Fairy Tale Spotlight: Panzer Dragoon [Video Game Review]

Panzer Dragoon is a game that was resealed on the Sega Saturn in 1995. I never personally owned the system, but I did rent it along with this game a couple of times. I did enjoy it back then, but I was not very good at it. I recently reacquainted myself with the remake and now find myself perfectly capable of playing and even finishing it, and I am happy to say that it is a joy to play for what it is.

Despite the game being released in 1995, it is a fully 3D game and works something like a on-rails shooter. Star Fox is a good example of what this game is like, but instead of a space fighter, you are riding on a dragon and shooting with a hand-held firearm.

The setting of the game and its presentation, as simple as it was, was what got me. The world is in a post-apocalyptic state, but it has fallen from severely great heights. Apparently the world before the fall was hyper advanced, and the remaining people of the world are fighting for what technology is left and using it to rule the world.

These left-over bits of technology are so fantastic that the people almost see it as godlike. It's magic. There seemed to be quite a bit of active genetics utilized. Many creatures were created to be used as weapons. Much of what you are shooting down are biological in nature, but there were also ships and people shooting at you from them as well.

The main character has the name of Keil Fluge, and has heroism pressed upon him when he is forced to fight for a cause he was not even involved with. After seeing a dragon-rider lose in a fight with another dragon-rider, the fallen one tells him that the other rider needs to be stopped. Keil takes over for him and mounts up onto a large dragon called Solo Wing. From here, the chase begins from the beginning to the end of the game.

The look and feel of this game is wonderful. The music also has a mysterious aspect to it. In some ways, it reminded me a bit of Dune. Every level had a different look to it and kept throwing me these pretty landscapes that I could look around at as I played. It does let you do that. At anytime you can swing the camera around and look at everything, although you still have to hammer away at your targets.

There were many more games in the series, but this is the only one I was able to play. I've even heard that some of the games went real hardcore deep into the lore with more of an RPG gameplay style. Sadly all I have if this shooter version, but, for what it is and the story that it tells, it is totally worth it.

Panzer Dragoon: Remake is available on the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4, and Steam. Highly recommended.

Thank you for reading my blog! Did you enjoy it? Either way, you can comment below, or you can email me at tkwadeauthor@gmail.com. You can also visit my website at www.tkwade.com. Check out my books! Thanks!