2024 has been an incredible year for remakes.Silent Hill 2,Persona 3 ReloadandFinal Fantasy VII Rebirthhave all given a modernized reimagining to celebrated classics. But before 2024 becomes a memory, there’s still time for one more remake that people can get excited about.Dragon Quest IIIhas already seen a couple remakes, but the previous ones simply gave it a facelift while keeping the core of it rooted in the past.Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remakewill be coming out in a couple of weeks and this appears to be the most ambitious remake of the title yet.Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remakeis a full HD-2D reimagining, bringingDragon Quest IIIinto the modern age in the style of games such asOctopath Traveler.
Pocket Power: Dragon Warrior III (Game Boy Color)
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is upon us, so let’s take a look at an older version of Dragon Quest III that looks more like the original.
What’s New Old Friend
Theupgraded visual styleis the most immediately noticeable change, but many other changes have been brought toDragon Quest III HD-2D Remake.The biggest one is probably the addition of the new Monster Wrangler class. Based off the heroes of theDragon Quest Monstersspin-off games, this new class has special abilities that mimic the attacks of monsters, and they can also wrangle friendly monsters to fight in underground arenas. Gambling on monster fights was always present inDragon Quest III, but this new class helps take the minigame to more satisfying levels.
There are quality-of-life improvements as well. A run button has been added, so players who are frustrated with the slow walking pace can get around faster. Battles also have three different speed settings, which is great as the normal speed felt painfully slow. There are now three difficulty settings that can be changed on the fly to help make the challenge level most satisfactory to the player, and they have clever names like Dracky Quest, Dragon Quest and Draconian Quest. A portion of the world or dungeon map is available on screen, which makes navigation easier without spoiling the display with the entire area map. There are also numerous treasures and secrets hidden throughout the world, in the form of secret spaces and sparkly spots, which encourage more exploration and gives the player more secrets to uncover.
There are other changes that expand on the original game. Certain scenes have been given voice acting, which has never before been heard inDragon Quest III.Some parts of the story progression have been expanded with newly-animated scenes that weren’t in previous versions. This change doesn’t have much of an impact as the characters aren’t animated during fights, but the character sprites now show their equipped weapons when commands are being entered in battle, which while minor, is a nice addition.
The changes mentioned above do improve the experience, but most importantly they do so without taking away from the core essence of what returning fans want fromDragon Quest III HD-2D Remake. The secret spots offer additional opportunities at a treasure hunt while recruiting monsters expands on the monster fighting gambling arena, but the story and quests remain as they originally were.Dragon Quest III HD-2Dremake sends the player on a series of quests to save the world, filled with exploring unknown areas while fighting a myriad of randomly-encountered monsters of classic turn-based combat.
The Hero’s Journey
Things begin on the 16th birthday of the scion of the great hero Ortega. Players will choose the body type of this character, Type A (Hero) or Type B (Heroine). After seeking an audience with the King, it’s off to Patty’s Party Planning Place to recruit other party members. The game has three party members readily available that consist of the recommended classes for the standard balanced party, but players are free to go upstairs and generate their own party members with any of the classes they want. Now that the hero has three companions, it’s time to venture out into the world.
Having only played a few hours so far, it is too early to say if those expectations will be met, but things are looking promising.
The ultimate goal of the hero is to rid the world of the archfiend Baramos, but any journey to save the world is going to start with smaller quests. The first order of business is to obtain the Thieves Key, which will grant access to a means to get off the starting island and explore the world at large. What begins with a simple quest of retrieving a key from a tower leads the party to a variety of adventures the hero couldn’t even envision before traveling far away from Aliahan. Hunting a notorious bandit, finding a cursed village and exploring a dangerous pyramid after crossing a scorching desert are just a few aspects of the journey during the first few hours of gameplay.
HD-2D Facelift
PlayingDragon Quest III HD-2D Remakeshows a stark contrast in its newest iteration compared to all previous versions. The character sprites are for the most part true to Akira Toriyama’s designs, but the world they occupy is much more vibrant. Detailed 3D environments with lighting effects have replaced the flat world in which returning fans are familiar. It is a drastic transformation, but one that helps bring a game in its fourth decade into the modern era, and most importantly maintains the important design esthetics that have become synonymous withDragon Quest.
New Trailer Showcases Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake Game Play Footage
New Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake footage draws near, showcasing one of the optional quests.
Along with the visuals, the music has received an equally-impressive overhaul. Many 8-bit games are filled with memorable music if players are able to listen past the technological limitations. The reworked soundtrack is likely how Koichi Sugiyama heard the music in his head when he was composing, before he had to concede to the NES’s chip limitations that had him settle for Baroque beeps and bloops. The music ofDragon Quest IIIhas previously been revised in spin-offs and earlier remakes, but this is the best the classic tracks have ever sounded.
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remakeis scheduled for release on November 14 and will be available on all major platforms including PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and Switch. In the western world,Dragon Quest IIIwas never the most well-known game, but for Dragon Quest fans it’s considered one of the stronger entries, and after three years of waiting for this remake, it has high expectations to meet. Having only played a few hours so far, it’s too early to say if those expectations will be met, but things are looking promising. Stay tuned for more coverage closer to the release date.
