Ditto to anyone who has played it on an iPod Touch 5. Have the game on PS2 but want it on mobile while it's cheaper if it doesn't keep crashing.
I have a iPod touch 5th gen and i played today for 4:55 hours that's what the game save says and it only crashed one time after the device went in sleep mode and I tried to adjust the volume down after opening it back up so then I started it back up and the game created a auto save that started me right where i was, I was in the field though so not sure if it's a safety thing or just forced a quick save either was I was happy it did that and I didn't lose any progress so as long as you go to the church in town when first visiting and when leaving and save your game I don't imagine any gameplay time loss from crashes and it also didn't lag at all. I did make sure all other background tasks were closed so the game was the only thing running and it played great. Also I played on the battery from a full charge not plugged in and around the 4.5 hour mark my 20% warning flashed at me and the device was a little warm but not hot at all, no where near the temperature some other games like asphalt 8 and other gameloft titles make your device. I'm happy with my purchase also the portrait mode and controls are a little different but after a few minutes they are very easy to get the hang of.
I see most people seem to be running this on an iPhone 5s. A regular iPhone 5 is the phone that I've got, anyone been playing on this device who can leave opinions about how the game runs and how it looks? Maybe show me a few screenshots? Cheers /Emp
I'm running it on an iPhone 5S and it seems flawless to me. But this review was done with an iPhone 5, and it sounds like it ran quite similar. http://www.usgamer.net/articles/dragon-quest-viii-ios-review However, the reviewer didn't seem to appreciate the portability of this port. Having it play in portrait is the only way to not have the controls obstruct the view of the action. Having the direction control at the bottom ensures you see your character and surroundings at all times. We shouldn't want to emulate the console experience on our phones, but instead, enjoy the portability of this grand adventure in our pockets! There might be some videos on YouTube of it running on a 5, but I haven't looked into that specific model. Have you searched for it?
Yes I suppose it would look quite similar on a 5 and 5s, but it would still be nice just to have a video clip or some screengrabs so that I know for sure more or less what I am getting. I have tried youtube but could not find a clip where they confirmed it was running on 5. I'll take a look at that review however, for some impressions. Cheers /Emp
You are of course welcome to your opinion, and I am sorry you have had issues with the game, but this last quote raises my hackles. I am one of the developers of this game, and I can tell you, myself and the huge team I worked with are highly experienced in both making and porting games. Not only that, but here in Japan we work our little arses off, with very little concept of free time. This was not a rushed port from a small lazy team, this was a HUGE job, several years with a very large skilled team, working late and at weekends to hit deadlines. The thing you must understand is that porting a very old game is so much harder than creating from scratch. All assets had to be converted from obsolete file formats (lacking the original code, tools and documentation), and had to be made to fit the extreme constraints of the apple and google stores. The enormous amount of spaghetti code had to be converted to a different language, again with limited documentation. The game has to function and be optimised for the myriad devices and wide range of screen sizes, memory sizes, cpu and gpu powers. The controls HAVE to be different because this is not a sit at home with a brick-like console and a bulky joypad in your hands, this is slip into your pocket and play one-handed on the train. I am sure there are various issues, for certain people who expected a more faithful experience, or have obscure or older devices, or are frustrated by mobile controls. But the fact is, SE wanted to repurpose a much beloved game and introduce it to a new generation. Obviously sacrifices had to be made in certain areas, and such a huge job was always going to have few bugs, which are being diligently eradicated as we speak. And as for price, that's not my business, but this cost shit loads to make and it is a huge, no F**KING HUGE game. You get way more than your money's worth. To say "don't buy" because a bit of lag in crowded towns. Pah! I am obviously biased, but I think we did a fantastic job, considering.
Wow. Thanks for sharing and for all of your guys' hard work! You all have introduced me to this game that I probably wouldn't have played otherwise. And it's quickly become my favorite game thanks to not only the amazing game itself, but the brilliant mobile controls and menus. Please pass on my gratitude to those involved around you. And keep up the great work!
Last time I considered buying DQ8 for my iPhone, I decided to wait, maybe for a better price. But if you sir are who you say you are and if your statement is true, I have been suddenly much more interested in the game, maybe buying it this weekend.
Love the post. Got more than one person emaducated im sure. At least now more people know that taking a building down and remodeling is a lot more difficult that making a new one on a vacant lot.
Came here to decide to buy or not. This post made it an easy "yes". It can't be bad with this much passion behind it.
Are there any plans for performance updates (at least for newer devices)? With all due respect, there are a lot of ports of old games that run quite well. GTA San Andreas, for example, had a few problems but it got a respectable visual enhancement, it's a much more demanding game than DQVIII and it runs better. Other old games like Vice City, Monster Hunter FU and Bard's Tale run buttery smooth even on older devices. That's only mentioning PS2 games, because there are a lot more games from other platforms that are very old and had fantastic transitions to iOS anyway. Maybe you guys really did your best given the circunstances and I respect that, but it's far from a fantastic port. I don't know, considering you said yourself the port took years and a great deal of investment, one should definitely expect more. Still, because DQVIII is such an amazing game, I agree it's still worth it.
I'd much rather it run at its current framerate and not overheat or drain the battery like MHFU. Every time I play MHFU it feels like my iphone is going to start on fire! But DQ8 runs pretty cool and hardly drains the battery in comparison. And that is amazing.
I don't think the poor framerate was a conscious decision to get more from the battery, so I don't see your point. I'm sure better optimization in this case wouldn't impact battery consuption in the slightest.
DQ 1,2 and 3 are all coming to iOS http://www.gamezebo.com/2014/09/01/dragon-quest-1-2-3-iphone-android/
