Introduction
At the time the original Dragon Quest was released, action games dominated the console market. RPGs had seen some success on computers through games like Wizardry and Ultima, but nobody had really taken the initiative to bring that over to a Japanese home console. After winning a programming competition held by Enix, Yuji Horii and Koichi Nakamura decided that they wanted to do just that; but make the genre much more accessible in the process, so just about anybody could play. These two couldn't make the game on their own, however; Horii brought in Akira Toriyama (whom he had met through working for Shonen Jump) to take care of the character/monster designs, and Koichi Sugiyama (to whom he had been introduced through fan correspondence about one of his previous games) to do the music.
The Dragon Quest series is one of the few game series that has managed to hold on to many of the things that made it special, throughout its various iterations. 'Minimalism and efficiency' has always been the name of the game, everywhere from inventory management to the battle system. Battles in the DQ series are always swift, but strategic - you'll get nowhere fast just spamming 'fight'; and it could even be argued that later games have some of the most efficient inventory management ever found in a video game.
The Japanese Dragon Quest games have spell names that are either nonsense, or that derive from various onomatopoeia (example: the healing spell is called 'hoimi,' which means absolutely nothing; but a fire spell is named 'mera,' and 'mera mera' is onomatopoeia for the sound a fire makes). Although these words could have been kept for the English-language versions of Dragon Quest (called Dragon Warrior, due to a trademark held by an American company at the time), the translators decided to go with more logical, descriptive names for the spells. The previously mentioned examples 'hoimi' and 'mera' became 'heal' and 'blaze.' By the time Dragon Quest 8 came around, it seemed like Square Enix wanted to reboot the series in North America. In the process, all of the old spell names were removed, and replaced with names that match the original Japanese names quite accurately.
The scenario presentation in Dragon Quest has remained fairly unique, even to this day. At the simplest level, your final task is presented to you at the very start of the game. It's usually to defeat some super-powerful demon lord who is reviving as we speak. The over-arching scenarios in Dragon Quest games are often criticized as 'clichéd,' and I don't really blame people for feeling this way. What these people haven't yet come to understand, however, is Dragon Quest's unique scenario presentation: the focus is entirely on the journey to your final destination, and not necessarily actually arriving there. The player gets wrapped up in many smaller stories in the process, meeting very interesting NPCs--who, I feel, are much more important than in any other series I've ever played--along the way, which provides an ultimately more rewarding experience in the end. The only other Japanese game series I can think of that takes a similar approach to scenario presentation is Mother/EarthBound.
Many would defame the series for 'refusing to evolve,' mistaking same old, same old for lack of innovation, not realizing how much it has evolved in its own way. Indeed, the Dragon Quest series has grown up at its own pace.
The Games
Dragon Quest - Famicom/NES
The game that started it all. You're simply thrust into the game, and asked by the king to destroy the dragon lord, who has stolen the ball of light. As soon as you exit the castle, you can see your final objective right across the river... but you won't reach it for quite a long time. In order to progress on your quest, you must travel from town to town, and speak to NPCs in order to figure out just what you need to do next. Along the way, you may find that your quest isn't as simple as you thought.
Dragon Quest features a very cool one-on-one battle system, and is actually the only NES Dragon Quest game to feature backgrounds in battle - it wasn't until Dragon Quest 5 that this was revisited. This game was pretty drastically upgraded for its English release, too. The Japanese game features a password saving system (no battery!), and all of the characters are only capable of facing the screen - they can't turn. Due to this, when you select the 'talk' command from the menu, you must choose the direction in which you would like to talk. In the English release, this was removed, and the main character - as well as all NPCs - received the ability to face different directions. The English release also featured battery saves. The game could only be saved in one location: the king at Radatome/Tantegel castle, where you begin the game.
Dragon Quest II - Famicom/NES
This game was a significant upgrade from the first game. For starters, you were now able to control three characters instead of one. Due to the increased character count, the battles had to be expanded in order to allow you to face multiple enemies at once. DQ2 had the beginnings of the familiar battle system, which was tweaked more and more for later games. Churches were also added to this iteration, but only to facilitate the removal of some status effects which were added to the game: curse, poison, and death.
Like Dragon Quest, the original Japanese version of DQ2 didn't have battery saves, and since it was a more complex game, the passwords you received could become a little ridiculous (the maximum size for passwords in DQ2 was 52 characters). Once again, battery saves were added to the English version, in addition to a very cool introduction sequence that shows the destruction of Moonbrooke in detail. DQ2 is also the first game to feature the boat, and to allow you to use equipment in battle for special effects.
Dragon Quest III - Famicom/NES
This is where the series really hit it big. Dragon Quest 3 was released on a Wednesday, and people all over Japan skipped work/school to wait in line in order to purchase it. This is the origin of the myth that the Japanese diet made selling Dragon Quest games during the week illegal. Of course, this isn't true; they simply made a request to Enix that they try to release their games on the weekend from then on.
When you begin a game, not only are you asked to name your character, but for the first time in the series, you can choose the character's gender as well. I really liked this aspect, personally, because every other game seems to force you to play as a male. It didn't stop there, though. In order to offer an even further amount of customizability, DQ3 has you create your party members as well -- allowing you to choose from 6 different character classes. Unlike other games that had a similar feature, however, your characters are not locked into their class. Once they reach level 20 (and a specific location in the game), they can change their class and return to level 1, but retain all of the skills they learned with their previous class. In doing this, one could have a soldier who could cast mage spells, or mage with the ability to cast priest spells.
Dragon Quest 3 marked even more firsts for the series, however. The day/night cycle first appeared in this game, offering a second face to each and every town in the game, among other things. The HP/MP status display's format was also finalized as of this game, and appears in the same format in every other game in the series. This is also the first DQ game where the agility stat affects turn order in battle, and stat increasing seeds also first appeared in this game.
Dragon Quest IV - Famicom/NES
With the original Loto trilogy over, the series continued to move forward. The scenario in DQ4 is presented in chapters, each introducing some of the 7 characters who would later join the hero's crusade. The chapters are all very unique, especially Torneko/Taloon's chapter, in which the goal is to amass as much money as possible. You can even act as a shopkeeper, deciding whether to buy from or sell to the customers who visit you.
DQ4 is the first game to feature the 'tactics' artificial intelligence system, which became a series staple. This allows you to control the way in which your party will fight. Some example tactics rules are "don't use magic!' or "go all out." Once all of the characters have been introduced, and join with the hero, this system becomes required, and no longer allows you to control anyone but the hero manually. Fortunately, the system is generally very smart, so it's not too much of a frustration.
Since you can only have four people in your party at once, the wagon was added in this entry. If the wagon enters a location with you, it's possible to switch your party members around mid-battle. Some additional series firsts came in DQ4, such as the casino, wherein the player can gamble to earn coins, which can be used to buy equipment that may not be available through any other means. Small medals were also new in this iteration, and could be used as a currency at the Medal King's castle to purchase more unique items. DQ4 is also the first game where you save the game in churches, instead of at a king, and the first game to start putting items in pots and dressers.
Dragon Quest V - Super Famicom
Dragon Quest 5 was the first entry in the series to be on the Super Famicom. It's also one of the two Dragon Quest games to never see an official English release. It takes the idea of the chapter system from DQ4, and goes in a different direction. Instead of chapters, the game takes place during different stages of the hero's life, spanning from when he's born, up until he's married and has children of his own, and beyond. It also features a different overarching goal: instead of being told to defeat a purely evil being from the outset, you're instructed to search for someone in particular, and the story unfolds from there.
Although you do have access to some human party members, the majority of your party members in Dragon Quest 5 are monsters that you recruit yourself. With these monsters comes a wide array of new abilities, making DQ5 the first game to include non-magic abilities (called 'skills' in this and later games). Other series firsts hosted by DQ5 include the addition of a shortcut key, which allows you to search and talk with one button, without having to enter the command menu; and for the first time, boomerangs and whips can hit multiple enemies. You can also finally read books on your own starting in DQ5.
Dragon Quest I&II Reprise - Super Famicom/GameBoy Color
Built on DQ5's engine, Dragon Quest I&II is a single cartridge game that contains remakes of both Dragon Quest and Dragon Quest 2. Unlike the original games, this version actually had battery saves, and it also included all of the improvements made to the English NES versions of the games. In general, the games were made easier by improving the amount of experience and gold obtained from most enemies in the games, and additional save locations were added to DQ2. Stat increasing seeds were also added.
A version of these remakes was released in English, eventually, for GameBoy Color.
Dragon Quest VI - Super Famicom
Dragon Quest 6 is the only other non-remake Dragon Quest game to never see an official English release. It has a very interesting "dual-world" scenario, kind of like the light/dark world found in many games around the same time. The difference is that instead of light and dark worlds, DQ6 has a real world and a dream world, and each world has its own unique forms of transportation.
The class system from Dragon Quest 3 returns, but with a significant overhaul. Class levels are now independent of character level, and there are now quite a few more: 9 base classes, and 7 advanced classes which are unlocked by mastering multiple base classes. Each class has 8 ranks, which are attained by fighting battles. Each rank requires a certain number of battles to reach, with the catch being that the battles have to be against enemies who are about your same strength - you can't just go fight lower leveled enemies.
Dragon Quest 6 marks the very first appearance of the bag, which allows the player to carry more items than each individual character can hold. Because of this, the bank was reformed to carry only money, instead of items and money. Some other significant changes over older games include: the addition of monster attack animations; a revamped small medal system, wherein the Medal King rewards you with set items after bringing him a certain number of medals, instead of having you purchase items from him using the medals as a currency; the addition of a 'style' value to equipment, which affects the character's overall style stat - this is used later in the game at the 'best dresser contest,' at which you can win many different prizes; and the ability to memorize NPC conversations to recall at a later date.
Dragon Quest III Reprise - Super Famicom
Dragon Quest 3 Reprise is a very significant upgrade from the original Famicom/NES game. The game is built on DQ6's engine, and because of that, it also inherits the new monster attack animations, and, more importantly, the bag.
To complement the class system that was already in the game, a new personality system was added to the game. The personality of your characters affects their stat growth, and their personality can be changed by the equipment they wear, or by books which were spread throughout the world. In order to determine the hero's personality, a dream sequence was added to the very beginning of the game. In this dream sequence, a mysterious voice asks some things about the player through a series of yes or no questions. Once the questions have been asked, the player is presented with a visual scenario in which they must make one of many choices to proceed. After this, the regular game begins.
Spread throughout the world are game boards called Sugoroku (Pachisi in the English GBC version), which is like a very much toned down version of Monopoly. You roll the dice, and move around the board... each square has some sort of effect- you could gain an item, gain/lose rolls or moves, find an item shop, fall through a trap door, among other things. In order to participate, however, you must gather sugoroku tickets around the world. In addition to the above, the ***** class was added to the original 6 classes already available in the game.
Like DQ1&2, a version of this remake was released in English for GameBoy Color.
Dragon Quest VII - PlayStation
Dragon Quest 7 marks the first time the series tried to use 3D technology, which resulted in 2D sprites on the 3D world, with a rotatable camera, while still retaining the Dragon Quest top-down 'feel.' The dual-world type of scenario presentation is back, but instead of real/dream worlds, this time it's past and present. You visit past and present versions of each location in the game, which affords a very unique world view.
The class system from DQ6 is back again, but made a bit more complicated once again. There are even more classes, and a new concept: hybrid skills. The idea behind hybrid skills is that the character would take some of his or her previous class experience over to his or her new class. For example, if a character is a seasoned dancer, and decides to become a warrior, they can learn a skill called 'sword dance,' which is unobtainable any other way.
DQ7 is the first game to offer the ability to assign tactics AI to individual characters, and the first to offer a playtime count, so you can see how many hours of your life you wasted away. Another cool feature that originated with this game is the ability to speak with your companions directly, just be choosing 'talk' from the menu when there's nobody in front of you. There's also an item called the 'monster picture book' which keeps a record of all of the monsters you've fought, and allows you to see their stats and animations, and some other information.
Dragon Quest IV Reprise - PlayStation
DQ4r is built on DQ7's engine, which offers some major advantages over the original game. The biggest one, as far as I'm concerned, is the ability to set AI per-character, and more importantly: set it to manual. The bag also makes a return in this game, and individual character inventories are expanded to 12 item slots from 8.
A new prologue was added to this, which introduces you to the hero a bit better than the original game did, and also allows you to meet your friend Cynthia, and see why she's able to cast moshasu/transform. A whole new chapter is also available, which takes place after the regular game. It's like the bonus dungeons offered in some of the other games, but with a bit more story surrounding it. The monster picture book from DQ7 also makes a return appearance here.
Dragon Quest V Reprise - PlayStation 2
The series' first outing on PS2 takes a lot of ideas from 7/4r and expands upon them greatly. This is the first fully 3D Dragon Quest game - not a sprite to be found, anywhere. It's also the very first Dragon Quest game to feature idle animations for all of the monsters, and the only Japanese version of a Dragon Quest game to include fully orchestrated background music.
The game itself behaves much like 7/4r in the way it controls, and the way the camera behaves. It also inherits the bag, like most of the other remakes. The really major improvement here, though, is the ability to have a party of 4 instead of 3. Due to this change, every monser in the game had to be rebalanced, and as a result, a good portion of the game feels quite a bit more difficult.
Some other additions include: several more monsters to recruit over the original; another casino, located on a ship; and sugoroku from 3r makes a comeback. There's an item very similar to the monster picture book from 7/4r called the monster box, as well.
Dragon Quest VIII - PlayStation 2
The most recent entry in the series, DQ8 is full of new features. It's fully 3D, much like 5r, but abolishes the old top-down camera in favor of a third-person over-the-shoulder view. Due to this, the overworld is much more detailed and vast, and riddled with treasures waiting to be discovered. This is also the first Dragon Quest game to show your own characters performing actions in battle, and the first game to introduce the tension system, which acts like the old 'chargeup'/'psycheup' abilities from older DQ games, but on steroids. The day/night system--which hadn't been seen since DQ5--was also revived for this game.
DQ8 also has two very significant new features: the alchemy pot, and the addition of the monster arena/monster teams. With the alchemy pot, it is now possible to mix multiple items to create new ones, which is a wonderful money saver, and allows you to get items much earlier than they would be for sale normally (if they're ever sold - you can also get some unique items through alchemy pot mixing). Monster recruiting returns in this iteration, but in an interesting way. Instead of allowing monsters to join your party directly, you can form a team of monsters to fight for you at the monster arena. If you win enough fights, you may gain the ability to send your monster team to fight a couple of rounds for you in regular fights, as well.
With all of these wonderful improvements, there are bound to be a few 'downgrades.' Previous games in the series allowed you to have a large number of characters available at once, but DQ8 only offers 4. The class system found in the previous two games is also completely missing - removed, in favor of a simpler skill point system, wherein you assign points gained at level-up to one of five proficiencies.
The North American release of Dragon Quest 8 finally abolished the old 'Dragon Warrior' name, and was released in the west under its original 'Dragon Quest' name. With this came a very polished translation, and the addition of voice acting and orchestrated music, which weren't found in the original game. As I mentioned earlier, the original spell names were thrown out. Gone are the days of 'Firebal,' 'Blazemore,' and 'Infermost' in favor of more the sillier, but ultimately more faithful 'Sizz,' 'Frizzle,' and 'Kaswoosh.' The user interface was also completely revamped - the original simple command menu was removed, in favor of an inventory screen with icons instead of textual representations of items, character portraits, etc.
This Thread
So, there you have it: a little bit of information about each game in the Dragon Quest series, remakes included. My goal for this thread is to stir some discussion about the series, both good and bad (and so, the thread title is a bit misleading - I very much welcome intelligent negative discussion about the series, as well).
