While I never got PQ2, I say this by far! But realize this is pretty abstract, no story or point, just trying to work the system in the most efficient manner as possible to reach the biggest scores on GC.
So I own PQ2, and I am a big fan of the Puzzle Quest games, but I find I mostly play this and have not really delved into PQ2 yet. I guess it depends on what you are looking for. If you are looking for more in depth story, if you are looking for long term RPG growth over time, and a game that you could win, PQ2 is probably better for you. Although on the easier levels this game can take an hour or so, on the hardest levels, my games rarely last 20 minutes. So it is more about playing for high scores and improving your game play over many many games. Both are great games, and together I think they provide a balanced mix of play styles within a similar genre.
I've both and played tons of hours on both (Dungeon Raid is a more recent buy by me though). I would say they're completely different games, aside from being cathegorized both as match-3 games. Dungeon Raid is super addictive and more suited for fast playthroughs ('fast' is realtive...I should say that you THINK you're about to play a bit). PQ2 is imho a great game (plagued by super long loading times that hamper gameplay a bit, expecially towards the end) with story, exploration and a strong 'build your character' component (vastly superior imho than PQ1 where luck was very important). In dungeon Raid you surely buid you character, but it lasts you as long the match lasts (usually some minutes), then you start over. I love both games, but having stopped playing PQ2 waiting for a patch, I find Dungeon Raid super addictive and a must for every match-3 fan out there. Keep in mind I personally find dungeon crawls games like the excellent Fargoal much more similar to Dungean Raid than PuzzleQuest2.
Both are completely different games, so it's hard to compare. I have both and love both. They are easily two of the best games that I have bought over the last few months. If you can afford it, I would definitely get both. If you can only afford one of them, then go for Dungeon Raid. It's much cheaper and you will still get a lot of enjoyment out of it.
Any idea how all of the recent attention (the TA page one feature and the "app of the day" writeup at Tuaw.com) has affected sales of Dungeon Raid? I am really hoping this game makes a ton of money so the developer can keep feeding our addiction.
Also worth noting... In PQ and PQ2 you're battling an opponents, one at a time, taking turns with them gathering resources to either power up your skills or improve your character after the battle. Lose a battle, no big deal, just replay it from where you last left off until you're successful or simply leave the battle, level up fighting some easier opponents, and retry the battle when in a much better position. In DR the board itself is your opponent and source of resources and it is all one continuous battle with the leveling and item upgrades occurring in the midst of this endless battle until you're finally overcome. Each game you start from humble beginnings and attempt to build yourself up to godlike abilities. Just like a good Roguelike, however, once you finally bite it the game is over and you'll need to start from scratch again. While this makes losing much more frustrating...it also means that when you get that really high score from a great run, it feels SO MUCH more meaningful.
I concour and I would add theat while you're playing Dungeon Raid which is already super polished and a perfectly 'done' game, Namco could grant us the courtesy to patch Puzzle Quest 2 with some quirks about the game NOW (like the aftermentioned superlong loading times, much more important than always appreciated retina display, gamecenter multiplayer and so on)....so when you'll buy it (because it deserves so) you'll have a complete and 'done' game. Exploration is pretty big in the middle of PQ2, and having to wait even 20 seconds just to walk by an empty room, it's just too boring.
I really hope so. They surely deserve it and while not being a big studio they had everything done right (first version polished, GC support, slick presentation, constant forum active presence, improving plans). I really wish more devs would follow this path and it strikes me when much INFERIOR games (technically speaking, regardless the resources) have much more attention/exposure and, in the end, money.
I went in pretty skeptical about this game mostly due to its ho-hum graphics and being "yet another Match-3 puzzle RPG". Jesus christ could I ever be more wrong. I would characterize this game as probably, thus far in the library, the perfect iphone game. Everything about the gameplay mechanics and controls are optimized for the platform, and the amount of polish, stability, and most importantly addictiveness here is remarkable. Plus, it's just a really good turn-based SRPG where you really do need to think about your next move.
Is ArtNJ's walkthrough on this forum or elsewhere? Glad I'm not the only one who suffers from this issue.
I hear you! Been there done that, I get sucked into grabbing a large chain of shields or coins only to discover (via red screen of death) that my health was too low to survive the skull onslaught. The fact that my Teleport or Disarm was ready to be cast only adds insult to injury...
Man...I keep having dreams about it. It's sad, really. But my routine these days is to "just play a couple minutes before bed." Then, round about dawn, I'm dragging my finger over skulls and shields in my dreams...
Unfortunately looks like a couple of the mechanics are exploitable in version 1.2 to allow you to play forever. I finally intentionally died at around 200k points on harder after playing for a few days. I'd be happy to share the strategy, it can be reproduced with good regularity on normal (and probably on harder as well). PM me if you're interested. I'm not going to post it to the forum (and would ask that you do the same if you request it by PM) because the game is much more fun if you find it yourself! I've sunk so much time into this game, it's great fun and an excellent challenge. I'm really looking forward to further updates and more games from the author! Definitely my favorite iOS game, and well worth the 2.99!
This game looks good, abd i really want to buy it.. but i cant tell if ill like it or not. Hopes for a lite version coming soon? Just a few turns is all i need
Sales rank here. You can easily see when the TA review came out. http://www.appannie.com/dungeon-raid/ranking/history/ I'd give a rough estimate of 300-500+ sales per day to hit #6 on the RPG chart. Not bad at $2.99 each.
