One of the seminal JRPGs of the 80s is getting a modern remake that mixes the best of old and new, including in terms of the graphics.
Square Enix has established a reputation as a master of remakes in recent years, principally via its ambitious (and ongoing) expanded three-part reimagining of Final Fantasy 7. While determined modernists might dismiss remakes of old games as lacking in creativity and originality, there’s a huge catalogue of great old games out there that would benefit from modern technology and deserve to be introduced to a new audience.
Square Enix has decided that Dragon Quest 3 is such a game and is poised to release Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake this November. Given that Dragon Quest 3 was originally released in Japan in 1988 (on the NES), a little background would seem to be in order – especially as it was never originally released in Europe.
In its day, it was undoubtedly a seminal role-playing game and one that helped define the genre. Plus, it was a roaring success, to the extent that it caused a minor moral panic. Selling over a million cartridges on its first day of Japanese release, it triggered over 300 arrests for truancy among its young fanbase. It went on to shift nearly four million units worldwide (it wasn’t released in the US until 1992, as Dragon Warrior 3).
Square Enix’s decision to remake Dragon Quest 3, rather than one of the first two games, makes more sense than you might imagine. In a video introduction to Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, original creator Yuji Horii, who has also overseen the remake, explained that in the franchise’s overall storyline, Dragon Quest 3 came first, chronologically.
Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake represents a very different kind of remake project than the likes of Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Rebirth. As Horii pointed out, it uses Square Enix’s 2D-HD technology, which applies fancy lighting and shading effects to old school sprite-based graphics. This preserves the pixel art aesthetic but adds an air of solidity and three-dimensionality to the game.
The likes of Octopath Traveler and Live A Live have already showcased the technology but according to producer Masaaki Hayasaka, his team has tweaked many aspects: adding a mini-map, allowing saves to be performed much more frequently, improving the UI, and adding control over battle speed. He also states that the game world has been expanded, with plenty of new areas, secrets, and enemies to be found.
We managed to sample an hour or so of Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake on the Nintendo Switch, and it felt like it was perfectly suited to that platform. The action started in the fine-looking city of Aliahan, dominated by a castle – more or less at the beginning of the game, although presumably after an initial introduction to the overarching storyline.
We were informed that the Remake’s storyline is identical to that of the original: you play Arusu, son of the legendary warrior Ortega. On your 16th birthday you’re summoned by the King of Aliahan and instructed to rekindle the late Ortega’s quest: to track down and kill the arch-fiend Baramos.
After receiving slightly cryptic instructions, that we needed to head to the top of a tower to the west of Aliahan, in order to pick up Baramos’s trail, we explored the castle, collecting various useful items and some cash from chests and pots. We then checked out the rest of the city, where most of the elements you still find in town hubs today were present. This included a trader, who proved useful for kitting out our four-person party, which previously had only the most basic and ineffective armour and weaponry.
A tavern provided a chance to recruit new party members with different specialisations: the original game was one of the first to introduce the concept of character classes to the then-nascent role-playing genre. Given that we already had a healer, a mage, and a knight in the party, we stuck with the original selection. In the original – in the harsh manner typical for games of the time – you could only save in temples, but there was no need to worry about that in HD-2D Remake, which let us turn on autosaving.
After a few more conversations around the city with random characters, and a short spell distributing weapons, armour, and potions among the battle group, we headed through Aliahan’s west gate and into the countryside beyond. There we were presented with a lush-looking map containing various landmarks and different terrains, and around which we could wander randomly.
Soon, we encountered our first monsters: classic Dragon Quest slimes. As in the original game, Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D’s battle system is turn-based, but this time around, you can turn up the battle speed if you fancy rattling through encounters at a faster pace.
As with the rest of the game, everything felt comfortingly familiar for anyone who has more than a passing acquaintance with role-playing games. You can choose to attack, use an item or flee; initially we didn’t have any spells, but as we levelled up we began to acquire some and our mage launched spells automatically. Later on, as the enemies became more challenging, he acquired a useful spell that could damage a number of enemies at once.
As we made our way to the tower, we explored a dungeon and then a cave complex, as it connected the shore to the island where the tower was situated. Along the way, we gathered an impressive haul of loot, levelled up considerably (bringing new spells for each party member) and generally came to appreciate the addictive nature of the simple but moreish turn-based combat.
There were also plenty of opportunities to explore areas which could be ignored if you were laser-focused on your objective; those generally yielded useful kit and currency. Typically for a role-playing game, a little light puzzling also came into play on occasion.
On the Switch, Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake felt fun, inviting, and compelling. Whereas in the original you would sometimes have to use your imagination, to make sense of what you were looking at, now objects, enemies, environments, and characters are easily identifiable, and the battles feel more involving with the addition of animations and effects.
The game feels like a nostalgic trip back to the formative years of the genre, only without some of the interface and gameplay frustrations that those older games invariably suffered from. Square Enix has done a great job of taking a venerable classic and updating it so that it’s fun and satisfying to play, but without dismembering any of its period charm.
Anyone interested in the early days of Japanese role-player should find it not only fascinating but also great fun to play and utterly charming. And if you want more after that, Square Enix has already announced, at the Nintendo Direct on Tuesday, that they’re working on remakes of the first two games as well. The games might never have made it to Europe back in the 80s but now they’re going to be available for everyone to play, which will prove that their appeal is down to more than just mere nostalgia.
Formats: Nintendo Switch (previewed), Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC
Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Amata Games (original: Chunsoft)
Release Date: 14th November 2024
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