Square Enix announced Dragon Quest 12: The Flames of Fate as the capstone reveal during the Dragon Quest 35th Anniversary stream. While we only got to see a logo during the event, series creator Yuji Horii shared a few details about what to expect from the next new Dragon Quest game.

Horii said Dragon Quest 12 will be a darker game, a "Dragon Quest for adults," which is not unlike how Naoki Yoshida described the upcoming Final Fantasy 16. While the series is no stranger to dark stories already, it often treats them in a more lighthearted way, pays them less attention, or sees them resolve with a happy ending. 

DQ 12 will also feature at least a few important choices that influence how the game's story unfolds, but Horii wasn't able to share much more.

The latest Dragon Quest is moving away from the classic command-based menu combat the series helped establish as the norm in RPGs. However, Horii said it's not abandoning the system completely. This, too, was a subject he couldn't speak much on, but suffice to say, combat is getting a big shakeup of some kind.

Dragon Quest XI Definitive Edition recently released on Xbox One and Game Pass, making it the first Dragon Quest available on every console. Presumably, we'll see Dragon Quest 12 on Nintendo Switch, PC, and PlayStation, but Square Enix is keeping those details for a later time.

During the Dragon Quest 35th anniversary event, Square Enix announced a Dragon Quest 3 remake, but it's not just any old remake. It's Dragon Quest 3 HD 2D, building the game in the same art style Square Enix used for Octopath Traveler.

Dragon Quest 3 remake doesn't have a release date at this point. However, series creator Yuji Horii said it will be a simultaneous worldwide release when it does launch. No platforms were mentioned either.

Horii couldn't share much more about the game, but he did mention he's interested in potentially revisiting the first two Dragon Quest games in a similar style. When the event emcee quizzed him further on that, a Square Enix official quickly blew the whistle for silence.

That was likely as much part of the show as it was potentially keeping Horii from saying too much, but either way, we could potentially see a Dragon Quest remake and Dragon Quest 2 remake. For now, we'll just have to content ourselves with what we called "one of the series' finest titles" when it was re-released for modern consoles in 2019.

Dragon Quest: Your Story is a re-telling of Dragon Quest 5: Hand of the Heavenly Bride. Seeing a beloved classic turned into a film is an exciting prospect, but the only trouble is that it condenses a 40+ hour game into an hour and 40 minutes

While a lot of Dragon Quest 5's game time is spent fighting enemies — something that naturally doesn’t make for interesting film fare — it still means a good deal of the story gets pared down for the sake of pacing. DQ5 is widely regarded as one of the best games in the long-running franchise, so Your Story has a lot to live up to.

Despite some shortcomings, though, including the pacing, Dragon Quest: Your Story still captures the essence of Dragon Quest and throws in some food for thought besides.

Dragon Quest: Your Story Review — A Fresh Take on a Beloved Classic

Your Story cuts out a big chunk of the plot’s beginning, opting to tell it in snippets taken from the game’s original release, switching to Luca’s later childhood afterwards, right before disaster strikes. This unique approach to the opening segments is important for the later plot, but I can’t deny that taking some extra time to introduce Luca, Nera, and Bianca would have helped strengthen the film’s core even more later on.

It speeds past the slavery years and Harry’s return to Coburg, and pulls some later elements from the game, namely Bjorn the Behemoose, as a way to introduce the topic of Luca’s marriage. The film slows down a bit here, and it’s where the viewer more easily appreciates the Dragon Quest-ness of Your Story.

It’s true characters and locations don’t get nearly as much attention as they do in the game, but the film captures the tale’s essence and the heart of the core cast. That’s good, because it then speeds into the final segments where you need to actually care about the people involved for it to work well.

If you haven’t guessed already, this all means Dragon Quest: Your Story is mostly aimed at fans of the original game. Those who don’t know the plot will likely be slightly confused over the casual mentions of important lore (glossing over of facts like Luca’s royal heritage) and generally feel like they’re not quite getting the full story. If you’re interested, definitely check out a plot summary or the game’s Wiki page before watching. 

Those who are fans, though, will likely still find this quite a treat. The pacing and shortness mean Your Story can’t quite reach the source material’s emotional and narrative highs, but seeing these familiar moments and characters brought to life in a completely different way offers a sense of cozy nostalgia that’s hard to match — that’s intentional, as you find out later — and makes it even harder to complain about the shortcomings.

Despite that, one question looms: How can anything Dragon Quest be worthwhile without Akira Toriyama’s signature artwork? Getting used to the CGI design is actually surprisingly easy after the first few minutes. The animation is good quality, too, from the goo-dorable CGI Slime Gootrude to the creepy dark bishop Ladja and everything in between.

There are a few areas where the focal points stand out a bit much from the background, and the scenes where monsters are moving for long periods in the light are a bit rough, though it’s a small trade-off. The difference in visual styles is probably a good thing too, as it makes seeing Your Story as its own thing easier, which it most definitely is.

It’s no exaggeration to say the voice cast carries the production. Yuri Lowenthal absolutely nails Luca’s many moods and expressions, while Xanthe Huynh manages to make Nera a sympathetic character despite being on screen for too brief a time. Stephanie Sheh’s performance as Bianca is probably one of the best, capturing the character’s spunk and warmth perfectly.

What really stands out, though, is how every performance, even the shortest, is so full of life. There might not be enough time to showcase Dragon Quest’s characteristically quirky NPCs and distinct settings, but the voice cast really makes this feel like Dragon Quest nonetheless.

And that’s probably the film’s biggest strength. Yes, it’s too fast and short, and plenty of points don’t get developed like they should. At the same time, it’s still warm, familiar, fun, and engaging, just like Dragon Quest should be.

At least, it’s all these things until it stops being them. You may or may not have already read about the ending when the film released in Japan last year, but we won’t spoil it here.

Suffice to say there’s a big twist in how the ending unfolds that offers some surprising commentary on how we engage with games (and media in general, really) and the place they occupy in our lives. How it does this is really quite clever, pulling you in with the nostalgia and presenting a beloved story you’re bound to engage with, then using that as fuel for the real meaning behind this tale.

Granted, there’s a line at the very end I completely detest that comes close to turning the entire thing into a branding exercise with a bit too much self-affirmation. But overall, radical departure the ending sequences may be, it sets Your Story apart as one of the better adaptations out there for its deft handling of real-world themes and thoughtful commentary.

Dragon Quest: Your Story — The Bottom Line

Dragon Quest: Your Story could certainly stand to be stronger in how it develops its characters and themes. I still thoroughly enjoyed it, though, and wouldn't mind watching it a second time either. It's a fun romp with an enjoyable story and characters that hit all the right points for Dragon Quest fans — regardless of how fast it speeds through everything.

Yet it's the ending that really makes Your Story stick out. Even though it also isn't handled perfectly, it still does something at which most game adaptations fail: shattering the fourth wall and reminding us why we love these stories to begin with.

Square Enix recently announced a brand-new Dragon Quest game for mobile devices, the tactical RPG Dragon Quest Tact. Now we have the first Dragon Quest Tact trailer giving us a taste of the game's combat and style.

It's 100% Dragon Quest through and through, with monsters past and present, from the classic dragons to Platypunks, Golems, Sabrecats, and more. As we suspected once the reveal site went live, it looks like there's nary a human in sight. For one reason or another, it's all monster versus monster.

Combat looks fairly simple overall, which isn't surprising for a mobile title. However, it seems like Area of Effect attacks and each monster's unique moves are going to be the main factor in building a strategy.

There's also a shot of what looks like possibly some kind of summon or acquisition feature, so don't be too surprised if Dragon Quest Tact has some kind of Fire Emblem Heroes gacha approach — maybe even a subscription — to getting monsters on your team.

Still, gacha or no, there are few pleasures like the idea of building a team full of Dragon Quest monsters for a tactics fight.

Open beta registration is running in Japan now, with the testing phase planned for February 27 through March 5. We'll just have to be content with watching Dragon Quest: Your Story on Netflix until this releases in the West. 

Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Dragon Quest Tact news as it moves our way three squares at a time.

Final Fantasy ventured down the tactics road a long time ago, but we've yet to see its elder sibling Dragon Quest take the same journey — until now. Square Enix just recently announced a new title for mobile called Dragon Quest Tact. It's scheduled for release in Japan sometime in 2020 for Android and iOS.

From the rather limited information SE released, it looks like Dragon Quest Tact is more like Dragon Quest Monsters mixed with tactics. You control a wide variety of monsters on a 3D grid map and engage in turn-based combat. These monsters are drawn from throughout the Dragon Quest franchise.

That means we'll see the likes of Sabrecats and Chimeras alongside Slime Knights, all presented in Akira Toriyama's iconic art style — no Dragon Quest: Your Story CGI here. Yuji Hori returns as the game's director too, so we can expect a full Dragon Quest experience from DQ Tact.

The button commands feature the usual things like wait and fight, but there are also Scout and Friend options. It might be set up like Dragon Quest 5, where you get the chance to woo and befriend monsters you defeat.

Unfortunately, there's no word yet on a Western release date. However, with Dragon Quest of the Stars releasing in the West this month, we'll hopefully see a Western release for this one as well.

You can check out the official site here and follow the game on Twitter as well. Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Dragon Quest Tact news as we goo-rab it.

If you're wondering what's new on Netflix in February, look no further. The complete list of new TV shows, movies, documentaries, and Netflix originals coming to the streaming service this month can be seen below. 

A few notable additions include Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution, Blade Runner: The Final Cut, Dragon Quest Your Story, Starship Troopers, Better Call Saul Season 4, Narcos: Mexico Season 2, and Altered Carbon Season 2. 

New Netflix TV Shows and Movies February 2020

February 1

• A Bad Moms Christmas
• A Little Princess 
• Back to the Future Part 3 
• Blade Runner: The Final Cut
• Center Stage 
• Cookie’s Fortune 
• Dear John
• The Dirty Dozen 
• Dirty Harry 
• Driving Miss Dairy 
• Elizabeth 
• Elizabeth: The Golden Age 
• Fools Rush In 
• Hancock
• Love Jacked
• The Notebook 
• The Other Guys 
• The Pianist
• Police Academy
• Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment 
• Police Academy 3: Back in Training 
• Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol 
• Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach 
• Police Academy 6: City Under Siege 
• Police Academy 7: Mission to Moscow 
• Purple Rain 
• Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves 
• Scary Movie 2 
• Sex and the City 2

February 3

• Sordo
• Team Kaylie Part 3

February 4

• Faith, Hope & Love 
• She Did That 
• Tom Papa: You're Doing Great 

February 5

• Black Hollywood: They’ve Gotta Have Us
• The Pharmacist
• Uppity: The Willy T. Ribbs Story

February 6

• Cagaster of an Insect Cage

February 7

• Dragon Rescue Riders Season 2 
• Horse Girl
• Locke & Key 
• My Holo Love
• The Ballad of Lefty Brown 
• Who Killed Malcolm X?

February 8

• The Coldest Game

February 9

• Better Call Saul Season 4
• Captain Underpants: Epic Choice-o-rama
• Polaroid

February 11

• Good Time
• Q Ball

February 12

• Anna Karenina 
• To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You 

February 13

• Dragon Quest Your Story
• Love is Blind
• Narcos: Mexico Season 2

February 14

• A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
• Cable Girls Final Season
• Isi & Ossi

February 15

• Starship Troopers

February 17

• The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia

February 19

• Chef Show: Volume 3

February 20

• Spectros

February 21

• A Haunted House
• Babies
• Gentefied 
• Glitch Techs 
• System Crasher

February 22

• Girl on the Third Floor

February 23

• Full Count

February 25

• Every Time I Die

February 26

• I Am Not Okay With This 

February 27

• Altered Carbon Season 2 
• Followers
• Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution 
• The Angry Birds Movie 2

February 28

• All the Bright Places
• Babylon Berlin Season 3
• Formula 1: Drive to Survive Season 2
• Jerry Maguire
• Queen Sono 
• Restaurants on the Edge
• Unstoppable

In other Netflix news, the streaming service and writer Warren Ellis recently confirmed the air date for Castlevania Season 3, and several reports say that the Resident Evil Netflix series is set to begin shooting in June, though there has been no official confirmation. 

Due to the success of The Witcher series, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings recently teased more seasons for the franchise out of the already-confirmed two, saying it will "develop season after season." 

Currently, there is a Witcher animated movie in the works, which is said to revolve around this important character. 

Dragon Quest: Your Story, the CGI film adaptation of fan-favorite Dragon Quest 5: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, is coming to Netflix on February 13. You can see the original Japanese trailer for the film above.

Hand of the Heavenly Bride is an epic quest following a family's struggle against an all-powerful darkness through three generations. The original game is surprisingly heavy at times and doesn't pull emotional punches — at all.

Given that Your Story is an adaptation, though, it naturally isn't identical to the game. It doesn't hit all the same beats or follow quite the same path, and Akira Toriyama's art is only the inspiration for the CGI work. There's also a rather... unexpected ending. We won't spoil it for you, but it's best to go into Your Story with an open mind.

Still, it's a sweeping tale nonetheless. More importantly, it's a film adaptation based on a renowned game franchise that we're actually getting in the West. We don't get to see that very often. Perhaps with the star-studded Detective Pikachu's rousing success and Super Nintendo World on the way, video games crossing mediums and blending into the mainstream won't be so uncommon from here on out.

Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Dragon Quest: Your Story news as it goo-es live.

Dragon Quest Builders 2 is getting a PC release. The critically acclaimed building game that released on consoles earlier this year is coming to desktops on December 10.

This is pretty big news for Dragon Quest PC fans, and not just because DQ Builders 2 is one of the year's sleeper hits. The first Builders game, and basically every Dragon Quest game before DQ XI, hasn't been ported to PC. Considering that, this will be the first time a decent number of people will get to experience the Minecraft-inspired spinoff.

Fortunately, you don't need knowledge of the first Builders game or even of Dragon Quest II — which Builders 2 is loosely based on — to fully enjoy the game.

Square Enix is adding some additional goodness to further the enjoyment too. The Steam version of Dragon Quest Builders 2 is getting all the Season Pass content released on the console versions, and those who pre-order the game or purchase it before January 6, 2020, will also get:

• Ornamental Medicinal Herb Recipe
• Dragon Quest Logo Recipe
• Ornamental Chimaera Wing Recipe
• Five Sigil Block Recipes for building decorative blocks with sun, stars, moon, water and soul motifs
• Legendary Line Art Recipe
• Lo-Res Luminary Recipes

The Steam pre-purchase page is live now, but there are no details about Dragon Quest Builders 2's PC specs yet.

Either way, once it does launch, we've got any and every contingency covered with our (dragon's) den full of Dragon Quest Builder 2 guides. Stay tuned for more on this building game as it develops. 

What can be said about Dragon Quest that hasn't already been said? It, along with its cohorts, originated the role-playing-game genre, and it was the first one to appear on consoles. It's legendary both on its own merits and also for inspiring pretty much every Japanese role-playing-game that came after it.

The game was wildly ambitious in its time, and though some aspects of the game have aged poorly, that's only because its contemporaries have built on the formula that Dragon Quest created. 

I say all of that to say this: reviewing an RPG that came out in 1986 by today's standards is a bit unfair. Instead, this review will focus on the newly-released Dragon Quest port for the Nintendo Switch, and how it's been updated for a modern audience.

Unfortunately, Square Enix sure made it difficult for new players to jump in.

Dragon Quest Switch Review: Erred-rick

If you're new to Dragon Quest, you'll likely be surprised by the open nature of the game. From the moment you start, there are no forced tutorials. No part of the map is off-limits, save for the final castle. You're free to visit any of the game's towns or dungeons at your leisure. The only thing stopping you is all the murderous Akira Toriyama-designed wizards, skeletons, and beasts that want you dead.

Other than that, the gameplay loop will be familiar to anyone who's ever played an RPG because, well, Dragon Quest invented the gameplay loop. Take on monsters, level up, buy equipment, find items, learn spells, loot dungeons, and eventually save the world. Specifically, it's your quest to defeat the Dragonlord by building a rainbow bridge to his island fortress and then besting him in combat. 

There are a few other unique gameplay hooks in the first Dragon Quest, namely the (relatively annoying) fact that each one of the dungeons is dark, so you need to use a torch to see further than one tile away, and the use of magic keys to open doors around the world. Other than that, any RPG lover will feel very much at home with Dragon Quest, from its random encounters right down to its cheesy-yet-clever Olde English dialogue.

A Quest for a Modern Era

If you're going into this game knowing that it's not going to have many, or really any, of the modern quality-of-life advancements that came to the RPG genre after 1986, you're likely going to be satisfied plunking down $5 to experience this five-ish-hour piece of history.

But that's not all you're getting here. This game has been updated in a variety of ways to appeal to a modern audience, and the most notable change is in the visuals. This is generally a matter of taste, but I typically prefer the original blocky, pixelized feel to the ultra-smoothed-out art style of many modern remakes. That said, the upgraded enemy portraits and battle backdrops are a delight, bringing Akira Toriyama's original designs to life in a new way. 

There are a few other quality of life changes, too.

Prices of magic keys have been reduced, and spell names have been changed to make them a little clearer. There's also a quick-save system, meaning you don't have to trek all the way to the castle to save your game. In a baffling move, however, the game hides it in the "Misc." section of the menu, along with a group of tutorials that take new players through the game's mechanics.

The game never tells you that this is where the save function and tutorials are, so they're pretty easy to miss. It's hilarious that the tutorial you already found in the "Misc." menu tells you explicitly to check out the "Misc." menu because it's easy to miss.

Dragon Quest Switch Review — The Bottom Line

Pros:

• Dragon Quest is legendary for a reason
• The remastered battle visuals are great 
• The remastered music is great
• It's $5

Cons:

• Despite not being a faithful remake, the game offers very few quality of life updates
• The general sprite aesthetic could be a turn-off for some

Given the small tweaks made to the game in advance of its release on the Switch, it's baffling that Square left certain other aspects of the game alone. 

Your inventory is laughably small, and the only way to expand it is to sock your items away in a vault in one specific town. There's no way to deposit or retrieve these items without trekking all the way back to town.

There's no fast travel either, which would be fine except for the fact that frequent random encounters make necessary treks back to a castle or town frustrating. Adding to this frustration is the fact that when you do get to a town to buy items, you can't purchase keys or healing items in bulk. You have to buy them one at a time, in distinct transactions. 

It's a death by a thousand cuts. None of these issues are damning on their own, but given the other tweaks made to the game before its release, it means that Dragon Quest for the Switch now occupies a strange remake middle ground. The visual changes and quick-save function mean that it's not intended to be a faithful recreation of a classic RPG, so the question then becomes, "Why did the developers not go one step further to make the game friendlier and less frustrating?". 

The bottom line is that even with these issues, Dragon Quest is still worth the $5 you'll spend on it. It's legendary for a good reason, and playing through it is cozily nostalgic, even if you didn't play the original back in 1986. It's just frustrating that the team behind the Switch version didn't lower the barrier of entry.

Square Enix has announced that the Nintendo Switch versions of Dragon Quest, Dragon Quest II: Luminaries of the Legendary Line, and Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation, will be released in Western territories on the Nintendo Switch eShop on September 27.

They come alongside the Japanese release.

The three ports are the same games that released on the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo 3DS in Japan on August 10, 2017. The Nintendo Switch release will be the first time they are available outside of Japan.

Dragon Quest, Dragon Quest II: Luminaries of the Legendary Line, and Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation cost $4.99, $6.49, and $12.49, respectively. Though a physical version of the official Western release has not yet been confirmed, a physical version with English language support can be purchased from Play-Asia.

The most recent game in the main series, Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age Definitive Edition, an enhanced Nintendo Switch version of Dragon Quest XI, will also release worldwide on September 27, both physically and digitally. A demo for Dragon Quest XI S is currently available on the Nintendo Switch eShop and save data can be transferred to the full game.

Your Dog — Harvest Moon

You can’t find a video game dog more like a real dog outside of Harvest Moon, Story of Seasons, and Stardew Valley.

He or she has a lovely little dog house outside for those cool mornings and lazy evenings, and there’s always a place ready to snuggle down for the night inside your house. All that’s really needed to make them happy in life is a smile and a good head pat, though snacks are most welcome of course.

You’ll frequently see your four-legged friend wandering about the farm, casting an eye over the crops and keeping the other animals in line, occasionally wandering over to make sure you’re okay.

It’s getting your dog that really makes the farm first seem like home, too. Before that, you’re a newcomer to a strange place, with a massive farm to look after and a big, empty house to exist in. Add a dog, and just like in real life, you’ve got an instant home, a bright spark of life that makes the future seem good after all.

Unlike your other animals, you technically don’t have to feed your dog either, so pointing to your canine caretaking abilities in Harvest Moon et al probably isn’t the best way to convince someone you can care for a real dog.

Still, in those early days when times are tough, resources are scarce, and crops are slow to grow, it’s a great comfort knowing your dog is perfectly happy eating air.

---

It's not really an exaggeration to say none of these games would be quite the same without their fabulous canines.

No matter what your favorite video game dog is and why you love it so much, though, make sure to take some time today and every day to give your real dog some snuggles, snacks, and playtime.

Oh, and if we had to make a list of honorable mentions, it would be: 

\n
• General Pepper (Star Fox)
\n
• Dog (Dragon Quest: Origins)
\n
• Hewie (Haunting Ground)
\n
• Poppy (Samurai Shodown)
\n
• Caesar (Wargroove)
\n
• Vigilance (Skyrim)
\n
• Chop (Grand Theft Auto V)
\n
• Riley (Call of Duty: Ghosts)
\n

Let us know which good doggos you would add by sounding off in the comments below! 

Amaterasu — Okami

Most dogs in video games are your friends, your sidekicks, or your pets. But in Okami, you are the dog — or, more accurately, you are the white lupine representation of the sun goddess Amaterasu on the mortal plane.

Okami is all about Amaterasu and her truly epic journey to preserve creation in the face of Orochi’s impending onslaught of darkness. It’s drawn straight from Japanese legends, though naturally, with some changes and embellishments for game purposes.

Being an almost all-powerful goddess, Ammy, as her villagers call her, is able to change the world around her using a mechanic that makes the game shine as a unique experience almost as much as it is a unique game. You’ll use Ammy’s powers to solve puzzles, bring objects into creation, interact with and change the environment, and take on foes throughout the gorgeous watercolor world.

Amaterasu’s story might be beautiful, but it isn’t always a happy one. She’s tested to the end of her abilities and faces defeat and despair more than once. At her weakest point, though, when all seems lost, she transforms into her true self and suppresses Orochi’s darkness for all time, before ascending to the Celestial Plain.

Now, most dogs aren’t going to have lives quite that active, and hopefully, yours won’t have a face-off against the lord of darkness. But Amaterasu’s actions still embody the essence of being a dog — putting everything on the line for the ones that need them most and trying their hardest to make sure they don’t let anyone down.

Bill Grey — Star Fox

Bill Grey is the quintessential guard dog. Data for Bill existed in the scrapped Star Fox 2 game for the SNES, but he didn’t make a proper debut until Star Fox 64. He’s one of Fox McCloud’s oldest friends, with the two having grown up and attended pilot school together.

In 64, Bill takes charge of Corneria’s defensive squadrons, aptly called the Husky and Bulldog squads because duh. He also makes an appearance in the often-overlooked Star Fox Command, also on a defensive mission with Falco, and then he returns yet again to defend Katina once more in the ill-fated Star Fox Zero.

No matter what he does, Bill is always looking to protect the things that mean the most to him.

He might not be as visible in the series as General Pepper, but he’s certainly got something Pepper doesn’t. Where the General barks orders and maintains a definite distance from the rest of the squad, Bill is right there in the space-trenches alongside everyone else, sharing their burdens as one of the team.

Unfortunately, Bill still manages to be the one left out of the big picture. He gets no special ending in Command and doesn’t have as much chance for character development as a certain frog, falcon, and donkey.

While we hope, one day, Bill gets some more attention, maybe even part of a full-blown adventure like Star Fox Adventures, he serves as a good reminder to give credit where it's due to all the goodest watchdogs in our lives.

Dogmeat — Fallout

What’s the one thing you need if you’re struggling for survival in a post-apocalyptic world that's reeling from the effects of nuclear disaster? Food, radiation protection, and survival gear are all wrong answers because a dog is what you need.

Fortunately for our Fallout hero, a dog is what they get in the form of Dogmeat.

Dogmeat’s appearance isn’t uniform across the Fallout games. He’s sometimes a large black dog, a wolf-like dog, or a German Shepherd, but the basic gist remains the same across the series.

At some point during your travels, you get the chance to find and recruit Dogmeat by helping him out and taking an interest in his wellbeing.

Typically, his owner died sometime in the past, or he just didn’t have one. Though initially spending his days guarding his territory and terrorizing anyone who comes near, he eventually takes up with you and joins your journey for survival as a party member.

Unlike other party members (and JRPG dogs), Dogmeat can’t equip gear or use weapons that you couldn’t normally fit on a dog, but he still holds his own in combat with no trouble, so long as you make sure to look after him.

In return, Dogmeat looks after you, alerting you to the presence of enemies, helping you find items, dealing huge amounts of damage in combat, and generally just being your best friend, especially in Fallout 4.

The world might be dark and deadly in Fallout, but Dogmeat is a good reminder that a loving dog by your side makes every day just a bit easier.

Koromaru — Persona 3

Koromaru is the Persona 3 version of the famous Greyfriars Bobby in Scotland. Bobby was a Skye Terrier who became known throughout the city of Edinburgh during the late 1800s; after his owner died from tuberculosis, Bobby remained in the cemetery for 14 years, faithfully waiting to see his master again.

Koromaru once lived at a shrine on Iwatodai Island with his owner; Shadows killed his owner, but Koromaru stayed at the shrine nonetheless, waiting faithfully, until the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (S.E.E.S.) comes along and adopts him.

Unlike Bobby, though, Koromaru isn’t real. That key difference means his strength of heart lets him summon a Persona — Cerberus, of course — to take the fight to the Shadows.

He’s one of the only party members with a natural defense against dark magic, has high speed, and lands critical hits often, which lets you get that sweet, sweet “One More” extra attack. Like Repede, Koromaru wields a knife in his mouth.

But more importantly, he wears an unbelievably adorable pair of tiny wings and a T-shirt.

His floofy cuteness actually plays an important role in the story as well. Koromaru keeps Shinji Aramaki from being the stereotypical gruff character with no depth, as he’s the only one Shinji opens up to and acts like a normal human around.

That’s a very important point to note later on, before the very bad thing happens ,and you learn more about Shinji, Akihiko, and Ken’s intertwined past.

He also helps you raise Social Link points with others by taking him for a walk at night. Truly, no one can resist Koro-chan’s charms.

Sandy — Dragon Quest XI

Sandy doesn’t get much screen time in Dragon Quest XI, but what she does get makes her a top-notch canine companion.

The first thing you have to do in the game is climb Cobblestone Tor for a ritual that proves you and your childhood friend Gemma have grown up. The problem with this particular tradition is that the Tor is crawling with monsters. Gemma, grown up though she may be, is no fighter. That leaves Hero to fend off the creatures alone.

He’s not entirely alone, though. Good ol’ Sandy comes to the rescue and joins the party, with some powerful attacks to help see you safely through your trials.

Doing a regular mode run, that might not seem like much of a big deal. This is the first dungeon, after all, a time for extended tutorials and enemies no tougher than pudding.

Take on a Draconian Quest, and it’s a different matter entirely. Without Sandy, these early-game monsters would kick your rear right off the Tor with no effort at all.

Sandy doesn’t play a direct role in the plot, but she’s still important. Hero grows up with Sandy, and like all good dogs, she’s part of everything in daily life — until that fateful day when their world changes.

Thinking about Sandy and Cobblestone like that makes the first gut-punch hurt that much worse and sets a distinctly different tone for Hero’s adventures from that point on.

Zeit — Trails from Zero, Trails of Azure

You’d be hard pressed to find a dog or wolf that’s more of a contradiction than Zeit is in The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero and Trails of Azure.

He’s at once massively important to the plot, themes, and backstory, but simultaneously doesn’t have a big role to play in the plot thanks to an exception in a certain contract he has. (Yes, a wolf has a contract. It’s a thing.)

Zeit is a legendary divine wolf who watches over the land known as Crossbell. After one of the mafia groups from Crossbell City starts wreaking havoc in the countryside, the divine wolves get blamed until the Special Support Section of the Crossbell Police steps in to put things right.

Despite being huge, divine, and legendary, he acts like a normal dog from then on, protecting the SSS headquarters, and generally letting the city’s kids do whatever they want with him.

Outside some indirect combat support, it initially seems like that’s what Zeit’s role is — big, loveable pooch.

As Azure gears up for its final chapter, though, that notion changes in a very big way as you learn about Zeit’s past and his connection with Crossbell. Among other things, you can take control of Zeit as a playable party member, and you quickly find out he can basically end the world with a swipe of his paw.

Yet whether you’re worthy or not, and despite his own circumstances, he chooses to be your friend and help you when times get tough.

It’s a subtle underscoring of the games’ “true bonds” theme — and pretty much what dogs do in our lives every day.

Repede — Tales of Vesperia

Games in the Tales of franchise typically have some sort of animal sidekick. While Mieu in Tales of the Abyss is one of the better ones thanks to being a barometer measuring Luke fon Fabre’s character development, Mieu isn’t a dog.

Repede from Tales of Vesperia is a dog — and one with impeccable style and presence. He carries a pipe in his mouth and swaps it out for weapons during combat, both of which make for a pretty hard act to beat.

Repede doesn’t necessarily have much story significance in Vesperia, other than being a reminder of how difficult protagonist Yuri Lowell’s past has been. Beyond plot necessity, though, he's a genuine friend to the isolated Yuri, with all the loyalty and affection we'd expect from the best dogs — and all that in spite of what Yuri did in the past to Repede's father.

Repede's also a true beast in combat.

He’s one of the first party members you get, and also one of the rare examples of using a “pet” as a full-time party member — outside Breath of Fire III, at least.

While he might not be much of a magic user, Repede is speedy and strong, with powerful technical Artes attacks and the ability to strike and retreat with haste. Add his theft ability on top of that, and he’s a character you’ll want to regularly keep on the field. 

Repede is exactly what all good dogs are: invaluable and adorable.

Angelo — Final Fantasy VIII

Angelo is the very definition of loyal. She’s Rinoa’s dog in Final Fantasy VIII and takes things a big step further than Interceptor. For one, she’s always by Rinoa’s side. Always. Whether it’s at school, in battle, or even after that spoilery thing happens and Rinoa is incapacitated for a while, Angelo is there, offering her support.

Rinoa’s comment about learning so much from Angelo isn’t just cute dog talk either. Unlike Interceptor, Angelo plays a more defined role in combat.

For one thing, she’s Rinoa’s Limit Break, which is obviously the series’ best Limit Break. Rinoa and Angelo start with four basic attacks, but she/you have to read dog magazines to learn new abilities as an improved dog trainer.

Depending on circumstances, Angelo can even help heal an ailing party member or perform a hard-hitting attack at just the right moment to turn the tide.

She gets a biscuit for her troubles during battle, which is sweet. But the endgame is what serves as a perfect metaphor for how our relationships with our dogs usually go.

After staying by Rinoa at all times, saving the party’s skin on countless occasions, and generally just being perfect, what does Angelo get? More biscuits? Head pats?

No. She gets left behind while Rinoa has a moment with Squall.

Whatever.

Rush — Mega Man

Rush is Mega Man’s loyal robo-dog friend in the Mega Man series and spinoffs, starting with Mega Man 3 and staying by the Blue Bomber’s side ever since.

It’s not just one Rush, either. The robo-doggo takes on a wide variety of different forms as the situation calls for it.

The most familiar one is probably spring-mode Rush, aka Rush Coil, where he transforms into a giant springboard and propels Mega Man to greater heights. It’s a lifesaver in certain situations and absolutely necessary if you’re playing spelunker and want to get everything a stage has to offer.

But Rush’s trick repertoire doesn’t end there, and it’s arguable that as the mainline Mega Man games started to lose their luster, Rush himself started getting even better.

Over the course of his long career, he’s mastered the art of turning into the Rush Marine submarine, carrying Mega Man through space as Rush Space, flying through the air as jet-powered Rush, and doing all the things you’d expect from a robotic dog with near-endless capabilities.

Rush’s loyalty is a bit different from most dogs, though. It’s hard to say he had a choice in the matter of staying by Mega Man’s side, when his creator, Dr Light, programmed him to be (Mega) man’s best friend.

But he goes above and beyond to fulfill his duties nonetheless, like the good boy he undoubtedly would be — y’know, if he could make his own choices.

Interceptor — Final Fantasy VI

Final Fantasy VI boasts one of the biggest casts of playable characters in the series, and though Interceptor the dog is just a sidekick to one of those characters, he plays an interesting role in and out of combat.

Interceptor’s master is Shadow, the Ninja. Like all Ninjas in Final Fantasy, Shadow is actually pretty fragile, despite his relative strength. Even though he’s a master of stealth, enemies tend to target him rather often during combat.

Fortunately, Interceptor randomly jumps in and, well, intercepts the attack; he blocks like shields do, only more often. He also randomly attacks an enemy for Shadow, though it’s more adorable than effective in most cases.

Outside of combat, though,  is where Interceptor gets really interesting, and it’s possible to completely miss how his story unfolds. At a certain spot before the game’s halfway point, the party meets Relm, a precocious young artist with a strange affinity for Interceptor, a dog who usually just tolerates Shadow and can’t stand other people. Relm lives with her grandfather and never knew her parents.

You can probably put two and two together from that information. But whether you see it play out in the game depends on a choice you make.

If you’re heartless and leave the Floating Continent without Shadow, his story ends (because he dies, spoiler alert). If not, and you make sure to speak to him at specific points, you learn about his previous relationships and roles in life.

And it’s all because of Interceptor, bringing people together like a good boy.

Isabelle — Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Being an animal-centric game, Animal Crossing: New Leaf naturally has lots of lovely doggos to choose from; if you want to be technical, Tom Nook is even a dog, thanks to the whole Tanooki = racoon-dog thing.

Isabelle stands a cut above the rest for a few reasons, though. Apart from having a distinct personality separate from the rest of the villagers, she always says nice things and doesn’t try to get money from you. That last one alone is worthy of a top ranking.

But it’s Isabelle’s unfailing positivity and optimism that really make her so loveable and charming. Isabelle is almost always happy — and happy to help.

She helps you settle into your new village and pick a spot for your house, always organizes special events and attends big public works unveilings, and even shoulders your mayoral duties for years on end when you forget your village exists.

Of course, that cheerfulness makes seeing Isabelle so capably beat the stuffing out of Pikachu in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate just a bit disconcerting, but it just helps underscore how amazing she really is.

Whether she’s keeping an entire village running or sweeping up the competition, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more amazing dog than Isabelle.

Whether it's International Dog Day or just a regular afternoon of playing games with your pooch, the most pressing question we have any time a new game is revealed — or when a new trailer is shown — that also includes a dog is, "But can you pet the doggo?"

It's a testament not just to how much we all love dogs, but to how often they show up in our favorite video games. Some, like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, are pretty much there just for show, keeping the world alive and digging up stuff for you if you feed them.

These dogs are great and all, but they don't always play a substantial role; some of them can't even be pet, no matter how fluffy and oodgie-woodgie they look.

Others play a much bigger part in a game or entire series, though, and some are even the backbone of entire plots.

In honor of International Dog Day 2019, we're taking a look at those dogs playing a starring role in the world of video games.

Whether they're helping you out on the farm, hurling you to new heights, or swatting your enemies away like so much annoying dust, these dogs are versatile, loving, loyal, and everything that makes dogs wonderful in real life.

The latest free update for Dragon Quest Builders 2 goes live today and, as Square Enix recently outlined, it introduces new post-game content and a variety of minor improvements.

Once the story ends in DQB 2, it's over, even though there's a gull free-build mode that follows. That's a shame given how many interesting personalities the Builder meets over the course of his or her journey. However, today's update introduces a new "Where Are They Now?" epilogue story content for certain characters.

While Square Enix didn't say which characters benefit from this new content, we're hoping some like Lulu or the always-optimistic Rosie might get some extra attention.

Buildertopia is the game's, well, building utopia. More than the Isle of Awakening, it lets players create a world almost entirely from scratch and turn it into whatever they want. The problem used to be that only one such Buildertopia could exist at a given time, but today's update increases the number of Buildertopias players can store to three.

Players now have more control over the weather. On islands that aren't Buildertopias. Today's update introduces five new items that let players change the weather for certain islands.

One other welcome change is with the recipe-learning animation after increasing gratitude. Though adorable, the original animation is admittedly rather slow, so Square Enix sped it up.

On a smaller scale, the update adds things like arrows indicating what direction an item will face when it's placed and text that comes up when the game is paused. telling players how may rooms an island has.

There are a few other small changes as well:

• Plant growth option in the Settings menu
• Adjustable cursor speed for the Buildnoculars
• New hairstyles
• New end-game animation
• Changed the number of save slots to three
• The usual "Miscellaneous Fixes"

Those who haven't picked up the game yet or are still getting started don't have to wait to enjoy everything the game has to offer. Dragon Quest Builders 2 is already chock-full of content both in the regular story and online elements, alongside a hefty helping of DLC that offers even more goodies for a Builders' toolkit to keep you busy for a long time to come.

The Hero from Dragon Quest is making his way to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate today, bringing a new fighting style, plenty of DQ whimsy, and a brand-new stage. That's not all, though, as version 4.0.0 is bringing with it a range of other new updates as well.

Hero is free for those who purchased the Fighter Pass, though the character can be purchased separately for $5.99

Today's brief video with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's director Masahiro Sakurai provided a detailed overview of the game's latest addition. As we already knew, the Hero comes in four variants: DQIII, DQIV, DQVIII, and DQXIS. Each has the same fighting style, though is voiced by a different voice actor.

Hero's moveset is, unsurprisingly, based heavily on the Dragon Quest games. The Frizz family serves as the primary special, with the Zap spells for left and right attacks, and Woosh for the recovery/up attack. Holding the button longer allows Hero to charge spells further, so for instance, Woosh becomes Swoosh, which then becomes Kaswoosh.

The down special pulls up a menu of random spells from the series, ranging from the instant-KO spell Thwack to Snooze, Heal, and Zoom, among others.

All these require MP, which Hero recovers by performing basic attacks. Hero's Final Smash is similar to Mega Man's, in that it brings together all the heroes from every mainline Dragon Quest game for an ultimate attack.

Hero brings with him the Yggdrasil's Altar stage, featuring a moving platform that flies around important landmarks from Dragon Quest XI, including the holy tree itself. The background tracks are pulled from each DQ game represented, such as VIII's battle theme or XI's overworld exploration theme.

What Else is in the 4.0.0 Update

Smash Bros. Ultimate version 4.0.0 is adding even more to the game than just the Hero, though.

There are the usual new Mii Fighter costumes that go along with the new fighter, like a Slime hat or Veronica outfit.

There's also a new Online Tourney mode that lets players compete in huge tournaments against other players — and, of course, requires a Nintendo Switch Online subscription. These online tourneys have pre-set rules and will regularly feature special themed events.

Spectate Mode is getting a prediction feature, where players can guess who will win and earn points for their involvement; these points can then be spent on in-game items.

Those finding Adventure Mode a tad too challenging can take advantage of the new Very Easy difficulty level, designed for those who want to enjoy the experience without the stress of difficult combat. However, Final Smashes are getting a time limit, so players can't just hold on to their FS move until the best moment.

Finally, the video editor is getting some new features, including the ability to place a saved screenshot in the middle of a video and to play videos that have been added to Shared Content back to back.

This makes two of the promised five fighters coming to Smash Bros. Ultimate via the Fighter Pass. The first was Joker from Persona 5, and next is Banjo-Kazooie, but that leaves two as-yet still unknown slots to fill.

User ID: hpuk7FwJSB (Juma)

Juma's island is one of shifting moods and feelings. Green Gardens exemplifies this the most. There's a windmill towering over all and pumpkins watching your every step. Move a little ways further, though, and it's a village not too dissimilar from Breath of the Wild's Kakariko Village.

That is until you turn the corner again and find you're back in something akin to Washington Irving's ye olde New York hamlet of Sleepy Hollow.

What's more, the island's inn even boasts decorated rooms with people who actually sleep in them. It sounds odd to praise an inn for featuring that, but plenty of the islands surveyed had impressive fronts with bare rooms.

Scarlet Sands takes a refreshingly minimalist approach to the region. Yes, there's the pyramid, but it's the central feature there. A lone row of buildings apologetically occupies one side of the desert, and that's it.

Few in number they may be, but it's better to visit the above-ground shops than to be lured inside the pyramid by fried eggs, only to then be murdered by a ghost. Yes, Juma's island will kill you.

Among the many Cerulean Steppes in the world, this one is appealing for its different approach. Rather than big castles and torch-lit villas, Juma's Cerulean Steppe has a large waterfall as its primary attraction, with a twisting stone walkway winding its way around and only a solitary item store atop a nearby cliff.

If it's company you crave, though, you can always head back to the dock area and sleep on the pier while people stare at you.

---

These are just a small sampling of the tremendous variety waiting to be uncovered through Dragon Quest Builders 2's bulletin board. There are countless variations on classic themes, wild experimentation in architecture and mood design, simple designs, ambitious projects, and everything in between.

Take a break from building, check out what others have been up to, then put together your own island masterpiece for the world to marvel at!

If you're looking for tips on DQB 2, be sure to head over to our growing guides page. To see why we said the game is "a sequel done right," be sure to check out our review. 

User ID: cs2ZAVQoYB (Yamada)

Yamada shakes The Cerulean Steppe up even further by adding a proper castle town right outside the area's large castle. The castle itself is impressive, just by nature of being so imposing, but the town is relaly what draws the eye.

There are a lot of ships being shown off in DQB2, but this one is especially nice. It's practical, situated as it is right off the town's coast, and it's one of the more detailed wooden ship designs. Better yet, you can enjoy seeing it from the seaside cafe conveniently situated at the water's edge.

Moving around the town, forget farming. This village traded in the plows for garden trowels, with charming picket fence plots surrounding even the merchants' buildings around town.

Should you require something a bit more exciting, head over to the local tavern, complete with bar and restaurant tables. Don't be fooled by the hearts, though. A puff-puff parlor this is not, so you'll have to find some other way to stave off the winter chill.

Or you can just head to Scarlet Sands. Watch time slip away while you gaze out at the pond in front of the pyramid, before dancing the chills away at the local dance floor and calling it a day in one of the pyramid's cozy inns. 

User ID: dHMNAtonG7 (YURIMON)

YURIMON's island plays with the idea of contrasts as well. It starts with this rustic outlying hut positioned just so near a waterfall.

It's a lovely mini-garden, with fruit sitting in baskets and a small field of sunflowers waving in the breeze.

Water plays a prominent role on this island, and if you head upstream, you'll eventually find a neatly planned farm in Green Gardens. Unlike many Furrowfieldian-style farms we came across in our travels, this one has animals in it. 

Head out from the farm and its unique farmhands towards the Cerulean Steppe, and you'll find a much different Steppe than many create.

This one's another industrial-inspired village, one that, unlike donguri's, still manages to feel livable.

There's also what looks like a hothouse on display and a swanky lounge just a few doors away. The whole thing's an interconnected labyrinth of homes, workshops, and restaurants.

The most interesting workshop is one near the castle. It's set in a futuristic-looking pod on a ridge a little ways outside the castle's front.

It's the quintessential builder's workshop, small but practical, crammed but functional, and with a special building area behind the curtain, away from prying eyes.

User ID: gOhMg2EyRy (magjical)

The primary screenshot for magjical's island is somewhat misleading. Sure, it's a nice room.

Cozy, practical, and well-furnished, but is that really all this highly rated island has to offer?

No, as a matter of fact, it isn't.

Green Gardens host a regimented farm, with clean and organized fields, open paths, bridges, and good lighting. There's a rather more concerning barracks-style bedroom too, complete with accompanying communal toilets.

Meanwhile, the lord of the island lives it up in a huge castle, and they certainly don't share toilets.

Indeed, they have a private bathroom tucked away in the corner of a vast dungeon — because, of course, that's where bathrooms go.

The castle itself is massive, chock full of all the castle-type things you'd expect, from kitchens and taverns to a private chapel. Of course, there's a massive throne room with a plush, posh throne in pride of place.

It's also a heavily fortified castle, with a number of deadly defensive mechanisms placed outside just for the sake of it, from fire traps and lasers to blizzard blasters.

Necessary fortifications? Or just peasant deterrents? You decide.

Either way, it's nice to see a sense of unity between different areas, since many Islands of Awakening keep the three completely separate.

Uploader ID: cyuu5sQNMD (Tomikoji)

Tomikoji's eclectic island takes the most advantage of space to create massive areas full of variety and character.

The Teleportal spits you out near the dock area, which has been turned into a kind of tea party paradise. It's full of colorful waterside homes, each with their own expansive gardens and water features.

Granted, some of the water features are beautiful death traps that don't let you jump out, but that's where the beauty of not saving changes you make to someone else's island comes in.

Almost every building has a set of distinct rooms, from a pink-and-monster themed one, to normal ones, Slime rooms, and more.

All this is just a front for the Breath of the Wild-scale ruins behind the waterfront town. It's a huge jungle filled with ponds, dilapidated barracks, and a large temple-like structure, all encircled by a towering wall.

The Cerulean Steppe offers yet another example of chapel + cozy town, but it's hard not to stop and marvel at the huge cathedral dominating the skyline.

To cap it off, there's a large open area that hosts a variety of different material sets, presumably the ones used to create this very island. It's an engaging way to encourage others to experiment and see what they can come up with, too.

User ID: cspCp82bWF (donguri)

If you're looking for something a bit more epic in scope, check out donguri's top-ranked town-and-shrine island.

The initial area is composed almost entirely of a massive cathedral building, extending far into the sky. The portal area is at the bottom, surrounded by a moat of sorts that's also home to an overflowing graveyard, complete with piles of decaying bones.

There's enough to explore here to last a long time.

The inside of the cathedral is vertically enormous, sporting an ornate, but dark library and a mysterious central chamber, among other things.

Then there's the small rows of houses up the cliffside. Homes for workers oppressed by the mysterious church? Abandoned cottages from years before? No one knows.

The Scarlet Sands area does away with the desert theme completely. Instead, it's an eerie industrial complex lit by blue flame and seeming rather reminiscent of Xenoblade Chronicles 2's Ardainian Empire.

There's an airship, too, which is quite the reasonable choice of transport given how huge and high this island is.

Yet another area is home to a bog illuminated with lanterns that's especially appealing after dark.

The Cerulean Steppe might not seem quite so inspired compared to the other areas on donguri's island, but you can't deny it's rather charming to see a row of Georgian-style townhomes for monsters. 

User ID: e5TzCagrbZ (kabu)

Kabu's island makes the most of what the Isle of Awakening has on offer with three very distinct setups for each area.

The Teleportal drops you off near Scarlet Sands. There's the obligatory massive pyramid, a la Dragon Warrior/Quest VII, which you build later in the game, but the rest of it's been turned into a snazzy desert resort.

It's like something you'd expect to find in a theme park, from a dancing area to a bunch of restaurants, and tourists wandering around needing the toilet.

There's a huge bar with lots of entertainment options, too. You can't actually play darts (as you can't in the actual game, either), but you can at least marvel at the use of spacing. It achieves a level of coziness without just feeling crammed full of stuff.

A short warp away to The Cerulean Steppe finds you in a quiet, snowbound town, with a serene chapel and massive improvements to the castle found there. Chapels in The Cerulean Steppe are pretty common, but this one feels like it came right out of a Square Enix-designed Dragon Quest game

Like the Scarlet Sands area, the level of detail here stands out the most, as well as the coherence of design.

Where some builders are content to leave their area markers hanging in mid-air, Kabu incorporated this one into an impressive fountain feature.

The castle even boasts the standard armor and treasure rooms, plus a secret waterway passage out the side, borrowed straight from Dragon Quest V.

User ID: cwA2fZuxxo (Djunior)

As soon as you step foot onto Djunior's Buildertopia, you know you've ascended to a higher, posher plane. The music fits with Dragon Quest's usual melodies for the nicer side of the tracks, and the entire utopia is like the corporate executive equivalent of poyo's resort town.

It's an exercise in creative plant management as well, with lush plantscapes filling almost every border and open space, creating an almost jungle-like atmosphere at times.

No business retreat is complete without a few amenities, and this one is no exception. Check out the special, rather creepy workout room.

There's something for the spiritually minded visitors as well. No piddly chapel is good enough for this kind of location. No, indeed. It must be a massive, echoing cathedral — which, apart from fitting the location to a T is pretty darned impressive by itself.

Though they're easy to overlook given their ubiquity in architecture since time immemorial, the roofwork on Djunior's island is something else as well. Should you feel tired from walking around the expansive paradise or find climbing to the rooftop difficult, you can always hitch a ride on a friendly chimera. 

ID cu31RxEAhu (poyo)

Several of these picks are so strongly designed that you feel like you're in a theme park or at a resort. That's definitely the case with poyo's seaside wonder-town, which doesn't just have the luxury sea town feel, but it covers the whole tourist-y package.

As befits an island like this, you start off at the dock, with a good view of the entire town.

There's the usual restaurant, condo-style housing, and everything else you'd expect from a resort, and it's all packaged in a cool, modern style.

Venture a little ways outside town, though, and you find the ideal village vacation spot.

Fields make up most of the village (where do you think the resort's meals come from?) and lend this area a distinct feel from the flashier port town. Yet the tram tracks throughout the village remind you the whole world's still actually a theme park.

The giant aquarium, souvenir stand, and Slime equivalent of the Disney Castle help that feeling, too.

User ID: ctt9p2gvsq (Sasakure)

Here, Sasakure has created a Buildertopia, a tightly-focused showcase of buildings centered around a specific theme. This one, in particular, is a charming village made up of shops, cafes, loads of greenery, and gardens.

From lovely bistros offering a view of the village square to secret picnic spots nestled away in the flowers, this Buildertopia is a fine reminder that building excellence isn't always connected to architecture. Landscaping is equally important.

Of course, a good eye for making an attractive building goes a long way, too. The specific block types and lighting lend the village a unique air, leaning towards a distinct Alpine feel.

And there's just so much packed into a small area. That's part of a Buildertopia's strength: making you really think about how your buildings relate to each other and fit in with the whole picture.

Dragon Quest Builders 2 might prioritize the single-player campaign over its multiplayer elements, but there are other massive worlds out there waiting to be explored.

They live in your bulletin board, one of the first features the Hairy Hermit tells you about on the Island of Awakening.

Builders from all around the world can submit snapshots and islands for others to enjoy, all with no fear of vandalism thanks to the game's handy "I'm not saving what you just did" feature while visiting other islands.

There's an almost overwhelming number of different islands to visit, categorized by theme or hashtag and updated constantly. What you find now will be a further six rows down the list in an hour.

With such variety on offer, you'd be hard-pressed to choose any number of creations to put in a best-of list. But we've done just that here, with 10 of the best creations in Dragon Quest Builders 2 so far (that we were lucky enough to stumble across).

Square Enix followed through on its promise of unveiling a new Dragon Quest experience today (Tuesday in Japan) by announcing Dragon Quest Walk.

It's a brand-new, Pokemon GO-style mobile game developed by Colpol for iOS and Android that brings the quirky world of Dragon Quest close to home.

Note that for now, the game is only set for a Japanese release.

There wasn't a great deal of information shared along with the reveal trailer, but the game's primary theme is moving forward, both in the player's adventure and in life. Like Pokemon GO, Dragon Quest Walk is an AR game with a map and events based on the player's surroundings.

The map has various levels to it. There's a zoomed out version that appears very similar to a traditional Dragon Quest in-game map, but zooming in appears to place a Google Maps overlay on it, with major landmarks, restaurants, and other areas of interest showing up on the game's map.

Over the course of their journeys, players will encounter townsfolk and monsters and engage in combat. A gameplay reveal video released alongside the trailer gives an idea of how combat will work in Dragon Quest Walk, and it seems like it won't be pared down either.

Players can take on a number of quests from specific landmarks and can also opt-in for more challenging fights against what appear to be boss monsters. The menu system also shows players can spend crystal-like items to unlock new quests or activities, so chances are, there will be microtransactions in Dragon Quest Walk.

Another feature is My Room. Players will get access to their own room, which isn't too surprising given the feature's name, and they can decorate that space with all kinds of furniture and items they pick up throughout their adventure.

With Pokemon GO's massive success and complete integration into The Pokemon Company's plans for the franchise, it's no surprise to see another hugely popular Japanese franchise get the mobile AR treatment.

Dragon Quest fans only recently started receiving details on a Switch version of Dragon Quest XI, but today's Nintendo Direct had more to offer on the matter. Specifically, Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age, Definitive Edition is now set to release on Switch this fall.

The Switch version of Dragon Quest XI boasts a number of new features, including dual audio that will allow players to change between English and Japanese voice actors at any time. Furthermore, Dragon Quest XI S is the first time the game delivers a fully orchestrated score, though players can switch to the original score at any point, if they so choose.

Despite these changes, the game's main storyline remains the same. That is, the hero of Dragon Quest XI bands together with a ragtag group, known as the Luminaries, as they evade their mysterious hunters and track down the cause of the darkness plaguing their land.

However, the Switch release will also contain new stories, one for each party member. These tales will place secondary characters in the spotlight, revealing hidden truths and new information about them.

It's very possible that you may not have even played video games back when the last brand new, mainline Dragon Quest game was released in 2010. Dragon Quest IX on the Nintendo DS was the last new mainline game to leave Japan, and its multiplayer-focus was a big surprise after the wildly successful Dragon Quest VIII on the PlayStation 2.

For long-time fans and JRPG players at large, seeing a big Dragon Quest in English is a big deal. Dragon Quest Builders was great, all those remakes on the Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS are great -- but those are not the same thing.

Dragon Quest XI is finally making its way to the world market in a mere two weeks, finally leaving Japan after a year-long gap. From reports on the Japanese version, this seems to be the biggest entry in the series yet.

As with the original release of Dragon Quest VIII, XI will see a number of changes with its localization, spanning from its menus to its voice acting (which is not present in the Japanese release). In an earlier interview with DualShockers, producer Hokuto Okamoto referred to the Western release as the "better version" of the game.

If you've got that itch for classic turn-based RPG, keep your sights set to your favorite retailers for Dragon Quest XI's worldwide release for PlayStation 4 and PC on September 4, 2018. Check back here with GameSkinny for our upcoming Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age review and guides!

Final Fantasy Tactics is considered a cult classic and a premier turn-based strategy RPG. It took the overwhelming wealth of fantastical material from the Final Fantasy franchise and created a truly magnificent game. Final Fantasy Tactics set the precedent of how to make a proper spin-off from a strong JRPG.

However, very few JRPG's have created a spin-off similar to Final Fantasy Tactics. With Pokémon Conquest being the only exception, developers have ignored the strategy RPG sub genre used in Final Fantasy Tactics and instead focused on more action-oriented gameplay. While not all JRPGs are suited for these types of spin-offs, those that are will benefit greatly from creating them. Here are a few JRPGs that should get the Final Fantasy Tactics treatment.

Breath of Fire

To create a strategy RPG battle system that stands out from the rest, you must either create unique mechanics that change the way a player perceives combat, or create characters that allow the player to devise new strategies in battle. Breath of Fire already does both with its combo system and cast of anthropomorphic characters. Players can create new tactics depending on the abilities in each character's arsenal.

Breath of Fire does not have the following to support a proper Final Fantasy Tactics like spin-off, however. The last game in the series, Breath of Fire VI, was a free-to-play online RPG that earned the scorn of longtime fans. Breath of Fire VI is still only available in Japan and has been considered a critical flop. Even with those challenges, Breath of Fire could still create a worthwhile strategy RPG.

 Source: Purenintendo.com

Xenoblade Chronicles

Xenoblade Chronicles may not seem fit for a strategy RPG spin-off, but the unique world and interesting lore can build multiple games from different genres. For example, take the war between the Mechons and the Homs. That war alone can span a full series of strategy RPGs that would lead up to the beginning of the first game.

The player can follow a small group of soldiers led by the previous Monado users. Since they are engaging in a much larger conflict than themselves, each battle can fit into an overarching goal for the game. It is imperative story wise to focus on the soldiers and how they deal with the stress of constant battle. A strong

Gameplay wise, the use of the stagger system and Monado would change how players strategize in each battle. You can encourage continuous onslaught with the stagger system, while giving the players time to react with the Monado's ability to see the future.

Regardless, Xenoblade provides interesting mechanics and deep lore that are perfect for a strategy RPG.

Source: Mynintendonews

Shin Megami Tensei 

What's better than controlling a party of demons? Controlling an army of demons. While Shin Megami Tensei already has a strategy RPG spin-off series, the scope can easily be increased. Combining a large customizable army with the brutal difficulty famous in Atlus games creates an absorbing strategy game.

This is easily the most likely to occur as there has been strong support for the previous Devil Survivor games. Introducing more strategies and demons will allow players greater control on the battlefield. Fighting Hell's army would be both challenging yet so much fun.

Source: Technobuffalo.com

Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross

While most players would rather have a new Chrono Trigger game, a strategy RPG would still be fun. The sheer quality of the two games sets high expectations for any future title, spin-off or otherwise. If a strategy RPG would be created, it would need to be extremely well-polished and fulfilling to the fans.

Besides the high expectations, the biggest challenge to a Chrono strategy RPG would be the combination of customization and fleshed out characters. Chrono Trigger has amazing characters that are well defined and experience personal growth. Final Fantasy Tactic shas a few good characters and a bunch of blank slates. This simply doesn't fit into the style of Chrono Trigger. Luckily, creating a balance is possible, it will just take a lot of work on the developer.

For combat, the technique system seen in Chrono Trigger could encourage synergy between party members. Using the progression system in Chrono Cross could properly flesh out challenge and alleviate grinding. Just make sure it doesn't overly restrict the player's strategy. Any Chrono game would be awesome at this point and a strong strategy RPG would be icing on the cake.

Source: fluffybunnypwn.blogspot.com

Dragon Quest

Considered a direct competitor for Final Fantasy for years, it is only fitting for Dragon Quest to get in on the turn based action. Combining a strong class system, great customizability, and a huge amount of lore, Dragon Quest is perfect for a strategy RPG spin-off.

This would likely be the most direct adaptation of Final Fantasy Tactics in terms of gameplay. Players would use a vast array of classes to engage in challenging battles that test your intelligence. While the classes and abilities will be different, the combat will remain similar to Final Fantasy Tactics -- without any major twists. That isn't a bad thing, however, as it allows the developer to polish something that works and create a strong product.

Story-wise, the depth of Dragon Quest's lore is strong and can create countless tales. The focus will still be on creating a strong set of characters, but Square can fully realize an engaging world. All in all, a Dragon Quest spin-off would be awesome.

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Remember that Final Fantasy Tactics was successful because it showed Final Fantasy in a different light. It was darker than the main series and provided a gameplay style uncommon to this day.

These games can also pull off an amazing spin-off, but it will require breaking away from Final Fantasy Tactics. Strategy RPGs are amazing, and these spin-offs would truly be awesome.

To date, Dragon Quest has spanned ten titles (excluding spin-offs), and over the course of these games, heroes have had to battle countless enemies. Seeing as this series has lasted for over three decades, there's naturally a lot of variety in the foes the protagonists combat.

And, as with most RPGs, the games are only as good as their stories -- and their stories are only as good as their antagonists.

There have been plenty of bosses, mini-bosses and ultimate Big Bads to defeat, but there will always be ones you remember more than others. Whether it's because their motives are a little different, their attacks are slightly kooky, or they're just generally downright weird, you can guarantee that some of them will stick with you long after you reach the end screen. 

With that in mind, we've picked out the head honchos that stood out from the pack for various reasons. They may not be the most powerful, or even have the biggest impact on the plot, but they all offered something a little different. 

WARNING: SPOILERS FOR MULTIPLE DRAGON QUEST GAMES AHEAD!

1. Aamon

Appearances: Dragon Quest IV

Aamon isn't actually the main antagonist of Dragon Quest IV (at least, in the original game), nor is he the most powerful boss you'll encounter. No, Aamon gets a place on this list by being a thoroughly cruel manipulator.

Throughout the game, Aamon stirs the pot, sowing seeds of discontent within Psaro the Manslayer -- his boss -- throughout the monster community, and plotting an uprising. By playing the Hero and Psaro off against each other, Aamon attempts to have both sides destroy each other, paving the way for his ascendancy to become the Ruler of Evil.

In a final act of wonderfully dark treachery, he arranges for Psaro's love, Rose, to be killed, and succeeds in turning the Manslayer into a raging beast which launches itself at the party.

Fortunately, Aamon doesn't get away with his evil. Both Psaro and Rose are revived and -- in the sixth chapter added to the Playstation and DS versions -- Psaro can actually join the party to help destroy the Machiavellian boss forever.

2. Malroth

Appearances: Dragon Quest II, Dragon Quest IX

Considered by some to be the toughest boss in the entire canon of Dragon Quest, Malroth (Shidor in the original release) is an absolute nightmare. He is unleashed after the death of his top priest Hargon, who sacrifices himself to summon the monstrosity.

There are two things that make Malroth such a pain to fight. Firstly, he uses Full Heal like nobody's business, which turns the battle into a war of attrition. Secondly, your encounter with him comes off the back of four other consecutive boss fights in a castle -- Atlas, Bazuzu, Zarlox and Hargon. It's literally level after level of hell.

Unlike many bosses, Malroth isn't much of a talker. Instead, he prefers to smash the living crap out of you, and should be commended for his efficacy, if nothing else. He pops up again as an optional boss in Dragon Quest IX.

3. Marcello

Appearances: Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King

Compared to other bosses, Marcello is a bit of a damp squib since he is dispatched fairly easily. His reason for inclusion here is due to his fantastic (and tragic) story arc, which stands as one of the best in the entire series.

Marcello is a resentful figure who hated the fact that, at a young age, he and his mother were thrown out of their house by his father, who sired Marcello's half-brother Angelo -- one of the party's playable characters.

While Marcello goes on to lead the Templars, the reappearance of Angelo in the Hero's party reignites old jealousy, and when the Abbot of Marcello's order is killed saving the King, Marcello blames the party.

His descent into evil continues as he murders the Lord High Priest and takes his place, but after being defeated by the party, he is ultimately possessed by Rhapthorne who uses him to destroy a shrine and release Rhapthorne's body.

Returning to his senses, Marcello is saved by Angelo after Rhapthorne departs, leaving him to come to terms with the fact that the person he hates the most is the one that saved his life. As tragic stories go, Marcello's takes some beating.

4. Zoma

Appearances: Dragon Quest III, Dragon Quest IX

Zoma is the Big Bad in the third game, and appears around halfway through. After defeating Baramos -- whom you believe to be the main antagonist -- in a Whedonesque twist, Zoma makes an appearance as Baramos' master and the Hero's actual nemesis. You follow him through a portal into the Dark World in order to destroy him.

While his motivations are not really clear, Zoma loves death, decay and suffering. He isn't averse to letting his enemies live, just to prolong their agony. In short, he's your archetypal Evil Overlord. He also packs one hell of a punch, and if you haven't picked up the Orb of Light on your travels, you are likely to struggle to defeat him.

What's worse is that even after you beat Zoma, you end up trapped in the Dark World...so he may be the first boss to actually beat you, even after he loses.

5. Orgodemir

Appearances: Dragon Quest VII

Orgodemir is your main adversary in Dragon Quest VII, and is one of those recurring irritants who keeps coming back for more throughout the game, even though you regularly hand him his butt.

After he defeats God (no, really), the Hero and his party send him back to wherever Demon Lords live. But, when the local populace attempt to revive God, they unwittingly resurrect Orgodemir disguised as God. It turns out that those rituals are a little haphazard at best.

For most of the game, Orgodemir spends his time pretending to be God, while bringing darkness to the world. Fortunately, you're able to see through this facade and ultimately face off against him -- although, like in many JRPGs -- he turns from a bipedal humanoid into a spiked, twisted abomination. Two legs is never enough for many bosses. Also, Orgodemir's final incarnation hits hard. Good luck with that.

6. Ultimate Dragon

Appearances: Dragon Quest VIII

Despite the series' title, dragons don't feature anywhere near as much as you might expect. The eighth game aimed to address that by offering you not one, but eight of the creatures to dispatch, in short succession.

Part of the Dragovian Trials, which are unlocked when you finish the main game, The Ultimate Dragon is -- as the name suggests -- pretty powerful. The worst thing about it isn't the boss itself, although its powers and HP are staggeringly impressive.

No, the problem you'll have is actually getting to face it. In order to reach that final encounter, you have to battle through all six of the dragons you defeated in the trials previously. Assuming you survive that, you will earn the dubious reward of taking on the toughest dragon you're likely to find on any of your quests.

7. God

Appearances: Dragon Quest VII

Yes. You can fight The Almighty in Dragon Quest. He turns up as an optional boss in a bonus dungeon in the seventh game, and if you manage to beat him in less than twenty turns, he'll give you a gift of your choice. His level of difficulty is variable -- sometimes you can wipe him out easily, and at other times he seems nigh on impossible to best.

Still, there's no denying that his inclusion as the bearded, floating immortal with long white hair is the exact embodiment of everything you're taught as a kid. The fact that God can be defeated (and therefore fallible) is a curiosity which is sadly never explored. The developers could even have riled the patriarchy and made God a woman.

Missed opportunities, ArtePiazza.

Who are your favorite Dragon Quest bosses? Did we miss some classics that you expected to see? Let us know in the comments!

I've played many, many different JRPGs in my time. Some well known, others not so much. In the West, I believe one series that deserves more attention from more gamers is the Dragon Quest series.

Both Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy helped define the JRPG genre. Providing gamers with magical fantasy worlds and turn-based combat that suck you in for hours. So, here are a few reasons I think Dragon Quest is the better of the two, and why it deserves more notoriety.

The Worlds

This is one of the places I believe Dragon Quest shines. Unlike the majority of Final Fantasy titles which have no involvement with one another. The majority of the Dragon Quest series is based on continuing tales. Characters can be descendants of others from previous games, or have items from previous games play important roles in another. This gives a nice feeling of familiarity between each one. That isn't to say every title in the series is interlinked. It's just that in opposition of Final Fantasy's design of creating a new world and expanding upon popular ones. Dragon Quest tries to keep a timeline for the series and has a few games that aren't related to others.

Each iteration of the game feels like it's expanding on an already vast world. Playing through them in order is like having a humongous story unfold. However, the stories that aren't directly related to any others are still very solid.

I'll use Dragon Quest VIII for this because it's one of my favorites. The quest you embark on starts simple enough. There's a hideous looking green creature, a horse and their guard. There is a king and the horse is his daughter. The two of them have been afflicted by a terrible curse cast upon his kingdom by Dhoulmagus.

You play as the guard, whose mission is freeing the king and his daughter from the curse. By doing so you traverse across vast plains and mountains meeting your additional party members -- each of whom have been, or eventually are, wronged by Dhoulmagus themselves. This all hits an apparent climax when you return to the kingdom that it all started at. Here you have your final battle with Dhoulmagus, but not everything is as it seems.

The Characters

There have been a lot of wonderful characters in the Final Fantasy series. Final Fantasy 15 is a nice return to that too. However, over the recent releases the series has been marred by boring, shallow or completely unlikable characters. Each new one getting progressively worse too. Here's looking at you XIII and all it's successors.

This is why Dragon Quest and it's "play it safe," characters are just a bit better to me. Excluding the main character who is often a voiceless insert for the player, which itself works in the favor of Dragon Quest making it a more immersive experience. The supporting cast is where it shines though.

I'll continue to use VIII for this section as well. The additional members to the party are some of the best in my opinion. Yangus, the former bandit who forms a bond that runs as deep as blood with the main character whom he calls "Guv" (short for governor). Despite not being the smartest of fellows, he does everything he can to help the hero and his friends. Jessica, who despite being from a wealthy family and trained to act like a proper lady decides that just isn't for her. Instead she chooses to be a tough as nails go-getter adept in using whips and sorcery. Lastly we have Angelo, one of the churches templar knights. Despite being a holy knight, he has a lust for gambling and women and although he can be condescending or indifferent at times he proves to be a dependable ally. Dragon Quest opts for a smaller cast of more fleshed out and diversified characters and it's a nice change of pace from Final Fantasy's eight-person party.

The Combat

This one may seem like a small reason. I think it's definitely important to note though. A combat system can make or break a JRPG. Dragon Quest pretty much created the idea of turn-based combat in RPGs that we know and love. In fact many other things that Final Fantasy has had in its games came from Dragon Quest. Classes, jobs, beast mastery and others were things introduced in Dragon Quest and later Final Fantasy. While Final Fantasy has tried to shake things up recently. Final Fantasy XII and XIII were probably the biggest offenders of this. XII created an almost MMO like battle system that many thought was too slow and cumbersome. XIII tried to fix that with a "fast," battle system that required minimal thought. Both of them failed to different halves of Final Fantasy's audience.

Dragon Quest meanwhile has played it safe and benefited. Taking the system it created all those years ago and refining it. Maybe trying something new here or there, but largely staying the same. Why fix what ain't broken? Basically.

Honestly though, both of these series are amazing for their own unique reasons. It's like the cliche expression "apples to oranges." Yeah you can compare the two, but the experience you have with either is going to be extremely different and enjoyable. With either series you're going to get a magical world to explore, enemies to defeat and characters to grow attached to. Not every game in either series is going to be everyone's cup of tea. But I can guarantee each series has at least one or two entries that you'll fall in love with.

Have you played Dragon Quest more than Final Fantasy? Which do you think is the better series? Let me know in the comments below!