Play Dragon Slayer - Eiyuu Densetsu (Japan) on sega Online

Game Overview

Dragon Slayer - Eiyuu Densetsu is one of those old-school RPGs that feels like stumbling into a fantasy novel from the late '80s. You start off picking between three classes—I went with the warrior first, though the mage has some surprisingly fun spells later on. The battles are turn-based but quick, with this weird grid system where positioning actually matters (watch out for archers picking you off from the back row).

The overworld’s got that classic top-down look, and towns are packed with NPCs who actually say useful stuff instead of just repeating the same line. There’s a ton of gear to swap out, and the magic system’s deeper than you’d expect—took me a while to realize some spells work better in certain terrain. It’s rough around the edges by modern standards, but if you’re into retro RPGs with some meat to them, this one’s a solid time capsule.

Fun fact: This was Falcom’s first crack at what later became The Legend of Heroes series, so you can spot some early ideas that stuck around.