One of the strong points of the Apple Arcade program is its attention to Japanese productions on iOS, which has led to several gems released in temporary or absolute exclusivity on these platforms, or to sincerely unexpected conversions. In it Jet Dragon Review we are faced with an original title of crude, a team that has become known for the work carried out on games of enormous importance such as The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, Luigi's Mansion and the splendid remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, but in this case we are Se It is something decidedly new and, however, also linked to certain traditions of the Japanese video game market. It is a hybrid game between racing and management that at first glance may seem abstruse, but which fits into a well-codified trend in Japan, usually linked to horse racing.
It may seem strange, but they represent an incredibly important source of inspiration in those places: from the fictional stories of the Derby Stallion series to various madness such as the World Cup in Japan or the Umamusume Pretty Derby, horse racing (and not only) They are a staple in Japanese video game production. We have already had a testimonial in Apple Arcade with the excellent Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On! while in this case everything is moved to a different context, with dragons instead of horses, but leaving some recurring elements substantially unchanged.
The parts relating to Corso They are characterized by fairly limited interaction, but you have to keep in mind that Jet Dragon is primarily a management title, focusing above all on building and evolving your team.
It is also a game with an excellent presentation, among other things. graphics A simple but quite evocative 3D, very reminiscent of some classics like Panzer Dragoon, and 2D grafts used to represent the characters during dialogues and some really excellent scenes, capable of providing a nice characterization of the game world. The story, quite simple, tells the story of Eleanor, the daughter of a legendary jockey who takes over her father's stable after her death and tries to emerge in the competitive (and decidedly aggressive) world of racing. of dragons
dragon races
Il game It is developed in the two phases of racing and stable management, and the latter soon emerged as predominant in the structure. The part related to the race can be almost disorienting due to its simplicity: as usually happens in the games dedicated to horse racing mentioned above, it is essentially about pressing a button that allows you to spur the dragon, thus performing a momentary acceleration but having to do it carefully. Time your shots according to the amount of stamina available, so as not to tire the creature too much. As you progress in the game, with the evolution of the dragons, some special abilities are unlocked such as turbos or attacks of various types that give greater advantages, but always with the need to dose the dragon's energy during the race. There are no instructions to give and the race is essentially automated, leaving us only with the task of using the stimulus and skill to the best of our ability while watching the race almost as spectators.
The more complex and multifaceted it is stable management, which evolves substantially as you progress through the game and opens up more possibilities for control and modification. At the flying base we spend most of our time training dragons and riders and also witnessing the dialogue that moves the story forward. Races are highly dependent on statistics obtained, so training and resource investment are critical to the outcome of the race, making this phase the true heart of the game.
Like a kind of managerial, our job is to organize the base by building sections dedicated to dragoons, jockeys and other support elements, evolve these divisions by improving their effectiveness, recruit new elements to use in base administration or deploy in competitions and focus on training. Also on this front it is about balancing the workload with the stamina of the subjects, investing money wisely so as not to run out of money and trying to develop dragons and riders based on their different abilities, to be able to exploit them properly based on the characteristics of the different routes.
It is not a particularly complex or refined mechanism, since it is largely resolved with the linear increase of statistics of each character and dragon through repeated training, but adding a layer of tactics is the selection of which dragon and jockey to use before the race. This is an element of fundamental importance for the hopes of victory, because there are different combinations capable of enhancing the different types of dragon and "driver", each of them suitable for certain types of races.
Conclusions
Tested version iPad, iPhone 1.0.1 digital delivery App Store Holygamerz.com 7.0 Readers (4) 8.7 your voteIf you manage to overlook a rather negative first impact on the race itself, given the limited nature of the interaction, you will soon discover that Jet Dragon is a kind of management game with management elements, which has the advantage of a truly unusual environment. . the city Hall. The tradition of horse racing has already generated strange variations among Japanese productions, but this new title by Grezzo stands out for its notable aesthetic research, which results in very fascinating characters and settings. Precisely this general charm, given by the presence of dragons and fantasy with an oriental flavor, is the distinctive element that can attract even those who may be less interested in a racing team management game, although the game mechanics In the end they are those. and also in a rather rigid sense.
PRO
- An interesting version of "horse racing"
- Quite deep and multifaceted management mechanics.
- Fascinating environment and aesthetics.
AGAINST
- The gameplay during races is somewhat weak.
- inherently repetitive
