Earlier this month, I finally jumped into Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake on my Switch. Never tried the original, so here’s the scoop: First off, the sprite work blew me away. Seriously, it’s drop-dead gorgeous. But man, does it get grindy! Like slog-through-mud grindy. Either embrace the challenge or flip to the can’t-die “Dracky Mode.” Yeah, I went full Dracky.
Anyway, this all spun from a 25-minute demo of Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake on PS5 at PAX East 2025. Wanted some context for this preview, you know? Can’t lie, mechanics-wise, not a ton to chew on. But conceptually? Now that’s where it gets juicy.
So, picture this: in Dragon Quest I’s demo, I strolled from the first town into open fields and caves. Fought some battles, roamed a bit. Amazing visuals! Those tiny changes, like battling multiple monsters, add a nice layer of complexity to the original. Love it.
Dragon Quest II’s no slouch either. Felt way more like the Dragon Quest III remake. Low camera view, voiced cutscenes—all that jazz. If you’ve played II before, you know it’s kinda divisive. Not entirely the oddball of the series, but tough and quirky. Straddles the line between the grind of Dragon Quest and the vastness of III.
Only spent minutes on it, but if Square Enix buffed up II like they did III (faster battles, more difficulty settings, the whole comfy package), it’s probably the best way to dive into a game that fans have a love-hate thing with.
Now, what grabbed me conceptually was how they made I & II feel like sequels to the III remake from last year. With Erdrick starring in III as a prequel to I & II, this ties it all up nicely. Visuals align with III, plus new content binds the remake trilogy for a seamless III → I → II experience.
Heard from a Square Enix rep that playing the new remakes stacks up to the Dragon Quest III remake’s 30-40 hour playthrough. They lit up when I mentioned turning Dragon Quest II into a smoother ride. Apparently, sprucing up II was a big focus for them.
And here we are—Dragon Quest Day—Square Enix spilled the beans on Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake dropping October 30 (Switch 2 included!). At first glance, they’ve nailed it, just like III. But dig deeper, and Square Enix is clearly aiming high with this one. Worth keeping an eye on.
