Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King is a role-playing video game released in 2004. It was created by Level-5 and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 2. The game first came out in Japan in November 2004, then in North America in November 2005, and in PAL regions in April 2006. This game is the eighth in the Dragon Quest series and the first English version to use the name "Dragon Quest" instead of "Dragon Warrior." A version for Android and iOS devices was released in Japan in 2013 and worldwide in 2014. A version for the Nintendo 3DS was released in Japan in 2015 and globally in 2017.
The game uses a drawing style called cel shading for characters and environments. It is the first Dragon Quest game to feature fully 3D environments and character models. It keeps many elements from the series, such as turn-based battles and a system that tracks character progress through experience levels. The story follows a silent main character and their group of allies as they work to defeat the evil Dhoulmagus, who cursed the kingdom of Trodain and its people. The game was praised by critics and sold well. It is now considered one of the best video games ever made.
Gameplay
Dragon Quest VIII is a role-playing video game where the player controls the Hero in a three-dimensional world. Players can move the camera all around the Hero and view the action from a first-person perspective. This allows players to look closely at people and objects, unlike the top-down view used in earlier games. The game features a single, connected world where towns and dungeons are shown as real places on the map, not as simple icons. Players can travel across large areas to reach full-sized towns and buildings.
Battles happen by chance and are turn-based. When enemies are encountered, the game switches to a battle scene where characters from both sides take turns attacking. These scenes look very different from earlier games in the series but still use a text-based menu system for choosing actions. In previous games, battles were shown from a first-person view. In this game, players choose actions from a first-person view, but the screen then shows all party members and enemies from a third-person view. During battles, each character can attack, use items, or cast magic and skills. A new feature called the "tension system" lets players use the "Psyche Up" command to skip a character's turn and build "tension," making their next attack stronger. Using this command multiple times in a row increases the damage of the attack. Another new feature is the Alchemy Pot, which allows players to mix items to create stronger ones while walking on the world map. There is also a monster capturing feature, but it is not as important to the game as it was in Dragon Quest V. Players may find enemies on the map that can be recruited if defeated and used in the Monster Arena mini-game or during battles.
Characters gain experience points by defeating enemies, which helps them level up and improve their abilities, similar to earlier games in the series. Defeating enemies also gives gold, which can be used to buy items and weapons at in-game shops. Level-5 added a secondary skill development system that lets players customize each character. After characters reach level four, they earn skill points that can be assigned to five different skills: three weapon skills (which vary by character), "fisticuffs," and a special ability unique to each character. Gaining enough skill points in a category can improve a character's weapon strength or teach new abilities and magic spells.
Synopsis
Dragon Quest VIII follows four main characters who join the battle party early in the game. The main hero is an eighteen-year-old royal guard from Trodain. He is the only person in the castle who escaped Dhoulmagus' curse unharmed. The player names him, and he is a balanced fighter who can use swords, spears, boomerangs, and magic. He is immune to all curses, and his special trait is courage. He is joined by Yangus, a former thief who owes the hero a life debt after being saved from a cliff. Yangus is strong and speaks with a Cockney accent in English versions. He uses axes, clubs, and scythes, and his special trait is humanity.
Jessica Albert is the only woman in the party. She is a sorceress from Alexandria who wants to avenge her brother, Alistair. She uses magic and can also wield whips and knives. Her special ability, called "Sex Appeal," can stun enemies. She is the only character who can change her appearance during battles with different costumes, except for one costume for the hero. Angelo is a noble who grew up in a monastery after his parents died from a plague. He is part of the Knights Templar and fights Dhoulmagus after the villain burns his abbey and kills the abbot. Angelo can use both magic and physical attacks, has the most healing spells, and can wield swords, bows, or staffs. His special trait is charisma.
Two non-player characters travel with the heroes: Trode, the cursed king of Trodain who was turned into a toad-like creature by Dhoulmagus; and Medea, his daughter, who was transformed into a horse. Medea is the same age as the hero and has a romantic interest in him. Munchie, the hero’s pet mouse, can be played temporarily under certain conditions. Other important non-player characters include Empyrea, a god-like bird, and Marcello, Angelo’s half-brother and the captain of the Templars.
The antagonist is Dhoulmagus, a jester who steals an ancient scepter from Trodain Castle. He uses the scepter’s power to curse the castle’s inhabitants, turning the king into a troll, the princess into a horse, and others into plants. The only person unaffected is the unnamed hero, a Trodain guard. The hero, King Trode, and Princess Medea begin a quest to find Dhoulmagus and break the curse. They are joined by Yangus, a bandit saved by the hero; Jessica, a mage seeking revenge; and Angelo, a Templar knight who enjoys flirting and gambling.
The group follows Dhoulmagus’ path of destruction, traveling west across the ocean. They eventually kill Dhoulmagus, but the curse remains. Jessica takes the scepter and disappears. Later, she returns, possessed by the scepter, and attacks the group. She reveals that the scepter contains Rhapthorne, a demonic lord imprisoned by seven sages. Rhapthorne seeks to escape by killing the sages’ descendants. After Jessica is freed, the party learns that Rhapthorne, not Dhoulmagus, is the true cause of the curse.
The scepter later controls a magician’s dog, Sir Leopold, who kills one of the sages’ descendants. The party tries to protect the remaining descendants but fails. Marcello, Angelo’s power-hungry half-brother, eventually takes the scepter and kills the last descendant. He temporarily contains Rhapthorne but is later defeated by the party. With the help of Empyrea, the group defeats Rhapthorne. After his death, King Trode, Princess Medea, and the people of Trodain return to normal.
Months later, the hero escorts Medea to Savella Cathedral for her arranged marriage to Prince Charmles of Argonia. Before the ceremony, the hero and Medea escape and live happily together. In an unlockable ending, it is revealed the hero is the lost prince of Argonia, allowing him to marry Medea. In the 3DS version, players can choose to begin a romance with Jessica instead. In the traditional ending, the hero travels the world with Jessica, while in the unlockable ending, he can marry her instead of Medea.
In the 3DS version, two new characters join the battle party: Red, a female bandit and former colleague of Yangus; and Morrie, the owner of an underground monster-fighting arena.
Development and release
Yuji Horii served as the scenario director for Dragon Quest VIII, just as he did for other games in the series. The game’s colorful artwork was created by Akira Toriyama, the artist known for Dragon Ball. Koichi Sugiyama composed the music for the game. Dragon Quest VIII was released in Japan on November 27, 2004, at 6:30 a.m. A celebration took place at a Starbucks in Shibuya, Tokyo. Yuji Horii and Square Enix President Yoichi Wada attended the event. Some of the first customers who bought the game received a toy Slime as a gift.
Before the game’s release in the United States, the "Simon dTOUR Live" Mall Tour featured playable demos at malls across the U.S. from August to October 2005. These free events gave away Dragon Quest merchandise and included live performances. A demo disc for Dragon Quest VIII was also released in Shonen Jump magazine during the fall of 2005. The game was released in North America on November 15, 2005, and included a playable demo of Final Fantasy XII. Changes in the North American version included added voice acting, new animations, improved music and sound effects, additional spells and attacks, and a new menu system. In November 2015, a Nintendo Direct event announced that the game would be released for the 3DS in 2016.
Dragon Quest VIII was the first game in the series to use the name "Dragon Quest" instead of "Dragon Warrior" in North America. This name change occurred because of a legal issue with a role-playing game called DragonQuest, published by Simulation Publications in the 1980s. After the company went bankrupt in 1982, the name was later used as part of Dungeons & Dragons. In 2003, Square Enix registered the "Dragon Quest" trademark in the U.S., making the "Dragon Warrior" name no longer valid. Since this was the first game after 2003 to be released outside Japan, it was the first to use "Quest" in its title.
Unlike the Japanese version, the North American and European versions of the game included voice acting in parts of the story. However, the game still allowed players to name the main character. The voice acting script avoided using the character’s name in some scenes, such as when a character says, "Okay, my boy…" instead of "Okay, Hero, my boy…" The name was sometimes replaced with "guv," a nickname used by a character named Yangus. Unlike earlier games, Dragon Quest VIII had no censorship in its North American version. The English translation was done by Plus Alpha Translations and AltJapan Co., Ltd. Richard Honeywood, a well-known localization specialist from Square Enix, led the translation work. The iOS and Android versions of the game removed voice acting, similar to the original Japanese version due to technical limitations.
Dragon Quest VIII was released in PAL regions (such as Europe) in April 2006 under the title Dragon Quest: The Journey of the Cursed King, removing the Roman numeral "VIII" from the name. This was the first main game in the series to be released in the PAL region. Yuji Horii mentioned that the 2003 merger of Squaresoft and Enix to form Square Enix allowed the company to release games in more regions. Producer Ryutaro Ichimura noted that European audiences had grown more accepting of anime and cartoon-style artwork due to its influence.
As with most Dragon Quest games, Koichi Sugiyama composed the original score. An official soundtrack for Dragon Quest VIII was released in December 2005 by Aniplex. The Japanese version of the game used sequenced music, while the North American and PAL versions included orchestral recordings performed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, with Sugiyama conducting. The 3DS version uses the orchestral recordings from the Japanese version, while the North American and PAL versions use remastered sequenced music. The iOS and Android versions use the original sequenced music from the Japanese PS2 version.
Reception
Dragon Quest VIII was released for the PlayStation 2 in Japan on November 27, 2004. It sold over 2 million copies in two days, more than 3 million in three days, and over 3 million within a week. This made it the fastest-selling PlayStation 2 game in Japan. By September 2008, the game had sold over 4.9 million copies worldwide, with more than 430,000 sold in North America. It was the best-selling PlayStation 2 game in Japan. It was the first Dragon Quest game to receive a score of 39 out of 40 from Famitsu. It won "Best RPG of E3 2005" awards from 1UP.com and GameSpy, beating Kingdom Hearts II. It was nominated for "Role-Playing Game of the Year" at the 9th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards (now called the D.I.C.E. Awards). The iOS version became the second top-selling app on Japan's AppStore in its first half day. The Nintendo 3DS version was nominated for "Handheld/Mobile Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards, "Best Portable Game" at Destructoid's Game of the Year Awards 2017, and "Handheld Game of the Year" at the 21st Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. In 2023, Time Extension listed the game on their "Best JRPGs of All Time" list.
The US version of Dragon Quest VIII received mostly positive reviews, scoring 89 out of 100 on Metacritic. Critics praised its 3D graphics, which were the first in the series to be fully three-dimensional. The simple gameplay, a common feature of the Dragon Quest series, was both criticized and praised by reviewers. Bethany Massimilla of GameSpot noted that the limited number of characters helped keep the game simple and allowed players to connect with the main characters. However, Edge magazine said the game's story felt outdated for 2005.
Most reviewers highlighted the English localization as a strong point. Nich Maragos of 1UP.com praised the British-style humor, though some jokes were too silly for some players. Parkin described the voice acting as a mix of humor from Monty Python and The Princess Bride. Critics also praised the game's world map, calling it as detailed and large as the map in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. IGN writer Jeremy Dunham said the story was basic but still entertaining.
Legacy
Characters from the game have appeared in other Square Enix games. Jessica and Yangus are playable characters in Dragon Quest Heroes. In the sequel, Dragon Quest Heroes II, Jessica is joined by Angelo instead. Dragon Quest Yangus, a roguelike Mystery Dungeon game made by Cavia for the PlayStation 2, tells the story of a young Yangus. It was released in Japan in 2006. Jessica, Angelo, and Yangus also appear alongside other Dragon Quest characters, as well as characters from Final Fantasy and Mario, in games from the Itadaki Street franchise, which is a crossover board game available on multiple platforms. These appearances include Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Portable for the PlayStation Portable, Itadaki Street DS for the Nintendo DS, and Itadaki Street Wii/Fortune Street, an improved version of Itadaki Street DS for the Wii. Characters from Dragon Quest VIII also appear in Dragon Quest IX: Jessica, Angelo, and King Trode are special Wi-Fi guests at the Quester's Rest inn in Stornway. Dhoulmagus and Rhapthorne are optional legacy bosses, and players can wear a "Trodain Royal Guard" costume to dress as the hero from Dragon Quest VIII. The protagonist's outfit was also a free downloadable addition for the hero in Dragon Quest XI through the Champion's Pack. Some songs from Dragon Quest VIII can be played instead of the usual soundtrack in the game.
The protagonist appears as a playable character in the 2018 crossover fighting game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He is one of four Dragon Quest protagonists who share a moveset called "Hero," along with the protagonists of Dragon Quest III, IV, and XI. To help distinguish him from the others, he is also called "Eight." He was chosen because Dragon Quest VIII was the most popular game in the West at the time. The character is voiced by Yuki Kaji. Masahiro Sakurai, the director of Ultimate, said it was a dream of his to provide voices for both Super Smash Bros. and Dragon Quest.