The latest extension of the “Dragon Quest” series developed by Square Enix “Dragon Quest Treasure Hunting Expedition Team Blue Eyes and Sky Compass” will be released this week. Before the launch, Asian media interviewed the producer of this work Inuzuka Taiichi, he was also the producer of the “Dragon Quest Monster Wonderland” (hereinafter referred to as: DQM) series in the past.
Looking down this time, before the interview started, the producer Inuzuka wrote a paragraph for Chinese-speaking players, and also outlined and described the structure of this game. For players who have been in contact with the “DQ” series, it is worth reading first. Look.
Everyone who is looking forward to (I will be very happy) the release of “Dragon Quest Treasure Hunting Expedition” Chinese-speaking players, I am the producer of this game Inuzuka.
This is the first time for me to launch a localized version of a work in the Chinese-speaking circle. I don’t know which “Dragon Quest” you have played in the past? “Dragon Quest XI”? “Dragon Quest Genesis Little Player”? “DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS”? Or are you a super loyal fan who has played all the way from the first generation of Super Famicom “Dragon Quest”? Or is Dragon Quest Treasure Hunt Expedition your first challenge in the series?
The “Dragon Quest” series is a large-scale RPG with a plot orientation from Japan, and this work “Dragon Quest Treasure Hunting Expedition” is a spin-off work derived from the original “Dragon Quest”. If you were expecting a grand plot like this one, I’m sorry to disappoint you.
“Dragon Quest Treasure Hunting Expedition” is not such a game, but a work that focuses entirely on “treasure hunting” and strives for excellence.
Because it is the story of Camus and Maya in “Dragon Quest XI” when they were young, it is not completely devoid of plot, but the short and powerful teenage stories we prepared are purely to set off the adventure journey of treasure hunting. Elements such as monsters that will become partners, battles, growth systems, and wilderness exploration are all designed to enrich the treasure hunting process.
Disappointed?
Rest assured, this game is fun, albeit a little boastful. If you are interested in “treasure hunting” involuntarily, this game is definitely suitable for you. Although every game will more or less contain the element of “treasure hunting”, but I think this work is only after developing this element to the fullest, so that people find that “treasure hunting” can be such an interesting work.
Another feature of this work──This is a game that can be played freely and easily. The complete opposite of high-performance, high-resolution epics that can be casually opened and played, and then put down when you’re satisfied (of course I don’t want you to put it down!).
All in all, I hope you can muster up the courage to pick up this game.
There must be a treasure hunting life that only belongs to you waiting for you.
The following is the content of this interview:
Q: Why did you choose Camus and Maya as the protagonists of this work?
A: It was originally decided to choose the protagonist from the popular “Dragon Quest 11”, and the most suitable candidates in the combination of a man and a woman are the brother and sister.
In addition, when describing these two characters more in-depth for this work, because they are the characters of “Dragon Quest 11”, rather than adding more unique settings for this work, we pay more attention to not letting “Dragon Quest 11” Fans of Dragon 11 felt conflicted about the premise of depicting the two characters’ childhoods.
Q: Although the stage of this work is in a different world, the two protagonists are both characters from “Dragon Quest 11”. Will there be any content related to “Dragon Quest 11” in the game? Or it doesn’t matter?
A: As far as the timeline is concerned, this work is the plot of “Dragon Quest 11” more than ten years ago, but it is true that apart from these two characters themselves, it will not have more connection with “Dragon Quest 11” .
Q: How many kinds of monsters can be partners in this work?
A: There are more than 70 races.
Q: How long is this game?
A: It only takes about 15 hours to clear the storyline. If you include the elements after completing the customs clearance, it will take about 30 hours. It will take 100 hours to collect all the treasures.
Q: What was the reason for abandoning the turn-based combat at the beginning of the design of this work? Please talk about the action combat design this time?
A: First of all, this work is not considered a new work in the “Monster Wonderland” series, but an independent work, so there is no need to compare it with previous works. The “Monster Wonderland” series mainly uses monsters as the main body to fight. This time, in addition to the monster battle, the protagonist is assisted by a slingshot, so it is different.
But on the whole, this work is for light players.
Q. The currently public “Joint Exploration” has five types known as “Large Leap/Glide/Sprint/Hunting/Search”. Does it mean that the team must have monster partners with these five exploration abilities? One for each, so you don’t get stuck on the way to explore? But you can only take up to three partners on the adventure? And will this limit the player’s mix of monster teammates?
A: This is indeed the case at present, but the design does not require chain exploration to pass the level, so players can still bring the monsters they want.
Q: Why did you choose to launch it on Switch? Is it to take advantage of the unique operating features of the Switch?
A: Originally, during the conception period, it was conceived as a new work of the “Dragon Quest Monster Wonderland” (DQM) series, so Switch was chosen, but the special functions of Switch were not used.
Q: Since it is a new series, will it become a series in the future? Or is it just a single item?
A: Since it is a brand new rumored work, I don’t know how the players’ reaction will be. Therefore, whether it is a sequel or a DLC, it depends on the player’s reaction after it is released.
Q: The producer just mentioned that this work was indeed conceived as a sequel to “DQM” in the conception stage, but how did you think of turning it into a new work?
This work started as a new Dragon Quest work, and then a trial version was made about a year ago, but the finished product was not ideal, so it was decided to use treasure hunting as the theme. Maybe this work still has the shadow of the “DQM” series, but it did become the current game after it was changed to treasure hunting as the main axis.
Q: Will there be a monster synthesis system in this work?
When deciding to become independent from “DQM”, since the game is based on treasure hunting rather than cultivating monsters, it was decided to remove this element.
Q: Will there be cross-platform plans?
A: There is no such plan yet.
Q: What special design does this game have for treasure hunting?
A: Regarding the treasure hunting system, you can find some props from the main story, side story works, and even mobile game works in the game. For example, in “DQ4” Alina once destroyed the wall at that time, there will be a treasure that reminds players of this plot.
In addition, models of the main characters and monsters of the past will also be included in the treasure. Even some of the peripherals actually sold by SE, such as the keyboard of King Slime, etc., of course, the props of the world view of this game will also appear in it.
Q: Do you recommend which monster’s romance skill you must check out?
A: Because only the monsters brought out can use romantic skills, it is equivalent to asking which monster to bring. I always answer that I like all monsters, so I recommend them all.
Q: Will carrying different monsters be of special help in treasure hunting? Will some special monsters behave differently in different maps?
A: It is true that different monsters have different fighting skills, and chain exploration is also different, but it is not mandatory to bring which monster. We hope that bringing different monsters will also give players different feelings, so that the player’s game process will not become unsmooth because of not bringing specific monsters.
Q: How was the point of view produced this time? Especially the Cyclops point of view?
A: Since I don’t use Cyclops very much, I kind of forgot about it. As for the point of view, the monster’s vision is mainly based on the appearance of the monster. For example, Dorachi’s vision is black and white, and the Cyclops is relatively tall. So the field of view will be higher, and it will be more blurred. But we don’t make any viewpoint particularly hard to use.
Q: Will there be a social sharing function that allows players to upload their own images?
A: This work does have such a function, but it cannot be introduced in detail yet. But it is true that you can share personal cards, or you can send monsters to other people’s homes to play, and there are some simple communication functions.
Q: Is there any situation where the price or quality of the same treasure is different after identification? Are there treasures that require special conditions to discover?
A: At the beginning, players will have a team level, and the more treasures they bring back, the team level will also increase, so it is true that the same treasure will increase in value because of different team levels.
Some props can be found repeatedly, and they will have different qualities. There are also some treasures that can only be found once, so they will be treasures of a fixed level. As for whether there are treasures obtained under special conditions, of course there are, such as following the main line to appear, or completing a certain task.
Q: Is there any update plan after release?Like a treasure map or a new monster companion, etc.
A: The current situation is not yet. As mentioned earlier, everything depends on the player’s reaction.
At the end of the interview, producer Taiichi Inuzuka said: “This is the first time that the work I am responsible for will be released in Chinese. I have never had contact with Chinese players in the past, so I am looking forward to the reactions of Chinese players. So if there are players who are interested in Interested in this game, please play it and let us know what you think.”
“Dragon Quest Treasure Hunting Expedition Blue Eyes and Sky Compass” will be available exclusively on Nintendo Switch on December 9th.
