The Dragon Quest series has always been known as a colorful series with beautifully animated characters that look as if they come out of a Dragon Ball anime. The series has always been the lighter counter part to Square Enix’s other long running RPG series Final Fantasy. Recently Square Enix ran a Dragon Quest Stream, and the biggest news to come out of it was Dragon Quest XII, but there was one problem that was unusual for the series: it was to have a more mature take compared to previous entries.
As a gamer that hasn’t played a lot of Dragon Quest games, I thought it was weird to make the game more mature. Sure, the games may deal with mature themes, but they have never been dark and gritty: it could work for Final Fantasy though. I don’t know if it was the cartoonish graphics or if the games have always been marketed as kid-friendly, but them taking a mature route doesn’t seem like the right fit for the series. Once again, this is just going by some of the games I’ve seen in the series, especially the spin-offs like Dragon Quest Builders, or even the newly announced game, Dragon Quest Treasures which are clearly marketed toward a younger crowd, not saying those games don’t appeal to adults, but they do have a specific market they’ve been targeting.
Although, this doesn’t mean that a Dragon Quest game with a more mature story wouldn’t be fun to play but is it the right decision to make it a part of the mainline series when for as long as I can remember the mainline series has had a certain look and feel to it? If it was a spin-off, it would make more sense as they are prone to change things up compared to the mainline series. Spin-offs can take more risks without tainting the mainline series for the dedicated fans that may not agree with the change.
As I have said previously, I haven’t played a lot of Dragon Quest, but to think of a mainline game in the series with possibly blood and a dark story just seems so wrong, and I am not even a fan of the series: yet. I do wonder what actual Dragon Quest fans think of this mature take on the series, but for me I think it should have been a spin-off and see how it goes from there, as this could alienate the fans.
What does everyone else think about Dragon Quest XII being a mature game? Let us know in the comments below or on our Discord!
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