points, and so on.
We do not know if there are rewards once the game is finished with these challenges activated, but it is certainly an additional incentive to experience the adventure in a different way, especially for those who already have experience with the original version.
The latest big news is the ability to play the game completely in 2D at 16bit. A little review before going into detail: in 2018 when the game was released in Japan, in addition to the PlayStation 4 version, a 3DS version was also developed. This particular edition for the Nintendo laptop boasted a unique game mode, thanks to the two screens: in the lower one it was possible to enjoy the game in 3D graphics (with a stylized design and more within reach of the limited features of the console), while in the one superior it was possible to see, in real time, what was happening in the game but with 2D graphics.
Since the 3DS version never went beyond the borders of the Rising Sun, the opportunity for the western public to enjoy this feature finally presents itself with this Dragon Quest XI S, albeit with the differences and limits imposed by the architectures of the two consoles. Practically, you can switch between 3D and 2D graphics only at certain points in the game, and precisely at the rescue points (that is, mainly in churches). Each time you switch from three to two dimensions, and vice versa, the game will ask you to make a save and select the plot checkpoint to start from. This happens because, unfortunately, unlike the 3DS version, the game is unable to translate the transition from one graphic to another in real time.
Although it is a particularly laborious and mechanical operation, the result is really satisfying and the game experience changes totally, bringing back to that atmosphere of the Dragon Quests seen on SNES. Exploring the dungeons, the world map and the cities has a completely different flavor in 2D and perhaps represents the real trump card to be able to relive Dragon Quest XI in a completely new way. We are perhaps talking about the first complete and curated experience of a real "demake".
We also know that Dragon Quest XI S will arrive with unpublished plot contents and that can be faced in the endgame, already full of things to do and events to discover. If you still weren't clear, there is a reason why this Switch version is called the "Definite Edition" and if you are a true fan of the series, there is no excuse to miss it. So we just have to wait until September 27 for the final verdict on Dragon Quest XI S with our review. Do not miss!
► Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of a Lost Age is a JRPG type game developed and published by Square Enix for Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, PC and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 29/07/2017 The version for PC came out on 04/09/2018 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 31/12/2019
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of a Lost Age is a beautiful game that cannot be missing from your collection: we have decided to evaluate it with a 88%, if you are interested in learning more you can read the Dragon Quest XI Review: Echoes of a Lost Era
