DRAGON: A Game About a Dragon
- April 23, 2015
- Games With Dragons In
- 3h median play time
Get on SteamIn "DRAGON: A Game About a Dragon," you play as a dragon and experience its life from birth to adulthood. Explore the world, make choices that affect your dragon's development, and deal with challenges presented by humans. With no set goals or objectives, this game offers a unique Simulator-style experience.
Reviews
- The game features charming hand-drawn artwork and a whimsical story that adds to its appeal.
- Gameplay is simple and enjoyable, with various collectibles and upgrades that encourage exploration.
- The humor and quirky characters make for a lighthearted experience, making it fun for both kids and adults.
- The level design can be lackluster and repetitive, leading to a feeling of monotony during gameplay.
- Controls can be clunky and unresponsive at times, making platforming frustrating, especially during boss fights.
- There are bugs and issues with the game, including crashes and problems with achievements, which detract from the overall experience.
- graphics92 mentions
- 41 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique, hand-drawn crayon aesthetic, which evokes a nostalgic, childlike charm. Reviewers appreciate the cute art style and whimsical visuals, noting that it complements the game's humorous narrative and gameplay. While some find the graphics delightful and fitting, others mention that the simplicity can lead to gameplay challenges, such as unclear interactive elements.
“The hand-drawn colored pencil aesthetic was cute.”
“The graphics are well done for a paper style, very creative.”
“Lovingly hand-illustrated drawings done in crayon, the visual aesthetic is not unlike that of a children's book.”
“The graphic style of the game led me to expectation of a 'tale told by a child' as long as most of the level designs look like child drawings, which was crushed pretty soon by the attempt of the game to be satirical and funny in a story that by no means could be a story told by a child or to a child.”
“If you take away the cutesy (and well done) graphics, you just have a painfully basic and slow-moving platformer.”
“For example, there are a few enemies and terrain obstructions that just aren't visually distinct enough from non-interactive/aesthetic scenery.”
- story66 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The game's story is a whimsical and simplistic take on classic tropes, featuring a lighthearted narrative filled with humor and quirky dialogue. While some players found it charming and enjoyable, others noted its straightforwardness and lack of depth, describing it as more suitable for a children's storybook than a serious game. Overall, the cute art style complements the fun, albeit basic, storyline, making it a delightful experience for those seeking light entertainment.
“A beautifully hand-drawn game with a fun, quirky story.”
“The storyline and cutscenes are fun to watch and the relationship in the story with the dragon is adorable.”
“The story of the game is great in my opinion and the jokes add to it.”
“The story is quite simplistic and the whole game looks like it has been hand-drawn by a 12-year-old.”
“The story, however, was boring for me, and the gameplay is easy.”
“The story is quite boring, but the graphics were really original and different from other games.”
- gameplay47 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized as simplistic and reminiscent of old-school platformers, with a charming aesthetic and whimsical story. While some players appreciate its easy-to-grasp mechanics and forgiving nature, others criticize it for being repetitive, frustrating, or lacking polish, particularly in level design and enemy interactions. Overall, the game offers a lighthearted experience that may appeal more to casual gamers or younger audiences rather than those seeking a challenging gameplay experience.
“The gameplay is oldschool with none of the oldschool pains, with an incredibly forgiving nature to everything stating its clear intent; 'look at this cool game I made!' bursting to the scenes with charm and goofy self-indulgent writing that I couldn't help but love.”
“Cute aesthetics, cute plot and dialogue, metroidvania-esque gameplay where you use later skills to return to previous levels for newly-accessible collectibles.”
“Gameplay is very responsive and rewards revisiting older levels with new and powered up abilities.”
“There are blind falls in some levels, and even with a float mechanic, it's still not good design having to guess if you can land somewhere or not.”
“The gameplay isn't too entertaining, somehow doesn't feel right and some actions/enemies are clearly not polished enough, requires some farming and have minor puzzle elements which you would care to solve only for completionist motives.”
“Cute graphics but very frustrating and unfair gameplay.”
- humor31 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is generally well-received, characterized by its quirky, child-like art style and a mix of visual gags and silly dialogue that contribute to a whimsical atmosphere. While some players find the humor charming and amusing, others feel it can be hit-or-miss, with certain jokes falling flat or the story lacking depth. Overall, the game offers a light-hearted experience filled with cute moments and entertaining storytelling, making it enjoyable for casual play.
“It's also pretty hilarious with its scribbled art style, visual gags, and ridiculous storyline/dialogue, and it's short and easy enough that it doesn't overstay its welcome.”
“It's not serious in the slightest and filled with humor, and the art style is drawn like a child's storybook, which only adds to the charm.”
“The cutscenes/stories are hilarious.”
- music29 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its nostalgic, arcade-like quality reminiscent of classic NES and SNES titles. While some find it catchy and fitting for the game's cheerful aesthetic, others note that it can be repetitive or generic. Overall, the soundtrack enhances the game's charm, though opinions vary on its memorability and impact.
“The art and music will make you feel like you are playing one of the classics from the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) era.”
“Very interesting art style and a great soundtrack.”
“I'm glad I gave it a second chance, as the lovely visuals, charming music, and wonderful world and characters have won me over.”
“The music and sound effects are adequate... and I'm running out of things to say that are positive or even neutral.”
“Imo not the best since it's generic and while right now I can remember some songs I will forget them in a couple of days, but it does the trick and helps with the situation and the mood of them is compatible with the theme of the game.”
“The soundtrack is short and repetitive.”
- stability3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game has been criticized for its significant stability issues, with users reporting frequent bugs and glitches that detract from the overall experience. Additionally, some gameplay elements, such as the final boss's mechanics, can feel frustratingly random due to these stability problems.
“My only real gripes are that it seems to be buggy (which is never going to get fixed anytime soon) and the final boss seems to have an unavoidable move which means you have to get lucky and hope they don't use it too much before you can defeat them.”
“Crayon drawn sprites and buggy platform gameplay.”
“Or horrendously buggy.”
- grinding3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious and lacking in variety, with unpolished gameplay that detracts from enjoyment. The combat often devolves into repetitive patterns, requiring extensive farming for resources and upgrades, which may only appeal to completionists. Overall, the grinding feels more like a chore than an engaging part of the experience.
“It was tedious to play through, and there wasn't much variety.”
“The gameplay isn't too entertaining; it somehow doesn't feel right. Some actions and enemies are clearly not polished enough, requiring farming and featuring minor puzzle elements that you would only care to solve for completionist motives.”
“The fight then goes from dodging attacks until they are vulnerable to a DPS race, where winning is achieved by farming coins and investing in defense.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 150 % positive mentions
- -150 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game offers limited replayability, rated 3/10, as players find that once they complete the main story and experience both endings, there is little incentive to revisit it beyond pursuing achievements. While the initial gameplay is entertaining, the lack of additional content or varied experiences diminishes its long-term appeal.
“The game has some replayability, which adds to its overall value and enjoyment.”
“I was pleasantly surprised by the replayability factor; it kept me coming back for more.”
“With multiple endings and different strategies to explore, the replayability is fantastic!”
“Replayability: 3/10. Once you beat the game and have seen both endings, there is little else to do other than achievements.”
“I wanted this game for some time now, but at the time I found the game not worth the 5€ they were asking. Well, I got it on sale and I was wrong; this game is worth 5€. It is a really nice little game, took me something like 6 hours to finish it. Doesn't seem like much, but the 6 hours were complete with entertainment. The story is not bad (would be better if it wasn't so cliché), graphic design... not my favorite but it fits the game, so it's okay. Bosses have their tricks to be defeated, making it challenging. Soundtrack and sound effects are good, supports controller, and the game has some replayability.”
