Final Fantasy II and Dragon Quest II are games that I’ve changed my mind about over the last few years. Before I started making YouTube videos and blog posts about video games, I liked Dragon Quest II and really disliked Final Fantasy II. Now, things have changed a little for each game.
Most of my memories of Final Fantasy II were about the disappointment I felt when I tried to play it. I didn’t understand the game when I first played in an Emulator back in the mid 1990s. Back then, I didn’t know how to look up guides for the game. So, I simply gave up on it several times. That didn’t change when it was released on the PS1.
Dragon Quest II is another game that I started playing on an Emulator in the 1990s. I eventually picked up a copy on the NES. At no point do I remember getting far in the game back then. When I did beat it a few years ago, I remember being relieved that it was over. I didn’t have that much fun with it.
I do my best to ignore what people on the internet think about a particular game. There are good things in these games, and I think some parts of them are improvements over the first games in their respective series. Let’s look at both of them and see which is better.
Game Descriptions/Overviews
Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games are mostly high fantasy games. There are some differences in the settings, gameplay, and storytelling. These are all subtle differences, but there are also some significant ones.
Dragon Quest II is a high fantasy game where you control three descendants of the hero from the previous game. You have to go on a quest to find your party members and try to save the world from an evil wizard who wants to take over everything.
Final Fantasy II has some similar narrative beats. It is a high fantasy game with a little steampunk elements in it. You control a party of four characters, who get separated at the beginning of the game, and then reunite near the end. An evil empire is trying to take over the world, and you join a rebellion against them.
These are brief descriptions of these two games. There is more to them, and they are a little different based on which version of the games you play. That is something that has cropped up several times as I’ve gone over which version of the games to play, especially since some of them aren’t accessible to me. Let’s get into the main differences and core mechanics.
Main Differences
There are a lot of major differences between these two games. I’m going to stick to the things that really stand out here, and then go over the core concepts later. I’ll be going over the progression system, party systems, and some of the gameplay mechanics.
Dragon Quest II has a more traditional progression system when it comes to console RPGs. In that game, you grind for levels and money by fighting monsters. This kind of happens in Final Fantasy II, but the system the developers used is more open to abuse by the player. If a character takes damage, casts a spell, or lands a physical attack, then they can get a stat boost. The way you can abuse this is by attacking your own party during battle. It is a baffling system.
The party systems are a little different. Dragon Quest II has a party of three characters, and Final Fantasy II has you control four. There are a few more differences. Final Fantasy II has a rotating cast of characters that join your party. This is mostly done to advance the plot until your fourth member rejoins the party near the end of the game.
Much like the first games in this series, Dragon Quest II has a few archaic gameplay mechanics that don’t appear in Final Fantasy II. Much of it has to do with Dragon Quest games leaning on a menu system that the player is forced to use. If you want to talk to people, unlock a door, and do a few other things, you need to open a menu. Final Fantasy II doesn’t do this, aside from the password/keyword system, which is more of a gameplay feature than an annoyance.
There is probably a lot more that I’m either missing or just didn’t think was significant enough to mention here. I really wanted to keep this brief, because I don’t want to go on for three pages about all the differences. Let’s get into the core mechanics in these games.
Comparing Core Mechanics (Combat, Story, Visuals, etc)
At their core, they aren’t too different. They rely on a gameplay loop that appears in many console RPGs. They do take different approaches to that loop. There are differences in their combat systems, story, and visuals.
Combat has one big difference. In Final Fantasy II, you can attack your own party members. This is encouraged as it is one of the ways to improve a character’s stats. Dragon Quest II doesn’t have anything as counterintuitive as this.
The stories are quite different. While they both have darker themes to them, Final Fantasy II’s story is a bit more bleak. You’re fighting an evil empire, and there are more collaborators in this game. You also fight on the side of a rebellion. Dragon Quest II’s main characters are nobles and the descendants of the hero from the first game.
Dragon Quest II is a bright and colorful game, and Final Fantasy II has darker graphics. I’m not going to get into this too much because I’m not playing the original version of Final Fantasy II. What I remember from the ROM I played in the mid 1990s, the graphics weren’t too different from the first game. The same can be said about Dragon Quest II.
Those are a few of the differences in their core mechanics. There are more differences, but those are minor. I wanted to keep this section, and the previous one focused on the main things. Let’s get into what each game does better than the other.
What Does Final Fantasy II do Better?
Final Fantasy II has several things that are better than Dragon Quest II. It has a better story, characters, gameplay outside of combat, and a magic system that is more enjoyable. There are some things that I enjoy more in this game than what is offered in Dragon Quest II.
Final Fantasy II has a much better story than Dragon Quest II. While it is a completely new adventure, it is still a more compelling story. It is more complex and is much more interesting than what is offered in Dragon Quest II. There are more characters, and they’re better utilized in the story.
There are more characters, and you get to know more about them over the course of the game. Final Fantasy II has three main characters that stick with you the whole game. There is a rotating cast of characters who join your party for brief periods of time, and then you eventually get your fourth main character back. Each character has dialogue, and they have a bit more personality.
Final Fantasy II has some interesting features that are unique. Specifically, I like the password system that is in the game. You learn several passwords over the course of the game, and they can change an NPC’s dialogue at times. You’ll need them to advance the plot in some areas, which is very cool!
I like how your spells and weapon skill gain levels. It is the only part of this new system that the developers tried that I enjoyed. That part of the system makes more sense than simply buying a new sword or axe and magically getting stronger.
Final Fantasy II asks the player to deal with quite a few things. It has several features that sound cool, but aren’t executed well. I like it because of those flaws. Let’s get into what Dragon Quest II does better.
What Does Dragon Quest II do Better?
There are quite a few things that Dragon Quest II does better than Final Fantasy II. Some of it has to do with the combat and leveling systems. It also does a better job of being a true sequel. That is a big difference between the first few games in these two series.
This game does a better job of being a true sequel to the first game. It makes some major changes from the first game to the second, and it expands the lore from the first game. Dragon Quest II expands on the game features in a better way.
This game isn’t the radical change in direction like Final Fantasy II is. Dragon Quest II made big changes, but they felt like a natural improvement from the previous. Adding two more party members, sending you on a quest for them, and spreading the combat roles around is something I enjoy about the game.
I love it when I have to go on a little quest to get my party members. It is something that I love to see in a game like this. Sometimes it feels like a little tutorial, or a way to get to know some of your characters. Dragon Quest II does a great job of doing things like this.
Dragon Quest II has a more straightforward progression system than Final Fantasy II. You fight enemies, gain experience, and eventually advance to a new level. This system makes more sense to me than the odd system that is ripe for abuse in Final Fantasy II.
Much of what Dragon Quest II does better has to do with its being easier to understand. There are a few things in this game that I love to see in a retro RPG. Parts of this game are very good, and other things are just tedious. Let’s get into which one is better and which I would rather play.
Which is Better Overall and Why?
When I look at these games as RPGs, Dragon Quest II is the one that I think is better. It has a more straightforward progression system, you go on a quest to get your party members, and it does a better job of being a sequel. I also like some of the side quests a little more.
I like grinding in games like this, and there is a lot of that in Dragon Quest II. Leveling up makes more sense to me than the strange experiment from Final Fantasy II. What Dragon Quest II does is something that is in most of the other RPGs, and it is something that I find more enjoyable.
Going on a quest for your party members is something that I always enjoy. It feels like the developers are trying to create a tutorial by doing this. This is something that I find a lot of fun whenever it pops up in a retro RPG. While this isn’t the best, it is more fun for me than starting with everyone already in your party.
This is a little odd, but when I look at them as sequels, Dragon Quest II does a better job of continuing the story. It is a direct sequel, which isn’t what Final Fantasy II was trying to do. For me, this is a positive as we learn more about the Dragon Quest series, instead of starting over with a new adventure.
This was a little hard for me. Dragon Quest II isn’t my favorite game out of the two. When I look at them as RPGs, one of them meets more of the arbitrary requirements I have in my head when I think about the genre. Let’s get into which one I would rather play.
Which Would I Rather Play?
Final Fantasy II is the game I would rather come back to play. It has a better story, some of the gameplay is better, and I like the characters more. This is also a game that I have a newfound appreciation for, and it didn’t feel like a chore to play.
The story is much better than Dragon Quest II. There is just more going on, and there is a little twist where one of your party members becomes the bad guy for a brief period. It has some goofy moments, but overall, it is a better story.
It has several gameplay features that I love! First is not having the annoying menu system that Dragon Quest II has, and the other is the password/keyword system. I really enjoy the password/keyword system because it is so different. It is something I wish were included in another game to see if it could be better refined.
Final Fantasy II’s characters feel like they have more to say. There is more character development in this game, not just from the main characters, as the secondary characters get more time. This is more of a product of Square experimenting more than Enix did at the time.
This game also has the benefit of being somewhat newer to me. I didn’t really understand how to play this game for a while, and when I did, I really enjoyed most of it. There was a lot in this game that I found more enjoyable.
Those are the big things that make me want to play this game more than Dragon Quest II. This game didn’t feel as tedious. While it has an annoying progression system, it isn’t so annoying that it ruins the game.
Conclusion
This was a little harder than I thought it would be. These two games are quite different, and there are things that I like and dislike about both games. I’ve soured on one of them over time, and the other is something that I like a lot more now than I did when I first played it.
Dragon Quest II is one of the games that I thought I would really enjoy, and I did for the most part. Eventually, the game felt way too tedious. It has some great things in it, but as I was playing this game, I started to feel like I was at a job I hated. What was in the game changed from being fun to being tiring. I was relieved when it was over.
Final Fantasy II was one of my least favorite games in the series for a long time. I couldn’t get past the gameplay and how different it was from the first game. When I finally beat the game a few years ago, I found that I really enjoyed the story. It was much better than the first game, and it was a big part in me enjoying the game.
When I was trying to think of one game that was better than the other, I had a hard time coming to a decision. Even now, I’m starting to second-guess myself. Which one I would rather revisit was an easy decision. I don’t think either of these is a bad game, despite what the internet tells me.
If you liked this post, check out some of the other posts in this series. Such as Final Fantasy vs Robotrek or Phantasy Star III vs Final Fantasy Mystic Quest.