Dragon Quest: Difference between revisions

| released= '''Nintendo Entertainment System'''<br />{{vgrelease|JP=May 27, 1986|NA=August 1989}}'''Playstation 4 & 3DS'''<br />{{vgrelease|JP=August 10, 2017}}'''Nintendo Switch'''<br />{{vgrelease|JP=September 27, 2019|NA=September 27, 2019|EU=September 27, 2019}}

{{Translation|'''''Dragon Quest'''''|ドラゴンクエスト|Doragon Kuesuto|originally known as: '''Dragon Warrior'''}} is the original ''Dragon Quest'' game which preceded the entire ''[[Dragon Quest (series)|Dragon Quest]]'' series. It was developed by [[Enix]] and released in 1986 in Japan for the [[MSX]] and [[Nintendo Entertainment System|Famicom]] consoles. The game was localized for North American release in 1989, but the title was changed to ''Dragon Warrior'' to avoid infringing on the trademark of the pen and paper game ''[[wikipedia:DragonQuest|DragonQuest]]''. The North American version of the game was greatly improved graphically over the Japanese original, and added a battery backed-up save feature, whereas the Japanese version used a password system.  [[Nintendo]] was impressed with the Japanese sales of the title and massively overproduced the cartridge; the end result was that Nintendo gave away copies of ''Dragon Warrior'' as an incentive for subscribing to [[Nintendo Power]], the company's in-house promotions magazine.

''Dragon Quest'' was developed to be simple enough for anyone to understand it's intricacies, but also captivating enough to compel players to explore every inch of its digital surface.  

The player controls a single character who is able to travel around the world on a quest to defeat the [[Dragonlord]], traversing an immense country and visiting numerous towns. He can equip various weapons and armour and battle enemy monsters in one-on-one, turn-based combat. As more enemies are defeated, The Hero becomes stronger and able to explore greater distances as he completes his quest. Ultimately, The Hero must confront the Dragonlord in his citadel, marking the end of his adventure. The basic gameplay formula used in ''Dragon Quest'' would be replicated countless times in similar RPG titles on home consoles after its release.

Long before the game begins, a man named Erdrick returned peace to the land of Alefgard by defeating a great demon. The peace came in the form of the sacred [[Ball of Light]]. Erdrick returned to the [[King Lorik|King]] with the Ball of Light and there were great festivals and celebrations. Eventually, Erdrick took his leave and was never seen again. Years passed and the people prospered, but one person was not happy with the way things were. He lived in the western mountain cave, far from Tantegel's walls. While exploring deep within the cave, he came across a sleeping [[dragon]]. Suddenly, the dragon awoke and the man was very frightened. As he closed his eyes to stop himself from seeing his demise, nothing happened. The man grew tired of waiting and threw a stick to distract it. To his surprise, the dragon picked it up in his mouth and brought it back to the man, like a dog. After that he discovered he could make the dragon do whatever he wanted. He then named himself the Dragonlord. Suddenly, a disaster occurred: Charlock Castle rose from its dirt grave, and everyone knew this was a bad omen. A few minutes later a swarm of [[Slime]]s, [[Ghost]]s, Dragons and other monsters attacked Tantegel and the villages across [[Alefgard]]. Though they fought bravely, the years of peace had made the people weak. The Ball of Light and were stolen by the Dragonlord himself.

After this terrible attack the people were terrified to walk outside again. Many men were killed traveling between places and people locked their doors at night. At night, they could hear the Slimes scratching and mumbling along the walls of Tantegel. The King fell into a deep depression over his kidnapped daughter, even though the legends told of a descendant of Erdrick coming to restore peace. The King believed it to be a myth until one day a scrawny-looking young man appeared at the King's feet and asked permission to retrieve the Ball of Light and [[Princess Gwaelin]]. Since many other hapless warriors had volunteered and failed, the King had already given up hope. But he sees a light in this young man's eyes and knew he was the descendant of Erdrick. Giving him a few items and some gold, the King sends the warrior out.

After traveling the length and breadth of Alefgard and becoming more and more powerful, [[Hero (Dragon Quest I)|The Hero]] eventually discovers Lady Lora in the clutches of a [[Green dragon]], who is hiding her in a cave. After slaying the dragon, The Hero lifts her onto his back and carries her all the way back to Tantegel, to the delirious joy of everyone there.

Finally, after strengthening himself through all the battles he has fought and the mystical items he has uncovered, including Erdrick's own sword, The Hero enters Charlock Castle, the Dragonlord's domain, and kills him, temporarily freeing Alefgard from the terror of evil.

 

Lora proposes to him and King [[Lorik]] offers him the throne; he accepts the former offer but declines the latter, opting instead to venture to lands unknown and find his own kingdom.

Note that only some of the remakes have been released outside of Japan.  For a full list of releases and dates, visit [[List of Dragon Quest releases]].

Image:Dragonwarrior_battle.jpg