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Dragon Quest Community Thread: Come in! Would you like a Puff-Puff?

Lothar

Banned
This conversation makes no sense to someone with avatars turned off. I was looking for someone who's name was Killing Machine and I couldn't find anyone.
 

Lynx_7

Member
There's a reason why they shouldn't have started with 3, which you'll see soon enough.

Now that I'm this far in the game, I assume you're talking about
Alefgard
, right? If so, I can definitely see how skipping the first 2 entries would've lessened the impact of the last stretch of the game. Still, I suppose I'm viewing the situation more from a commercial perspective. Even though americans back then would lack the full context of the trilogy, at least by starting with 3 they could've attracted a bigger audience from the get go and would've bought themselves enough time to localize IV earlier and move on to the SNES titles on schedule. Having DQ V out in the early life spam of the SNES and VI later on definitely would've helped to stabilish the franchise on the West. Maybe they could've released the I&II snes remake later as the "sequel" to III by naming it DQ chronicles or whatever. Eventually they'd have the chance to correct the numbers like FF did anyway :p

Or maybe this is all wishful thinking and DQ never had a chance back then but hey, we can dream.

Also, I feel like my party is currently at its limit. Baramos could deal more damage than I could handle and it came down to who could kill each other first. With a sage and a priest with Midheal as my only means of recovery (and freaking Zing I guess) and no Insulatle to speak of, it's a wonder I somehow bullshat my way through victory at all. I need multiheal or fullheal asap.
 

Lynx_7

Member
Alright, Dragon Quest III beaten! I think I've said this before but I really wasn't expecting it to be this good. Being a NES RPG I thought it'd rough around the edges, and the remake probably did bring some QOL improvements, but if the original's design philosophies weren't already so strong then no remake could've fixed that. Case in point, I and II are good for their time and somewhat enjoyable today if you know what to expect, but I wouldn't call them great from a modern perspective. I have no qualms in saying III is a great JRPG even by 2016's standards. It just aged really, really well. Well, besides the encounter rate. It got really annoying whenever I was exploring the world map trying to figure out where to go and these battles kept popping up every 5 steps.

In some ways it kind of feels like the most "important" title of the series. While most of the other games are only loosely connected to each other, this one being a direct prequel to the first two adds a feeling of weight and grandeur to your adventure. When you defeat
Zoma in Alefgard
and receive the title you'll be known as in the "future" games, it really feels like you've come a long way.

Anyway, updated power rankings of the series: V > VIII(?) > III >= IV > I > II. To be honest it's been so long since I've played VIII that I'm not really sure of its ranking anymore, so its second place is somewhat questionable. I really hope they keep their promise and bring the 3DS version over here because I need to replay it asap. III and IV are a toss-up tbh.

Now only VI, VII and IX remain. I'll call it the "job trilogy". Well, I mean, III also has jobs but... Just let me roll with it ok. Still unsure whether I'll go straight to VI or wait for VII 3DS. Don't wanna fatigue myself so it's probably better if I just wait.
There's also X but it's not like that's ever coming to the west so it might as well not exist.
Yes I'm salty
 

ST2K

Member
I've got some questions for all of you.

I've never played a Dragon Quest for more than an hour or two, and I think I want to change that with DQ7 and DQ8 coming to the 3DS this year.

My questions are:
1. Which of those should I play as a series newcomer?
2. How high should my expectations be for story/characters in this series?
3. How prepared should I be to grind a shitload?
 

Jucksalbe

Banned
My questions are:
1. Which of those should I play as a series newcomer?
2. How high should my expectations be for story/characters in this series?
3. How prepared should I be to grind a shitload?

1. 5 and 8 are probably the two games that are the easiest to get into, 5 and 7 are the best in the series.
2. Depends on the game. 5 has a good main story, 7 has a weak main story, but very good smaller stories you experience in the towns you visit. 8 has nice story themes.
3. That depends on your tolerance for adapting your strategy and actually using your items. Many people also find they have to grind because you often can't afford every weapon in a new town. So basically, you don't have to grind, but a little would probably help and many people seem to grind a lot in Dragon Quest games.
 

Dak'kon

Member
Hello Dragon Quest GAF! I've been curious to get into Dragon Quest for a while and ideally I would want to start with I, II and III but looking at the only versions available to me (Android remakes) I'm wondering why the prices are so drastically different? IV, V and VI are all £10.99 but I, II and III are £1.99, £3.99 and £7.99 respectively. Was there a magnitude more work put into each subsequent game that justifies the price differences? They're also not on the Amazon App Store (where I have some credit) despite VIII being on there...

Should I just start with IV, V, VI since I already own those on DS (along with VIII on PS2 and IX on DS) or would you say for a JRPG fan (who really likes Final Fantasy I, II and III) it's worth playing the first three DQ games?
 
Hello Dragon Quest GAF! I've been curious to get into Dragon Quest for a while and ideally I would want to start with I, II and III but looking at the only versions available to me (Android remakes) I'm wondering why the prices are so drastically different? IV, V and VI are all £10.99 but I, II and III are £1.99, £3.99 and £7.99 respectively. Was there a magnitude more work put into each subsequent game that justifies the price differences? They're also not on the Amazon App Store (where I have some credit) despite VIII being on there...

Should I just start with IV, V, VI since I already own those on DS (along with VIII on PS2 and IX on DS) or would you say for a JRPG fan (who really likes Final Fantasy I, II and III) it's worth playing the first three DQ games?
DQ2 and 3 are both much bigger games than the game before them.

Since DQ games for phones go on sale sometimes, it might be worth waiting for that and to start on one you already have.
 

Dak'kon

Member
DQ2 and 3 are both much bigger games than the game before them.

Since DQ games for phones go on sale sometimes, it might be worth waiting for that and to start on one you already have.

Ah, fair enough. On average they come to under £4.99 each which I'd happily pay but if they've been on sale then I might wait for another one.

IGN Japan ranked the 10 mainline DQ games:

10. VII
9. X
8. VI
7. IX
6. II
5. I
4. III
3. IV
2. VIII
1. V

I guess I really should play I, II and III then. Maybe I'll just buy I for now and wait for the other two to go on sale. Gah, I'm so indecisive :p
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Ah, fair enough. On average they come to under £4.99 each which I'd happily pay but if they've been on sale then I might wait for another one.

I guess I really should play I, II and III then. Maybe I'll just buy I for now and wait for the other two to go on sale. Gah, I'm so indecisive :p
I actively disliked the series, but after playing through I, II, III, IV, and V (all on iOS, currently playing VI), I have to say that I changed my mind. If you're not in a hurry and want to get the most of it, I strongly suggest starting from the beginning.
I also assume that going the other way might be harder, since later games have significant quality of life improvements.
 

Aeana

Member
Sad to see 7 at the bottom. I mean, it's a very consistent series so the spread between top and bottom is minor, but it's super great.
 

Lynx_7

Member
IGN clearly just looked at my ranking in the previous post and swapped IV and III around. I haven't played VI, VII and IX yet, but that doesn't mean I and II should be above them, you sillies! :p

I guess I really should play I, II and III then. Maybe I'll just buy I for now and wait for the other two to go on sale. Gah, I'm so indecisive :p

Since you like the NES Final Fantasy games then you should play DQ1 and 2 at some point, but there are better entries to start with like 4, 5 or 8. I generally think it's a good idea to start with one of the better titles and, once you're hooked, go back to the earlier ones to get a taste of how the franchise started.
You could still start with 1 and 2 if you want to see the series evolve as it goes along though. 3 is a great game no questions asked and should be played if you want to get into the franchise, though only after at least experiencing 1.
 

Gloam

Member
Thinking on it, if I was in a position to start fresh with Dragon Quest I'd go for something like:

1>3>4>5>8

Think that would give a nice impression of the progression of the series. Once you've played a few of the games the series will get its hooks into you and you can go back and polish off the other entries. It's been said many times but there isn't a bad numbered DQ so any entry's a good place to start!
 

Square2015

Member
Check out this find. The original Famitsu DQ reviews together.
A9KA1Ki.jpg

Be if cool if someone could translate some of it.
 

Aeana

Member
I'm not going to translate them all, but I always find it funny how useless Famitsu's reviews have always been. The very first DQ2 reviewer says something like "At last, the Famicom world's new star Yuji Horii's new work is out! Another strong Ultima (an RPG that's a big hit in America) styled game, with a sophisticated scenario, game balance and all other aspects clearly distinguish it from the typical Famicom game."
 

Gloam

Member
I'm not going to translate them all, but I always find it funny how useless Famitsu's reviews have always been. The very first DQ2 reviewer says something like "At last, the Famicom world's new star Yuji Horii's new work is out! Another strong Ultima (an RPG that's a big hit in America) styled game, with a sophisticated scenario, game balance and all other aspects clearly distinguish it from the typical Famicom game."

"I doff my hat to the game's visual presentation. It's clean!" 10/10/10/10
 

scamander

Banned
I would love to start the series with the DS remakes of DQ IV, V and VI, but those are crazy expensive now (at least in Europe). What are the chances those games will appear on the Wii U eShop as kind of cross promotion of the 3DS remakes?

Probably not great.
Squenix, please :(
 

Psxphile

Member
I would love to start the series with the DS remakes of DQ IV, V and VI, but those are crazy expensive now (at least in Europe). What are the chances those games will appear on the Wii U eShop as kind of cross promotion of the 3DS remakes?

Probably not great.
Squenix, please :(

I think SE would rather you just buy the mobile versions. Are any of the Dragon Quests on Virtual Console? Like, ever? Hell, they released a physical retail disc of I, II, and III on Wii instead of just going straight digital.
 

scamander

Banned
I think SE would rather you just buy the mobile versions.

I hate playing on mobile. There is not a single game installed on my smartphone and I'd rather try to find the DS versions cheap, than changing that.

Are any of the Dragon Quests on Virtual Console? Like, ever? Hell, they released a physical retail disc of I, II, and III on Wii instead of just going straight digital.

Just checked and you are right. They didn't launch any of the games on the Japanese Wii shop for whatever reason. No idea why, though. I mean they released all of the Pre-Sony FF games on the service. Why not Dragon Quest? oO
 

1upsuper

Member
It's really hard for me to rank the series. Like everyone has said, it's so consistent. My favorite of the main series is definitely III though, and my least favorite is almost certainly IX. Never played X, unfortunately.
 

brinstar

Member
I would love to start the series with the DS remakes of DQ IV, V and VI, but those are crazy expensive now (at least in Europe). What are the chances those games will appear on the Wii U eShop as kind of cross promotion of the 3DS remakes?

Probably not great.
Squenix, please :(

Absolutely zero, you're better off grabbing the mobile ports
 

Dak'kon

Member
Thank you to everyone for their advice. In the end I've decided that if I'm going to start playing through the series I may as well start at the beginning so I've bought it and will start playing tonight :)
 

Dak'kon

Member
So I played through Dragon Quest on Android! I hope it's OK to post this here. I don't want to clog up the thread with a LTTP so I'll remove it if it's too much. I also post general impressions at the end :)

This is my LTTP of "Dragon Quest":


Names I've heard many times before. Seeing these names come up it feels like I'm about to experience a piece of gaming history. It's cool!


I've heard this music many times before as well. After listening to it for a bit I start by naming my hero "Hero". I prefer to play JRPGs with someone not named after myself (apart from in Pokemon).


Hero of Legend, Dragonlord, Sphere of Light... got it. Let's do this!


No, I know "aught" of the Princess. Wait the Princess got kidnapped and the King didn't think to mention it? That's usually the kind of thing you lead with, right? Anyway, the King didn't mention it but he did give me some cash so I guess I should go to town and pick up some equipment (because that's what adventurers do).


Quite right Mr. Merchant! Shame more RPGs don't let you instantly equip the stuff you just bought. Not sure if this was a feature of the original NES version but I'm liking this game already :)


That's good to know seeing as every other room seems to have been locked with no way for the occupant to leave (since the key they used presumably already disintegrated!) Also a woman started following me after talking to her for some reason? This Galen guy seems like he'll be important at some point too...


Yup, there's a whole town named after him! Anyway I should check out that cave I passed on the way here.


I love it when my ancestors leave little messages to me on their tombstones. Makes an otherwise sombre experience pretty cool! I'm also not sure if the dragon tiling is foreshadowing something or just a nifty design choice.


I find another cave so I go and grab some torches and find some nice items and gain some experience. The enemy names are kind of cheesy but also kind of cute. Especially the "Bewarewolf" I stumble upon later on :)

Afterwards I head South. However, the enemies here are way, way too tough. I try to make a dash for the village just past the bridge but can't get there before getting killed... so Eastward I go!


It was a bit of a trek but I made it here. I should look around.


So I quickly left Kol, crossed underneath the river and made it to a town surrounded by a crescent lake (hmmm...)


No...?
So back across the river I went, past Kol and found the shrine.


Right... so I need to find this harp and THEN return. I guess I'll go back across the river to Rimuldar.


Sweet armour (that I can't afford). I spot a hidden away room. Yes, finally! Keys!


Fuuuuuuu... So back to Kol I go... Since I have keys now I open the door in the underground passage along the way... only to be slaughtered by the Green Dragon within. I guess I'll come back once I've farmed some money for that sweet armour. I find the Flute and some pertinent information. I then had back to Rimuldar to top up on keys.


Umm, excuse me? Is the ring called "Preening Maiden's Ring"? No? It says it's for W.A.R.R.I.O.R.S.

Anyway, now I have keys. So it's time to do some looting!


How did you know? I did manage to find an underground dungeon in the Castle as well.


Awww yeeeeah. I also have a clue on where to go next. To Galenholm!


Why does everyone keep calling me that? I haven't even taken anything from the chests.


I pick up Galen's Harp and return to collect the Staff of Rain. Now I can go South across the river (again) and combine it with the Sunstone at the Shrine! Except I now need proof of my lineage because reasons. So I decide to head West to grind those hard enemies to defeat the Green Dragon.


Yay, money!


Yay, EXP!


...or not.

So I buy some new equipment and head back to take on the Green Dragon.


Only to find the Princess!


Who lays it on a bit strong.


I come across a deserted town so I continue further East.


The enemies are pretty tough going but I use the Flute to easily take down the Golem.


I learn about the deserted town and that my descendants left something important there. I head back.


Amazing! I'm feeling like I'll soon be ready to take on the Dragonlord. I head back East.


After being initially confused by the wording and trying to walk into the sea North of the Castle I managed to find proof of my lineage.


I head back to the shrine and rub my proof in that old coot's face. I obtain the key to reaching the Dragonlord's Castle.


This is it... I head inside and eventually reach the throneroom. First though, I need to loot all those sweet chests!


Fuuuuu! I remember someone in the first town mentioning that he removed curses so I warp all the way back there.


What luck that I did, because on my way back to the Dragonlord I stumble upon...


I never do find Erdrick's Shield but this should be good enough to see me through.


Sounds kind of cool? I accept and wake up at the inn as though it were a dream... So I guess I can't rule half the world after all :( I reload and decline the offer.


It's on! I defeat the Dragonlord...


OK, now it's REALLY on!

I'm only level 18 and haven't learnt the final spell. It takes me 6 tries but I defeat the Dragonlord!


Aww pretty! Amazingly I can wonder freely about the world and nearly everyone has new dialog. It's a small game but that's a neat feature. I eventually return to the castle.


You're just... offering me the throne? Wow, Game of Thrones would be like 2 episodes if it was set in this world.


Wow, the silent hero talks.


This is getting a bit weird for me. I know this is a fairytale like story but even so this isn't a great look for the only female character. I'll have to decline.


FINE! I'll take you.


And thus ends my journey.

General thoughts:

Positive:
- The sprite work was pretty good. Much better than what I've seen from the Final Fantasy remakes.
- It was great to have a big open world but not get too lost. I never had to refer to an FAQ to find out what I should be doing next, I could just explore and get info from NPCs.
- Some nice QoL features like auto-equipping and the quick save.

Neutral:
- Only being able to save at the Castle is a bit odd but with the save states it works fine.
- Gameplay was fine but only having one party member meant you had to grind at points for levels and equipment as there was no real strategy other than attacking and healing.
- Inventory space was crazy small. Only 10 spaces and 5 of those need to be kept for your equipment. Once I realised you didn't need to carry around Herbs and Torches it was fine though.

Negative:
- Aside from the main theme and overworld theme the music wasn't particularly great. The battle theme got especially grating with the loud opening.
- Despite the great spritework there's still the insistence on using those awful menus.
- The already mentioned uncomfortable sexism. Despite the criticism you'd get from the usual crowds the Princesses dialog should've been changed to be less fawning.

I hope you've enjoyed reading impressions from a first time DQ player and I'm looking forward to seeing what else the series has to offer. I think I'll jump to DQIV next but will hopefully return to II&III at some point.
 

Gloam

Member
Not sure how interesting this will be for people but Yuji Horii and others are giving a presentation at CEDEC on 30 years of Dragon Quest. Might get up to record it, but it's pretty late where I am so... Maybe somebody else will find it interesting. Starts in about 3 hours or so.

Link to Nico Nico stream.

Edit: Actually the talk starts in about an hour and a half. Enjoy.
 

Biske

Member
So I played through Dragon Quest on Android! I hope it's OK to post this here. I don't want to clog up the thread with a LTTP so I'll remove it if it's too much. I also post general impressions at the end :)

This is my LTTP of "Dragon Quest":

Right on, that was awesome, interesting how the game can be condensed down. like that
 

b3b0p

Member
So I played through Dragon Quest on Android!

Dang man, that's pretty epic post.

May I ask:

1. How did it play on the Android? I'm assuming you played with touch controls. Can you comment on that. Was it intuitive? Did it work well? Were there times of frustration you wish you had a controller?

2. How long did it take you to play through?

Nice post, thanks for sharing. Did you take all those screenshots and note down everything you were going to say ahead of time? Your post seems so well thought out and planned :)
 

Lynx_7

Member
I did it fam, I beat Xenlon! I
brought Ortega back
! Now I can finally feel closure with III.
Which reminds me I still haven't found the patience to recruit a healslime for
Estark
in V. Is there a good place to do it?

1. How did it play on the Android? I'm assuming you played with touch controls. Can you comment on that. Was it intuitive? Did it work well? Were there times of frustration you wish you had a controller?

I'm not Dak'kon but having played III on Android it's actually pretty good. You only move in 4 directions and talk to people so it's not like there's much to screw up anyway. The menus are pretty ugly but you get used to it.

Also, it's pretty sad how this thread just hibernates most of the time :(
Hopefully that'll change once we start getting more informations regarding XI.
 
Yeah, I found the touch controls in DQ2 to work pretty nicely, although since its not 8 directional it does feel a little clunkier using the virtual joystick than if it had been.
 

hazukash

Member
I'm at the end of DQMJ3 and I'm annoyed at
the flying part where you have to beat a series of G-sized monsters before reaching the true final boss. It's a real grindfest too, thank god for the 1-day pass metal area. I thought beating Dark Master and that tongued bug with a human face hiding in the core was the end, but no, they decided to drag on the story.

After this, I'll play Theatrhythm DQ to keep myself hyped for DQVII.
 

b3b0p

Member
I did it fam, I beat Xenlon! I
brought Ortega back
! Now I can finally feel closure with III.
Which reminds me I still haven't found the patience to recruit a healslime for
Estark
in V. Is there a good place to do it?



I'm not Dak'kon but having played III on Android it's actually pretty good. You only move in 4 directions and talk to people so it's not like there's much to screw up anyway. The menus are pretty ugly but you get used to it.

Also, it's pretty sad how this thread just hibernates most of the time :(
Hopefully that'll change once we start getting more informations regarding XI.

I may have to try these games on iOS since that's what I got. I'm reading DQ8 controls are great in the reviews. That's encouraging. I might hold out for the 3DS version or just play both :)

Yes, I agree I too wish this thread was more active. Sigh, poor Dragon Quest.
 

Biske

Member
Anybody else been watching this dudes Dragon Quest 1-9 speed run marathon? He's just finishing up 7 https://www.twitch.tv/highspirits/


Its been hitting my just how many memories I have of the series, I didn't think I knew the sounds that well but the menu and battle effects and such, really takes me back
 

Raw64life

Member
http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/6441-which-scheduled-september-release-are-you-most-looking

I know it's just a GameFAQs poll but this warms my heart.

Also, according to the gbatemp thread the Dragon Quest Monsters 3D translation is just about done and should be released within the next month or so. Looks like it's gonna be released quite close to DQVII, which I'm not sure if that's a good idea or not.


I have the same top 3 but in the reverse order.
 
Been playing DQX lately. I've played trials before, but it feels good to actually be able to play and not worry about strick time limits.

It's good guys. Real good. It's a damn crime we didn't get this game.
 

Refyref

Member
Been playing DQX lately. I've played trials before, but it feels good to actually be able to play and not worry about strick time limits.

It's good guys. Real good. It's a damn crime we didn't get this game.

I'd jump on that game immediately if I knew a more solid level of basic Japanese, and I never pay for MMOs usually.
 
It's too bad that it never had a huge English Patch effort like Phantasy Star Online 2 did. I played PSO2 for awhile and the patch was very impressive by my standards, and has apparently improved even more since then.
 
I'd try it but I hear it blocks IPs from outside of Japan.

Just waiting for the PS4 version at this point and hoping they decide not to block IPs on it since the 3DS version is apparently practically unplayable
 

Aeana

Member
It's too bad that it never had a huge English Patch effort like Phantasy Star Online 2 did. I played PSO2 for awhile and the patch was very impressive by my standards, and has apparently improved even more since then.

I personally did some translation work for the game, but it's such a moving target that I got disillusioned with it. There was a patch and all of my work was basically invalidated in a way.



A video of it in action

It doesn't help that I was doing the hacking and translation myself, and my hacking abilities only go so far.
 
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