dragon quest games can't be sold on school days in japan

What made Dragon Quest – known as Dragon Warrior in the US for copyright reasons – so unique was the amount of care put in by developer Chunsoft to make it a memorable experience.Ĭolorful and beautiful sprites, an expansive overworld, a complex combat system, and an engaging story, allowed DQ to spearhead a whole new generation of RPGs.ĭespite all of this, the game is lacking in many areas when contrasted with modern standards. It was a simple game, focused on exploring a fantasy world and gathering clues that would help you to rescue a princess from an evil dragon lord. I was very confused when I realized the original Dragon Quest for the NES belonged at the very bottom of the list.īut with a franchise as prolific and constantly improving as DQ, maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

Once you’ve cleared a DQ game, you’ll never forget it.Īnd it’s my pleasure to rank through all of the Dragon Quest roster to reminisce with longtime fans and help newcomers dip into the iconic series. All by slowly crafting its rough, somewhat goofy but profoundly memorable personality.

Of course, Akira Toriyama’s art direction and involvement with the games have been key to the franchise’s success. It’s always relatively the same game, but telling new stories, introducing new characters, and taking advantage of new possibilities in a way that only serves to polish an already solid formula. It has a lot to do with staying true to their core concept instead of rebooting the series every couple of releases the way franchises like Digimon or even Final Fantasy tend to do.

It’s one of the very few long-running series with virtually no bad games, staying on an upward climb ever since 1989. As one of the most influential franchises in the history of RPGs, Square-Enix’s Dragon Quest never ceases to amaze.

Dragon quest games can't be sold on school days in japan