In defense of Drake of the 99 Dragons

[Bad Game Hall of Fame]

So, I get the impression most folk coming here simply to say "WHY IS THIS ON STEAM" and "THIS IS THE WORST GAME EVER" probably inform their opinions entirely through YouTube videos and reruns of X-Play -- rather than having actually played Drake of the 99 Dragons for themselves at any point. Admittedly, a big reason for that might be that the game has only become increasingly more difficult to actually obtain over time (especially the elusive boxed copies of the original PC release).

But hey, that's what I find genuinely neat about this surprise Steam release: Even if it ends up just being a straight re-release of that 2004 Windows version, it's still doing the service of making the game more easily accessible for everyone. And if you ask me, it really is a game worth giving a chance!

Many of the most notorious issues associated with the game (janky auto-aiming, path-finding and scripting issues, et cetera) are present only in the Xbox version of the game, leaving you with a more or less fully-functional product on PC. Don't get me wrong: There are still a fair share of remaining flaws that are just inherent to the game's design, but most of them fall under the category of being "charmingly bad." If you can look past the rough edges, there's a genuine bit of fun to be had with Drake, and a satisfaction that comes with mastering the controls / learning how to clear the game as quickly and efficiently as possible.

For anyone interested in having a more informed impression of Drake of the 99 Dragons, I've just recently written a history of / long-form review for it: https://www.badgamehalloffame.com/blog/drake-of-the-99-dragons/

[Iido]

I've never played the game myself, no, but, I've actually always wanted to. It looks like it's one of those "so bad it's good" type of games.

[Smug For One]

As someone with experience with this game, no. This isn't one of those "so bad it's good" type of games. It's one of those "what kind of random glitch or bug happens next that will make me have to redo the last 20-30 minutes" kind of game. You can laugh at glitch videos, but you won't laugh when your playtime is extended to double of what is needed once you experience the game.

Unless they went out of their way to fix it. I doubt that, it would need so much work, you might as well make a reboot instead.

[MrFoxhound]

You don't deserve to be in this hobby if you try to defend this steaming pile of garbage. Yes. I played this game. Bought it day 1 for Xbox. It's ass. It sucks. Why is this being released on Steam? The game that no one wanted and no one asked for. Get ready for 90% of the purchases to be refunded.

UNLESS! Unless this game gets all the hipsters like Metal Gear Survive did who rate that clearly terrible game as good. I guess they already have 1 positive review, someone who would take the time to make a thread defending the worst game on Xbox.

Also, X-Play wasn't the only place that destroyed this game. IGN gave it a 2.9/10, and it's got a 22 on Metacritic. So, stop being some douchey hipster and trying to get people to buy this clearly terrible game because you're a masochist who actually "enjoys" this steaming pile of hot garbage.

[happyfaceman]

Preaching to the choir. I too played the PC version, I agree that it fixed majority of the gameplay problems. But this industry has too many lemmings. These are the same people who hated Monster Hunter for a decade, same people who think the Musou games are 2 button mashing, etc. Just leave them be. People need to realize this is a game developed in only 6 months. The fact that this is the outcome is an amazing feat. Even more amazing that the PC release did bug fixing turning it into a solid 6/10 game shows how talented these developers are.

Too bad about Advent Rising, though Tommy Tallarico did fantastic work on the music. That game is trash.

[Bad Game Hall of Fame]

Originally posted by TheLX:

As someone with experience with this game, no. This isn't one of those "so bad it's good" type of games. It's one of those "what kind of random glitch or bug happens next that will make me have to redo the last 20-30 minutes" kind of game. You can laugh at glitch videos, but you won't laugh when your playtime is extended to double of what is needed once you experience the game.

There's no level in the game that even gives you longer than fifteen minutes on the clock to complete it, and certainly none that would even require that long to complete.

Originally posted by MrFoxhound:

You don't deserve to be in this hobby if you try to defend this steaming pile of garbage. Yes. I played this game. Bought it day 1 for Xbox. It's ass. It sucks. Why is this being released on Steam? The game that no one wanted and no one asked for.

[...] So, stop being some douchey hipster and trying to get people to buy this clearly terrible game because you're a masochist who actually "enjoys" this steaming pile of hot garbage.

You seem like you'd be a real blast at parties.

Look, I know this may come as a total shock to you, but opinions are subjective, and folk are allowed to enjoy things that you don't. Some people are capable of finding the good in the bad, and appreciating effort in spite of poor execution. Maybe try calming down a little bit, stop taking review scores as gospel, and realize that you are not the arbiter of "who 'deserves' to play video games."

Originally posted by JD:

Preaching to the choir. I too played the PC version, I agree that it fixed majority of the gameplay problems. But this industry has too many lemmings. These are the same people who hated Monster Hunter for a decade, same people who think the Musou games are 2 button mashing, etc. Just leave them be. People need to realize this is a game developed in only 6 months. The fact that this is the outcome is an amazing feat. Even more amazing that the PC release did bug fixing turning it into a solid 6/10 game shows how talented these developers are.

Hey, I'm glad to see at least a little bit of support on here! I'd probably have to agree with the 6/10 rating, even though I've gotten as much enjoyment out of this game as I have with games I'd technically rate much higher. There's just something about it, isn't there?

Some small details I feel obligated to correct: The "6 months" rumor is simply that. I've been in talks with one of the quality assurance testers for the game who confirmed the game was already in the oven long before May of 2003 (where the six months would have kicked in). Additionally, the PC version was the initial target version from the start, and the Xbox version was actually a botched port of that (despite releasing earlier).

[Sezy Ruubberducky]

I cant wait, i played it so much as a child and now i get to relive!!!!! maybe its nostalgia but i cant ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ wait

[Polygonien]

a website focusing on "bad" games that is not just an endless stream of laughing/hating but rather trying to examine and inform? Gotta check that out

[AMS Agent Eric Cartman🇺🇦]

AVGN just recently reviewed this game:
https://youtu.be/jVybGgvGMlk

[{FU}TheForgeryTTV]

Originally posted by The ♥♥♥♥:

AVGN just recently reviewed this game:
https://youtu.be/jVybGgvGMlk

I saw someone on the comments saying it was on Steam. I thought it was a joke or something but I checked and yeah, me posting here proves the guy is right.

It even costs $6.99. WTF, I expected $3.99 at the max, not $6.99

[Sezy Ruubberducky]

i beat this game on orignal xbox. i love it. dont get in the way of my nostalgia shmucks

[WackyTbobcat🐱👾🕹]

is 2022 and this is one of my favorite games i had always have a soft spot for this game sure it have it problems but still love it

[chrisrussell99]

Honestly I wish this game could get some fan patches. the PC version is, more notably, less jank then the Xbox release & with some fixes I would even call it a pretty good game

[DarkFalzX]

Def not a "so bad it's good" situation, but rather "genuinely terrible, but in a memorable and endearing sort of way". It's fun thinking about playing Drake, or semi-fondly remembering your last playthrough, but the second you boot it back up again, it is instantly a chore - especially this version!
It's all been balanced with Xbox auto-aim in mind, so certain sections are borderline impossible with the manual targeting. I'd also argue the game got less fun with all of the Xbox bugs fixed - at least there you can play the fun "challenge mode" of how quickly you can drop out of bounds.

[Alcoholikaust]

Dan can do it Grubb- believe