If you’re like me and enjoy complicated, convoluted plotlines where Western esotericism is filtered through a Japanese lens and then sold back to the West, you’re going to love Dot Hack. This is seriously where Dot Hack becomes make or break. Personally, the music evoked a lot of nostalgia in me from my pre-teen bedroom gaming sessions. The light and airy tracks featuring strings and acoustic instruments work well in the pseudo-European Root Towns, while more atmospheric and electronic tracks are used to convey the dangers of Fields and Dungeons. Related: A Quick Review of Xenogears (PS1) I’ve complained about RPG music before on this blog, but the Dot Hack games have a decent and varied, if sometimes forgettable, soundtrack. The music for the series isn’t frequently held up for praise, but that doesn’t mean that the music is bad. That’s right, you have to boot into the actual game from the simulated desktop. To further immerse you in the faux-MMORPG experience, the game always first boots you into your own PC’s desktop, where you can read emails from other characters, view unlockables, and of course sign into The World. Character, monster, world design are also highlights, drawing from both Japanese and Western inspirations to create some truly memorable, mysterious, and sometimes morbid imagery.Īnother aspect where the series excels is in it’s presentation. In the later games, as the network infection spreads, the visual effects of “corruption” are impressive and likewise convincing. Visually, the game’s anime-influenced art style is effective and still attractive to this day. I played this series on my CRT through S Video and each game looked crisp. Though, I almost always sold these to buy additional healing items. Missing spells can be subsidized by one-time-use scrolls, which act to cast the spell. Spells are controlled by equipped items, so balancing the trade off between stat losses and spell gains among the player and your allies adds a layer of planning and strategy. Players successively gain the ability to feed, raise, and then later ride a small cow-like creature called a Grunty.Īs Dot Hack is a simulated MMORPG, there is an emphasis on item collecting and equipment. Occasionally the player has to collect Virus Cores to unlock new fields, and this can cause periods of time where the player may have to grind and backtrack to obtain these items.īetween each Chapter, The World (the game-within-a-game) is updated to add more mini-game features. This progression is mostly straight forward, with the occasional side mission to meet a bonus character or obtain a bonus item. Even in 2020, the gameplay is a fun combo of light-strategy and button mashing.Įach game progresses by interacting with characters, obtaining clues, and visiting locations and dungeons. But that’s not a negative - the gameplay just works and surprisingly doesn’t get boring. There is no major difference in gameplay between each iteration of the game. This real-time combat structure forms the basis of the Dot Hack series. Players can also issue commands to their AI party members via a similar in-game menu. They select items and spells by opening up a menu, which pauses the game. Players deal damage to monsters by pressing the action button when nearby. Gameplayĭot Hack Infection, Mutation, Outbreak, and Quarantine are action-RPGs similar to Kingdom Hearts. With an interesting plot, a unique premise, and stylish visuals, anime hungry pre-teens like me ate up the Dot Hack series. Each Dot Hack game was packaged with a DVD that included an episode of the Dot Hack Liminality, an OVA which takes place concurrently with the events of IMOQ.
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