I always got the impression that DQ monsters are "silly". Many of them, most of them, look straight out of a kids show (feel free to avatar quote) to the point they don't feel imposing to fight. It's hard to buy into a world ending threat when the world ending threat looks adorable. I understand that is the tone of these games, but standing next to other JRPG adventures there is a sort of saccharine sweetness to DQ that I don't think I could try and stick through a 100+ hours of a game. The enemies just aesthetically don't look fun to fight.
To illustrate my point with an apples to oranges comparison, FFXV has some of the most insane monster design I have ever seen. There is an inherent "threat" to them. Even the more benign monsters have a certain weight to them, like seeing a wild horse, you know it's probably fine as long as you don't mess with it. The dragons in that game feel world ending, the gods look impossibly imposing. Of course FF games always have a handful of truly silly designs, but they are generally treated as joke enemies, not the general enemy force.
When looking at DQ I am met with a sea of smiles and Saturday morning evil villain smirks. It's a fun aesthetic but not something I am drawn to or a world I want to explore, at least not one I want to explore with a weighty story behind it. I could be totally and completely wrong about this, but really its a major sticking point to me and the number one reason I haven't touched the series.
I am curious if others feel the same. I am a bit weird about enemy aesthetics in general and it is the number one thing I am drawn to when picking up a game.
To illustrate my point with an apples to oranges comparison, FFXV has some of the most insane monster design I have ever seen. There is an inherent "threat" to them. Even the more benign monsters have a certain weight to them, like seeing a wild horse, you know it's probably fine as long as you don't mess with it. The dragons in that game feel world ending, the gods look impossibly imposing. Of course FF games always have a handful of truly silly designs, but they are generally treated as joke enemies, not the general enemy force.
When looking at DQ I am met with a sea of smiles and Saturday morning evil villain smirks. It's a fun aesthetic but not something I am drawn to or a world I want to explore, at least not one I want to explore with a weighty story behind it. I could be totally and completely wrong about this, but really its a major sticking point to me and the number one reason I haven't touched the series.
I am curious if others feel the same. I am a bit weird about enemy aesthetics in general and it is the number one thing I am drawn to when picking up a game.
