Review: Dragon Quest Builders is a fun Minecraft clone

There are many Minecraft-like clones out there. Some are good, some are bad. Dragon Quest Builders is thankfully part of the good clones.  The Dragon Quest series has been around for a long time and is best known for being a part of the JRPG genre. Dragon Quest Builders is different as it's similar to Minecraft's survival mode.You can go out and fight enemies, although a lot of building and construction takes the bulk of the gameplay.  When you start the game, you're thrust into the story right away. The basic gist of the story is that you have to rebuild the world of Alefgard as it has now been run by monsters. Your goal is to pretty much make it the way it used to be and you do this by starting from scratch.  The best part about the game is that it has a really helpful tutorial. I like playing Minecraft, but that game can be hard if you don't know what you are doing. Dragon Quest Builder's story mode guides you to what you need to do which makes it easier to play.  Much like in Minecraft, you can craft a weapon to start destroying things in order to collect resources. Collecting resources are key to build things like your first house, bed, lighting and other things to make your village flourish.  The game also has a day and night cycle and you have to make sure you sleep under shelter before the enemies get you. Thankfully, the enemies in this game are pretty easy to kill, although you still need to be prepared in order to survive.  Combat is relatively easy as all you have to do is press the Square button. You are able to craft new and stronger weapons as their durability wears out over time. The variety of enemies are cool to see as well since some of them have featured in past Dragon Quest video games.  Speaking of survival, the game also requires you to eat constantly to boost up your energy. Food can be found in the surrounding areas and you can even craft an oven to cook too.  The story mode is quite lengthy too with lots of quests and interesting characters that you can meet. The open-wold environment is also quite large and the graphics are nicer than that of Minecraft. The music is also very catchy and great to listen to. That being said, the world in this game is still made of bricks. The brick-like nature makes it easier for you to build things as you can unlock blueprints to guide you the longer you play.  The story mode in Dragon Quest Builders is like the survival in Minecraft, but after completing chapter one you can unlock "Terra Incognita Mode". In this mode, you don't have to worry about quests and stuff as you are free to create whatever you want.  Terra Incognita mode is very fun if you just want to relax and create things. You can also share and upload your creations online for the rest of the world to see. I liked this mode better than the story mode as I didn't have to worry about enemies or getting food for my character.  As a whole, Dragon Quest Builders is very enjoyable and many fans of Minecraft will love its graphical style and gameplay. RPG fans might like only some parts of the game, but it's easier than other Dragon Quest titles. It's still a cool game and kids will love playing it.  Verdict: 8.5/10