Dragon Knight and Graffiti

~ DRAGON KNIGHT & GRAFFITI ~

Elf / NEC Avenue

Super CD-ROM

1995

Anyone who knows me knows how fond I am of Dragon Knight II (which I'd already played through by the time I acquired Dragon Knight & Graffiti), and whether it was fair of me or not, I had very high expectations for this first chapter. Nonetheless, DK&G proved itself to be a great first-person dungeon crawler in its own right, one with some extremely impressive visual elements.

Random-battle monsters are animated and look great as they perform their attacks.

There are cool dragon bosses to deal with, and you'll have to fight your way through a gauntlet of them right before...

...the final confrontation.

The in-town graphics are extremely bright and polished, much more impressive than the raw images in DK2.

The dungeon itself, on the other hand, is very bland.

As cool as the enemies look, they're still the usual orcs and goblins and demons that we're all used to seeing in RPGs, as opposed to DK2's awesome girl-fiends (portraits of whom are huge and impressive, making it extremely fun to encounter new monstrosities on each of 2's floors). Also, the battles in 2 are quick and painless, while combat in this one can be a drag when you have to deal with five or six bums in one fight. (I guess if I could have things my way, I'd implement a mix of what worked in each game. Random battles with traditional foes that animate well are cool, and the dragon bosses are definitely cool, but adding in girl-fiends, along with quick combat rounds, would improve things considerably. In fact, the mixture of elements ultimately utilized in DK3's battles is pretty much perfect.)

Rather than have you fight the girls like DK2 does, DK&G asks that you save them from various monsters and miscreants.

You'll gain some interesting allies during your rescue missions.

Most of the girls are very relieved and appreciative when you help them out...

...but some are kind of... elusive.

Encounters with girls after they've been rescued are a lot more entertaining in DK2; that game has a sense of humor that's present in spots in this one but is rarely as overt or as amusing. At the same time, thanks to a superior soundtrack and odder characters, 2 really makes me feel like I'm in an extremely strange and mysterious realm, a feeling this chapter never truly gives me. DK2 effortlessly goes from ludicrous to atmospheric and back again, and whether it's trying to be amusing or ominous, it always succeeds, and that's why it's a special game to me. DK&G feels like a high-quality but fairly traditional dungeon crawler with a "girls showing skin here and there" element.

Humorous material here includes monster mealtime and orc befuddlement.

Yep, there are plenty of anime chicks... in "compromising" positions... without much clothing on.

Also, there's nothing in this that compares with the surprising plot twist at the end of 2. But all of this is just me comparing a very good game to one I personally hold in the highest regard, so don't be fooled by the negativity. DK&G is a must if you're a fan of the genre.

One last note--the "Graffiti" in the game's title refers to a special mode that allows you to check out images straight from episodes 2 and 3...

...and if you acquire DK&G before those episodes, you might want to hold off on viewing said images, as they would spoil a lot.