Well met, again. I didn’t have enough with
my last article about Dragon Quest, so I wanted to… complement, more or less, what I started last time. This time I’ll focus on the spin-offs.
You know what a spin-off is, right? A product that deviates from what is considered mainline within a series. While they usually have different gameplay from the mainline entries, that’s not always the case (think of the Judgment games from RGG Studios). Another thing to take into account is canonicity: some spin-offs are canon (such as the previously mentioned Judgment games), others aren’t (the Zelda CDi games) and for others it literally doesn’t matter (any Mario game, really). In the case of Dragon Quest,
most games are canon, while for others it’s not important because it’s hard to place them in a timeline.
With that out of the way, I introduce to you: How good is each Dragon Quest game for a beginner? Spin-off edition!
DRAGON WARRIOR MONSTERS 1 & 2
- Recommended platforms: any, but GBC has an official translation.
- Verdict: yes, but with caution.
On this section I’ll talk about particularly about the Monsters games on the GBC. These games are older than dinosaur dirt, and they show on their translations and some of their mechanics. However, they still hold up pretty well, especially the second one. The first one in particular lacks fun or interesting dungeons, but it’s short and sweet. At times you can tell the Pokémon influence. Recommended if you want something like Pokémon that’s not Pokémon on your GBC. Oh, yeah, about the second game: there are two versions, just like in Pokémon. There are no differences aside from the protagonist and exclusive monsters.
REMAKES OF DRAGON WARRIOR MONSTERS 1 & 2
- Recommended platforms: there’s only one platform for each.
- Verdict: yes.
Unlike the HD remake of Dragon Quest III, these remakes are distinct enough that they don’t override the original product. It draws mechanics from the Joker games (which I’ll talk about later) while keeping the setting and the feeling of the GBC games. If you are interested in those two games but are put off by the older aesthetic and mechanics of them, give these ones a try. They weren’t translated officially, but there are fan patches that are quite competent. Oh, yeah, the second one does NOT have two versions, both are contained in the same cartridge. Way to go!
DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS: CARAVAN HEART
- Recommended platforms: GBA
- Verdict: NO!!!
Remember how I said that Dragon Quest II is one of the worst Dragon Quest games? Well, this is the worst one. It sucks badly. I may sound biased, but I don’t know of anyone who played and thought it was even decent. It has good ideas on paper, but they are executed poorly, resulting in an experience that’s more tedious and frustrating than fun. The only thing it’s good for is establishing Dragon Quest VII within the (fan) timeline of Dragon Quest, but you can skip it. Trust me.
DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS: JOKER TRILOGY
- Recommended platforms: there’s only one platform for each.
- Verdict: yes.
This trilogy is a fan favorite of many Dragon Quest gamers because they are solid monster catchers and tend to be the first choice for many. The first one is a bit boring because of its setting, story and (at times) gameplay; the second one takes what the first one did and fixes its problems, and the third one is one of the best monster catchers of all time. The second and third one both have a Professional version that expands the story and includes more monsters, but they don’t have an official translation. The third one doesn’t have an official translation either. Out of these three, I recommend the Professional version of the third one the most. There’s an attempt at an overarching story between them but it doesn’t matter; and they don’t fit in the overall canon either.
DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS: THE DARK PRINCE
- Recommended platforms: any, but I don’t know how functional the Steam version is.
- Verdict: no, much to my dismain.
On normal circumstances I’d recommend this one for starters since the gameplay is similar to the one found in Joker 3 (in fact, I like how it’s executed here more, but I know that many prefer Joker 3). However, the story is, at the same time, a prequel, a re-telling and a what-if of the story of Dragon Quest IV, so I recommend playing that one first (even if this one is much better). If you don’t care about that, however, go for it.
THE SLIME MORI MORI TRILOGY
- Recommended platforms: there’s only one platform for each.
- Verdict: mixed bag.
I only played the second one (which is also the one that has an official translation). It’s short and cute, but absurdly easy, to the point where it gets boring at times. It feels like it was made for little children. The gameplay is composed of two parts: adventure style in the same vein as The Legend of Zelda (but less exciting) and battling tanks (which is the most “exciting” part of the game). It has plenty of nods to Dragon Quest VIII, at least, so you could play it first and enjoy a much better product.
I wouldn’t know about the other ones. The first one doesn’t have a finished translation patch, while the third one has at least one. I THINK the last one is much more interesting than the second one, at least, but I wouldn’t know at the moment. Who knows? Maybe it’s a hidden gem!
THE DRAGON QUEST HEROES DUOLOGY
- Recommended platforms: PS4, Steam. The Switch version has Ragnar McRyan as a playable character, but it’s only in Japanese.
- Verdict: no.
These games are pure fanservice: cool interactions between characters of different mainline games, so if you don’t know the characters you will find it hard to care. The stories of both are boring garbage and the gameplay is inspired by musou but without making you feel a god like in a musou. The second one tries to be more of an action RPG/hack and slash instead of a musou, but you can still feel the influence of the genre. In sum: they are not very good (I do like the second one, though).
THE DRAGON QUEST BUILDERS DUOLOGY
- Recommended platforms: Nintendo Switch for the portable factor, PS4, Steam.
- Verdict: yes.
Like Minecraft? Then you’ll like these games! Probably. The second one in particular is in my top 10 favorite games. It has a long campaign and it’s slow, but it’s worth it because it’s a lot of fun. Also, Malroth is one of the best characters ever. I love him so much. Currently playing through the same one and it feels… lacking, less fun, in comparison to the second one, but it’s still good. You can skip it in favor of the second one, however. That one is much better mechanically. The stories in both are different takes on the ones from Dragon Quest I and II: the first one is a what-if where the Hero takes on the Dragonlord’s offer. The second one is a bit hard to explain without getting into spoilers. At any rate, you don’t really need to play those games to enjoy these ones, as they are more focused on building and unleashing your creativity. Recommended if you want a chill experience!
DRAGON QUEST TREASURES
- Recommended platforms: any.
- Verdict: no.
Just like with the Heroes duology, this one also relies on fanservice to function, but instead of interactions between characters, it’s about collecting statues of characters and moments from Dragon Quest games. The gameplay is unsurprisingly barebones, and the story is somehow worse, but it’s short and somewhat relaxing. Finding the treasures is fairly decent and you’re bound to find every treasure with ease because of how the system works. Only go for this one after beating… all of the mainline games, really. Except perhaps X. It's also a Dragon Quest XI prequel, but it's not very relevant.
INFINITY STRASH: DRAGON QUEST – THE ADVENTURE OF DAI
- Recommended platforms: any.
- Verdict: NO!!
The game itself is already horrible enough, but it’s also disrespectful towards the Dai franchise. The gameplay is as barebones as Treasures’, albeit flashier. The story is, quite literally, a slideshow of the original story presented in the 2020 version of the anime with a small amount of animated cutscenes (which, granted, these are very well done). IT DOESN’T EVEN COVER THE WHOLE STORY! HOW DO YOU MESS UP THIS MUCH? The best part is a dungeon with roguelite elements that you use to powerup your characters and even then it’s not even good.
THE ITADAKI STREET SERIES
- Recommended platforms: any version starting from the PS2 is fine, but I recommend said PS2 version (the one shown above) in particular.
- Verdict: unsure, but it’s good fun.
These games are RPG themed Monopoly: you acquire properties and make other players go bankrupt. The versions present in Sony systems cross over Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy characters, while the versions present in Nintendo systems cross over Dragon Quest and Mario characters. The reason I recommend the PS2 version it’s because it’s the easiest and most fun to play with your friends through emulation (although it doesn’t have a complete English translation, only the most important parts such as menus). Actually, the Wii version is easier to set up but it’s much more boring because it lacks personality and the AI is braindead. Recommended if you want to break friendships easier than with Mario Party.
DRAGON QUEST MOBILE GACHA GAMES
- Recommended platforms: none.
- Verdict: casino time.
Do you know what a gacha game is? The term comes from the Japanese
gachapon machines. You introduce a quarter, and you get a random item from a pool. It’s gambling but less extreme, and at least you guarantee a price every time. Now… how about we ruin that innocuous activity and turn it into capitalism at its finest?
I consider mobile gacha games to be the lowest form of entertainment in history. The gameplay always looks fine on the surface but once you dig in you see that it’s designed to be as predatory as possible to get you to spend money and advance on the story/beat events. They are not fun and are a waste of time. Never mind starting with one of these, if you play these games consistently, you reconsider how you spend your free time. Seriously, don’t bother. I’d be disappointed in you. Do you want me to be disappointed in you? Do you? I don’t even know how many gacha Dragon Quest games are and I don’t care.
MYSTERY DUNGEON GAMES
- Recommended platforms: there’s only one platform for each.
- Verdict: unsure, but leaning towards “no”.
The Mystery Dungeon games are one of the few spin-offs I haven’t tried out, but I know about the genre. Besides the Pokémon games, this genre mainly developed by Chunsoft is known to be hard and punishing, since the games either kick you to the start of a dungeon if you die or even to the beginning of the game (this happens in the Shiren the Wanderer game on the DS, at the very least). I’ll play them at some point, to make sure of it. There are three games about Torneko from Dragon Quest IV and one about Yangus from Dragon Quest VIII. It shouldn’t matter if you play those games first before, but it might be recommended.
Only one of the Torneko games was released outside of Japan (the one on PS1: Torneko – The Last Hope). As for the rest, the first one on the SNES has a fan patch while the third one is currently being translated. The Last Hope has a GBA version, but I’m unsure about its translation status. The Yangus one isn’t being translated because it’s just too hard. A pity.
DRAGON QUEST SWORDS: THE MASKED QUEEN AND THE TOWER OF MIRRORS
- Recommended platforms: Wii only.
- Verdict: unknown.
I haven’t played this one, but just know that it’s a Wii game that uses motion controls. They probably work. Probably. It’s short and the story is unremarkable, that much is certain. Probably a pain in the arse to emulate.
DRAGON QUEST WARS
- Recommended platforms: DSiware only.
- Verdict: no.
This one was developed by Intelligent Systems, the guys who make the Fire Emblem games. Unlike the Fire Emblem games, there’s no fun to be found in this one. There’s no semblant of story, and all you do is control a small variety of monsters in small grids. It’s boring and I didn’t get much far.
THEATHRHYTHM DRAGON QUEST
- Recommended platforms: Nintendo 3DS only.
- Verdict: unsure.
The Theathrythm games are pretty good rhythm games. I played the Final Fantasy one and it’s good, but it gets hard if you’re not good with the genre. The Dragon Quest version is similar, but how much you enjoy it depends on how much you like Koichi Sugiyama’s music. It also lacks an official translation. In fact, I don’t even know if there’s a fan translation, but you probably don’t need it as much. You’re here to play music, after all.
KENSHIN DRAGON QUEST
- Recommended platforms: ???
- Verdict: ???
I couldn’t even tell you what this is. According to Backloggd: "Kenshin Dragon Quest: Yomigaerishi Densetsu no Tsurugi" is an experience game of the Dragon Quest series released in 2003. It is a standalone game console using XaviX technology. The content is an arrangement of the story of the first Dragon Quest, and you use a special Loto sword-shaped controller to slash your enemies. So maybe a Dragon Quest Swords predecessor?
DRAGON QUEST CHAMPIONS
- Recommended platforms: mobile?
- Verdict: most likely not.
I THINK this is a mobile battle royale that was released only in Japan. I don’t know if it’s good, I don’t know if it has gacha elements, I don’t even know if it’s still functioning. Knowing Square Enix’s history, it most likely isn’t.
CONCLUSION
Unlike the mainline games, it’s hard to recommend spin-offs for beginners because they either require knowledge from mainline games or because they are not good. If you want to get something from this, stick to Builders 2 and the monster catching games besides Caravan Heart. Happy questing!
![Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Special [Videos] - IGN](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fassets-prd.ignimgs.com%2F2022%2F05%2F23%2Fitadakistreetspecial-1653322486126.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=542b3b99a5d28b94a8195bf80a0d9de7a858fc77a7aebaeb6a2a69abc025a5ce&ipo=images "Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Special [Videos] - IGN")
I myself only played a few Dragon Quest games. Well the First 3 and 7 Fragments to an extent.
