Son Of The Dragon King - (Ugly) Alpha Male, Beta Preview

The hero in Son of the Dragon King pays homage to the classic movie The Fly. Instead of merging a human with a fly, our black belt protagonist has morphed into a pug, an oni, plus a disproportionate WWF (that’s WWE, kids) action figure from the late 80s.

It’s not just the hero who has stepped into the fusion reactor; this mystical Asian adventure merges Japanese and Chinese culture into one, throwing in glowing zombies along the way. It sounds like it’s all over the place, and in some respects, it is. 

Still, this game from Diehard Studios and GAMECR3W is in its early days, and if you were to look at a synopsis of Big Trouble In Little China, you might surmise it’s a bit shit when in fact, it’s one of the greatest films ever made. No debate. Is Son of the Dragon King on the same level, but in gaming terms? No.

Son Of The Dragon King Preview

Things got off to a ropey start as I couldn’t access the game, nor could it be played on the Steam Deck. Shifting to my gaming laptop, it couldn’t be played with a controller, either (spoiler, you can change the settings and use a controller – it’s way better), so it got pushed to one side for when patience could be entertained.

Coming back to it a few hours later, realising there was scope for a controller, Son of the Dragon King was fundamentally better to play. Now it’s time to practice kata and punch badmen in the face. How about a kick to the throat, too?

After a cinematic and quick tutorial of the commands, you set out one chapter at a time in a side-scrolling environment. Your hero—name them as you see fit—repeats each stage with a cliche about it being too quiet and what’s (not) happening. Cue some footsoldiers to enter left and right, and you can spam your attacks.

Sucker Punch

Using a yesteryear approach to the old scrollers such as Golden Axe, in Son of the Dragon King, you can switch between the foreground and background, smashing crates for consumables or dodging ridiculously large boulders that fall from the sky. 

Though it’s an old-school approach, the visuals are pretty nice—especially the backgrounds. Each level is reasonably large and detailed, offering plenty of variety if you lean on the fantasy/stereotype of Japanese/Chinese culture.

Sorry, but the same can’t be said about the hero. In gameplay, he looks like the dude from Redeemer, is well-animated and looks like he could hurt someone, but his face is an atrocity – only a mother (or dev) could love that pug-faced killer stare. It’s a shame, as his mentor looks the part.

Keep Strollin’ Strollin’ Strollin’

Anyhoo, the point of Son of the Dragon King is to bash some nasties, and that works well when the enemies attack. Put yourself on the other side of a box, and they’re not likely to pursue or attack you. As a result, culling all threats is easy until you get hit.

The damage received is pretty high, so to counter this, consumables restore health, and throwable weapons help reduce the damage of bosses with high HP. Additionally, trinkets can be worn to improve stats, and they make a difference.

However, the first boss put a damper on things as get close enough and this monk character would stand still and repeadtedly punch without moving forward. This meant taking him down with spam attacks was too tempting. When defeated, he exploded in a delayed… clouds. It’s pretty disappointing, yet there’s something about the side-scrolling grind that makes Son of the Dragon King nostalgic.

Son Of The Dragon King Summary

It must be stressed that this write-up is based on a beta build that’s been sitting in my playlist. While I don’t hand out non-redeemable scores, it wouldn’t be fair to conclude ‘that’s it’. In its current state, there’s lots of promise and the actual gameplay, though repetitive, is enjoyable for most martial arts fans or those longing for the golden arcade years.

Our hero needs to tone down the intensity of his face, and people may be more accommodating. Hell – maybe the enemies might approach you for a good old scrap. Keep an eye on this and its development and wishlist it on Steam.