Square Enix has released a newly revamped version of the classic first installment in the Dragon Quest series for both iOS and Android devices.
For any gamer over the age of 25 or so this is a release that will hit you right smack dab in the nostalgia. Dragon Quest (AKA Dragon Warrior AKA That RPG Japan Likes More Than Final Fantasy) is now available on your iOS or Android device of choice with revamped graphics, updated controls, and a whole host of other features.
Sadly, the terrible translation seems to have made the transition in tact, but for many it wouldn’t be Dragon Quest without it.
This is far from the first time the first Dragon Quest has been re-released, or even remade, since its launch on the original NES back in the day. The first and second games in the series saw remastered versions released on both the SNES and in a diminished capacity on the Game Boy Color back in the day, though only the GBC versions made it state-side. Luckily for western audiences, the graphics for the new mobile release seem to be almost tile-for-tile rips from the SNES version, giving us our first chance to check out the game’s excellent SNES remastering, though with mobile controls layered on top.
Dragon Quest sees a lot less popularity in western markets than it has historically received in its native Japan, largely due to a higher difficulty curve and emphasis on grinding than its competitors like Final Fantasy or even Phantasy Star back in the day. The series has, however, seen a surge of love over the last few years starting with the excellent Dragon Quest VIII on PS2 and continuing with remastered versions of many of the older releases on the DS. Square Enix’s release of the original Dragon Quest comes relatively close on the heels of their mobile release of the far more graphically advanced (and, in many ways, more modern player friendly) Dragon Quest VIII, giving hope that this may signal the beginning of a series of ports of the rest of the games similar to what was done with the Final Fantasy series.
Dragon Quest is available right now on both iOS and Android platforms, and for once in their time releasing mobile versions of their classic RPGs Square Enix has given us an excellent price point of only $2.99 (or, for those old-school gamers out there, the same price as a beat up cart-only copy of the game for the NES,) making this one of if not the most affordable releases the company has brought to mobile to date.