Dragon’s Crown Pro (PS4) Review

Dragon’s Crown is back and it is now bigger and better than before. Redefined artwork, 4k compatibility, and new music, is Dragon’s Crown Pro worth it? Hell yes. Bear in mind, however, that this review is meant for people who played the original Dragon’s Crown. If you haven’t yet, you can read our original review.

Dragon’s Crown Throwback

Dragon’s Crown was an impressive game with a familiar formula added to the mix. It was, simply put, a hack and slash with a lot of role-playing involved. I’ll be honest with you, the original visuals of the game seem a little dated when you compare it to the impressive indie games being released on the Switch today.

Dragon’s Crown Pro takes the already successful formula from the original game and scraps the dated stuff, improving upon it all tremendously. Not only is the artwork remade for the game, the music was re-recorded as well – with a live orchestra.

Bear in mind that the Vanillaware team that worked on Dragon’s Crown Pro also made the similarly impressive Odin’s Sphere Leifthrasir possible. I loved the original Odin Sphere and the Leifthrasir remake blew both my younger-self (as well as my current self) away. I never expected an older game to look that good on an eighth-generation console.

With a proven track record, Vanillaware is definitely someone I will trust to remake or remaster games. I’ve also got to give some props to Atlus, arguably my favorite publisher. The localization and everything that comes with it was done very well.

Battle Hardened

Dragon’s Crown Pro was released with a special edition aptly called “Battle Hardened Edition’ which includes a steel-case and seven skill cards. It retails at about $50.00 and as someone who likes collecting video game stuff, that seems like a steal.

Do I recommend buying the special edition over the standard? Yes. It comes with a gorgeous steel case, and for that alone I’d say it was worth it. Personally, I almost always purchase the steel case version of anything when possible. Steel books just look cooler, and I feel that the game is protected better. Steel cases also look great in a collection or mini-game library.

A worthy addition to your library

If you’re new to the series, however, I still recommend that you purchase this game. That’s especially if you’re a fan of RPGs and Hack and Slash titles. The reason being, is that Dragon’s Crown is such a fun game to play, especially with friends (couch co-op!). It has a great selection of characters, with new takes on classic fantasy themes, and some terrifically fun gameplay.

Personally, I enjoyed it a lot, and have already played through this new revamp several times. With Vanillaware and Atlus behind the remastered version, I’m confident that Dragon’s Crown can now stand toe to toe against even the latest releases. It looks and plays that good.

If you’re looking for an RPG game to play over a weekend with your friends (or even alone honestly), Dragon’s Crown Pro is the game for you.

Dragon’s Crown Pro
Release Date: May 15, 2018
Platform(s): PS4 (cross-play compatible with the PS3 and Vita editions)
Publisher: Atlus
Developer: Vanillaware