Game Preview: Dragonica (PC)

Dragonica is a side-scrolling action MMO, similar in gameplay to Golden Axe or Streets of Rage. Unlike many MMO's it is free to play, unlike many free MMO's it isn't terrible. There is a general consensus that free MMO means terrible game riddled with bugs and bad graphics. In many cases this is true however it couldn't be further from the truth with Dragonica, where even the preview version is highly polished with beautiful colourful, vibrant graphics and excellent game play.

You start off by creating your character, this can be of one of four classes: Thief, Fighter, Magician or Archer. Each one will have their own style of combat and can only wear the gear of their class. The game plays very similar to the side scrolling beat em ups of the 80s and 90s. You walk forward, you find enemies, you slash them up and move on. This simple style of play makes the game very accessible. The control scheme is also very simple, relying on the cursor keys and Z, X, C and Space bar. The game's reliance on such a few keys and the future addition of controller support makes it ideal for playing on a controller. Any controller. It is possible to play this game using a SNES pad with a USB connector. It's also compatible with Xbox 360and Sega Saturn controllers, with work being done at the moment to make it playable using an Atari Jaguar pad amongst others.


The graphics are a form of chibi anime, everything is cute and brightly coloured even the enemies. The lack of blood and cartoon violence makes it perfect for parents who want their children to play a game but don't want them exposed to the violence and gore that other games can contain. The game itself requires very low specs to play, allowing older laptops and PC's to enjoy the game on high graphics, however should you select the low graphics option the game will remove the background. The purpose of this is so that everyone can enjoy the game as it is meant to be played even on low settings.

As is common with both MMO's and RPG's, Dragonica includes a skill tree for each class. These trees aren't complicated, no more than 4 tiers deep with 2 or 3 skills per tier. Normally this would conflict with the simplistic style of play, but most of these abilities take the form of passive effects or combo abilities that can be executed using a direction and attack. For example one warrior skill is to jump in the air and slam down to the ground, you can use a keybind for it, alternatively you can jump in the air and attack whilst holding down to do the same thing. This is what allows the game to work so well using a controller.

The interface of many areas of the game is reminiscent of other mainstream MMO's, this was done with the intention of players being able to get into the game quickly without having to relearn how everything works. Some examples of this include Mailboxes, Auction Houses and gold exclamation marks over the heads of quest givers.

The business plan of the game is Free to play with micro transactions. These MT's take the form of non-gameplay items, such as player housing furniture and silly suits such as an astronaut or a skeleton.

Future features of the game include:

Guild PVP
40 Man PVP fights
Pet training and mounts


Dragonica's cute graphics and low specs create an MMO that is accessible to almost everyone with a PC or Laptop. As it is free to play there is no commitment to playing for long periods of time. Adding in the controller support and control style enables anyone to play the game whatever way they want, it's ideal for busting out an old controller from your favourite console and playing with it. This all makes Dragonica a definite game to keep an eye on.

This is a preview of Dragonica, it is a sample and therefore cannot be taken as the final word of the full version scheduled for released in June.