Blue Dragon

 Xbox 360
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 204 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 144 out of 204
  2. Mixed: 36 out of 204
  3. Negative: 24 out of 204
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  1. BaronMonaco
    Nov 24, 2015
    8
    Blue Dragon has some heavy players behind it and was supposed to be the game that will sell Xbox in Japan, and even if it didn't work out for Microsoft it is not , by all mean the fault of the game.

    In fact the game is pretty good with a turned based system very classic but a class system that carries some innovation : every shadow can learn several classes, even all of them once level    Blue Dragon has some heavy players behind it and was supposed to be the game that will sell Xbox in Japan, and even if it didn't work out for Microsoft it is not , by all mean the fault of the game.

    In fact the game is pretty good with a turned based system very classic but a class system that carries some innovation : every shadow can learn several classes, even all of them once level 50, and the more you play with one class the more skills related to this class you will unlock so you have to mix your class well to have a balance group with all the basic abilities covered (tank, healer, damage dealer, etc..), and well like most J-RPG the need to farm can be a little annoying but honestly the game is fairly easy and you don't have to reach the higher levels (99) to finish the game at all, but if you want all the achievements then take it into account.

    The world is very well designed and for a 2007 game it's beautiful, the cell-shading never gets old I guess; the chara design is excellent even if some enemies are the same with different colors, it's quite common in videogames. The game is technically flawless and works without any issues.

    Now concerning the story, I liked the general story, the universe is well written but the main characters were so annoying I wish I could slap them, and I'm not saying that because the story is child-friendly (Inside Out, Ratchet & Clank, Toys Story, etc. are also child friendly and yet I loved the characters in it) the dialogue are just too stupid and the actors too bad to make us care about them. Finnally the game will last about 50 hours to finish its main story (there is almost 0 side quest so don't expect more than 10 hours to finish them).

    All in all Blue Dragon is a good game that carries some default most link to its genre, a genre that has little competition on the console and so it must definitely be one of the first pick up for the ones loving J-RPG and owning a 360.    … Expand
  2. JamesM
    Aug 30, 2008
    7
    This game is by no means perfect, but if you like the RPG genre and have a 360 it would be a shame for you not to own this game. Richard E doesn't seem to know what he is talking about so take his review with a grain of salt. Also I can say that this game was not made for small children as it is rated T for Teen. For those who do not know that means 13 and up basically a PG-13 This game is by no means perfect, but if you like the RPG genre and have a 360 it would be a shame for you not to own this game. Richard E doesn't seem to know what he is talking about so take his review with a grain of salt. Also I can say that this game was not made for small children as it is rated T for Teen. For those who do not know that means 13 and up basically a PG-13 rating. I quite like this game and I think other fans of J-RPGs will like it too.… Expand
  3. AllistairP.
    Oct 6, 2007
    8
    I would like to say how unfairly rated this game has been rated by some, but it makes sense because I found FFXII completely overrated. This is the other side of RPGs, the colorful, happy-go-lucky side that Squaresoft used to make. This game is just a blast to play. The characters, the music, and the visuals are fantastic. I think this is the best looking game ever made, but thats just I would like to say how unfairly rated this game has been rated by some, but it makes sense because I found FFXII completely overrated. This is the other side of RPGs, the colorful, happy-go-lucky side that Squaresoft used to make. This game is just a blast to play. The characters, the music, and the visuals are fantastic. I think this is the best looking game ever made, but thats just b/c the art direction appeals to me (how could it not?). The gameplay and music both are pulled right out of old school FF and there is NOTHING wrong with that. Then there is the plot and characters which are so bad that they are awesome. It's totally in the vein of Earthbound, except not intentional. Either way, get ready to laugh and laugh. Such a funny and happy game. I mean Godawful 80s hair metal plays during boss fights? YES! You're missing out if you don't own this game.… Expand
  4. Jani
    Sep 22, 2008
    8
    Good game, no doubts. The story is rather nice and it gets better after the first few hours. Battle systems is turn-based but it still very good. Only problem is that Blue Dragon too easy with the normal difficulty level, I strongly advice you to download the ultra hard mod from x-box live and use the hard difficulty setting.
  5. bolacola
    May 28, 2014
    9
    I love this Game so much, awesome story line great funny characters and cool cut scenes but there is a lot of backtracking in the game so I will give it a 8.5 out of 10.
  6. marlinspike
    Feb 16, 2015
    9
    the return of the classic, turn based rpg. nothing new here but you'll definitely enjoy the ride it takes you on. gives this game a try if your a fan of the genre or raring to try the way games used to be played.
  7. Porosenior
    Sep 7, 2019
    8
    Gran jrpg de la pasada generacion, accesible, emocionante y muy bello en lo visual
  8. Mal
    Mar 8, 2009
    8
    No idea where the bad reviews and hatred come from, this is a great RPG. It's heavy on the grind at times, and the 'search everything' parts are tedious, but the battle system is great and the story is fine. Don't listen to the haters, this is a must buy for RPG fans who own a 360.
  9. TonyG.
    Jan 2, 2008
    10
    Brilliant game! The gameplay, graphics, and music are all excellent. The job system is a very clever, open-ended feature that allows you to customize your characters very well. The story is good, but not incredible. If you like RPG's, try this game. Just keep in mind that the game gets better as you go along. At first, your characters are fairly weak, but once you've mastered Brilliant game! The gameplay, graphics, and music are all excellent. The job system is a very clever, open-ended feature that allows you to customize your characters very well. The story is good, but not incredible. If you like RPG's, try this game. Just keep in mind that the game gets better as you go along. At first, your characters are fairly weak, but once you've mastered your first class (15-20 hours), the skill combos that present themselves become addictive. Not only that, but the developers continue to post new material on XBOX Marketplace for Blue Dragon, including a New Game+, items, and a multi-level randomized dungeon. Very fun game!… Expand
  10. GamerG.
    Jan 2, 2008
    10
    Best RPG of it's kind on the 360. A must have title. Nuff said.
  11. MarkM.
    Nov 23, 2007
    7
    I was surprised this game didn
  12. JohnN.
    Jul 18, 2007
    0
    Possibly the biggest disappoint of any game release on the XBOX 360 so far. Viva Pinata shines in comparison. Dragonball Z meets Comedy Central's Drawn Together meets France 3's Code Lyoko and Aladdin. An epic RPG that does not satisfy the ears, eyes, or mind of a creative gamer.
  13. JohnF
    Oct 11, 2016
    10
    A game that the JRPGs fans worth playing.The game starts really slow and it gets interested after the first 5-6 hours.First of all the graphics are amazing,the turned based battle system is really interesting and the shadow classes are really interesting to play with,the store is really good and the only bad i can find in this game is the first hours of gameplay.Really underrated by someA game that the JRPGs fans worth playing.The game starts really slow and it gets interested after the first 5-6 hours.First of all the graphics are amazing,the turned based battle system is really interesting and the shadow classes are really interesting to play with,the store is really good and the only bad i can find in this game is the first hours of gameplay.Really underrated by some users and in my opinion this game is a 9/10… Expand
  14. Jan
    May 3, 2008
    3
    This game is difficult to rate because it was clearly made for small children. Anyways it somehow is a 360 core gamer game and me who got bored so: The first boss in this game is generally threated as the hardest enemy you will find during the storyline. I agree on this and sadly have to add the fact that i didn't even have to use one single heal spell, smart strategy or item during This game is difficult to rate because it was clearly made for small children. Anyways it somehow is a 360 core gamer game and me who got bored so: The first boss in this game is generally threated as the hardest enemy you will find during the storyline. I agree on this and sadly have to add the fact that i didn't even have to use one single heal spell, smart strategy or item during this fight. This beeing said, imagine this game only getting even easier during progress. So you make your way through the embarrassing storyline, dealing with the embarrassing char design and storytelling, hoping that the game gets better until it is over. Waste of time, about 150 Gamerscore, a negative review at metascore, one more Blue Dragon on ebay and thats about it. 3 out of 10 from me.… Expand
  15. RobertD.
    Mar 6, 2008
    10
    If you like rpg than you will love this. No question.
  16. AndesT.
    Aug 30, 2007
    5
    I think EuroGamer summed this up the best. The game isn't terrible, but it can't really compare to some of the other RPGs being released. It doesn't compare to the work that the developers had done in earlier games... needless to say it was a let down. X360 doesn't need this, they needed a Final Fantasy 13 killer.
  17. RichardE.
    Aug 15, 2008
    0
    This game is just incredibly boring. I don't know how it has got such good reviews, it's as if people are afraid they're insulting the mighty fighting fantasy or something. I thought someone had to give this game a bad review. I would give it an average score for being an average game but in this particular case I think we have to factor in how much of a let down this game This game is just incredibly boring. I don't know how it has got such good reviews, it's as if people are afraid they're insulting the mighty fighting fantasy or something. I thought someone had to give this game a bad review. I would give it an average score for being an average game but in this particular case I think we have to factor in how much of a let down this game is and not be afraid to give it an unfairly low score.… Expand
  18. VideoGameCritic
    Jul 26, 2013
    4
    So I want to say from the bottom of my heart I love anime. Its great and its one of my favorite forms of animation.I hate this game because of two reasons; First reason: It was way to LLLLLLLLOOOOOONNNNNGGGG, when I played this 15 years old I didn't want a really long drawn out game i wanted a nice clean turn base game with very little cut scenes but what i got was a game that felt it wasSo I want to say from the bottom of my heart I love anime. Its great and its one of my favorite forms of animation.I hate this game because of two reasons; First reason: It was way to LLLLLLLLOOOOOONNNNNGGGG, when I played this 15 years old I didn't want a really long drawn out game i wanted a nice clean turn base game with very little cut scenes but what i got was a game that felt it was ok to have one cut scene be five minutes long and that did that for every cut scene in the game! Nope i can't do that i want to play a game if i wanted alot of dialog I would watch the show.

    Second reason: I hated the story, I know that I bought the game and hey if i bought it its cause i know a little bit about the show, well guess what that was the first time i have ever hear of any of those characters and you know what i hated all of them except that little dancing pikachu guy Marumaro and even he got really annoying. I only bought the game for three bucks, man i can't believe i wasted three bucks on that game. The game had some good parts to tho, the world the characters were in looked like Dragonball, and the art work for all the characters was really good. But a really bad story, and bizarre events that happened for no reason what so ever( the dance after you save pikachu's village) was what killed it. I recommend that you play a good RPG like Final Fantasy and stay clear of this horrible game.    … Expand
  19. thebrock
    May 6, 2011
    4
    Poor rpg game. Failed on all areas. Childish game, childish characters. Poor cheap and badly designed. No decent storyline and poor upgrade system. Would not recommend this game.
  20. BrianE.
    Sep 1, 2007
    9
    This is my 2nd favorite J-RPG of all time (DQ8 is number 1) and this amazing game is great from start to finish. Well worth playing for any RPG fan or those who want to get into RPGs
  21. GregLFW
    Dec 1, 2007
    9
    Outstanding game with a compelling plot and fantastic production values.
  22. MLGDFER
    Dec 31, 2007
    10
    I'm an avid Bioshock/Halo 3/COD4/FPS gamer. I wanted to try something new so I downloaded this game's demo. It was terrible. But I decided to give it another try when it went on sale in Circuit City. And boy am I glad that I did. I've had it for several days now and blue dragon has exceeded most of my expectations. The graphics are simple yet beautiful. The music is so I'm an avid Bioshock/Halo 3/COD4/FPS gamer. I wanted to try something new so I downloaded this game's demo. It was terrible. But I decided to give it another try when it went on sale in Circuit City. And boy am I glad that I did. I've had it for several days now and blue dragon has exceeded most of my expectations. The graphics are simple yet beautiful. The music is so appropriate and also brilliant (actually it's composed by a a so called legendary musician of our time, Uematsu). Finally the gameplay itself and storyline has kept me wanting to keep playing and find out what happens next. I haven't really seen any game like this before for the 360, so I recommend getting it. It's a classic.… Expand
  23. DavidJ.
    Aug 29, 2007
    10
    I don't even usually play JRPGS, but this one is refreshingly simple and enjoyable. If you think complicated stories with political intrigue and angst are the only good stories, then leave it be, but if you can enjoy a tale about a few everyday kids fighting a great evil that harkens back to why Star Wars is so narratively satisfying, then sign yourself up right now
  24. DaveW.
    Sep 6, 2007
    9
    Blue Dragon is without a doubt the best looking Japanese RPG to date. Not only that, but the gameplay is incredibly solid. It solves most of the problems that most JRPGs have with turn based battle systems, eliminating random encounters without sacrificing the pool of enemies to fight on the map, and allowing the player to never be in a situation of being slowed down by having to fight Blue Dragon is without a doubt the best looking Japanese RPG to date. Not only that, but the gameplay is incredibly solid. It solves most of the problems that most JRPGs have with turn based battle systems, eliminating random encounters without sacrificing the pool of enemies to fight on the map, and allowing the player to never be in a situation of being slowed down by having to fight weak enemies. The environments, contrary to what you may read elsewhere, are not bland or empty. Anyone with such an opinion clearly spends to much time playing corridor shooters. Instead, Blue Dragon has rich and detailed environments for an RPG. There is a lot of variety, and a lot of atmosphere to boot. The story isn't some serious epic, but it's not meant to be. It's light hearted, simple and simple - but not overly so. Oldskool JRPGers will feel right at home with it. There's also a lot of humour, criticisms of the dialogue are misplaced as the game certainly pokes fun at itself on many occasions. What I'm saying is, it knows what it's about even if reviewers at some larger publications and sites fail to. The musical score is on par with all of Uematsu's previous work. There's a lot of variety, and it never gets old. The boss battle music is light hearted and funny, clearly poking fun at Uematsu's own rock adaptations of his own work. It's a shame to see that places like IGN, 1UP, and EGM scored the game so low - maybe if they went in not expecting a Final Fantasy clone there would be higher scores at the bigger sites/publications. Shame.… Expand
  25. JoshT.
    Oct 8, 2007
    10
    Awesome game...yea...it may not add anything new...but it creates a great feeling of nostalgia.
  26. BarryP.
    Aug 29, 2007
    10
    Very decent RPG. A benchmark for all the RPG's to surely appear on the Xbox 360.
  27. MarcJ.
    Sep 14, 2007
    10
    Rather than an revolution in RPGs, this game is an evolution of classic RPGs on to the next generation video game platform. Captivating storyline and solid gameplay, this is must have for any real Japanese RPG fan.
  28. JoshG.
    Sep 15, 2007
    10
    One of the most underrated games I've seen in a while. Its magical, and perfect.
  29. SteveM.
    Sep 8, 2007
    9
    The game is refreshing and new, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I agree with Dave W.; You gotta stop expecting a Final Fantasy look-alike and open yourself to a blank palette. Expect nothing you're familiar with, and then go in and see what yo ufind.
  30. RichH.
    Feb 7, 2008
    8
    The problem with this game, and all JRPGS is that they can never quite match the sheer joy of the PSX Squaresoft Era. The only mistakes they made were Chocobo Racing and that there fighting game - everything else being either brilliant or fun. The FEEL of Final Fantasies of this time period was magical, the lack of vocal interpretation of the characters allowing the player to actually The problem with this game, and all JRPGS is that they can never quite match the sheer joy of the PSX Squaresoft Era. The only mistakes they made were Chocobo Racing and that there fighting game - everything else being either brilliant or fun. The FEEL of Final Fantasies of this time period was magical, the lack of vocal interpretation of the characters allowing the player to actually engage with the stories within their own imagination. the games were longer, the world maps allowed you to actually explore and the turn based game play was so well perfected that trying to improve on it seemed a waste of time that could be spent on storyline.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

48
#48 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2007
20
#20 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2007
5
#5 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2007

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 56 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 39 out of 56
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 56
  3. Negative: 0 out of 56
  1. Computer and Video Games
    90
    Blue Dragon finds the perfect balance between linearity and excessive freedom - it doesn't embarrass you by holding your hand, and yet it doesn't just leave you alone crying in the supermarket. Hironobu Sakaguchi (the FF creator and Blue Dragon mastermind) is as good a parent as Shigeru Miyamoto.
    Read full review
  2. 360 Gamer Magazine UK
    90
    Where so many RPGs deliver dry experiences that adhere too closely to traditional type, Mistwalker delivers an RPG that pushes the genre in all the right directions. With supreme technical qualities and gameplay to match, it’s little wonder that Blue Dragon has revived the 360 in Japan. [JPN Import]
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  3. GameBrink
    88
    Blue Dragon's light-hearted charm and role-playing goodness fills a lacking aspect of the Xbox 360's lineup. [JPN Import]
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