Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is a gorgeous blend of old and new

If you love classic Japanese RPGs like I do, then Dragon Quest III HD-2D remake is probably one of your most anticipated games of the year. If it isn’t, it should be.

I had a chance to play a short demo of Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake when I was at Gamescom last month. I hold the original in high regard, considering the best of the 8-bit generation of RPGs. That was thanks to the game’s large world, customizable vocation system, and strong core of JRPG fundamentals.

All of that is in this remake, and the new HD-2D visuals make Dragon Quest III an incredible looker. It still has that classic, pixelated style, but the new graphics and lightning show off a more vibrant world.

A classic then and forever

After my demo, I had a chance to ask Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii about Dragon Quest III’s popularity. I have to admit, it’s not too often that I get starstruck when doing interviews, but Horii is pretty much the father of all JRPGs. His contributions to gaming are enormous. So it was a treat to hear him talk about this game’s legacy.

“Back when I made Dragon Quest 1, 2, and 3, Dragon Quest 3 was actually a big twist. It turned everything on its head,” Horii told me. “I think a lot of people still remember that shock and drama. Another reason is a lot of people played Dragon Quest III when they were kids. You always look back fondly on stuff that you played when you were young, that you shared with your friends. I do think that’s why it’s stayed in the hearts of a lot of our players.”

Monster mash

The HD-2D Remake is not just a one-to-one remake. It includes new features and expanded story content. I found the new character class, the Monster Wrangler, the most exciting. The original Dragon Quest III featured the vocation system, which lets characters switch between multiple archetypes, like Gladiator or Mage.

The Monster Wrangler is an entirely new vocation for the HD-2D Remake. It lets players use abilities from enemies in battle. I asked the game’s producer, Masaaki Hayakawa, if Monster Wrangler took inspiration from the monster-recruiting entries in the series, like Dragon Quest V.

“Of course we did take inspiration from V,” Hayakawa told me. “But there was a whole process we went through to end up with this new vocation. One of the things we’re attributing to it is that the world map, the field area here, is much bigger in this remake. There’s a much bigger area for players to explore. We wanted to add something else for players to do, add some new gameplay to this area.”

Speaking of monsters, there is another way that they add to new content in the remake.

“Another thing we had in the back of our minds, in the original there was an arena where you could bet on monsters fighting,” Hayakawa said. “That wasn’t something we could include in this remake, partly because of ratings and things like that. It just wasn’t the content we were looking for. So we were thinking, what could we add to the game to take that place and be something new and positive instead? That’s when we came up with the monster arena that we have in this version you see today. Then we thought, how could we combine the new gameplay that we wanted to add to the world map with this monster arena? That’s when we came up with the idea of the monster wrangler vocation. Then you could go out and capture monsters and take them to the monster arena. Everything is connected in this nice flow.”

HD 2D is for me

The new features are great. And along with the incredible new visuals and the preservation of Dragon Quest III’s classic vibe, this HD-2D Remake is shaping up to become a special treat for classic JRPG fans like me.

And it’s just the start, since Dragon Quest I and II will get the same treatment. Frankly, I hope that they don’t stop there.