Dragon Quest (series): Difference between revisions

Each game in the main series of games it titled with the name 'Dragon Quest' followed by a roman numeral. Sine 1986, which marked the release of the original ''[[Dragon Quest]]'', Dragon Quest has so far featured 9 games within the main series, as well as several spin off games. It has also featured two animated productions.

Dragon Quest is often compared with the ''Final Fantasy'' series, created by SquareSoft. Although the Dragon Quest series started before [[Final Fantasy]], it continues to lag behind in the number of games within the main series (9 versus 13 total games). The two competed for more or less the same market until the companies' merger in 2003, at which point Dragon Quest began to take a backseat to the more universally popular Final Fantasy.

Every Dragon Quest game is told primarily through the eyes a [[Hero]] named by the player, usually a prophesied "Chosen One" or a similar concept that requires him to rise against a new evil. Often, this evil is a [[Dragonlord]] or some kind of demon, but invariably wishes to take over the world and enslave or destroy humanity. Unlike other game in the genre, which have since the turn of the century begun to take on more of a science fiction bent, Dragon Quest tends to lean more towards traditional fantasy, with medieval technology and trappings. With certain exceptions, most games takes place in a world distinct from every other; there is next to no direct continuity between installments, with each game taking place in a world envisioned from the ground up ''ad hoc''.

However, Dragon Quest I-III and IV-VI can be considered related through their storytelling. II is a direct sequel to the original game, while III is a prequel that effectively makes a trilogy; IV, V, and VI each feature the [[Zenithia|Zenithia castle]] as an important plot element, and so fans have come to call them the "Zenithia Trilogy." However, [[Yuji Horii]] has stated that this second group was never intended to be related.

As a pioneer in the RPG realm, Dragon Quest games have a reputation for being "bread and butter" representatives of the genre. The player advances through the game by carrying out pre-determined actions directly related to the progression of the plot, such as collecting a key item or defeating a particular antagonist. Usually, one of his first orders of business is to gather a party of like-minded warriors to join him on his quest. As the party traverses the landscape and various dungeons, they will be forced to fight (or, if they choose, flee from) enemies based on a "random encounter" system. Later in the game, the party often acquires improved transportation that may allow them to avoid such skirmishes. Battles are turn-based; the player delivers combat instructions each turn from an in-battle menu system. Some games feature AI that sees all party members but the Hero character responding to situations based on various factors at hand, sometimes including general orders such as "Attack ferociously" or "Go all-out with magic."

Defeating enemy characters yields "[[Experience Points]]" (EXP). When a certain number of EXP has been accumulated, the character levels up and becomes stronger, improving in a number of areas represented by statistical values that affect their performance on the battlefield. This system means that if a player finds any part of a Dragon Quest game too difficult, he can simply fight against weaker enemies until he becomes strong enough to have an easier time of it.

Dragon Quest is, overall, a fairly lighthearted and humorous series that was likely not intended to be taken too seriously.

The Dragon Quest series is primarily the work of three men: [[Yuji Horii]] is the scenario writer and lead designer; [[Akira Toriyama]] is the character designer, bringing in a style reminiscent of his ''manga'' works; and [[Koichi Sugiyama]] handles the music production.

''This article is about a series of role-playing games by [[Enix]].  For the first game in this series, see '''[[Dragon Warrior]]'''''.

'''Dragon Quest''' (ドラゴンクエスト ,''Doragon Kuesuto''), published as '''Dragon Warrior''' in North America until the 2005 release of ''[[Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King]]'', is a series of role-playing games created by [[Yūji Horii]], [[Akira Toriyama]], and [[Koichi Sugiyama]], published by [[Enix Corporation]] (now [[Square Enix]]). Installments of the series have appeared on MSX computers, Famicom/NES, Super Famicom/Super NES, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and Wii video game consoles, as well as on several models of mobile phone. As of April 2010, the Dragon Quest series has sold over [[Worldwide Dragon Quest Sales|53 million units worldwide]]. It is Square Enix's second most successful franchise after Final Fantasy and is one of the most popular video game franchises in Japan.[1][2]

Dragon Quest's North American name was changed due to a trademark conflict with the role-playing game DragonQuest, which was published by veteran wargame publisher SPI in the 1980s until the company's bankruptcy in 1982 and purchase by TSR, which then published it as an alternate line to Dungeons & Dragons until 1987.[3] In 2003, Square Enix registered the ''Dragon Quest'' trademark in the United States, and has since not marketed any product under the ''Dragon Warrior'' name.

In 1982, Enix sponsored a national video game programming contest, which brought much of the ''Dragon Quest'' team together, including Yūji Horii.[4] The prize of the competition was a trip to the United States, and a visit to AppleFest '83 in San Francisco, where Horii discovered Wizardry.[5] Koichi Nakamura and Yukinobu Chida, two other winners of the contest, along with Horii, released The Portopia Serial Murder Case for the Famicom for Enix. Sugiyama, already famous for jingles and pop songs, impressed with the group's work, sent a postcard to Enix, commenting on the software.[6] In response, Enix asked him to write music for some of its games. The group then decided to make a console role-playing game, using a combination of Wizardry and Ultima. Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama, who knew Horii through the manga magazine Shonen Jump, was commissioned to illustrate the characters and monsters to separate the game from other RPGs of the time and the Dragon Quest "team" was born.[7][8]

Dragon Quest was created by Yūji Horii, who has been the scenario director since. The series monster and character designs, as well as box art, are done by famed Dragon Ball manga artist, Akira Toriyama.[9] All of the music for the Dragon Quest series has been composed by Koichi Sugiyama.[4] Dragon Quest games have been developed by [[Chunsoft]], [[Heartbeat]], [[Artepiazza]], and, starting with ''Dragon Quest VIII'', [[Level-5]].[10] Horii's own company, [[Armor Project]], is in charge of the ''Dragon Quest'' games, which were published by Enix and, since [[Square Enix Merger|April 2003]] by Square Enix. While Toriyama is the series' character designer, the primary designs are first conceived by Horii, before being handed to Toriyama to re-draw under Horii's supervision.[11] When Horii first created Dragon Quest, most people doubted that a fantasy series with swords and dungeons instead of science fiction would become popular in Japan; but the series has become a phenomenon there.[12]

"At the time I first made Dragon Quest, role-playing games on the computer were still very much in the realm of hardcore fans and not very accessible to other players. So I decided to create a system that was easy to understand and emotionally involving, and then placed my story within that framework."  —Yūji Horii[7]

Yūji Horii originally used the full-screen map of Ultima and the battle and stats oriented Wizardry screen to create the gameplay of ''Dragon Quest''.[5] The first six Dragon Quest games' stories are divided into two trilogies. The first three games of the series tell the story of the legendary hero known as '''[[Erdrick|Roto]]''' (also known as '''Erdrick''' or '''Loto''' in the American NES and GBC versions, respectively). ''Dragon Quest IV'', ''V'', and ''VI'' are based around a castle in the sky called [[Zenithia]], and are referred to as ''The Tenku'' in Japan, meaning Heaven. The main series from ''Dragon Quest VII'' on are independent of each other and stand alone.[15]

The typical Dragon Quest plot involves a certain villain to be defeated at the end of the game, usually one who threatens the world in some way. However, the plotline often consists of smaller stories involving different NPC's the player meets as the adventure goes on.[16] The games themselves feature a number of religious overtones—saving the game (in later games) and reviving characters who have died is performed by clergy in churches. Priests are often seen wandering around the overworld of ''[[Dragon Warrior Monsters]]'' and have the ability to heal. The final enemy in some of the ''Dragon Quest'' games is known as the Demon Lord. For instance, in ''Dragon Warrior VII'', the Demon Lord, known as [[Orgodemir]] in that particular game, is the final boss, and there is also a sidequest to battle [[God]] himself.[8] The first four ''Dragon Warrior'' titles suffered from substantial censorship in their North American localizations, largely in keeping with Nintendo of America's content guidelines at the time, which placed severe restrictions on religious iconography and mature content. When these games were remade for the Game Boy Color, many of these censorships were taken out.[17] Since ''Dragon Warrior VII'', the games have been kept similar to their original versions when going through localization.[18]

| ''[[Dragon Warrior]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest''</small>

| ''[[Dragon Warrior II]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest II: Akuryo no Kamigami''</small>

| ''[[Dragon Warrior III]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest III: Soshite Densetsu e…''</small>

| ''[[Dragon Warrior IV]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest IV: Michibikareshi Monotachi''</small>

| Super Nintendo (cancelled, was scheduled to be released as ''[[Dragon Warrior V]]'' by [[Enix America Corporation]]), Nintendo DS (''TBA'', as ''[[Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Reverie]]'')

| ''[[Dragon Warrior VII]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest VII: Eden no Senshi-tachi''</small>

 

In 1993, Chunsoft created a Super Famicom game in Japan for [[Taloon|Torneko]](トルネコ, ''romanized as Torneco'')[21], or Taloon, a fictional character first appearing in ''Dragon Warrior IV''.[23] The game, titled ''[[Torneko no Daibōken: Fushigi no Dungeon]]'' which loosely translates to ''Torneco's Great Adventure: Mysterious Dungeon'', was a roguelike which continued Torneko's story from ''Dragon Quest IV'', where he wished to make his store grow even further by venturing into mysterious dungeons and getting more items for stock. It was very successful, both on namesake and quality. A direct sequel to ''Torneco no Daibouken'' came out in Japan and the United States in 2000 called ''[[Torneko: The Last Hope]]''. This game was very similar to the first, but it is considered much easier by comparison.[23] It was received well enough in Japan to warrant a third direct sequel, on the PlayStation 2, titled ''[[Torneco no Daibouken 3: Fushigi no Dungeon]]''. Both the second and third Torneko games were also ported to the Game Boy Advance. Following the success of Torneko, many other Fushigi no Dungeon games were published by various companies (most of which developed by Chunsoft), among the best known are Chocobo no Fushigina Dungeon and Nightmare of Druaga: Mysterious Dungeon.

| ''[[Dragon Warrior Monsters 2|Dragon Warrior Monsters 2: Cobi's Journey]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest Monsters 2: Ruka's Journey''</small>

| ''[[Dragon Warrior Monsters 2|Dragon Warrior Monsters 2: Tara's Adventure]]''<br /><small>''Dragon Quest Monsters 2: Iru's Adventure''</small>

To save one's progress, the player generally must visit a church or House of Healing and talk to a priest or nun. In the first three games of the main series, saving was accomplished by talking to a king or queen[26], with the exception of ''Dragon Quest'' and ''Dragon Quest II'' in Japan, which used a password system.[27] If the player's party dies in battle, the group will lose half of their gold and the leader of the party warps back to the nearest church. The leader then needs to pay a priest to revive his/her party members. This is only effective in the first six Dragon Quest games. More recent games in the series have banks in many towns that allow the player to store gold, which prevents it from being lost when the party dies.

''Dragon Warrior III'', ''Dragon Quest VI'', and ''Dragon Warrior VII'' feature several classes to choose for the party members.[8] Each of these installments possesses its own particular set of classes.  Typical classes include the Cleric / Priest / Pilgrim, Fighter, Hero, Jester / Goof-Off, Thief, Warrior / Soldier and Wizard / Mage[28][29]. ''Dragon Quest VI'' includes two monster classes[30], and ''Dragon Warrior VII'' includes dozens.[31]

The official mascot of the Dragon Quest series is the [[Slime]]. A Slime is a small blob with a face, shaped like water droplet. It has appeared in every Dragon Quest game and it is usually one of the first monsters the player encounters.[35] The Slime's popularity has netted it two spin-offs: ''Slime MoriMori Dragon Quest'' and ''Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime''. They also make a significant showing in the Japanese manga and two-episode anime Dragon Half.

'''Erdrick''', also known as '''Roto''' in Japan or '''Loto''' in the North American localization of the Game Boy Color remakes of the first three games, is a legendary hero from the ''Dragon Quest'' series. The first three ''Dragon Quest'' games make up the "Erdrick trilogy", all being connected to the legend of Erdrick. He is known in the game as the hero who freed Alefgard from darkness.[36] The name Erdrick was first mentioned in the English localization, Dragon Warrior in which the player is referred to as Erdrick's descendent.[37] Erdrick’s legend was completed with the 1991 release of ''Dragon Warrior III''.

In ''Dragon Warrior'', Erdrick was the ancestor of the [[Hero (Dragon Warrior)|Hero]]. The Hero follows in the footsteps of Erdrick to ultimately reach the [[Charlock Castle]] and confront the [[Dragonlord]]. In ''Dragon Warrior II'', the heroes are descendants of Erdrick, and also of the Hero from ''Dragon Warrior''.[38][39] They explore the expanded world of Torland, including Alefgard as seen in the first game. At the end of ''Dragon Warrior III'', the King of Alefgard bestows upon the [[Erdrick|Hero]] "the Order of Erdrick", the country’s highest honor reserved only for true heroes. While this implies Erdrick is merely a title, it is possible to name the Hero Erdrick at the beginning of ''Dragon Warrior III'' if a space is added at the end when naming the hero. In ''Dragon Warrior III'', the origins of the hero Erdrick are revealed; therefore, the chronological order of the first three games is ''Dragon Warrior III'', ''Dragon Warrior'', and then ''Dragon Warrior II''.[40] This chronology is further evidenced in the naming of the hero's weapon, armor and shield. After the events of ''Dragon Warrior III'', the hero's armaments are renamed as the Erdrick (or Loto) Sword and Armor in ''Dragon Warrior'' and ''Dragon Warrior II''.

The Hero, originally known as Erdrick to many English-speaking players, is also known by two other names. In the original Japanese language games, Erdrick is known exclusively by the name '''Roto''', which is also used by some import gamers. Another romanization of the name is '''Loto''', which was used in place of Erdrick when [[Enix America, Inc.]] re-released ''[[Dragon Warrior I & II|Dragon Warrior, Dragon Warrior II]]'', and ''[[Dragon Warrior III]]'' on the Game Boy Color. This was most likely used because the Japanese character (ロ) is not strictly an R or an L sound, but lies somewhere in between. Therefore it is properly transliterated either way.

In the original Final Fantasy, Square parodies Dragon Warrior by displaying a grave for Erdrick in the town of Elfland.[41] In retaliation, Enix hid a Cid grave in ''Dragon Quest III''. A parody of Erdrick's sword is wielded by Gilgamesh in Final Fantasy XII: it is referred to as the "Wyrmhero Blade" (In the Japanese version, it is called "Tolo Sword").

Square Enix has released the Celestial Sword (the Zenithian Sword) and Sword of Ramias as part of their Dragon Quest Legend Items series - miniature collectible toy replicas of artifacts from the Dragon Quest universe.

* [[Dragon Quest: Abel Yuusha]] — loosely based on ''Dragon Quest III'', 43 episodes (known as Dragon Warrior in the United States with 13 dubbed episodes)  

Additionally, ''Dragon Quest e no Michi'' ("The Road to ''Dragon Quest''") is a manga book based on the creators of Dragon Quest published by Enix.[5] The one volume manga was produced by Ishimori Productions, a company famous for creating manga based on famous people and businesses. Released in 1990, the manga stars Yujii Hori, Koichi Nakamura (main programmer), Koichi Sugiyama, Akira Toriyama, and Yukinobu Chida (producer) and involves the creation of the series.[5]

The original ''Dragon Quest'' game is often claimed to be the birth of the console role-playing game, despite the fact that it borrows heavily from the Wizardry, The Black Onyx, and Ultima series, and many others consider Final Fantasy "more important."[3] However, ''Dragon Warrior'' was listed on GameSpot's list of the 15 most influential games of all time, and was called the "most influential role-playing game of all time" and that nearly all RPGs today have roots in its gameplay.[59] The ''Dragon Quest'' series was recognized by Guinness World Records with six world records in the Guinness World Records: Gamer's Edition 2008. These records include, "Best Selling Role Playing Game on the Super Famicon", "Fastest Selling Game in Japan", and "First Video Game Series to Inspire a Ballet".[60]

Although the series is a phenomenon in Japan, the games have never garnered as much attention in North America.[3] Although the first four games to come to America generally received good reviews, it was not until ''Dragon Warrior VII'' was released did Dragon Quest become critically acclaimed there.[3] One of the main aspects of the series that critics point out, either positively or negatively, is that the series "never strays from its classic roots".[55] Unlike other modern, complex RPGs, ''Dragon Quest'' retains the simple gameplay from the first game, which many critics find refreshing and nostalgic.[55][61][62] Other critics feel differently about the series, however, and claim that the story, characters, and gameplay have become boring and redundant over the years.[63][64]