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Slime Morimori Dragon Quest: Now It's Slime Time!
Music: Overture ~ Dragon Quest
This is a terrible idea.
This is an awful idea.
This is a no good, very bad idea.
But I'm doing it anyway.
Welcome to Slime Mori Mori Dragon Quest, a Japan-only GBA game. You may have heard of a game called Rocket Slime on the DS, and that is in fact the second game in this little series! But we're not here to talk about that game, we're here to talk about this one. Let's get into it!
Music: Monsters' Intermezzo
Skipping past the file select screen, the first thing we're asked to do is name our protagonist. This here is Surarin...but we're not calling him that.
Instead, we're calling him Rckt! It's short for Rocket because this game doesn't allow for more than four characters. Also, you know how I said this was a bad idea? Well, since this game was never localised, this is a translation LP. From somebody who doesn't speak a word of Japanese. This'll be fun.
The town of Boingburg is a town of slimes. It's a lively place, where the young slimes are full of energy. It's another day of fun for them today...
Music: Happy Slime Town
Come on, Rocket, let's play a game! Whoever wins gets to play with the Mod Rod.
This is Hooly. He's Rocket's healslime best friend, and more than a little headstrong. He's essentially the rival of the group.
The time has finally come! Both of you, do your best!
This is Swotsy. He's a drake slime, and...he's the clever one? I think? He's not hugely important in any of the three games, so he doesn't get much character stuff. Unfortunate.
You can do it, big brother! Hooly won't stand a chance!
Finally, Bo is a she-slime and Rocket's little sister. She speaks with tildes at the end of her sentences, which should tell you all you need to know.
Okay, I'll explain the rules. You've got to break the ten targets in that field over there faster than me!
Is that really okay, Hooly? We might get in trouble!
That's easy! We just need to make sure that nobody finds out. Besides, there's always going to be danger when we go head-to-head like this! So, do you understand the rules?
Rocket, being a silent protagonist, can only answer yes or no to any given question. No here won't do anything of note, so let's just agree. How hard could breaking some targets be?
Right! Let's get going!
Hey, Rocket? You should use your Elasto Blast! Hooly won't be able to keep up with that!
And with that, we are thrust into gameplay. Or, rather, a tutorial! Most combat and platforming in this game is dealt with using only the A button. The diagrams here make it pretty self-explanatory, but just in case...
Holding down the A button scrunches Rocket down into the ground. At this point releasing A will make him jump, but we don't want that right now.
Trying to move at this point will stretch him. Letting go of A will send him careening off in the desired direction a short distance, but what if we held on longer?
When fully charged, Rocket will start flashing, which is our cue to let go.
He'll fly off at high speed and bounce off the walls! This is our primary method of attack and of interacting with the world in general. Expect to see this used a lot. Anyway, on to Hooly's game.
It turns out to be a minigame! We've got 60 seconds to break 10 pots. Simple.
Just ramming into a pot will immediately break it, and Rocket will bounce off as if it was a wall.
It's even possible to break two at once by hitting between the two! That'll cut down our time significantly.
Speaking of which, we're done! In a quarter of Hooly's time, too.
Huh? What do you mean, you beat my record...
Wow, Rocket, you're so cool! You beat Hooly!
Amazing! Simply amazing!
Argh! I don't understand... How could I lose!?
I guess I've got to keep my word, though. Here, take the Mod Rod!
Rocket got the Mod Rod!
Hey, Rocket? Could you try it out?
Will you use the Mod Rod?
I guess now's the time to talk about how the Mod Rod is a recurring item in the Dragon Quest series, and it enables the user to turn into all sorts of things. So...let's use it! What could go wrong?
Rocket is engulfed in a cloud of smoke, out of which emerges...
A platypunk? I guess the colouration would make this a crack-billed variant, but those never appear anywhere else, so it's probably Rocket's innate blueness shining through.
Rocket seems...confused. Meanwhile, the others jump around in glee.
Whoa! A platypunk!
You look just like the real thing. That Mod Rod's really amazing! Hey, Rocket, give it here! I want to use it too...
Rocket! Bo! Come for dinner!
Oh! You're using the Mod Rod again! I wonder what trouble you're going to get into with it today.
This is Mama Mia, Rocket and Bo's mother. She got a considerable design change in later games, and I can't find any art for this iteration of her, so the later design it is for her portraits. The same goes for Rocket's dad, unfortunately.
Everyone!! Run away!!
And then everyone ran away.
Mum...! I, er... I'm sorry!!
Well, everyone except Bo, anyway.
Well then! Bo's home, at least, but oh, that Rocket! His father's not going to be happy. Those kids and their mischief...
Music: None
Later that night... Big Daddy, Rocket's father, was angry with him...
As punishment, you'll have to stay as a platypunk until tomorrow!
It was a horrible night...and then the incident happened...
......Hey! ...Get up! ......What's another platypunk doing here anyway? Everyone's back at the hideout. Come on, slacker!
Music: Them Filthy Thieves
We're pulling something big! You mustn't miss it! ...Wait a sec. You're a weird colour. Show me your tail!
I...don't think Rocket is great at this whole being a platypunk thing. Just a hunch.
Alright, nice tail spin! You're definitely part of the Plob too. Now, get to kidnapping some slimes, or the boss'll be angry!
...Not that this other platypunk seems to think so. Maybe most of the Plob (the platypunk Mob; they're very vaguely mafia-themed) are just as incompetent.
Uhhhhh... Dad... I can't eat any more... If I eat all this, I'll get fat...
Unfortunately, Bo picked the exact worst time to fall out of bed.
Hey, that's a slime right there!
If I take this one back, the boss'll be really happy with me! I've got to hurry back right away...
Hey, this slime's mine! Find your own!
Yep, this ended very well. Bo's been kidnapped and Rocket couldn't do a thing about it. And he's stuck as a platypunk, too, which is sure to cause problems.
Regardless, we have control again, so things may be looking up.
He's even got a tail spin attack! I'm sure it'll be easy to save Bo with this on our side.
Hey! Rocket! Rockeeeeet!
It's horrible! Everyone's been...
Wait...you're a platypunk! Give them all back!
You... You're Rocket!? Oh, right, the Mod Rod... Did I hurt you? I'm glad you didn't get kidnapped... Anyway, come outside! You need to see what happened out there.
Okay, I guess Rocket won't get platypunk powers. Alas. Anyway, following Hooly outside is the only real option right now, so let's do that.
...Ah. This seems...bad. The entire town is completely wrecked.
Look, Rocket! Look at what those Plob guys did! Even Big Daddy and Mama Mia got taken...
I swear I'll take down the Plob! I saw them go to Nokke Woods...so let's go there first! There's got to be something there!
Gigao get lost! This place look wrecked...
Huh? Me see slimes. Right! Me will get them!
Whoa, he's still here? I thought I lost him.
I'll hold him here. You go on ahead, Rocket. Get going, while I distract him!
Hey, ugly! I bet you can't catch me!
Graaaah! Me not ugly! You are rude! Me will crush you!
Okay, how do I win this...? Yeah, that's it. I'll use my Hooly Headbutt!
Rocket! Leave him to me, and run away! Quickly!
Aaaaaaaaaargh!
The Plob suddenly appeared in town...but what are they planning...? Rocket decides to go to Nokke Woods. Maybe he can find out what Hooly was talking about...
Music: Oh Overworld, My Overworld
Welcome to the world map! This'll just be a short visit, because the game automatically moves Rocket to Nokke Woods, but I might as well point out the counter on the bottom left. It shows the number of slimes we've rescued, which is...er...zero. Out of one hundred. And one of those one hundred is Hooly, so we've actually made negative progress. We've got quite a way to go!
Music: Blue Skies, Blue Slime
Welcome, also, to Nokke Woods. It's our first "real" gameplay segment, but we're still firmly in tutorial land. Moving forwards a bit...
Hey, that looks like a chest.
A chest with a voice coming from it, more specifically.
Ooh... Is there anyone there? It's me, Swotsy! Wait, that smell... Is that Rocket? I can't see much in here, but I don't think this box is very sturdy. Try ramming it!
Just ram into it, huh? Easy.
Ohhhhh... You saved me... I'm sorry I got captured. I froze up and couldn't move...but that's not important!
Rocket, I need you to get me out of here!
But...the entrance is right there. Fine, I guess...
Thanks! Then let's go right now. I still can't move, so you'll have to carry me. I'm sorry to be such a burden...
Unfortunately, we haven't been taught how to pick things up yet. I guess we'll just have to try other stuff in Rocket's moveset.
So...let's ram into Swotsy! That works for everything else, right? This'll launch him into the air so that Rocket can catch him.
Wow, amazing! Okay, now I need you to move over to the forest exit. You saw those slime pillars when you came in, right? Just toss me between them.
The B button throws things. Simple enough.
Great, I'm out! I think I can take it from here. ...But everyone else is still trapped. I'm sure you can save them, Rocket! ...Eh? What am I going to do? I'll protect the town, of course! I'm not nearly strong enough to come with you. I'll send you a letter when I get back, okay?
Swotsy leaves, and we can move on past his chest and into the next screen.
...It's also full of chests. No prizes for guessing what's in them. Also, a letter notification showed up! We can take a look at it in the pause screen, and there's really no reason not to check that out.
This here is the main page of the menu. We've got area name, money, slimes rescued in the immediate area, slimes rescued in total, and health.
Pressing R brings us to the map, which is actually pretty useful...
...And L brings us to our recieved letters. Let's read Swotsy's!
Hey Rocket, it's Swotsy! Thanks for saving me. By the way, the Start button opens the pause screen! It's really useful, so I hope you use it a lot!
...Fascinating. You know we had to open the menu to look at this, right?
Anyway, let's move away from that and start rescuing some slimes.
Thanks for your help! As thanks, I'll teach you something: you can carry more than just one thing on your back! A small slime like you can probably hold about three.
There's a well here...but it's kind of boarded up, so Rocket can't go down it. Alas. Maybe it'll be unsealed later!
Wow, Rocket, you're so big and strong! I think there are about 100 slimes kidnapped by the Plob. You can rescue them all, can't you?
...Hmm. Something about this arrangement of slimes seems familiar. I'm sure it's nothing!
Regardless, we now have pots to interact with. They generally drop money when destroyed, which is used for...admittedly not that much. Might as well pick it up whenever it shows up anyway.
Yeah, you go, Rocket! Thanks so might. You know it's not just slimes you can carry, right? You can launch and catch a ton of things! Take out your frustrations on everything you find!
Sadly, despite rescuing all three slimes here, the way forwards is still blocked. We're full up on carrying capacity anyway, so let's throw this lot back to town.
Predictably, the way opens up after doing so. We also have more letters! Every slime Rocket rescues will send a letter for us to read. Like when we rescued these three slimes they're mostly there for more tutorialising. In summary, rescued slimes will sometimes give gifts (apparently), the town will be in better condition the more slimes we save, and pressing R lets us change the order of any items Rocket's carrying. This last one is actually kind of useful!
Another room, another slime right by the entrance. Let's get to it.
Ohhh! The air inside that box was so stuffy. ...Hm? You saved me!? How very courageous of you! Let me tell you something useful as thanks. If you want to send anything back to town, you can use the trolley over there instead of going back to the entrance. How do you use it, you may ask? You'll have to work that out yourself.
Our next tutorial is on trolleys. These are incredibly useful bits of infrastructure that will carry anything we put on them back into town. Enemies, items, slimes, you name it. Even Rocket himself!
So let's just dump our new king slime friend (whose name is Baron Blubba, I believe) and check out this button back here.
By which I mean ram into it at high speed.
I guess it was attached to a trolley shed, which starts the things going. How delightfully straightforward! It will now continue to create infinite trolleys until the end of time.
That's it, Rocket! I just knew I could trust you to succeed. I'll see you back in town.
Blubba leaves, as does the trolley blocking the path. The time changes from the morning to the afternoon, too! This game has a time system. It's kind of stupid and mostly ignoreable. Still, it's nice to see a different colour palette.
Moving on, we have a few more things to check out. Breaking a pot over to the east reveals a medicinal herb, which will heal Rocket if he picks it up. We don't have much use for it now, with no enemies around to take away health, but its location is fixed so it'll be good to keep in mind for later. On the left of the screen are a couple of items that can be carried back to town and used in the rebuilding effort, but again, right now it's not too important. Might as well put them on trolleys for later.
...Rocket carrying a gigantic rock is the best. In later games he'll be able to carry three 1000-tonne weights at once. I guess he's just that strong.
But he's not strong enough to break the arbitrary barricades placed around this area. We're still in the tutorial, after all! Can't have us deviating off the path!
There's only one exit from here that isn't blocked off, in fact.
Well, kind of. That wall looks breakable, at least, but it's too sturdy for Rocket to crack open alone.
Is that...Rocket?
I mean...yes? Yes, it is.
Is that really true? Praise be to the Almighty! Please, you must help me! I am just beyond the hole in front of you. Please come through and let me out! May the Almighty bless you.
The hole here actually serves a purpose! It's about the same size as Rocket, so anything he's carrying that comes through it will get knocked right off his back. Obviously we'll be seeing more of these eventually.
Ah, thank you, Rocket. Praise be to the Almighty...and you you, of course. I am Curate Rollo, and though you may have saved me, well...the rest of the town is still missing. You must free them too. ...But before that, let us return to town on the trolley.
But it appears that this wall is blocking the way... Rocket, do you have any ideas?
Moving on to early evening, and it's pretty obvious what the game wants us to do. This thing down here is a rockbomb, and it's a very useful item!
If it's launched and hits the ground, it explodes, damages anything within range, and breaks certain obstacles. Like that damaged wall, for example!
That's...a rockbomb, isn't it? It shouldn't explode if you're carrying it, but make sure not to get caught in the explosion when you throw it!
Rollo's nice enough to give a few tips on how to proceed. Not that we need any. Let's actually pick the rockbomb up this time...
...And violently blow up the wall! Success!
Oh, wonderful job! Let's go back now...
Oh yes...I should give you this.
With this, you can check the time by looking at the top left corner of the screen.
Hey, it's the time mechanic I was talking about. I'll let Rollo explain it, the shore it up with what he missed.
Oh, it's already nighttime... Night is a truly awful time, especially midnight. I have heard that red-tailed monsters appear at night that are much stronger than normal. Make sure you return to town before midnight, otherwise you may be captured by them! Be warned, Rocket. You will have to manage your time properly.
While Rollo talks about the night being dangerous...it really isn't. As far as I can tell, nighttime is exactly the same as daytime but with a different palette. Essentially we've got a ticking clock any time we're in the field. When the red bar on the clock completely fills up, accompanied by an ominous countdown, Rocket will be attacked by bombing run of chimaeras, lose half his money, and be kicked back to town regardless. While money isn't very useful, it's still a bad idea to let the clock run out. Thankfully going back to town resets the timer, and with all the trolleys it's not too hard to get there.
Anyway, that's enough of that! Here's the results screen! We saved six slimes today. I mean, we couldn't not do that with how things are structured, but...look, it's a decent amount, okay? Here's to rescuing even more in future!