Are you looking for the best dragon quest game to play? The best dragon quest game series has been around for more than 30 years, and there have been a lot of titles released throughout that time.
With the 35th anniversary of the original best dragon quest game approaching in 2021, there’s no better time to evaluate the best and worst Dragon Quest titles ever made. Unfortunately, the Japan-only MMORPG Dragon Quest X could not be included in this list because it was never published in North America.
Top 12 Best Dragon Quest Games Ranked For Beginners
The most current edition is always the greatest place to start, but that doesn’t imply it’s the best dragon quest game ever.
1. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King
Dragon Quest 8 was originally released on the PlayStation 2, but has now been remastered and is now accessible on the Nintendo 3DS. It was also the first core best dragon quest game series to be released in Europe, so it served as a jumping-off point for many European fans.
It’s the first English-language game to utilize the name Dragon Quest instead of the original Dragon Warrior brand. Dragon Quest 8 debuts the cel-shading technique that would become popular in subsequent RPGs. Players form a group to battle the evil Dhoulmagus, who has cursed Trodain’s realm.
2. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters Of The Chosen
The second entry in the best dragon quest game series is Dragon Quest IV: Chapters Of The Chosen. It stands apart from the rest of the series due to the fact that it divides the game into several distinct chapters. Each of these chapters follows a different group of characters.
Everyone wants to save the planet. This one does manage to bring completely new features not found in the previous three games. It introduces chapter-based storytelling, as well as the casino and numerous AI settings that allow the player to give instructions to their party members without changing characters.
3. Dragon Quest V: Hand Of The Heavenly Bride
The Zenithia Trilogy continues with Dragon Quest V. This game takes the player on an extraordinary three-generation trip through the family’s history. It keeps faithful to the classic RPG that fans of the Dragon Age series have come to expect, but it also adds entirely new concepts that make the game seem more alive than ever before.
There is a fresh new recruiting system in this best dragon quest game that allows you to enlist new monsters, radically changing the way you play. The player may tame various creatures, invite them to join their party, and level them up to help them in battle scenarios. Additionally, you have the ability to make a significant decision that could alter the course of the game.
4. Dragon Quest III: The Seeds Of Salvation
When looking at the series chronologically, The Seeds Of Salvation was the third installment, although it was really supposed to be the first best dragon quest game in the series.
In this game, the player takes on the role of a hero who is on a quest to save the world with the help of a group of friends. Throughout the game, you must travel throughout the planet, stopping at several sites along the route until reaching the archfiend Baramos’ stronghold.
The gameplay features in this game were similar to those in the previous two versions, but it offered a much larger open-world experience. This allowed users to truly wander the environment and experience it on their own.
It also included a day-night cycle, which opened up different branches of characters and missions based on the time of day. It even pioneered the free swap function, which enabled players to switch between characters at their leisure.
5. Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels Of The Starry Skies
The Sentinels Of The Starry Skies was one of the series’ best-selling books. This is largely due to the fact that it was the first game in the Dragon Quest series to feature local multiplayer. The game has many gameplay characteristics with the rest of the Dragon Quest series, but it was purposefully meant to be far more challenging than the others.
In the game, players take on the role of a city guardian who is dispatched to collect holy tree fruits rumored to fulfill wishes. It includes a diverse cast of characters and was one of the first in the series to allow players to customize their own heroes in ways never seen before.
6. Dragon Quest VII: Fragments Of The Forgotten Past
Fragments Of The Forgotten Past is the series’ seventh installment, and it rapidly became one of the series’ best-selling titles. This game is famous for having one of the longest storylines, with a single game lasting over 100 hours. The narrative begins with the protagonist’s father returning home from a fishing expedition with a map piece that proves the earth used to be made up of many distinct continents.
As a result, the game transports the player to the past by transporting them back in time to a period when they were still alive, and the protagonist and his group must save the world in order to reclaim the continents in the present.
This game featured everything that earlier incarnations had in terms of gameplay, but it also included the option to communicate with party characters both inside and outside of combat, which may add another dimension to an already wonderful experience.
7. Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation
All prior games had been produced by Chunsoft, therefore Dragon Quest VI was the first game made by Heartbeat. In 2011, a Nintendo DS remake was published, which is the best way to play this game. With a few minor tweaks, the game uses the same class structure as Dragon Quest III.
The player hero in the sixth game suffers from amnesia and has no idea who he is. Players uncover a fresh discovery about a hidden realm after completing a few tasks.
8. Dragon Quest I
Dragon Quest 1 This is the game that started it all, but for most of its life, it was known in the West as Dragon Warrior. The series was designed by Yuji Horii with the goal of appealing to individuals who had never played a video game before.
In Japan, the best dragon quest game has a password-protected save system, whereas the Western cartridges have a battery-backed save system. For the NES, copies of Dragon Warrior may still be found. If you know how to use an emulator, you may also get the game via ROM sites.
9. Dragon Quest II: Luminaries of the Legendary Line
Dragon Quest II improves on the original game by allowing players to control a larger party, explore more locations, and combat numerous heroes and foes. A completely sailable ship is also included in the game. To make it more exciting than the original game, the fighting was influenced by the popular Wizardry PC game series.
10. Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of the Elusive Age
At the time of writing, the most current installment in the best dragon quest game series is Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of the Elusive Age. It offers an entirely unique experience that differs from all prior RPGs, making it an excellent place to start for new RPG players.
Although the gameplay isn’t exactly an open world, the huge areas and vibrant places are fun to explore. You’ll build a devoted band of allies to assist you in your mission to resurrect The Luminary.
11. Dragon Quest Builders
Dragon Quest Builders differs from the previous games’ typical turn-based RPG combat. Instead, it offers a block-based survival sandbox experience, similar to that of games like Minecraft. Players must protect the planet from classic Dragon Quest dangers in this game, which was initially launched in 2016.
The game takes place in Alefgard, the same world as the first Dragon Quest game. It’s based on a different ending in that game, in which the hero agrees to govern half of the planet. The agreement proved to be a trap, and monsters now dominate the globe. Players are charged with acquiring resources from all around the planet in order to reconstruct the world.
12. Dragon Quest Builders 2
The success of Dragon Quest Builders has prompted the development of a sequel. It is expected to be published in around 2019 or 2020. We do know that the plot will change significantly from that of Dragon Quest Builders. The playable character will be able to flee the grips of evil, according to Square Enix.
You make a new acquaintance after washing ashore on the Isle of Awakening’s beaches. You start on a big quest together in order to gain talents and become a builder capable of defeating the Children of Hargon. Co-op gaming with another player will be a key part of Dragon Quest Builders 2.