Dragon Quest localization history: Difference between revisions

Dragon Quest localization history (edit)

Revision as of 22:33, 31 December 2022

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→‎Nintendo, Dragon Warrior, and Enix America Corporation

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 ==Nintendo, Dragon Warrior, and Enix America Corporation==
-In 1989 [[Nintendo]] of America]] decided to market the series to North America, as the company's action RPG title, ''The Legend of Zelda'', had proven to be highly successful in the North American market. The original title was chosen instead of the then-most-recent and more sophisticated {{Dragon Quest III}} for unknown reasons, and was given a slight graphical update. All characters would faces the direction they walked in while moving, shore lines were added to the coast, and the Hero's sprite would show him holding a sword and shield when equipped. A battery back up save feature replaced the Japanese password system, and the syntax of the game relied on Elizabethan English.
+In 1989 [[Nintendo]] of America decided to market the series to North America, as the company's action RPG title, ''The Legend of Zelda'', had proven to be highly successful in the North American market. The original title was chosen instead of the then-most-recent and more sophisticated {{Dragon Quest III}} for unknown reasons, and was given a slight graphical update. All characters would faces the direction they walked in while moving, shore lines were added to the coast, and the Hero's sprite would show him holding a sword and shield when equipped. A battery back up save feature replaced the Japanese password system, and the syntax of the game relied on Elizabethan English.
 The title was renamed to {{Dragon Warrior}} as a company called TSR produced a tabletop RPG called ''Dragon Quest'' at the same time, and owned the copyright in reference to all RPG context. Due to a combination of bad marketing, the primitive nature of the first game compared to its sequels, and the American preference to action games over turn-based titles caused {{Dragon Warrior}} to not perform as expected at retail at 500,000 units<ref>Famitsu issue #621</ref>, with the unsold copies being given away as a free title to subscribes of ''[[Nintendo Power]]'' magazine. This is how many Generation X children in America first encountered the series, and estimates of one million units "sold" persist. This failure to perform is not atypical for the time, as the original ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' sold approximately 700,000 units in the American market<ref>Interview with Yusuke Hirata, manager of Square Co. publicity department, ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' 63 page 172, October 1994.</ref>.