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DQVI is an interesting speciman to me.

I haven't beaten DQVI yet. That thing happened to me. You know, that thing where you play the game forever and then stop for a long time in front of the final area. I'm sure it's happened to you.

This is notable because I've actually wanted to talk about DQVI in detail for a while. But I felt like I didn't have enough info since I didn't beat it.

Well I fought and lost to Mortamor the other day (Though I did get to his final "big head in a portal to nowhere" form, which is much better looking in context than it is in DQIX and such), so I think I'm far enough to at least start a discussion.

Am I the only one who though that it's tone was far more sinister than most of the other games in the series?
Think about it. The villains have already messed up both worlds, and from the beginning of the game, you are trying to fight against the enormous defeat at the hands of Murdaw, which really follows you throughout the whole game, at least until everyone realizes who they are. Murdaw really crippled you, and in a way beyond physical injury. And the amount of time and effort to make up for that shows how much it hurt the heroes' progress.

That is just the tip of the iceburg, though. DQVI must have the most cringeworthy moments in the series. I won't say creepiest, since that award goes to the circular room from VIII. But VI has some pretty messed-up stuff. No wonder this was the only DS remake that got the T rating.
I'll admit that the magic water turning into blood actually made me jump (It was the way it changed! That freaking blood dispersed, man!). And The whole thing with Greedmore Valley and Isaac's chest has to be the most messed up thing in the series so far.

Not to mention, I can already tell this ending will be a little bittersweet. After all, when I beat Mortamor, based on what has already happened, it is established that the power vacuum left behind will call for something just as horrible to fill it.

I don't think everything in VI works. The story seems more experimental than anything, and I feel like it doesn't always work. I remember thinking about it as "DQIII with an identity crisis" a lot during the beginning, but that slowly became less relevant. But everything about it just seems darker and more sinister. Even the music is a lot more foreboding and subtle on the whole than most Dragon Quest games.

I'll see if this still holds up when i beat it. But for now, I ask you, do you feel the same?

One of the reasons I value DQ as a series is because on the whole, it is never afraid to tap into lots of emotions. It can be silly, sad, strange, scary, happy, and anything else. So many games, especially nowadays, think that they have to be dark all the time and drop f-bombs everywhere to attempt seriousness (and fail horribly because no one is serious all the time, and they become the bigger joke). Having a variety of emotions is one thing that makes a story into more of an experience.

Maybe it's because I've been reading a lot of Borges lately, but I'm really in the mood for dream and identity contemplation. Having such strange concepts that play into their real world counterparts makes the game very surreal at times. The dream world, and to a degree the real world too, has a very subconscious feel to it, appropriately. Not just because of the weird imagery, but the game plays up a lot of fears and paranoia, as well as better dreams such as the kid and the flying bed (Little Nemo, yadda yadda). Even in the real world, dreamlike things happen to you, like sailing under the sea in a bubble. And the heroes' defeat at Murdaw's hands led to very literal and crippling identity crises. I really liked the angle they took with the hero finally finding his other half, even though the hero isn't characterized by the narrative nearly as well as the hero of 6, but whatever, it was still interesting to watch unfold. It's sort of fascinating, and the stories have cohesion to them that a lot of Dragon Quest games don't have, just because of the setting.

The sinister feeling that pervades this game just feels like it is at the base of everything. The music doesn't sound to me like typical Sugiyama fair, because while they undoubtedly sound like his work, they seem a lot more quiet and sinister, like there are monsters lurking around the corner waiting. There is just as much fear in this game as there is fun, because there are even amounts of them in dreams. But by nature, the sinister ans fearful stuff is much heavier, and left a bigger impression on me.

As for my Mortamor-destorying party, I have a main four, but I switch people in and out as I need them, of course. Ashlynn got to the point where she could handle being a party regular without dying a while ago, and I've been using her as a member of the main four since, along with the Hero, Hassan, and Nevan. Milly has plenty of experience too, and I sometimes bring Terry in as a temporary replacement when I need extra constitution. I have some of the monsters, including Healie the Healslime, who is the only party member that knows Omniheal. I missed Amos, unfortunately, due to telling him about his ailment. Ah well, next time.

Edit: Mortamor is freaking hard! This is the most challenging JRPG final boss I've fought for a while! But hnnngg I wanna see the ending so I can talk about the game as a whole!

Edit 2: ARRRGH I had the hero class all this time and I didn't know! Disruptive Wave and Gigaslash and such will help a LOT!