LoG-Sacrament said:i think i'm a pretty significant way through the game now and that i can say that, barring some unforeseen content late game, i don't think this game is saying (or showing, as the case seems to be made) anything at the expense of women.
the root of storytelling, particularly storytelling in medieval europe, is really based around damsels in distress and "manly" duties. the transparent nature of the quests and the ridiculous poses of the women highlights this rather than hides it away. women were seen as objects and men could also lose their identity in their own gender role (like the fighter, who may as well be a walking suit of armor in his embodiment of the knight. my favorite part is that he does sometimes take off his helmet. where you might expect some more personal depiction of him, he ends up with just another helmet underneath due to the worst case of hat hair ever).
i feel like it's played for laughs rather than titillation. i mean, how many people find the amazon attractive? even the sorceress is so exaggerated that she loses her sex appeal. i guess i can't speak for every straight guy or lesbian, but that's how i read it.
MrGeezer said:I see it largely the same way, except that I thought it was more drawing its inspiration from genre references rather than any kind of historically accurate perceptions of women's roles. I'm not saying that this game isn't original, but I'm seeing a LOT of inspirations from other fiction, and this game seems to make no effort to hide its influences. The character models sort of seem to be sort of a deliberate effort to draw attention to one of the conventions of the genre, rather than an honest attempt to be appealing. I think it's fair to say that a lot of this kind of fantasy fiction geek material often HAS had an element of power fantasy or sexual fantasy. In exaggerating the forms of both the male and female characters to ridiculous extremes, it seems to be less of an honest attempt to be appealing and more of a deliberate attempt to indicate where it's taking its inspiration from. In any case, I definitely think that this it's mostly done with a wink and a nod.
SirWander said:I'm loving this game. I'm playing the vita version, the screen can get hectic at times but it is really fun to play. and I just defeated the most epic Monty Python and the Holy Grail homage.
Systems_Id said:Beat the game on Normal last night and have one talisman on Hard.
Might be my GOTY and the best beat 'em up I've ever played.
Guess what I just got in the mail? 
Amazon sent me the artbook too. Cool! Heh, I thought that was only a pre-order bonus? Hmm, pages 24-27 look interesting. fap fap fap 
Dragon's Crown sucks .......................................................................................... you right in with it's awesome gameplay and visuals. Gameplay videos do not do this game justice.
Woo-Hoo! AWESOME! Enjoy!
**Of course I have set aside Dragon's Crown for the moment just so I can try and actually beat Tomb Raider... but I'll get back to it shortly!**
Golden Axe + Diablo = Dragon's Crown
BTW, I chose to play as:
Jbul said:Finished the game on Normal today. 26 hours, it took me to beat the game, and I didn't even finish half the side-missions. Game is a beast.
An amazing blast of old-school greatness with modern trimmings, Dragon's Crown deserves to be played by anyone who's been gaming since the 16-bit era or before, and probably most modern gamers.
CarnageHeart said:I agree completely with your analysis. DC is pure awesome. It took me 'only' 23 hours, but I did only a third of the quests.
Right now I'm in the middle of a playthrough with the wizard. I just got badly mauled in a boss fight. When I was a fighter I would let computer controlled opponents kind of drop in, but the wizard needs guys who can keep the goons off him while he recharges his magic, so I am going to start handpicking my parties.
HAMSTER!! I was just about to reply!!
I get so hung up on looking for all the little side stuff in Tomb Raider **like the Ghost/Skull emblems in the trees and the GPS Markers** that I neglect the actual game, get frustrated and stop playing. I finally decided I just --NEED-- to play this game once and for all, finally! I've been neglecting both TR --and-- The Last of Us!
If you want to play DC together though, let me know!
Ravenprose said:Golden Axe + Diablo = Dragon's Crown
BTW, I chose to play as:
I have yet to play as anyone but the Sorceress... Can't wait to try someone else!
phantom_leo said:HAMSTER!! I was just about to reply!!
I get so hung up on looking for all the little side stuff in Tomb Raider **like the Ghost/Skull emblems in the trees and the GPS Markers** that I neglect the actual game, get frustrated and stop playing. I finally decided I just --NEED-- to play this game once and for all, finally! I've been neglecting both TR --and-- The Last of Us!
If you want to play DC together though, let me know!
Heh, I still need to finish The Last of Us too. I'm about 9 hours in, and suddenly lost all interest in that game. I don't even know why. 
I just noticed a free DLC upgrade in the PS Store (accessible in-game). It's a 100kb file that unlocks the ability to change the voice of the narrator to that of any of the game's playable characters. I changed mine to the voice of my Elf character, which makes a lot more sense than having some random dude speaking. I wish I had noticed that last night!
robio said:I got Dragon's Crown from Gamefly a couple days ago, and I decided to put down the Guided Fate Paradox to play this. Very impressed with it. Vanillaware found a way to really elevate the beat'em up genre, which up until now I had considered to be a fool's errand. I've enjoyed it much more than I ever expected to. Breaking down mission by mission really helps with the pacing and seems to make it harder to put down than if I were forced to go directly into another level. I still shake my head at the art style from time to time, but overall I'm very pleasantly surprised and enjoying this.
Robio has seen the game, and it is good.
Now that I'm six hours in my opinion is starting to change a bit. The game is still fun, but it's tough to really play for long periods of time anymore. As varied as they've made the game, it's still a brawler and it still has most of the trappings of a brawler. I love coming back to the town, checking out my loot, and advancing the story, but I'm beginning to groan a little bit whenever its time to start a new mission after I've completed two without a break.
I'm probably about 16 hours in now. I've finally been forced to sit, relax, stay at home and veg. Shoulder is --STILL-- an issue, so between a long work schedule and added physical therapy on top of that, I literally have time for nothing else. Sitting down and playing Dragon's Crown has become my guilty pleasure. My friends and I used to play the Golden Axe games again and again and again back in my dorm room, despite how simple they were. Combine that kind of gameplay with my love for Loot games and DC scratches that itch --VERY-- nicely. It's just not the type of game I could ever get bored of! I'm probably going to land up playing every Story Quest and every Side Quest with every character across the different Difficulty Levels and then jump into that Infinite Dungeon as well! One of my favorite styles of (classic) games + memories of good times gone by + gorgeous graphics = one of my favorite games of all time!
Heh! Wasn't 16 hours in. That was the time of my last save in military time on my file! 
Only 10 hours in! 
sickaspro said:I'm 8 hors in. Got two of the orbs. I've been beating the level 2 bosses and some don't give orbs. What gives?
You have to beat some within a time limit; and some have certain objectives (which usually boil down to a time limit anyway).
Errr... well... Nevermind. You can have it. I'll keep my Caucasian-Asian Dong-Ass tree Avatar!