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Not for everyone

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 25 / 28
Date: June 17, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I've always loved the BoF series, and this is a rather drastic departure from it. About the only thing in commmon w/ the other BoF games is Ryu and Nina. Also this game is pretty hard and seems like it's always out to get you, as items are expensive and you need items to save. When i first played this game I hated it. I got 3 hrs into it and quit. Out of boredom i gave it another go and found it a very enjoyable game.

The battle system is one of the funnest I've played in an RPG in a long time. The story is great, and the ending is one of the best I've seen in a long time. And a New Game+ system doesn't hurt either. You can spend a hundred hours trying to get and do everything. (i've gone through it twice and still missing a lot)

Everyone says that you need to restart over and over again, when actually you don't. If your not very good (no offense) and use the dragon powers a lot, then yeah, you will. The dragon form is 'sposed to be a last resort, and should be used as little as possible. It's not that difficult to make it through in one run w/o restarting (although it does help).

Although this game has a steep learning curve, I'd recommend it to the hardcore RPG fans. People who are used to having their hands held through out a game should stay clear. Give it a try and try to learn it's systems and you should find a very enjoyable and rewarding game.

Not for the unadventurous

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: March 15, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I would have to say that this game was definitely a relief from the other breath of fire games. I was skeptical at first but the games ingenuity and innovation won me over in a short time. The game contains many innovations for the series and in general for all rpgs. It has a scenario overlay system where the more times that you beat the game the more additions to the story you get. The first time through however the story is not lacking. If you like to read through a game and not play it however it might not be for you. Most of the game is playing time now movie time like other recent games. For the skilled gamer, the game is not so hard the first time as long as you keep yourself stocked with items and using tactics instead of brute force. What adds to this need is the use of D-Counter which slowly raises throught the game. If you are conservative, you will beat the game with a little above 80% with the understanding that the difficulty level the first time around is such that you need to save the counter for the end of the game. It was definitely fun that towards the end of the game the counter is very close to 100%( the game ends when u reach 100% ) and it adds a lot of suspense in the end. The game also does not have random enemy encounters but a set amount of enemies so you cannot train your characters until lvl 99 to beat the game like all other rpgs which I found very refreshing to play a game with a set difficulty level.

The story is simple, no plot twists and hundreds of characters to keep your mind on, but enough to keep you playing and wondering what will happen. You start the game as Ryu, a low class grunt in the government. with a ranking of 1/8192 to start with, you are of the lowest kind. However, if you do a good job on your first time throught the game, the ranking raises dramatically. Additional plays through the game are not a hassle since you keep all of your equipment and abilities and your party experience to level the second time through.

The game was difinitely enjoyable and worth playing a few times through. It is one of the better games I have played in a long time. The difficulty level is alright,not too easy but definitely not hard either. If you are in for something new in a game then this game is for you. Any rpg fan should consider giving this game a try. The music is great on its own, the game is one that you start playing and have to play all of the way through.

It doesn't deserve the bad rap it gets!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 9
Date: August 01, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I am soooooooooo tired of seeing this game bashed. The game is set in the future when humanity has been forced underground. The setting is bleak and barren. To the lower classes that live the deepest underground, the air is the most polluted. Human potentials are measured by "D-ratios". The larger the fractional number is the more potential a person is supposed to have. Ryu, the hero of the story, is a "low-D". The upper classes are in disbelief that he has linked with an ancient dragon and is able to harness its power.

In the lowest sections underground, the concept of the sky is considered by some to be just a rumor. You and two others must follow the dream that the sky really does exist. It is a odd trio that consists of Ryu with his unique ability to link with a dragon and is a member of the Rangers. (The Rangers are protecters of the status quo.) He is joined by Nina who has unique magical skills. Finally, they are joined by Rin who is a member of the rebel underground.

At times Rin even doubts your sanity. She doubts that the sky even exists, but she continues to support you. (It is hard to write a review about this game without including spoilers! I am doing my best.)

The battle system is based on a characters speed, a measurement. They higher your speed rating the quicker that players turn comes around. The higher your movement number is; the larger the radius of the area that you can move. The higher your active points (AP): the more you can move and attack. It is imperative that you learn how to string attacks together in order to deal greater damage. (This is called a combo.) I have seen all the individual ideas in other games and yet the way they are pieced together in this game seems quite original.

The music consists of close to 50 differrent compositions. The music all fits well with the situation in the game. It's first class all the way.

The graphics are quite good, although there are games that surpass it.

Anyway, to the point of this review...All the so called difficult parts of the game are meant to enhance the feeling of helplessness the people feel in this bleak future. Yes, it can be frustrating, but when you have beaten it you feel like you have accomplished something. Also, it in NOT CORRECT that if you max out your dragon meter; you have to go completely back to the start of the game. There is an option to just go back to the start screen and continue from your last save.

Each time you beat the game, your D-ratio goes up and suddenly you can get into places that you couldn't before. The game has a high reply value for an rpg because of this. You can actually beat this game without having to use some strategy guide or faq's. To me if you don't like the game it just shows you have no patience and don't appreciate having to work out strategy components of a game.

Complex story, but not undecipherable!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 04, 2004
Author: Amazon User

The story is pretty mysterious but it makes it worth going forward in this game. The graphics are good and game play is fun and relatively easy to figure out. Good game, good buy!

A soon-to-be classic that snuck under the radar...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: November 14, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is a fantastic game. It is one of the best games Capcom has made in the last five years. Now before I start telling you why I think it is good, you need to know that this is not like the other Breath of Fire Games. Although technically this is still a turn based RPG, there are some real interesting innovations that make this game unique.

First of all, the game is the most challenging Breath of Fire. I have played 1, 2, and 3, and this is definitely the most challenging. That is, until you figure out the system, and learn how to work the game in your favor. It is still the most challenging, but the challenge can eventually be managed.

The enemies appear on-screen and you lay traps to weaken them before battle! It is a new and creative system. Depending upon how well you fight, you get bonus experience, which is called Party XP. So if you fight cleverly, you can level up more quickly.

The Dragon Form has changed. There is no MP. Now you have a Dragon Counter. Every time you turn into the Dragon, 2% is added to the counter, that goes to 100%. If the counter reaches 100%, then it is automatically Game Over. You must figure a way to win without bringing him out too often. This in itself is a challenge. At first I resented it, but now I realize that it is a great additional challenge to the game as it is set up.

Also, the Dragon Form is obscenely strong in this game. You can kill even the end boss in Dragon Form with only 15-20% of the counter.

The music is good. The plot of the story is really good. You must escape from an underground nightmare, challenging every authority figure in an oppressive, subterranean world. You can restart the game over with your Party XP and acquired skills and beat the game more easily. You also have a great challenge ahead of you: earn the Dragon Quarter, the ultimate D-ratio.

Yes, this Breath of Fire is different from the others. However, in almost every instance that is a good thing. This is one of the best video games on PS2, period. Not only that, but in terms of price it's slipped under the radar and is selling at a low price. If you have the cash to spare, this is the one you want.

BoF finally gets good

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: August 04, 2003
Author: Amazon User

In the past, this particular series of role-playing games has been very well known for being a pedestrian and rote affair; not really straying from what is expected and popular at the time. But this time around, for some unbeknownst reason to this reviewer, Capcom has wisened up and released a game that is astonishing in sheer depth of gameplay that it makes up tenfold for any faults to be found in story or length.

In case you did not know, this is a very unique rpg for the times. The combat system invokes nostalgiac memories of the early computer D&D rpgs which allowed movement upon a grid and an attack at the end of movement, if the movement was not too far. But BoF: DQ spices things up with a very detailed combo system which allows moves to be stringed up and in the case with a certain character, stringing up different moves in the same combo can add status effects, such as bind which allows the enemy to still attack, but not move for 3 turns. So basically, your character receives an amount of AP each turn and these can be used to move and to attack, with attacks taking from 10 to 30 ap depending on strength.

This combat system is fine and all, elevating what would be an otherwise boring and redundant game into one of the most enticingly captivating rpg experiences that I have had, certainly the best for the PS2. Furthermore, this game excels in its supreme difficulty. Healing is limited to usage of items which is further limited by a somewhat lack of funds, limited storage space, and relatively weak healing items. For instance, the weakest item only heals 50 hp, and it costs 60 zenny, which is a small fortune for the starting player. I didn't have a surplus of zenny until a good 4 hours into the game, and I spent that pretty quickly on better equipment. Basically, what this entails is a game that is very unforgiving due to weak healing and a save system which can easily derail your entire save, forcing you to start the game over, albeit a bit more powerfully than at the start.

This game also rewards replays far more than almost any game of its type. With a game that can be completed in under 10 hours, this is a very good thing. Replays open new areas of the dungeons, new speech from npcs, and new cutscenes which flesh out the story, so it is within your best interests to replay the game.

Overall, you can expect 40 - 80 hours out of this game, depending on your tastes. So, if you think this is a bit too short, you should probably buy Morrowind instead, which will take you 300+ hours to complete. As for me, I don't have enough free time and 40 hours is plenty for a game that costs less than the price of two dinners at a steakhouse, especially one that is this fun.

An underappreciated gem.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: October 13, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game deserves far more love than it's getting here. From reading about it, I myself hesitated a long time picking it up. Now I'm just thankful that it was still available, as the experience was truly worthwhile. It's true, you will have to play through various parts of the game more than once, but in this case, it's not something that you shouldn't look forward to. Going back, you get extra story elements which really do round out the picture of what your characters (and, by extension, you) are going through. And, of course, it's very cool to be able to lay the smackdown to enemies who gave you nothing but trouble the first time you came across them.

Now, all this talk about dying and losing everything and going back to the start is misleading, at best. The manual itself clearly states that you will be best served using "Give Up" effectively, which will allow you to carry over your party experience and money (Hint: sell any equipment you can't carry over before giving up), all your skills, and anything you had in storage. As long as you don't use your accrued party experience the first time through, you should not have any problem getting through the game in two trips. My first time out, I got very far without using any party experience, and only using the dragon transformation when completely necessary to survive.

It is true, the save system for this game is a bit on the onerous side, and penalizes you more than it should. However, anyone complaining they can only play for an hour or so but have to go to a save point to save their progress simply don't know what they are doing. You can "soft save" at any point in the game. You can leave whenever you want to. It's just that you lose that save as soon as you load a game from it, and continue like you had never saved at all. This particular system would truly be abysmal during a power failure or whatnot, but beyond that, it's only a minor annoyance. I found plenty of save spheres (or whatever they're called) myself, certainly enough to get through the game comfortably. Now, that's not to say I don't think the save feature isn't the worst implemented part of this game--not being able to back up save info onto another memory card is absolute nonsense, IMHO--but it is by no means a deal killer.

What really struck me about this game was that it was deeply personal. Ryu came across a very helpless little girl and determined that, come hell or high water, he was going to help her. That's it. And, of course, Nina is about the cutest little thing you are likely to ever come across in your video game experiences. The rest of the story fed off of and into that very basic dynamic, and was wholly successful. For the story alone, I wanted to finish this game.

It helped greatly that the battle system is top notch, as well, and that the ant farm is a fun and interesting diversion to carry out along the way. And quite profitable, if you work it right!

I can understand how some people might become easily frustrated with the mechanics of this game, but if you can put any preconceived notions aside and play it for what it is (and know you will have to go through some parts at least twice), this is a very gratifying game to play through. I truly would rank it up with some of the best games I've ever played. To give you an idea of what that list consists of, we're talking FFX, KOTOR, Ratchet and Clank, Radiata Stories, Soul Calibur III, Gran Tourismo 4, Disgaea--these are some of the titles I'd rank this one up with. I really can't give it a hearty enough recommendation. Don't let the naysayers put you off--this is truly a worthy title.

As a final word, I would point out that, if you are having too much trouble, there is a great little file save manipulation tutorial you can use to get around some of the most onerous parts of the save system at GameFAQs. I will confess, I let myself run down(?) to 100 percent in my D-Meter, just to see what would happen, and was quite upset when I discovered that I lost half my party ability points and money because I let myself die. The FAQ helped me equalize this disparity, and it was smooth sailing from that point on. I'd like to give the author a medal, for that one, as it compensates for really the only poorly thought out element of the entire game.

Once again, if you are on the fence, as I was, take the plunge. You'll be glad you did. I know I am.

Great but Complex RPG

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 22 / 26
Date: September 12, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Breath of Fire - Dragon Quarter is a challenging RPG that features gorgeous graphics, especially in the cut scenes. You also learn a lesson about power and consequences.

The game is very Final Fantasy-like with a character running around a map, solving quests and learning things as he builds up skills. Your party here contains up to three characters. This is a futuristic world where humanity is living underground. As in every story from Metropolis on forward, it's the dregs of humans which are living down at the lowest levels. They are so far from the surface that they don't believe there is a real "sky" up there.

Like many other RPGs, when you clear a dungeon, the enemies stay dead. That makes sense to me :) It does mean, though, that you can't "bulk up infinitely". You are given a certain number of potential XP and have to best develop your character based on that.

When you become advanced enough, you gain the ability to turn into an uber-dragon. You might think this would make the rest of the game easy. But with great power comes great responsibility, or so says Spiderman. The balance here is that using that power hastens the end of the game. If you wimp out and just use your dragon powers too much, the timer counts down and the game ends.

Some people complain because they get their hands on that dragon power and want to just use it to blast through the harder levels. But the whole point of the dragon power is that it is an ultimate power that should only be used for the final bosses. If you can't resist using that power all the time, then you pay the penalty. I think it's a brilliant lesson and find it fascinating that a number of gamers aren't understanding it.

The characters and plot are very well done, and really get you to understand how trapped and doomed the "lower classes" are. The cut scene graphics are great anime style, and the in-game graphics are quite nice too. The music varies from area to area and really gives a sense of the atmosphere in the game. I enjoyed both the roaming-around gameplay and the battle gameplay as easy to understand but full of strategy. Battle especially gives you a lot of customization so you can tweak your characters to best match your gameplay style.

Yes, this is NOT an easy RPG. People who try to take the 'easy way out' (i.e. dragon blasting everything) will not be able to finish the game. Players who try to race from start to finish will simply not finish. But players who put in the time to customize the characters, and who work on developing their skills, will find an amazingly fun RPG that is quite replayable. Each time you finish the game, you can restart with even more ability to explore the world.

Well recommended for serious RPGers!

Great fun...but frustrating

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 14 / 14
Date: March 18, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This installment in the series plays very differently. Everyone complains about the new SOL system in the game. To put it bluntly it works something like this:
1) Make your way through a dungeon.
2) Either die or quit the game
3) Choose to either restart the dungeon with roughly 10% of you r
experience (i.e. "party xp") and all your earned cash,
or,
Restart the entire game with 10% experience and all your cash.
4) Repeat until strong enough to get to the next save point.
P.S. every time you transform into a dragon (Ryu) you consume energy that cannot be replenished unless you start the game over entirely!

The motivating factor compelling one to finish this game is the frustration of it being so darn difficult. On the plus side, the battle system is really fun and some of the attacks look super-cool. Plus, there's a mini-game where you build a fairy village (like in other bof games) which is totally fun as well.

A great game if you know what you're in for.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: February 26, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I believe a lot of the negativity surrounding this game could have been avoided if the title had not carried with it the legacy of the Breath of Fire series. Honestly, other than the names and faerie mini-game, there is really nothing about this game that has anything to do with Breat of Fire and players should be made aware of that. To stress this, the dragon system, gone. Yes, Ryu transforms, but not into a creature that resembles Warlok from Marvel's New Mutants more than any dragon I can think of. Free-roaming exploration, gone. You're underground the whole time and there IS a time limit of sorts. You win by advancing not wandering back and forth between towns and dungeons. Fishing, gone. Yes even fishing has been cut entirely from this game. Even the magic and basic fighting systems which remained relatively consistent throughout all 4 games have been reworked to the point of an entirely new gaming experience. That having been said, this game is a blast. The graphics are amazing, the environment is eerie and the story is oddly compelling for a Breath of Fire game (other than 2 I never found the BoF story lines to be terribly interesting or motivating). Is it as difficult as everyone says? It can be, if you're careless and at the same time, if you're careful and remain aware of your situation it can be a breeze! The key is NEVER and I mean NEVER use your dragon form unless you are forced to because at the end you'll want your meter to be as high as possible. Thats it. If you can manage to play the game without the godlike power of the dragon form, it will be no problem at the end.

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