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'''Party Chat''' is a feature of the series first introduced in the seventh title. It allows the player to speak with members of the party to get their opinions and insight on current circumstances at the press of a button after a cutscene or speaking with an NPC. This allows for the personalities of playable characters to be greatly fleshed out at the player's own pace without the risk of lengthy dialogue scenes bogging down the flow of the game. Quirks, idiosyncrasies, and the hidden sides of characters are revealed smoothly through party chat.
'''Party Chat''' is a feature of the series first introduced in the seventh title. It allows the player to speak with members of the party to get their opinions and insight on current circumstances at the press of a button after a cutscene or speaking with an {{NPC}}. This allows for the personalities of playable characters to be greatly fleshed out at the player's own pace without the risk of lengthy dialogue scenes bogging down the flow of the game. Quirks, idiosyncrasies, and the hidden sides of characters are revealed smoothly through party chat.


Since the original implementation in 2000, the feature has been incorporated into remakes of past games (save for the [[Erdrick trilogy]]) and all successive titles, receiving near universal praise for adding significant depth to older entries. Through reaffirming the excellent quality of writing Dragon Quest is known for and presenting it through an innovative method at the player's leisure, party chat has become a highly esteemed and indispensable part of the series.
Since the original implementation in 2000, the feature has been incorporated into remakes of past games (save for the [[Erdrick trilogy]]) and all successive titles, receiving near universal praise for adding significant depth to older entries. Through reaffirming the excellent quality of writing Dragon Quest is known for and presenting it through an innovative method at the player's leisure, party chat has become a highly esteemed and indispensable part of the series. The feature has also gained fame for the sheer text volume it brings to each title: the English localization for the party chat of {{Dragon Quest VI}} alone totals at 251,770 words.


==Development==
==Development==
During the lengthy development cycle of ''VII'' [[Yuji Horii]] began playing the pc game [https://www.diablowiki.net/Diablo_I| Diablo] in 1998. Horii became impressed with the multi-player features of the action rpg, and enjoyed being able to communicate with his friends through only the game itself to work towards their shared goals. Furthermore, he was impressed that NPCs were given multiple lines of dialogue through the [https://www.diablowiki.net/Gossip| gossip] feature.
During the lengthy development cycle of ''VII'' [[Yūji Horii]] began playing the pc game [https://www.diablowiki.net/Diablo_I| Diablo] in 1998. Horii became impressed with the multi-player features of the action rpg, and enjoyed being able to communicate with his friends through only the game itself to work towards their shared goals. Furthermore, he was impressed that NPCs were given multiple lines of dialogue through the [https://www.diablowiki.net/Gossip| gossip] feature.


Taking these inspirations and considering the tremendous storage capacity of the original [[Sony PlayStation]] discs over the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|SNES]]'s cartridges, it was decided to implement a similar system into the then-upcoming title to benefit the series during the first boom of multi-player rpgs in the late 90's.
Taking these inspirations and considering the tremendous storage capacity of the original {{Sony PlayStation}} discs over the {{SNES}}'s cartridges, it was decided to implement a similar system into the then-upcoming title to benefit the series during the first boom of multi-player rpgs in the late 90's.


==Appearances==
==Appearances==
==={{DQ4}}===
==={{DQ4}}===
''IV'' was the first remake to receive party chat, and is slightly different from subsequent versions. Namely, the [[Solo|Hero]] does not need to be alive or present in the party for a conversation to begin. This can occasionally lead to small goofs when a character references them, but does allow for the feature to be used in dungeons where the [[Wagon]] is not allowed and the protagonist was left outside. Interestingly, [[Meena]]'s obsession with caves, crypts, and underground structures was first established in the PSX remake's party chat--in no prior media did she ever display an interest in such things.
<center><small>Main article: [[Dragon_Quest_IV_Transcript#b0500000|Dragon Quest IV Transcript]]</small></center>
Party chat can be used in all chapters. The international release of the the DS version in 2008 lacked the party chat feature, which then-localization director [[Richard Honeywood]] elaborated upon in an interview with 8-4, ltd.
''IV'' was the first remake to receive party chat, and is slightly different from subsequent versions. Namely, the {{Hero 4}} does not need to be alive or present in the party for a conversation to begin. This can occasionally lead to small goofs when a character references them, but does allow for the feature to be used in dungeons where the [[Wagon]] is not allowed and the protagonist was left outside. Interestingly, {{Meena}}'s obsession with caves, crypts, and underground structures was first established in the {{PSX}} remake's party chat--in no prior media did she ever display an interest in such things.
Party chat can be used in all chapters. The international release of the the {{DS}} Version in 2008 lacked the party chat feature, which then-localization director [[Richard Honeywood]] elaborated upon in an interview with 8-4, ltd.




''<center>"With the party chat we really wanted to put it in there--that's why we fought really hard for it in V, but it was just a budgetary thing. They (square enix) weren't sure how well IV would sell on the DS in America, they wanted to cut costs somehow...it's two-thirds of the game's script. The cartridges didn't allow much profit...it's not like the PS2 levels of profitability, so just to be careful they cut costs where they could. We (the localization team) fought very hard for the feature to remain because that's where a lot of the fun and humor comes from."<ref>http://8-4.jp/blog/?p=381&lang=en</ref></center>''
''<center>"With the party chat we really wanted to put it in there--that's why we fought really hard for it in V, but it was just a budgetary thing. They (square enix) weren't sure how well IV would sell on the DS in America, they wanted to cut costs somehow...it's two-thirds of the game's script. The cartridges didn't allow much profit...it's not like the {{PS2}} levels of profitability, so just to be careful they cut costs where they could. We (the localization team) fought very hard for the feature to remain because that's where a lot of the fun and humor comes from."<ref>http://8-4.jp/blog/?p=381&lang=en</ref></center>''




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==={{DQ5}}===
==={{DQ5}}===
''V'' would return to the standards set in ''VII'', in that the [[Madason|Hero]] must be present for conversations to begin. Human characters benefit from lengthy party chart, but [[Monster recruitment|monsters]] have only two lines of dialogue--one for the overworld and one for indoors. This has lead to some mild criticism over the years, but does allow for players to project personalities onto their beastly buddies as they see fit.
''V'' would return to the standards set in ''VII'', in that the {{Hero 5}} must be present for conversations to begin. Human characters benefit from lengthy party chart, but [[Monster recruitment|monsters]] have only two lines of dialogue--one for the overworld and one for indoors. This has lead to some mild criticism over the years, but does allow for players to project personalities onto their beastly buddies as they see fit.


Humorously, ''V'' would begin the trend of party chat completely changing the fan perception of certain characters, namely [[Tuppence]]. Assumed to be a serious, stoic soldier of [[Gotha]] through his few lines in the original SNES version, he reveals himself to be emotional, lustful, and comically over-ambitious in the remakes.
Humorously, ''V'' would begin the trend of party chat completely changing the fan perception of certain characters, namely [[Tuppence]]. Assumed to be a serious, stoic soldier of [[Gotha]] through his few lines in the original {{SNES}} Version, he reveals himself to be emotional, lustful, and comically over-ambitious in the remakes.


==={{DQ6}}===
==={{DQ6}}===
The sixth game in the series benefited immensely from the feature, gaining the most party chat since the original version of ''VII''. Every line of dialogue spoken by an NPC, even the barking of dogs, will elicit a unique response from at least one character. [[Carver]] and [[Milly]]'s original assumption of the former being gruff and the latter wistful were changed with the muscle man being mellow and the mysterious waif having a well-defined sense of humor and knack for jokes, but the most profound change in fan perception belongs to [[Lizzie]].
<center><small>Main article: [[Dragon Quest VI Party Chat]]</small></center>
The sixth game in the series benefited immensely from the feature, gaining the most party chat since the original version of ''VII''. Every line of dialogue spoken by an {{NPC}}, even the barking of dogs, will elicit a unique response from at least one character. [[Carver]] and [[Milly]]'s original assumption of the former being gruff and the latter wistful were changed with the muscle man being mellow and the mysterious waif having a well-defined sense of humor and knack for jokes, but the most profound change in fan perception belongs to [[Lizzie]].
Originally though of as a dumb monster following a certain blue swordsman out of a sense of honor, she was revealed to be a sensitive, girly being with a absurd crush and a child-like way of viewing the world.
Originally though of as a dumb monster following a certain blue swordsman out of a sense of honor, she was revealed to be a sensitive, girly being with a absurd crush and a child-like way of viewing the world.


Due to the three dialogue-storing spells being deleted for the [[Nintendo DS]] version, party chat was written so as to guide players in the right direction to advance the game without revealing too much.  
Due to the three dialogue-storing spells being deleted for the [[Nintendo DS]] Version, party chat was written so as to guide players in the right direction to advance the game without revealing too much.  


==={{DQ7}}===
==={{DQ7}}===
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During the development process it was decided that characters should be as distinct as possible to create interesting lines--[[Maribel Mayde]] was not originally part of the game but written in specifically for this purpose. This is also reflected in the other characters' origins, being a [[Ruff|wolf turned human]], a [[Sir Mervyn|crusader]], and [[Aishe|traveling dancer turned rebellious swords-woman]], with none of them being "average" enough to respond with boring and plain dialogue.
During the development process it was decided that characters should be as distinct as possible to create interesting lines--[[Maribel Mayde]] was not originally part of the game but written in specifically for this purpose. This is also reflected in the other characters' origins, being a [[Ruff|wolf turned human]], a [[Sir Mervyn|crusader]], and [[Aishe|traveling dancer turned rebellious swords-woman]], with none of them being "average" enough to respond with boring and plain dialogue.


In the original PSX version players could speak to party members in the midst of battle, with dialogue even reflecting specific circumstances such as Ruff being hit with kasnooze or Maribel being utterly disgusted by the presence of an [[Ulcer]]. Enemies would get the drop on the party if they spent too much time chewing the fat, with a 67% chance to pounce after being used twice and a 100% chance on the third turn. This feature was removed in the [[Nintendo 3DS]] remake.  
In the original {{PSX}} Version players could speak to party members in the midst of battle, with dialogue even reflecting specific circumstances such as Ruff being hit with kasnooze or Maribel being utterly disgusted by the presence of an [[Ulcer]]. Enemies would get the drop on the party if they spent too much time chewing the fat, with a 67% chance to pounce after being used twice and a 100% chance on the third turn. This feature was removed in the [[Nintendo 3DS]] remake.  


==={{DQ8}}===
==={{DQ8}}===
The first truly three dimensional game slightly alters the party chat formula, having a separate menu pop up to allow players to speak with specific characters when they desire. The [[Battle Records]] screen will also elicit quips from king [[Trode]], bestowing titles and comments based on the player's performance. If the player never once speaks to their companions, the cursed king will mumble about the group being dysfunctional.
The first truly three dimensional game slightly alters the party chat formula, having a separate menu pop up to allow players to speak with specific characters when they desire. The [[Battle Records]] screen will also elicit quips from King [[Trode]], bestowing titles and comments based on the player's performance. If the player never once speaks to their companions, the cursed king will mumble about the group being dysfunctional.


==={{DQ9}}===
==={{DQ9}}===
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==={{DQ11}}===
==={{DQ11}}===
''XI'' has two version of party chat--one with a separate menu similar to ''VIII'' for the HD edition, and one similar to 4~7 for the 3DS release.  
''XI'' has two versions of party chat--one with a separate menu similar to ''VIII'' for the HD edition, and one similar to 4~7 for the {{3DS}} release.


==References==
==References==
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[[Category:Recurring elements]]
[[Category:Recurring elements]]
[[Category:Game mechanics]]
[[Category:Game mechanics]]
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