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Reviews » Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime [DS]

Ah, the Slime. Small, blue, squishy, and eternally smiling, this Hershey's Kiss-shaped antagonist has been a star of video gaming since 1986. Well, okay, not a star. But without killing 347 of the little guys, how would you ever make it to the next town? Sourced from Dragon Quest, countless varieties of slimes have appeared in all of the 8 installments of the franchise and its many spinoffs. In 2003 the Dragon Quest Heroes property was started, with the player for the first time controlling a slime instead of simply killing them in droves. It's a cuter side of the Dragon Quest world, and it makes you feel a little bad for mowing down so many of the little guys on your previous adventures.

The newest DQ Heroes game has arrived, this time on Nintendo DS: Rocket Slime. You play as a young slime named Rocket (naturally), who in typical rpg/adventure fashion is thrust into the role of hero by destiny. In this case, your quiet and peaceful hometown is suddenly attacked by the villainous Plob, a group of cutesy platypus-like thugs who base rank on the number of tails they possess (their leader, Don Clawleone, packing a whopping seven). Seeing as slimes don't have tails, the Plob don't have a problem assaulting the town, blowing it to smithereens, abducting the other 100 inhabitants of your town and stuffing them into treasure chests strewn across each level. Their fate is left in your hands. Only problem being you don't have any.

Rocket makes do, however. The main mechanic of the game is the Elasto-Blast. By holding A, stretching Rocket's rubbery body in the direction you want, and releasing, you can attack enemies, pop items into the air, and jump, thereby overcoming your limblessness. The largest component of the game is guiding Rocket around dungeon-like stages, Elasto-Blasting enemies, collectible items, and chests holding your fellow Townsslimes. Once you pop an item, enemy, or friend, you can catch them on your head to carry them. Slimes are apparently stronger than they look, because you can carry three things on your head at once, in a stack. To keep items and rescue friends, throw them from your head onto one of many conveniently placed train carts, courtesy of the Slimenian Railway, located in each level. This will carry them back to town for you. You can even choose to collect enemies in this fashion, to recruit them later on. There are a few boss characters to fight, but they are pretty few and far between. Now, if the game was just Zelda-Lite, with Rocket's collecting sprees as the entirety of it, it wouldn't be especially compelling. In fact, it would be an action oriented Pokemon. But what makes Rocket Slime special is the rather unexpected flip side to the game.

Enormous Tanks.

Yes, that's right. Early in the game, Rocket aquires a mystical tank. Several stories high, shaped like a slime, and packing 2 very versatile cannons, this behemoth allows Rocket to take on the Plob head on in a series of action-strategy tank battles. When you happen upon one of many tank pedestals in each level, you are given the opportunity to summon your Schleimann Tank to your side to fight the plob in a one-on one battle royale. You have a high cannon and a low cannon, and instead of clicking a menu, it is your job to actually run, er, slide, around the tank, collecting ammo on your head and tossing it into your cannons. If it collides with enemy fire, it will take it out. It's a constant battle of wits trying to land shots while simultaneously blocking incoming debris. And debris it is. The items you've been collecting in the levels act as your ammo, and just about anything you can pick up is fair game for the cannon. Rocks, missiles, weeds, swords, precious stones, and even stranger stuff will be hurtling through the air. An alchemy function, similar to Dragon Quest 8's, allows you to brew up your own more powerful ammo from collected items. You won't last long if you don't find a good payload. What's more, enemies will sometimes attempt to infiltrate your tank, stealing ammo, attacking your crew, and damaging your tank's systems. Luckily you can employ the same tactics, loading Rocket or another member of the 4 slime crew into a cannon, and taking the battle to the bridge of the enemy tank. The versatility and frantic action of this mode, combined with the simple strategy elements make it an original, fun, and highly unexpected addition to what might have been just another boring adventure game.

The last piece of what makes Rocket Slime a winner is the flawlessly polished presentation and localization. Too often to play a quirky, original title, gamers are forced to endure games that are funny... in a Japanese way. Unless you're a sweaty Otaku, cultural differences mean that Japanese and Americans just don't have the same sense of humor. Thankfully the Rocket Slime team realized this, and the game is simply funny, period. In English. Employing an unrelenting pun policy, every word or phrase that can have the terms slime, goo, goop, squish, blub, gummy, or any other term that alludes to the apparent consistency of a slime, has been assimilated. Or perhaps a-slime-ilated. It may sound lame, but it's so earnestly and shamelessly presented, you can't help but chuckle. Other thinking man's puns appear as level or tank names, i.e. "Fort Knight - Not Too Weak." Along with the incompetent blundering of the plob, the clean, unified art direction, and the simple controls, every part of the package just adds to the universally enjoyable experience Rocket Slime offers.

Lasting value looks pretty good; there's a lot to collect. Once the story is finished you're still free to wander the levels and fight tank battles as many times as you wish. I've completed the story, which takes about 10 hours for the dedicated, but I still have plenty of item and alchemy slots open, so I’ve got more exploring to do. I've sunk about 18 hours in so far. You don't have to enjoy it alone, either. Although a great single player game, you can play a number of unlockable minigames as well as tank battle with your friends over wireless. Single and multi-card play are supported.

I had a great amount of fun with this game. My criticisms are few. I've noticed that it seems to only keep one Savegame, so if you wanted to start a new game, or share with a friend or family member, you're kind of sunk in that respect. Another worry for some is difficulty- while I never felt patronized by it, there isn't a real danger of dying in the adventuring levels. The tank battles are well balanced, but easy if you have a good strategy in place. Basically, it's no Slime of War. Rather it's a pleasurable, funny, well-polished game that reminds you why you bought a DS in the first place.

Screenshots © Square Enix

Rocket Slime - DS

Presentation

Flawless. Clean and simple, and honestly funny, it's a game that could conceivably get by on personality alone. Luckily, it doesn't.

Gameplay

Varied and original. Whether you feel like collecting and exploring, whooping up on enemies on the ground, or blasting them away in your tank, Rocket Slime has you covered. A little on the easy side, but undeniably a good time.

Replayability

High: a lot to collect and do, and even if you do manage to catch 'em all, you can still play your friends. However, only one savegame hurts it a bit.

Value

At around $30, I'm happy to spend that kind of money for a game this good.

Overall

Yet another fantastic reason to own a DS, and another home run for the DQ team.