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0 The Action RPG genre can be a tough one to break into. With series such as Diablo, Path of Exile, and the plethora of Warhammer ARPGs, to name but a few. The incredibly addictive nature of grinding, dungeon-delving, and loot-hoarding is one I’ve been a fan of for a long time. With Dragonkin: The Banished leaving Early Access and releasing on consoles, I knew I had to play it!
Created by developer Eko Software (who know a thing or two about ARPGs!), Dragonkin has just launched its 1.0 version. The game is available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, and is priced at £34.99 on consoles and £20.99 on Steam.
All You Need Is Loot
I’ll admit it. I’m one of those gamers that, when they really get into a game, it’s the only thing on their mind until the credits roll. With ARPGs, though, that can take hundreds of hours! It’s all about loot, loot, and more loot! Got any recommendations for other titles in the genre I should check out? Let me know in the comments below, but for now, let’s get looting!
Set in a world corrupted by dragon blood and plagued by hostile creatures, Dragonkin puts you in the role of one of four legendary hero classes. Your objective is simple: eliminate the Dragon Lords! There is more to the story, although it can be convoluted at times, and I never found myself fully engaging with it. There were just too many long, drawn-out scenes with a mountain of lore dumps that, unfortunately, weren’t all that interesting. It’s nice to at least have something, though, as I’ve played many an ARPG that features the bare minimum when it comes to storytelling.
Gameplay
It’s not too surprising to learn that Dragonkin has a pretty simple gameplay loop. Take a quest, defeat monsters, collect rewards, repeat. Not unusual for the genre, as long as the combat is enjoyable enough! But how fun is battling hordes of ghouls and dragons? Pretty damn fun, actually! Each character has up to five abilities mapped, as well as a Wrymling (basically a baby dragon) companion that will accompany them into battle. It’s simplistic and can feel floaty at times, but it’s still an enjoyable combat system that works as intended.
Speaking of characters, there are four classes available, each with their own play style and primary element. The Knight is a melee-focused character who uses fire-based attacks. The Barbarian is again pure melee, using ice to control large groups. The Oracle is a mage character with lightning-based abilities (and my personal favourite). Finally, the Tracker is a sort of rogue character that uses poison to chip away at enemy health points. It is a shame that there is no character customisation or personality for the protagonists whatsoever, though admittedly with the amount of armour options available, it’s not like you’ll be seeing much of their faces!
Enemies will rarely come at you alone, as they seem to like hunting in packs. Big packs. Thankfully, most abilities recharge quickly (as does your MP) meaning you can fire off some impressive-looking moves frequently. The small armies out for your blood aren’t damage sponges and will die quite easily. To offset that, they’ll quickly surround you and take big chunks from your health bar, so stay alert and use that dodge button! It’s not overly difficult at first, but with the option to adjust the difficulty to any of the 11 options, things will get tougher if you want them to!
Live, Learn, Loot
Learning new abilities is all done via the Ancestral Grid. This is a really unique method that replaces the usual skill tree in favour of a hexagonal grid. Space is finite, so choosing which skills to place and where is not as easy as just cramming them all onto the grid. Some abilities come with buffs attached as a separate hex, with any other hex’s touching it also being granted the buff. It can be confusing at first, but if you take the time to experiment with builds, you can create some crazy overpowered fighters.
What would an ARPG be without its bevvy of treasure chests and goodies they contain? If you get a serotonin boost from inventories stuffed full of helmets, swords, and trinkets, you’ll be right at home in Dragonkin! Inventory management is thankfully simple, and selling, storing, or dismantling items when in the city hub is very easy to do. The city itself will be your respite between adventures, and is upgradable too. This isn’t a city building mini-game or anything like that, but rather just a list of upgrades from a menu. Upgrading shops and areas of the town will visually change things, so at least there’s a sense of progression as you play. It is a shame that this is little more than just selecting what to upgrade from a menu, and could have been more in-depth and customisable.
Graphics & Audio
There’s a definite theme to the visuals throughout all of Dragonkin‘s environments. The dark, gritty tone seen throughout is certainly in keeping with the “world corrupted by dragon blood” narrative. That’s not to say it’s dull, though, far from it! There are plenty of biomes, from frozen tundra’s to dense jungles, and they all look great. The same can be said for characters and monsters, with unique designs across the board. Certain animations look very stiff, or just downright unfinished. I even had a few instances of monsters not animating at all, instead just gliding around, which admittedly was pretty amusing.
Sound design isn’t anything to shout about, but it gets the job done. The sounds of battle and the various thwacks and thumps of your abilities are admittedly pretty satisfying, I have to admit. Music is your standard fantasy game fare, ranging from tranquil melodies when in town to frantic pieces when in combat. What does let it down slightly overall is the voice acting. Some, such as the narrator during the prologue, are great. Others are stilted and monotonous sounding, and the dialogue can come across as awkward when characters are talking to your silent protagonist and getting nothing in return.
Longevity
Finishing the story will take around 15 hours or so, which isn’t a huge amount of time for the genre. However, ARPG veterans will know that endgame content is when the true grind begins. Dragonkin has plenty of content after the story wraps up to keep you entertained for a good chunk of time. The main new gameplay addition is Hunting Maps. These see you taking down powerful foes with plenty of modifiers to keep them feeling fresh. The rewards aren’t half bad, either! Having both online and seamless local co-op for up to four players makes everything that much more enjoyable. It’s increasingly rare to see couch co-op games in this era of gaming. So seeing that my wife could quickly jump in, select a character, and beat up some dragons with me is a huge positive in my eyes!
My only issue is that by this point, I was pretty much finished playing the game. Sure, new weapons and armour is great, but I just wasn’t invested enough to keep the grind going. Definitely enjoyable for a time, but not one that could hold my attention indefinitely.
Final Thoughts
Dragonkin: The Banished is an action RPG that is genuinely enjoyable, for a time. Slaying countless dragons whilst constantly upgrading your gear is a satisfying gameplay loop. A less-than-engaging narrative and lack of customisation do dampen the experience somewhat, but this won’t be the next game you’ll be spending months playing.
As it stands, Dragonkin is a title I would recommend, but perhaps wait for a sale. However, if you have a readily available co-op partner, then this is a fun fantasy romp that is infinitely more enjoyable with a friend.
A Thumb Culture Silver Award is handed to Dragonkin: The Banished.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
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