Yesterday Square Enix held a 35th Anniversary Event for Dragon Quest, the beloved classic JRPG franchise. The event contained announcements for several games and some other exciting news specifically for western audiences. The franchise has finally graduated from being a niche Japanese RPG to become a well-recognized franchise worldwide. It seems that Square Enix is acting accordingly and pulling out all of the stops for the franchise’s future and giving fans more of what they want. Here is what got announced last night.
Dragon Quest X
Dragon Quest X Online will receive its 6th version update, which aligns with the game’s 10th anniversary. Despite years of speculation, the title has never received a release outside of Asia. Unfortunately, it seems this will not change as it appeared during the stream that the release was not for international audiences. However, following this announcement was one for a top-down offline version of the game. When this was announced, we were given no information about its availability in western markets. Still, given that it would not require a server connection, if the west were to receive a version of X, it would likely be this one. Here’s hoping Square Enix decides to release at least one of these versions outside of Japan.
Dragon Quest 3 Remake
Dragon Quest 3 is being remade in the style of Octopath traveler, using the HD-2D art style. The classic NES title has received fresh coats of paint in the past, as far back as on the SNES shortly after the release of the original. Currently, the most modern version of this game is the one on mobile devices and the Nintendo Switch, which unfortunately features a less than beautiful art style. Thankfully, Square has decided to remedy this with a release in the HD-2D style, one of the prettiest ways they could present an old-school JRPG like Dragon Quest. The remake will remain faithful to the original as far as we know, and hopefully, similar remakes of other old games in the series will follow, as was briefly hinted at during the stream.
Dragon Quest Treasures and KeshKeshi
Dragon Quest Treasures and Keshkeshi were both announced as part of the event but compared to the other titles, we know relatively little. Treasures appear to be a multiplayer treasure hunting game starring Erik from the 11th entry in the franchise. Keshkeshi appears to be a puzzle game of some sort for mobile devices. The details provided for each were limited, and they seem to stray far from the traditional Dragon Quest formula. Nonetheless, the games will be exciting for fans of the franchise and could prove to be fun and engaging in their own ways.
Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate
The Biggest announcement of the night was undoubtedly Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate. While no other details were revealed about the game, we saw the logo and heard a brief snippet of dialogue. While it is hard to say, the logo and art style indicate that the game may take on a darker tone than previous entries. While discussing the game, the developers stated that they were experimenting with new user interfaces and combat changes to keep the series fresh. This comes as a shock as Dragon Quest games usually retain their core mechanics rather faithfully. We will have to wait to hear more about these changes and the eventual release of the title. You can check out the event stream here.
