History VideoGame / DragonIslandBlue

** The most patience-demanding example of them all... on the road between the starting town and your first destination - [[CityOfAdventure the capital, Westguard]] - you're likely to run across a lowly [[ProfessionalKillers Assassin]], with a level in the single digits. Catch one, and you'll find an entirely unimpressive Wind-type - good speed, but fragile. He'll evolve at levels 15 and 32 into first Sasuke, and finally a {{Ninja}}... but even then, he's unspectacular. He's effective against Humanoids, and his 'Ninjutsu' special makes it unlikely for AI enemies to target him, but his attack-power and overall stats are low - he's entirely unremarkable. Unless, of course, you keep leveling him up for some reason - maybe searching for that missing [[InstantAwesomeJustAddNinja Awesome]]. You'll have to wait 'till he hits ''level 84'' before you find it - the latest evolution in the game by a healthy margin. But that's when your Ninja will turn into Goemon - a 9-star Air-type with absolutely ''BLISTERING'' speed. His potent 'Musashi' attack will [[SliceAndDiceSwordsmanship slice and dice]] anything that isn't an Earth-type. Worth the wait? I guess that depends on just how much you like ninjas...

''Dragon Island Blue'' is a {{Mons}} game for the iPhone. While touted in several reviews as being a Franchise/{{Pokemon}}-game for your smartphone, in truth it has more in common with the ''VideoGame/DragonQuestMonsters'' series (including a very DragonQuest-ish combat-system) or the MegaTen games (monsters tend more towards CosmicHorror and less towards RidiculouslyCuteCritter, use of Monster Fusion). Also like ShinMegamiTensei, it borrows liberally from real-world mythology to fill its burgeoning monsterpedia - [[GottaCatchEmAll over 200 monsters available as of the latest update.]]

* ActionBomb: Several monsters have powerful Self-Destruct techniques. They invariably hit the entire enemy party ForMassiveDamage. Lots of tough enemies use them by the dozen, because - unlike you - they don't have to worry about fighting their way through a long dungeon to get to the battle. The two main variants are a [[TurtlePower Giant Turtle]], and an [[AngryBirds Unhappy Bird]]...

* LethalJokeCharacter: The Unhappy Bird. Oh boy. It's an obvious ShoutOut to the famed AngryBirds game, has no evolutions, [[ComMons can be caught in several places (and is the reward for winning the very first and easiest Arena Tournament)]], and only has two attacks. However, one of those attacks happen to be an extremely powerful ActionBomb - true to the inspiration, of course. Throughout the game, you'll fight MANY tough enemies who mix Unhappy Birds into their team to cause you grief - just a few sprinkled in the right places can reduce your all-powerful pinch-hitter squad to rubble. And all the top-tier dungeons feature them liberally mixed with the other high-level, high-evolution monsters, just to screw with you when you're trying to reach a tough boss-fight with most of your army intact. You WILL learn to hate them... unless, of course, you figure out how to use them to spice up your OWN endgame.

* ShoutOut: Several, even if you ignore all the references to mythology. The most blatant is probably the [[ActionBomb highly explosive]] [[AngryBirds Unhappy Bird]]. Then there's the final evolution of the [[TurtlePower Giant Turtle]], [[Franchise/{{Godzilla}} Tortilla]]... who looks a lot more like {{Gamera}}, but I guess the developers couldn't resist the [[JustForPun Mexican-fastfood-based pun]]

''Dragon Island Blue'' is a {{Mons}} game for the iPhone. While touted in several reviews as being a {{Pokemon}}-game for your smartphone, in truth it has more in common with the ''VideoGame/DragonQuestMonsters'' series (including a very DragonQuest-ish combat-system) or the MegaTen games (monsters tend more towards CosmicHorror and less towards RidiculouslyCuteCritter, use of Monster Fusion). Also like ShinMegamiTensei, it borrows liberally from real-world mythology to fill its burgeoning monsterpedia - [[GottaCatchEmAll over 200 monsters available as of the latest update.]]

* StopHelpingMe: The [[SummonMagic Spirits]], once called, will act on their own accord. In most cases, the worst they can be is useless, but a few of them have abilities that can cause problems for you directly - most obviously, 'Resistance', the first spirit you get. His 'Nap' spell targets both friends and foes for [[StandardStatusEffects Sleep-status]], so if you're a bit unlucky, he can wind up putting all your monsters (and himself) to sleep, while leaving the enemies free to pound on you. Bringing him out in a boss-fight (bosses being [[ContractualBossImmunity generally immune to status-effects]]) is downright suicidal. However, a couple of the later Spirits - Karma and Divine - can also cause trouble despite being generally quite powerful. Their 'Neutralize' spell removes all effects on the enemy team, which can be great if they've buffed themselves up - but usually just ruins whatever debuffs and ailments you've been hard at work laying on them.

* ThatOneBoss: A couple, mostly in the big post-game quest, or the highest level of the Arena Tournaments. Interestingly, most of them effectively use a ZergRush tactics, simply unleashing an enormous horde of identical monsters that happen to work particularly well in crowds. One will assault you with 38 Wolf Gods (mentioned above under MagikarpPower as the cheapest unit in the game, due to its high speed and Stun-inflicting hit-all attack), while another uses a similar number of Morfeus-monsters, each of whom will either use a hit-all Sleep-spell, or unleash 'Dream Hunter' which deals enormous damage to your entire team if even a single monster is asleep. In both cases, you have the choice between A: Building up a varied team that's powerful enough to overcome them or B: Doing the same thing THEY'RE doing, but BETTER.

* WeaksauceWeakness: One of the game's ultimate challenges is a fight against 3 Dreadnoughts - the most powerful controlable monster in the game, the [[FusionDance Recipe]] for which is the reward should you win. So how do you deal with that? A huge army of top-level monsters? Well, that's an option... but you could also just realize that despite their power, these Dreadnoughts don't have ContractualBossImmunity, and bring in some FragileSpeedster ShockAndAwe monsters to StunLock them into oblivion. With the right setup, you can prevent the enemies from ever getting to attack at all, while you [[DeathOfAThousandCuts slowly grind them down]].

''Dragon Island Blue'' is a {{Mons}} game for the iPhone. While touted in several reviews as being a {{Pokemon}}-game for your smartphone, in truth it has more in common with the DragonQuestMonsters series (including a very DragonQuest-ish combat-system) or the MegaTen games (monsters tend more towards CosmicHorror and less towards RidiculouslyCuteCritter, use of Monster Fusion). Also like ShinMegamiTensei, it borrows liberally from real-world mythology to fill its burgeoning monsterpedia - [[GottaCatchEmAll over 200 monsters available as of the latest update.]]

* MetalSlime: Subverted. There IS a monster called the Iron Sludge, which is ultra-rare and hard to kill, and will evolve into an Iron Slime and then Iron King... a clear show of the game's DragonQuestMonsters influences. However, these Iron Slimes grant no particular rewards. They don't drop cash, nor are they worth a lot of XP. You'll need several for some [[FusionDance Monster Fusions]], and Iron King is a potent Tank... but beyond that, they have no particular value.

* HumanoidAbomination: Some of the more powerful death monsters are humanoid physically. However, they are closer to [[AnthropomorphicPersonification]]s of the darker concepts of reality (nightmares, death, despair, ect.) and were never human despite their appearances. They generally begin life looking very inhuman and become more humanoid as they evolve.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Demontors, powerful Arcane creatures, are very capable of this if placed at the end of a team that gets wiped out as they possess the [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Revenge ability]], which gets vastly more powerful the more allies that have fallen before it's used and hits the entire enemy field. Having three of the things pop out at the end of a line up of [[HeroicSacrifice explosive]][[ActionBomb monsters]] can lead to a shockingly quick victory against nearly anything.

** The ultimate [[PostEndGameContent Postgame]] Quest sees you go up against a large number of trainers with extremely powerful teams, including ThatOneBoss, and [[ThatOneBoss That Other Boss]]... but if you feel like going out of your way a bit, you can find an OptionalBoss: TheVoiceless, Mai, wielding a team of 3 [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard UNBELIEVEABLY]] souped-up [[KatanasAreJustBetter Blademasters]]. The Blademaster is one of the strongest monsters in the game, with a potent single-target attack that grows stronger for every enemy he kills, and the '[[SpikesOfDoom Spikes]]' ability that causes any enemy that attacks him to take damage. Normally, tough. In this case, they've got at least 100.000 HP each (for comparison, a powerful monster under YOUR command can MAYBE surpass 2000 HP if it hits the [[{{Cap}} Level Cap]] of 150), their spikes will do about 100 damage for each attack you land on them, and they WILL kill one of your monsters every time you attack. Effectively, they're an unbreakable wall - you won't even have a chance to bring ONE of them down to half HP before they've finished filleting your entire army. Unless, of course, you realize that they, too, lack ContractualBossImmunity. Now, the StunLock strategy mentioned above isn't likely to work (since you never have a 100% stun-rate, so an attack will sneak through every once in a while) - or even if it does, it would take literally DAYS to wear them down with such CherryTapping. On the other hand, there's that UselessUsefullSpell, 'Death Sentence', which will instantly kill an enemy... after a long time, and only if the caster is still alive... but if you were to use it in conjunction with a StunLock or use of Paralysis/Sleep status-effects? Then you could clear away these three invincible titans in short order. The boss is so surprised that she's not only SuddenlyVoiced, but even [[BreakingTheFourthWall Breaks the Fourth Wall]] to tell you that you weren't supposed to be able to defeat her - because she plays an important role in the upcoming sequel!

* ShoutOut: Several, even if you ignore all the references to mythology. The most blatant is probably the [[ActionBomb highly explosive]] [[AngryBirds Unhappy Bird]]. Then there's the final evolution of the [[TurtlePower Giant Turtle]], [[{{Godzilla}} Tortilla]]... who looks a lot more like {{Gamera}}, but I guess the developers couldn't resist the [[JustForPun Mexican-fastfood-based pun]]

* StopHelpingMe: The [[SummonMagic Spirits]], once called, will act on their own accord. In most cases, the worst they can be is useless, but a few of them have abilities that can cause problems for you directly - most obviously, 'Resistance', the first spirit you get. His 'Nap' spell targets both friends and foes for [[StandardStatusEffects Sleep-status]], so if you're a bit unlucky, he can wind up putting all your monsters (and himself) to sleep, while leaving the enemies free to pound on you. Bringing him out in a boss-fight (bosses being [[ContractualBossImmunity generally immune to status-effects]]) is downright suicidal. However, one of the later Spirits - Karma - can also cause trouble despite being generally quite powerful. His 'Neutralize' spell removes all effects on the enemy team, which can be great if they've buffed themselves up - but usually just ruins whatever debuffs and ailments you've been hard at work laying on them.

* CriticalResearchFailure: Like the creators of ''ShinMegamiTensei'', the developers of this game borrowed liberally from cultural legends and mythologies the world over in order to flesh out their monster-selection. Unlike the creators of ''ShinMegamiTensei'', they didn't have a professional mythology-consultant who could make sure they got it all right. As a result, quite a few inaccuracies have snuck their way in - and though one must grant them a certain amount of leeway due to being indie developers operating on a shoestring budget, that doesn't mean we can't list all their mistakes here...
** The Kappa evolution-line is a major offender. For starters, the Kappa is air-elemental, rather than water as one would expect - them being river-spirits and all. It then evolves into a Tengu, who is mysteriously missing his nose - but at least now the element fits. But the final, most egregious problem is the final evolution: Asura. How does two Japanese Animistic Spirits evolve into a Hinduistic deity? He doesn't even LOOK like an Asura - for starters, he's only got [[MultiArmedAndDangerous two arms]]. If anything, he looks more like Bishamonten, the old japanese war-god... who would also be a far more appropriate evolution for Kappa and Tengu.
** [[MagikarpPower Given enough time]], a Ninja will evolve into a [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130113020443/dragonislandblue/images/3/3e/Goemon.jpg Goemon]]. Goemon Ishikawa is, indeed, a stealthy character from japanese folktales, but rather than being a towering demigod with a sword, he was a portly, but clever burglar - something of an UnsympatheticComedyProtagonist in his own time. His only known attempt at assassination was a failure that got him [[CruelAndUnusualDeath executed by boiling]]. A more appropriate identity for that giant amongst men would be that of [[PhysicalGod Susano-o]]...

* EldritchAbomination: Several monsters and Spirits qualify, including Fear, Evil, Thought, Time, Morfeus, and perhaps most explicitly the Aqua Horror, which comes pretty close to being an outright CallOfCthulhu reference.

* DidNotDoTheResearch: Like the creators of ''ShinMegamiTensei'', the developers of this game borrowed liberally from cultural legends and mythologies the world over in order to flesh out their monster-selection. Unlike the creators of ''ShinMegamiTensei'', they didn't have a professional mythology-consultant who could make sure they got it all right. As a result, quite a few inaccuracies have snuck their way in - and though one must grant them a certain amount of leeway due to being indie developers operating on a shoestring budget, that doesn't mean we can't list all their mistakes here...

* SummoningMagic: The 'Spirits' stand apart from your other monsters. Rather than raising, training and evolving them as normal, you simply summon them in combat, after which they act on their own (which can be [[StopHelpingMe a bit problematic]] where some of them are concerned.) There's better than a dozen of them, and they grow more powerful the more times they are summoned. They all qualify as OlympusMons, too, seeing as they are apparently physical incarnations of various concepts ranging from [[CosmicHorror Fear]] and [[AsLongAsThereIsEvil Evil]], to {{Karma}} and [[YouCantFightFate Fate]].

* ContractualBossImmunity: Virtually any boss will be immune to StandardStatusEffects, to prevent you from handling them with a simple StunLock. Poison is the exception - it always works, regardless of the target. Of particular note are the Spirits, whom [[DefeatMeansFriendship you must fight in order to obtain them]] - they have the standard Boss Immunity, and it even shows up on their skill-list afterwards... but it doesn't work anymore. Once they're fighting for YOUR team, they can be stunned or put to sleap as easily as anyone else...

''DragonIslandBlue'' is a {{Mons}} game for the iPhone. While touted in several reviews as being a {{Pokémon}}-game for your smartphone, in truth it has more in common with the DragonQuestMonsters series (including a very DragonQuest-ish combat-system) or the MegaTen games (monsters tend more towards CosmicHorror and less towards RidiculouslyCuteCritters, use of Monster Fusion). Also like ShinMegamiTensei, it borrows liberally from real-world mythology to fill its burgeoning monsterpedia - [[GottaCatchEmAll over 200 monsters available as of the latest update.]]

* ContractualBossImmunity: Virtually any boss will be immune to StandardStatusAilments, to prevent you from handling them with a simple StunLock. Poison is the exception - it always works, regardless of the target. Of particular note are the Spirits, whom [[DefeatMeansFriendship you must fight in order to obtain them]] - they have the standard Boss Immunity, and it even shows up on their skill-list afterwards... but it doesn't work anymore. Once they're fighting for YOUR team, they can be stunned or put to sleap as easily as anyone else...

* ShoutOut: Several, even if you ignore all the references to mythology. The most blatant is probably the [[ActionBomb highly explosive]] [[AngryBirds Unhappy Bird]]. Then there's the final evolution of the [[TurtlePower Giant Turtle]], [[Godzilla Tortilla]]... who looks a lot more like {{Gamera}}, but I guess the developers couldn't resist the [[JustForPun Mexican-fastfood-based pun]]
* StopHelpingMe: The [[SummonMagic Spirits]], once called, will act on their own accord. In most cases, the worst they can be is useless, but a few of them have abilities that can cause problems for you directly - most obviously, 'Resistance', the first spirit you get. His 'Nap' spell targets both friends and foes for [[StandardStatusAliments Sleep-status]], so if you're a bit unlucky, he can wind up putting all your monsters (and himself) to sleep, while leaving the enemies free to pound on you. Bringing him out in a boss-fight (bosses being [[ContractualBossImmunity generally immune to status-effects]]) is downright suicidal. However, one of the later Spirits - Karma - can also cause trouble despite being generally quite powerful. His 'Neutralize' spell removes all effects on the enemy team, which can be great if they've buffed themselves up - but usually just ruins whatever debuffs and ailments you've been hard at work laying on them.

* YouCantFightFate: Actually, you can. He's holed up in one of the earlier dungeons. In fact, you're free to fight him as many times as you like, or [[SummoningMagic summon him to help you in combat]].