Dokapon Kingdom

Ladies and gentlemen: Exhibit A

Ahhh Dokapon Kingdom, what is there to say about you? Quite a unique game due to how it combines different elements together. It plays differently from anything else you've probably played. It's part RPG, part board game and also adds elements taken from others games to make a fun game whether you play by yourself or up to 4 players. It's on the Wii and PS2 but both versions are very similar, I'd recommend you get the Wii version since it's easier to hook up 4 players without a multi-tap, and you also have more space for save files.

It has charming graphics, using a sort of cute styling for the whole thing. Nothing's really too dark even when you get further in the game and fight stronger monsters. You can pull stupid pranks on each other such as changing their name, hairstyle or draw graffiti on their face. The game also doesn't take itself too seriously with the voice acting or other things. For example the king will send you on missions to obtain food he wants to eat or for you to retrieve his daughters piggy bank. There's even and event where you hunt "Wabbits" for a decent reward if you can actually kill one. Overall it brings it's own charm that makes it a little lame but inviting once you get used to it.

So anyways this game is basically a board game with RPG elements in it. You start with a character where you get to pick your class, name, gender, color, and eye shape. There's 3 at the start but you unlock more as you go, somewhere around 10 classes are available. Each class gets it's own unique stat growths and there are 5 in total: Attack, Defence, Magic, Speed and Heal Points. Also, depending on which two classes you master you unlock different classes. For example:

Magician + Warrior = Spellsword
Warrior + Thief = Ninja
Magician + Thief = Alchemist
Monk + Alchemist = Robo Knight
Acrobat + Spellsword + Ninja = Hero
Warrior or Magician or Thief = Cleric
Cleric -> Monk

Choosing your path affects how you are going to play the game. Warrior based classes have an easier time surviving and also deal decent damage. Thieves have high speed growth and have decent attack. Magicians obviously concentrate on magic but also need some speed to actually hit anything. You kind of have to experiment with builds to see which one suits you most and it'll definitely take a few tries to get it right.

The Board, a warrior and his spiffy hairdo

So when you start in story mode you get told by the king that he needs warriors for whatever task, I don't know since I didn't pay attention too much. You and whoever you're playing with, whether AI or friend, start in the same place and roll on who goes first. This decides the turn order for the whole game so take note of that, otherwise if your friend gets distracted you'll have to smack him on his turn. After that the games begin and you start building your character. Basically you try to gain experience by defeating monsters on empty spaces and get equipment, spells and items. They all play an important role, and sometimes the person with the right things at the right time will have a significant lead.

This can cause fights among friends because to get ahead you basically have to fuck them over. You can be a huge dick in this game because you can not only PVP and take things away from them but you can also cast spells and things to slow them down. You see, to be the grand champion you have to gain the most money, and the easiest way to obtain more money is by killing bosses in towns. These bosses provide a significant boost to your score, and the person who has the right items can either have a severe advantage against the bosses to induce a guaranteed win or get their first to take it over.

Luck can also be a very annoying thing sometimes. Battles in this game work like a rock, paper and scissors type thing where certain moves counter other moves and deducing the risk of certain moves and make or break you. So if someone decides to fight you it can be a huge risk because many times you will die in one hit if you don't make your move properly. Not to mention the variety of other luck based things such as what you roll, what you fight, random npcs and a whole bunch of other things that can boost your character to infinite heights or reduce them to measly ants. I believe you can also be a dick and just limit your team mates. Kill them and take their money or towns or whatever else you want.

Sometimes it's better to give up than to fight

It's actually quite long when you're playing it, especially when you're playing with 3 or more people, and you can be stalled by many things such as deaths or shitty rolls. However it's quite immersive once you get used to it and can be a good, fun way to pass the time when you're bored with a few friends. The graphics match with what this game is trying to do. However the fights it can ignite and the sheer amount of dickery you can commit kind of contrasts it's funny nature. Definitely worth picking up though, even today.

There are a few cons I have to address though:

-Turns take too long, the menus feel a bit sluggish at times which doesn't help when you want it to be your turn
-Sometimes, while there's plenty to do and get in this game, you have to sacrifice too much in order to experience. For example to get the Hero class you basically would have to go completely out of your way to obtain it. By the time you're finished becoming the class, everything is just so piss poor easy that there is no challenge and nothing to kill with your shiny new hero title.
-A bit too random at times to the point where it gets unfair, this does make it more interesting though
-There's plenty of unbalance in the design, the cheapest being the Darkling(if you play this game you will know what Darklings entail)