Operation Backlog Completion 2026
Aug 102022
 

The screenshot reads, "The dragon's tail lies lost, hidden amongst countless other treasures..."Last time we discussed Dragon Quest Treasures, I mentioned that I was still wondering about the gameplay loop.

Well, Square Enix posted a new article that explains the gameplay loop and goal.

On Draconia, a land formed from the bodies of two legendary dragons, there are seven special treasures called Dragonstones, each shaped like part of a dragon.

Your goal is to find these legendary Dragonstones, along with any other treasures you come across, by searching the islands of Draconia.

From your base, you’ll choose an island to travel to. Then you’ll gather materials, work with your treasure-sensing monsters to find bric-a-brac and treasure, and then have your monsters carry it. You have a special item called the Fortune Finder that activates Treasure Visions and lets you see the treasure’s location through your monster’s eyes.

Once you return to your base, your treasure will be appraised. If you find multiple copies of the same treasure, the one in the best condition will be kept.

So it seems like the major gameplay loop is all about collecting treasure and appraising it, with the Dragonstones serving as the major goal of your treasure-hunting quest. With everything else that is coming out this year, I don’t know if Dragon Quest Treasures is a game I’d play right away, but I’m sure I’ll pick it up eventually.

Are you looking forward to Dragon Quest Treasures?

Aug 082022
 

Square Enix has released a new recap video covering the 20th anniversary event.

Most is stuff we already know about from the anniversary event, but the end of the video confirms the release date for Dark Road’s finale.

During the anniversary event, they announced that the final part of Kingdom Hearts Dark Road would be out in August, but with no news since then, that started to seem in doubt.

But it’s still on! Kingdom Hearts Dark Road will conclude with a new story update on August 26.

The video also ends with new tease of what is to come in the finale, connecting it back to the ending of KHUX.

I haven’t played Dark Road since it went offline, so I hope they haven’t geared the finale’s difficulty around the idea that you’ve been grinding this entire time. Since it’s no longer an online game, you’d think it would be significantly less grindy.

(Update: I forgot that offline mode isn’t already out, so I couldn’t have played Dark Road since then even if I wanted to! It’ll be out as part of this same update.)

While Dark Road wasn’t exactly thrilling to play, its story was interesting and I’m excited for this finale. Will you be playing the Kingdom Hearts Dark Road finale?

Aug 032022
 

Nemea, the city of spring, where cherry blossoms bloom under the night skyThe Pokémon Presents didn’t have any new announcements and mainly focused on Scarlet and Violet, so since I’m not especially interested in those, let’s talk about Harvestella instead.

Harvestella was one of the games shown in June’s Nintendo Direct, an unexpected announcement that caught my attention even though I’m not a big fan of farming sims.

(This is the one where the seasons are winter, spring, summer, fall, and death, in case you forgot.)

Square Enix released some new details and screenshots today, including the screenshot shown above of the springtime town of Nemea.

The Nemea screenshots are absolutely beautiful. I also hadn’t realized you’d be visiting multiple towns in Harvestella, which makes it especially interesting.

Also, the way the post describes it, it sounds like Quietus (the season of death) occurs after each season, which should make it a fairly persistent threat.

In Nemea, you’ll begin investigating the “Spring Seaslight” that governs the season to determine why monsters have begun attacking the town. The post also introduces two characters you’ll meet in Nemea, Asyl and Istina.

Harvestella will let you switch between different jobs for combat, and today Square Enix introduced the Sky Lancer (aka dragoon) job. It seems that Asyl is a Sky Lancer, so once you start working together, you’ll be able to use that job, too. Characters will also have their own stories that progress as you get closer to them.

Finally, the post gives some attention to farming spring crops, cooking meals with them, fishing, and shipping out crops for money.

It really does feel like Square Enix’s take on Rune Factory.

Harvestella will be out on November 4 for Switch and PC. Are you interested in Harvestella?