Phantasy Star and Dragon Quest are more similar than you might think. They share similar game mechanics that I’m not a fan of, but their art styles are something I enjoy. They also share some plot points.
It seems like Sega used Dragon Quest as a template when designing Phantasy Star. I’m not saying this happened, but when you put these two games next to each other, you can see the similarities.
This is a case where I clearly like one more than the other. I don’t think either of these games is bad. Both games have some good things in them, but they also share some of the things that make early console RPGs a little annoying to revisit.
Game Descriptions/Overviews
Phantasy Star and Dragon Quest are turn-based RPGs where the player goes on a quest to free a kingdom from an evil character. They have similar battle screens, plot points, and game mechanics. These two games have a lot in common, but Phantasy Star improves on the base gameplay in Dragon Quest.
Phantasy Star is a spacefaring adventure where you travel between three planets as you gather the items you need to beat the game, and gather your party of four characters. There is also more character development, and the story gets started differently. This game has more going on in it than the bare-bones narrative in Dragon Quest.
The character motivations are better explained in Phantasy Star. It seems like most people in the game have a reason for wanting King Lassic out of the way. There are also more science fiction elements to the gameplay.
Dragon Quest is a simple high fantasy RPG that has some archaic gameplay mechanics. You can tell that it took a lot of inspiration from tabletop RPGs. I don’t like this aspect much, as it would’ve been better if some of the rougher edges had been smoothed out. At this time, developers were still learning what did and didn’t work for a console RPG.
The game has a solo protagonist who goes on a journey to save a princess, gather key items, and eventually defeat a big bad guy. It is a simple story that works well for the time this game was released. There isn’t much more to this game aside from that.
There is more to Phantasy Star. It feels like Sega took everything from Dragon Quest and improved on it, while making this game stand out with a unique setting and an incredible story. Let’s get into the major differences between these two games.
Main Differences
There are a lot of differences between these two games. Phantasy Star has a better plot, graphics, and gameplay. It uses a party system while Dragon Quest is a solo adventure. There is simply a lot more going on in Phantasy Star.
The settings are very different. Phantasy Star is a science fiction RPG where you travel between three planets. Dragon Quest is a standard high fantasy game where you explore a continent.
Phantasy Star has comic book cutscenes, enemies have attack animations, and the dungeons look like a dungeon crawler. Dragon Quest uses in game graphics for the few cutscenes it has, and the dungeons use an overhead view.
Their approach to dungeons is completely different. Dragon Quest only has a few dungeons or caves for the player to explore. They all require you to light a torch or cast a spell to see. Phantasy Star switches to a first-person perspective to give you the impression of a 3D environment.
Phantasy Star has better graphics overall. While the battles look the same at first glance, they are much better in Phantasy Star, as you see the attacks from your party and the enemies. There are also the cutscenes in Phantasy Star that are unique to that game.
The plots of the two games are also different. Dragon Quest is a simple, bare-bones plot where you have to defeat the Dragonlord, and Phantasy Star feels like a grander adventure across the stars.
There are a number of minor differences, but those are the ones I focused on. I’m sure that others have others in mind. Let’s get into a comparison of the core mechanics of each game.
Comparing Core Mechanics (Combat, Story, Visuals, etc)
There are a few similarities between the two games, particularly in combat, visuals, and the final boss fights. While the core mechanics are the same, Phantasy Star improves on them, or simply does things better than Dragon Quest. It is cool to compare these games to see how far console RPGs have come in a short time.
Both games use a first-person perspective on the combat screen. They look almost the same, but Phantasy Star has four characters, the enemies are animated, and character attacks look much better than Dragon Quest. While they look the same, the graphical style is different.
One cool thing about both games is the final boss. In both games, you’ll have to fight two bosses. In Dragon Quest, the Dragonlord has two forms, and in Phantasy Star, you’re summoned to a final battle with Dark Falz. It is a nice twist to both stories.
Both games end with a fight against a big bad guy. The player is trying to free a kingdom from tyranny, but Phantasy Star feels grander than Dragon Quest. I like both stories, which follow a similar pattern of collecting key items to defeat the main bad guy, but Phantasy Star’s approach is more enjoyable.
The two games share other similarities in their game mechanics. Most turn-based RPGs do, and they have some commonalities with their stories. Let’s get into what each game does better than the other.
What Does Phantasy Star do Better?
Phantasy Star does just about everything better than the first Dragon Quest. It has better cutscenes, graphics, story, and I like the setting more. This game is like a better version of what Dragon Quest was trying to do.
I love the way that Phantasy Star’s story is told. While it uses in-game graphics at times, there are also comic book-style cutscenes that still look great! This game really shows off what the Sega Master System could do from a graphics standpoint.
Instead of one character, Phantasy Star has a party of four characters, and you have to go on quests to find them. This is something that would happen in future Dragon Quest games. This game also has more science fiction themes in it.
Phantasy Star has you travel between three planets in a solar system. This gives you more variety of locations and more places to explore. It also makes combat more interesting as you can use guns and fight robots.
The setting and story are so much better and imaginative than Dragon Quest’s. While both are bright and colorful, Phantasy Star feels like a much grander adventure because of the space travel between three planets.
In Phantasy Star, most of the characters have a clear motivation for why they’re going on this quest. Some of them want revenge for a loved one, and all of them want to free the solar system from the tyrannical King Lassic. There is more character development in Phantasy Star compared with Dragon Quest.
Phantasy Star has a lot more going on in its story compared to Dragon Quest. I could say this about all of the RPGs that came out around this time, but it really stands out here. Characters have narrative arcs, and things feel much bigger.
What Does Dragon Quest do Better?
I couldn’t really think of anything that Dragon Quest did better than Phantasy Star. The two games are set up so similarly that I’m really nitpicking when it comes to this. I would have to point to the inventory for lack of anything else.
In Dragon Quest, your healing items and keys stack, so they don’t take up too much room in your inventory. That is really the only thing I can think of that Dragon Quest does better.
I thought of one other thing while I was writing this. Dragon Quest does a better job with dungeons. While I don’t like having to cast a spell or light a torch, I do like that they use an overhead view instead of a first-person perspective.
There are a few things that I like about Dragon Quest, but I wouldn’t say they are better than Phantasy Star. I like the graphics in Dragon Quest and how the battle scenes look. I also like the simplicity of the game.
Which is Better Overall and Why?
Phantasy Star is the better game. It does everything that Dragon Quest does, and vastly improves on it. This game is like a combination of everything I like about Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.
The comic book cutscenes really steal the show for me. They work so much better than using in game graphics, and I wish other console RPGs had followed Sega’s lead. These cutscenes significantly enhance the story’s narrative, complementing the more traditional cutscenes in the game.
Phantasy Star improves on Dragon Quest’s battle scenes. The enemies look more threatening, and I love the little animations they make when they attack. This makes it feel more like a battle as opposed to watching a static image and reading about what happens.
Not only does Phantasy Star have a party of four characters, but it sends the player on a quest to find them before collecting all the items you need to fight the big bad guy. Once you have your party, you go and find the items you’ll need.
Overall, this is a more refined RPG than the bare-bones story of Dragon Quest. It looks better, has a better story, and I like the setting much more. High Fantasy works well as a setting for an RPG, but sometimes you need the unique approach of a science fiction RPG.
Which Would I Rather Play?
I would rather play Phantasy Star. While both of these games are still new to me, I had more fun playing Phantasy Star. It is simply the better game.
I guess I can say a bit more about it. The graphics and gameplay are much better. They share some similarities when it comes to the battle screens, but Phantasy Star does this much better.
In an effort not to repeat myself, I’m going to skip over a few things that I’ve already mentioned too many times. Everything about Phantasy Star is better than Dragon Quest, with a few minor exceptions that don’t have enough of an impact to change my mind about these games.
Conclusion
I like both of these games. They’re fun RPGs that started two great series of games. The first Dragon Quest didn’t age as well as the first Phantasy Star. It has a lot of archaic gameplay mechanics that were significantly improved upon in the sequels.
Phantasy Star is a more complete game. The gameplay mechanics, story, and characters are more developed, and while it still has some of the issues that other retro RPGs have, I think it mitigates them well.
I still remember picking up Phantasy Star on the Game Boy Advance back in the early 2000s, and being disappointed with it. After learning how to play it, I enjoy the game more than Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. It is like choosing your favorite ice cream flavor. There are no wrong answers.
If you liked this post, please check out my other Vs posts, such as Phantasy Star vs Final Fantasy or Final Fantasy vs Dragon Quest.