Square Enix “committed” to releasing more Dragon Quest games overseas
During the DS era, several Dragon Quest games were brought to the west. The series’ overseas status has been a little shaky over the past few years, but it’s starting to look up again. Looking at Nintendo’s involvement with Dragon Quest specifically, they just shipped Dragon VII in North America and Europe last month, with Dragon Quest VIII to follow next year.
If that wasn’t enough, Square Enix’s Noriyoshi Fujimoto told MCV that the company is “committed” to Dragon Quest in the west. When asked if Dragon Quest Builders – which might be a possibility for Switch – will affect the series’ status outside of Japan, he said:
“2016 marks the 30th anniversary of Dragon Quest series. It’s not as well known in the West as we would like but it really plays an epoch making role in the console gaming history. If gamers were to ‘discover’ Dragon Quest now, they may be surprised to the sheer breadth of the universe, in terms of variety and depth. But they would also have instant access to something that has taken us 30 years to build. Dragon Quest Builders is definitely a great way of getting the feel of Dragon Quest while having great fun right from the start.
We’re committed to bringing more Dragon Quest titles in the West as we believe it truly has potential to succeed even better. So watch this space.”
Dragon Quest XI is planned for both Switch and 3DS next year. I imagine we’ll get that one somehow – be it Square Enix directly or through Nintendo publishing.