Dragon Quest II and Destiny of an Emperor are very different games. They are graphically similar to each other, but the gameplay, setting, and story are rather different. They do have similar quests, which is nice.
In both games, you go on an adventure to assemble your party. It is different in both games, and there are way more characters in Destiny of an Emperor. There is also a magic system, and the game mechanics are fairly similar.
I do like one of these games more than the other, even if I can admit that it isn’t the best. Both of these games have good stories, gameplay, and I like the graphics. Let’s go over each game a little more, and I’ll explain why I like one more than the other.
Game Descriptions/Overviews
These two games are turn based RPGs where the player goes on a quest to get rid of evil in the game’s world. The player controls a party of characters, three in Dragon Quest II and seven in Destiny of an Emperor. Both games have a medieval setting, but take it in different directions.
Destiny of an Emperor is an alternate history of China’s Three Kingdoms period, and is based on a manga. You’re trying to defeat a series of warlords as you try to unify China under the rule of Liu Bei. During the game, you go on a quest to find the Five Tiger Generals and other historical figures. You can also recruit enemy generals to your side.
Dragon Quest II is a high fantasy game where the player takes control of three descendants of the hero of the first game. They go on a quest to defeat an evil sorcerer who is trying to take over the world. There are only three characters to manage in this game, and the magic system is much more straightforward.
Both of these games are graphically the same, but have different looking battle screens, and combat systems. There is also much less exploration in Destiny of an Emperor. I’ll get more into the differences between them in just a bit.
Main Differences
There are numerous differences between these two games. The story, setting, and gameplay are different. These games take different approaches to an RPG, with one being more grounded in reality and the other being fantastical.
Both stories are about defeating an evil person and restoring peace to a land. This can be said about many RPGs released at this time. Dragon Quest is a more fantastical story where you have to fight demons. In contrast, in Destiny of an Emperor, you have to defeat a series of corrupt or tyrannical warlords to restore peace to ancient China.
Dragon Quest II is a high fantasy setting where you use magic and fight monsters. There are human enemies, but they’re seen as being servants of an evil wizard. Destiny of an Emperor is a more grounded game where you fight human armies and use military tactics. On the combat screen, it is explained that your character’s health is a representation of how many soldiers are under each character’s command.
The gameplay has a few differences, most of which are on the battle screen. In Destiny of an Emperor, you control five generals during combat, have a tactician who controls your “magic,” and can use an all out attack to control the battle automatically. Dragon Quest II is a more traditional approach to a turn based RPG, and looks similar to how the first game and Phantasy Star.
There is one big difference when it comes to these two games’ gameplay. In Destiny on an Emperor, you’ll have to buy food to keep your army fed. If you don’t do this, you’ll slowly lose troops, much like walking around while poisoned in other games. It is an attempt to add a little realism to the game, but eventually, it doesn’t matter much since you can buy an absurd amount of food.
Those are the major differences between the two games. I know there are probably more things that I’m forgetting, and as I remember them, I’ll add them. For now, let’s look at the core mechanics.
Comparing Core Mechanics (Combat, Story, Visuals, etc)
These games have similar mechanics, but they take different approaches. Dragon Quest II is a fairly straightforward high fantasy RPG that has many of the popular tropes you’ll see in other games in the series. Destiny of an Emperor is a more unique and imaginative take on an alternate history setting and story for an RPG.
The combat isn’t too different. Both are turn based games, and a few of the fights take some strategy. The magic system and party construction are very different. Dragon Quest has two magic users, and the spells are straightforward in terms of their effects. Destiny on an Emperor uses tactics, and you need to have a tactician assigned in order to use your spells.
While the stories end in similar ways, they take different routes to get there. Destiny of an Emperor follows historical events, and Dragon Quest II is a generic high fantasy story. I prefer how Destiny of an Emperor approaches things over Dragon Quest II.
The settings are quite different. Dragon Quest II offers more opportunities for the player to explore and find locations from the previous game. There is some backtracking, but nothing too annoying.
Destiny of an Emperor is a linear game where the player is directed to locations that advance the plot. There is a lot of backtracking for plot points, items, and stores. This is one of the weaker parts of the game, even if the developers did include an item for fast travel between locations.
Graphically, these games aren’t too far apart. They have different approaches to the battle screens, but everything else is essentially the same. The enemies you fight also look very different. In Destiny of an Emperor, the enemies are simply the spirits used on the world map, whereas Dragon Quest II features fantasy monsters that look more detailed and different.
I could go on about these two games and compare what the games ask the player to do. To try and keep this shorter, I’ll move on from here. Let’s go over what each game does better than the other.
What Does Dragon Quest II do Better?
These two games are fairly close. While they take different approaches to the RPG genre, the two games don’t do much to separate themselves in a clear way. Much of it comes down to what kind of game you’d like to play.
Dragon Quest II has a better battle screen and enemies. The Dragon Quest series has a unique set of monsters and graphics. They look very good, and if you like the Dragon Ball artwork, then you’ll like this. I also like that they didn’t use the sprites from the world map as the monster sprites.
The magic system is better and more straightforward. It is also less random as to what effect your and your enemy’s spells are going to have. You don’t need to have the manual or use trial and error to figure out what the spells are going to do. It is, overall, a better system than Destiny of an Emperor.
I thought about including the setting, but I don’t think one is better than the other. There isn’t too much that separates these games as far as graphics and gameplay, and the story is more of a personal preference on what you like more. Let’s look at what Destiny of an Emperor does better.
What Does Destiny of an Emperor do Better?
There are only two things that I think Destiny of an Emperor does better than Dragon Quest II. I like the story and setting more, and the quest to find your characters is more fun in this game. Much of this is tied to my memories of the game, so take it with a grain of salt.
I like how you can recruit enemy generals to your side. It adds some strategy to this game that you won’t find in other RPGs. While there are instances where you can get a boss character as a playable character, there isn’t another game where you can recruit dozens of them, and make future battles easier to fight.
The quest to get all of your characters is better in Destiny of an Emperor. While it takes longer, it is a bigger part of the game’s story than in Dragon Quest II. It also plays more into the game’s narrative.
The story and setting are also my favorite parts of the game. I prefer the Three Kingdoms period’s setting over a generic high fantasy world. It is refreshing to have something that feels different than other retro RPGs.
Those are the things that I think Destiny of an Emperor does better. It is a unique game, and it has a lot of things that I enjoy about it more than other retro RPGs. Let’s talk about which one is better overall and which one I would rather play.
Which is Better Overall and Why?
Dragon Quest II is the better game overall. It is a more traditional RPG, and it has several things that I enjoy. The gameplay and story are a little better, and things are less complicated and random in the game.
I like the improvements the developers made over the first game, and it is what most people would be familiar with. There is something comforting about playing a game like this where you know what is being asked of you. Dragon Quest II doesn’t throw anything crazy at you and has a traditional story.
The game mechanics are familiar, and I like how the characters have assigned roles. The story is also pretty good. This game offers more than the previous Dragon Quest game.
If you’re looking for an old school RPG, then this is a good option for you. It has a straightforward story, a cool setting, and is quite a bit of fun. I think this game is overall better than Destiny of an Emperor, but it isn’t the one I would rather play.
Which Would I Rather Play?
I would rather play Destiny of an Emperor. It is such a unique game, and one that I have a ton of memories of playing back in the 1990s. It is more about the journey of finding the game and eventually getting a copy of it in the late 1990s or early 2000s. I can’t remember exactly when I got my copy, but it is one of the games I’ll never sell.
The story and setting are awesome! I love the story of China’s Three Kingdoms period. It is a great setting for a video game, and I wish Capcom had brought the other games in the series to North America.
There is nothing like it on the NES. It is such a unique RPG with some very interesting game mechanics. The game has some problems, but I love it for those strange quirks and the frustrating parts.
I love going back and playing this game from time to time. It is different enough to stand out, and I like that it doesn’t play like anything else. I have so many memories of trying to find this game back in the day.
This might not be one of the best games on the NES, but it is one of my favorites. Destiny of the Emperor is one of my favorite games on the system, and it is one of the games that I would consider a hidden gem. Finding online back in the day was awesome, and it felt like I had discovered something that no one knew about.
Conclusion
Both of these games are good in their own ways. Dragon Quest II has improved on everything that was done in the first game, and I liked the way the game’s story is told. Destiny of an Emperor is a unique game that stands out from the crowd.
It is hard for me to separate all of my memories of playing this game from Destiny of an Emperor. It is one of my favorite games on the NES. Dragon Quest II is still fairly new to me, as I’ve only beaten it twice. My memories of it are mostly from finding the game’s ROM online and not really getting into it.
There is something nice about revisiting a game you didn’t get into as a kid. I like the second Dragon Quest, even if I like Destiny of an Emperor better. It will be fun to see how Dragon Quest II stacks up to the other RPGs I’ll be looking at.
If you liked this post, then please check out the other posts in this series, such as Dragon Quest vs Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest I vs II.