Dragon Quest to retain 3D look in ninth instalment
Creator Yuji Horii wants more 3D in Dragon Quest IX, and it looks like Level 5 could be developing it again.
Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii intends to retain the 3D approach utilised by Level 5 for the series' recent eighth instalment, the veteran developer revealed at a recent seminar in Japan dealing with the game's production.
Prior to Dragon Quest VII, games in the series were rendered using a classic 2D RPG style, but Dragon Quest VIII, released to much fanfare in Japan last November, saw the series move towards an anime-esque 3D look.
In comments reported by GameSpot this week, Horii said, "I want to make it again in 3D. Dragon Quest VIII was well done, but I believe that it's the starting point for more things," having paid tribute to developer Level 5, whose initial prototype for the game seriously impressed him.
Level 5 CEO Akihiro Hino concurred, and also hinted that the team would be working on the inevitably ninth game in the series, stating that it "still has a lot of potential in 3D," and adding that the developer has "a lot of ideas for it," having explained how the team tried to design 3D effects with the existing style and artist Akira Toriyama's character designs in mind.
Earlier this week, Square-Enix reps in the US confirmed that Dragon Quest VIII will appear over there, and yesterday the publisher's UK representatives said they weren't ruling out the game's transition to Europe either.