Hero of Alefgard! A support thread in honor of Dragon Quest's 30th Anniversary!

[shinhed-echi]

1.- Who is Hero?

Hero, in the original Dragon Quest is a descendent of Erdrick, the legendary hero, whom it's said vanquished a great evil in the past.
The king of Tatangel castle, summons Hero to his court, requesting him to slay the Dragonlord, the new evil threatening to plunge the land of Alefgard in darkness.



2.a.- Why must it be considered?

Rather than WHY he must be considered, the more pressing question should be, HOW hasn't he been considered?

Dragon Quest is absolutely HUGE in Japan, and it's (finally) starting to rub off here in the west, with the coming of the much anticipated Dragon Quest XI. In Japan, It's basically close to a religion. It has cafes, museums, and even got a place for the 30th anniversary onside Universal Studios Japan.
Dragon Quest is the foundation for all jRPGs that came after, and it's nostalgic to a lot of people. It's basically part of the culture in one way or another. (I might be making this up, but I feel Dragon Quest was responsible for getting most of the 1/4th Japanese population a Nintendo DS owner when the 9th game came out).

The universe of Dragon Quest is just SO RICH.

It's relevance to Nintendo is jaw dropping.
Every main title has been released on a Nintendo console.
And most of the spinoffs have releases on Nintendo system as well.

(Dragon Quest crossovers & cameos with Nintendo IPs).

Spoiler

(text reads: Here lies Roto, which is Erdrick's name in Japanese)

The Nintendo Switch is getting a lot of Dragon Quest games as well.
XI, Heroes 1+2, and Itadaki Street DQxFF, and now, the once exclusive DQ Builders is also coming to Switch.

The hero protagonist also has SO many abilities to choose from, wether they are weapon based skills, or magic.

Also, Dragon Quest is made by absolute masterminds.
With the soothing and epic symphonic tunes of Koiichi Sugiyama.
Or the vibrant and legendary designs of Akira Toriyama.
Dragon Quest provides absolute audio and visual extacy, different from what is currently seen in the game.


NEW INFO
Dragon Quest XI took Japan by storm, as sales were an all time high.
The estimated sales number was 2 million in the first 3 days. And somewhere around 2.3 million in the first week.
It outsold Breath of the Wild (by far), and Pokemon Sun and Moon.

Now, my interpretation of Dragon Quest chances of making its way to Smash Bros. is that the series is SO BIG. Like MASSIVE in Japan, that it will be impossible to ignore this time.

Sources:
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/big-in-japan-dragon-quest-ix-dominates-charts/1100-6213582/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6ZfJFr7Wfw

(Oh, and also, Masahiro Sakurai, and Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii have gotten together in an interview back in 2016, so take that as you will!)

Source:
https://gematsu.com/2016/08/dragon-...imultaneous-launch-ps4-3ds-versions-suggested



2.b Why not Slime?

While slime is undoubtedly the face of Dragon Quest. I feel it wouldn't properly represent the extent of the RPG grandfather, like the main protagonist would. That doesn't mean Slime can't make a cameo or two in his moveset.



3.- The spot

The Hero would go for the 3rd party spot. And that would just be underestimating his importance.
Seriously, Dragon Quest has done SO MUCH for Nintendo, it would be ridiculous to not consider the franchise part of the family.

The Hero is, pretty much, a Nintendo icon. Although not precisely the most recognized protagonist, it would be a crime against the seniority of Dragon Quest not to have the original Hero be the first to be considered.

Dragon Quest turned 30 YEARS OLD this year! And has graced Nintendo Systems ever since!

Although there's already Cloud "representing" Square-Enix, Capcom already proved that there's no such a thing as a single spot per 3rd party. Especially if you're talking about humongous franchises like Megaman, Street Fighter, Final Fantasy, and Dragon Quest.


4.a.- Moveset background

Don't let the fact that Hero wielding a sword fool you.
He's not just a sword fighter. Among the weapons he has carried, there's:
Sword, Axe, Lance, Knife, Fist, Hammer, Staff, Boomerang, Mace, and magical items he can use mid battle.
And has a plethora of skills for each one of them!

Hero is also a decent magic user. Able to cast Fire spells, Healing spells, Teleport spells (but to properly represent the whole series, I'll be including skills from the many protagonists throughout the years).

And even if he did wield just a sword, Dragon Quest has one of the most iconic swords in gaming. Erdrick's Sword! (Or Sword of Loto, depending on your name nationality preferance to the legendary hero).



4.2 MOVESET

Colors / Costumes

Moveset in text

Spoiler

GROUND ATTACKS
A: Attack (single sword slash)
AA: Falcon Slash (Two strikes with a single sword)

Ftilt: Flying Knee (short dash attack)
Dtilt: Leg sweep (trips opponent)
Utilt: Roundhouse kick (wide hitbox)
Dash attack: Toxic Dagger (attack may inflict poison for a short while).

Fsmash: Fire slash (fiery slash with good knockback)
Dsmash: Kacrackle slash (stalagtites of ice grow from the ground when the sword is thrusted to the ground)
Usmash: Lightning slash (an overhead electrical slash)

-
AIR ATTACKS:
Nair: Sandman's Arrow (a bow+arrow attack that has a 5% chance of putting the enemy to sleep).
Fair: Magma Staff (slow fireballs shoot from the tip of the staff. If the tip connects with opponent, he/she is spiked)
Dair: Split helm axe (an instant falling attack which eats up a lot of shield)
Bair: Mercury Thrust (a Frame-1 spear attack that has a little cooldown, but has good KB at the tip)
Uair: Morning Star (wide hitbox over Hero's head)

-
SPECIALS:
Gimmick: MP Bar.
The Hero uses an MP system where his B specials cast Magic spells that decrease the MP bar. By moving around, the Hero recovers MP over time.

B: Magic Menu (brings up a small menu of magic spells)
-Frizz (2mp) (concentrated fireball with relative good knockback)
-Sizz (3mp) (ground fire attack that racks up % but no knockback)
-Crack (4mp) (blast of ice which may freeze opponent for a split second)
-Crackle (5mp) (large blast of ice with good knockback)
-Woosh (6mp) (weak attack with a windbox that sends diagonally upward)
-Zap (7mp) (medium strong attack which hits around The Hero. Average knockback)

B Tilt: Boomerang (throws a fast boomerang that penetrates through multiple opponents, and may hit twice. Little KB)

B Up: Chimera Wing (teleport recovery)

B Down: Psyche Up (powers up next ground attack or special attack)
- Tension 5 (+5%)
- Tension 20 (+10%)
- Tension 50 (+20%)
- Tension 100 (+30%)

-
GRABS:
Z: Whiplash (Grab)
Zair: Serpent's Bite (tether recovery and deals damage to opponent)
ZA: Multifists (attacks rapidly with fists)
Zup: Shove (strong blow upwards) *killthrow 1*
Zdown: Stomp (fierce stomp that racks good damage)
Zfront: Knuckle sandwich (a devastating straight punch with high kill power) *killthrow 2*
Zback: Wind sickles (throws opponent backward, and cuts him/her in midair with a sharp shockwave of wind)


EXTRAS:
Taunt Up: Slime climbs up Hero's back and starts bopping on his head
Taunt Side: Hero victory pose (DQ8)
Taunt Down: Cross arms looks worried. (A classic Toriyama gag)

Graphic moveset in spoiler (huge image)

Spoiler

FINAL SMASH:
Whistle

The Hero performs a loud whistle (visually performs a circular sound shockwave) opponents caught in the soundwave will get run over by an army of monsters from the Dragon Quest series.


Stage:
Dragonlord's Catle

Victory Theme

MUSIC:
Battle DQ1

Battle DQ3

Hope this character (and this franchise) gets lots of support!
It's my current obsession, so let me share one piece of awesomeness!

 

[shinhed-echi]

Welcome to Patty's Party Planning Place

The place to gather p̶a̶r̶t̶y̶ ̶m̶e̶m̶b̶e̶r̶s̶ supporters!
​

Spoiler

Basty
Amberloo
WhiteEaglePL
RealLuigisWearPink
Caryslan
Blue_Sword_Edge
MasterWarlord
Oddball
Mr.J
AustarusIV
slambros
PSIguy89




Hidden Character:
Arcadenik (?)
​

​

 

[Oddball]

I'm all for a Dragon Quest character. Personally though, I'd use this design

Spoiler

To avoid the Erdrick/Loto issue, I wonder if just calling the character "Dragon Warrior" would work.

 

[Basty]

Huge square fanboy, so I'm all for a dragon quest hero!

 

[Oddball]

Dost thou support a hero of Dragon Quest?


But thou must!

 

[shinhed-echi]

I'm all for a Dragon Quest character. Personally though, I'd use this design

Spoiler

To avoid the Erdrick/Loto issue, I wonder if just calling the character "Dragon Warrior" would work.

I guess this is the complete set of Erdrick's Armor? Which, if I'm just going to guess here, I think is used by all 3 protagonists of DQ1-3. (Except maybe DQ2, because if I recall correctly, the split the equipment among all 3 party members).

I'll include this one if I can get to CGI-ify it later on.

As for the name issue, I think we'd get the same deal as characters like Bowser or Rosalina which are named different in Japan.

-
Sweet Captain N avatar, btw. And that was a great chapter in the comics. I once had a support thread for Captain N.
-

Oh, one more thing...

Dost thou support a hero of Dragon Quest?


But thou must!

Can I use this for a support sig?

 

[Oddball]

I guess this is the complete set of Erdrick's Armor? Which, if I'm just going to guess here, I think is used by all 3 protagonists of DQ1-3. (Except maybe DQ2, because if I recall correctly, the split the equipment among all 3 party members).

Yeah, it's Erdrick's armor. I just thought that was a bit more of an iconic look.

Sweet Captain N avatar, btw. And that was a great chapter in the comics. I once had a support thread for Captain N.

I once ran a website for Captain N. He's still my number 1 choice for Smash inclusion.

Can I use this for a support sig?

By all means.

 

[shinhed-echi]

Relevance level up!
Yet another set of DQ games on Nintendo systems.
http://gematsu.com/2017/08/dragon-quest-ii-iii-3ds-first-screenshots-dragon-quest-ps4-gameplay

That's right.

The original trilogy is coming to 3DS (and PS4). At the moment, this is just in Japan, but considering these are ports of the mobile versions, these are already translated so they're most likely coming to the west.

This is great news for Nintendo players, now you can play every DQ main game on 3DS. (1~9... maybe 10 if you're into homebrew or gave a Japanese 3DS).

And apparently, if players beat Dragon Quest XI, they can cast a spell and unlock Dragon Quest 1 for free!

Also. I've researched a bit on Sakurai's stance on DQ, but I haven't found much.

Only that he defended DQX for being online.

And sharing an interview with Yuji Horii talking about developing a single game for both console and handheld (Super Smash Bros. And Dragon Quest XI).


It's great to see that they're no strangers to each other.

 

[Amberloo]

Heh, I was actually considering some time back doing a support thread for Erdrick/Loto. Dragon Quest representation in Smash is looooong overdue considering its popularity in Japan. If I had to rank the heroes based on which I'd like to get in, it'd probably go:

1. Erdrick
2. Solo/Sofia
3. DQ8's Hero

Having another mage knight type character would be nice (since Robin is sort of the only other one).

 

[Wolfie557]

Hero has so many ways it can work. I'd absolutely love a DQ character I don't even mind whether its Hero or Slime or both in one way or another.

Btw Slime was in Mario Sports Mix.

DQ9 was my first and still only DQ game and Ive beat it 3 times and a half.

Square took way too long for DQ7&8 Localisation since by that point I stopped buying 3DS games and lost interest.

I'm determined to get DQ11 when I get a Switch tho.

 

[RealLuigisWearPink]

I came in skeptical of anything Square that isn't classical FF, but you convinced me thoroughly! I'm a sucker for Nintendo-important third parties. I support!

 

[shinhed-echi]

Heh, I was actually considering some time back doing a support thread for Erdrick/Loto. Dragon Quest representation in Smash is looooong overdue considering its popularity in Japan. If I had to rank the heroes based on which I'd like to get in, it'd probably go:

1. Erdrick
2. Solo/Sofia
3. DQ8's Hero

Having another mage knight type character would be nice (since Robin is sort of the only other one).

Erdrick is a great choice too. I had a feeling I should have done him/her instead. But I don´t know, I like DQ1 protagonist's design a lot. And those are my top 3 choices as well! I just went for DQ1 Hero for being the first game.

Hero has so many ways it can work. I'd absolutely love a DQ character I don't even mind whether its Hero or Slime or both in one way or another.

Btw Slime was in Mario Sports Mix.

DQ9 was my first and still only DQ game and Ive beat it 3 times and a half.

Square took way too long for DQ7&8 Localisation since by that point I stopped buying 3DS games and lost interest.

I'm determined to get DQ11 when I get a Switch tho.

Yeah, he has quite a lot to work with. And even if we oversee hero, and go straight for the more popular friends of the heroes, there's quite a lot to choose from! Terry, and Alena are the first to come to mind. Then there's Torneko who has to be the most popular of all. And of course there's also the monsters, or the heroes from the Monster spinoffs!

Mine was DQ8, but I didn't quite appreciate DQ back then. I started adoring the series since I played the SFC version of DQ3. That's when I got obsessed!

I'm most definitely planning on getting DQXI as well, and it's most likely going to be the Switch version. (And maybe the 3DS one as well).

-

I came in skeptical of anything Square that isn't classical FF, but you convinced me thoroughly! I'm a sucker for Nintendo-important third parties. I support!

Oh! Glad to have you on board!
Yeah, it may not seem like so here in the west, but Dragon Quest and Nintendo have an extremely close relation.
And the crossovers just won't stop coming. Nor will the exclusive Nintendo titles. I think the most recent one to come out was a sequel to Rocket Slime (in Japan, of course).

 

[Amberloo]

Erdrick is a great choice too. I had a feeling I should have done him/her instead. But I don´t know, I like DQ1 protagonist's design a lot. And those are my top 3 choices as well! I just went for DQ1 Hero for being the first game.

To be fair, I just say Erdrick not just because they're the legendary hero of the trilogy, but also for simplicity's sake, because at the end of it all, their armor is well, the exact armor that the protagonist of DQ1 wears anyway, so they pretty much look the same and it would let them have an actual name in the roster. On top of that, DQ1 may be the granddad of RPGs, but DQ3 was the one that got a ton of people to skip work and school in Japan.

 

[Oddball]

On top of that, DQ1 may be the granddad of RPGs, but DQ3 was the one that got a ton of people to skip work and school in Japan.

Yes, but Dragon Quest 1 (or Dragon Warrior as we knew it at the time) was the one given away FREE when you subscribed to Nintendo Power.

 

[Arcadenik]

Yes, but Dragon Quest 1 (or Dragon Warrior as we knew it at the time) was the one given away FREE when you subscribed to Nintendo Power.

Ahh. I wish I knew that when Nintendo Power first came out. My first issue was #13. That's the Super Mario Bros. 3 issue. I subscribed after #28. That's the Super Mario World issue. I was obsessed with Mario at that age.

Nintendo and Square Enix need to work together and release Dragon Warrior 1-4 on Virtual Console.

 

[shinhed-echi]

Ahh. I wish I knew that when Nintendo Power first came out. My first issue was #13. That's the Super Mario Bros. 3 issue. I subscribed after #28. That's the Super Mario World issue. I was obsessed with Mario at that age.

Nintendo and Square Enix need to work together and release Dragon Warrior 1-4 on Virtual Console.

I take it you mean the original nes versions?
Because the mobile remasters (1~3) are coming to 3DS, not in VC format though.

 

[Arcadenik]

What do you mean, mobile remasters? You mean mobile phone versions?

 

[Caryslan]

While I understand Cloud got the nod due to him pretty much-printing money, he has barely any ties to Nintendo consoles and is the star of Final Fantasy VII, the game that singled the series' jump from Nintendo's systems to the Playstation and ended up being a massive success that was one of the major factors behind the Playstation defeating the Nintendo 64.

So, while I get that Cloud is iconic, popular, and prints money in a way that other Final Fantasy characters can't, it's still a bitter irony to have him being on the roster of a Nintendo all-star fighting game that represents Nintendo's history when he's pretty much the face of Squre Soft and Nintendo's bitter divorce back in the 90s.

Now, this is not a Cloud bashing comment. I get why he's in, and I have no problem with him being in Smash 4. I even hope he comes back.

But the fact is, we don't have anything right now that represents Square Enix's work on Nintendo platforms.

Dragon Quest is a series that fits that bill perfectly. Barring Dragon Quest VII and VIII, all of the Dragon Quest games have debuted on Nintendo platforms, and even Dragon Quest VII and VIII found their way home on the 3DS. That's not even getting into spin-offs and remakes for countless Nintendo platforms.

Compare that to Final Fantasy, which has had a limited at best presence on Nintendo's platforms since the SNES. Most of the new Final Fantasy games on Nintendo platforms during that time have been spin-offs or remakes of the older pre-FFVII games. Final Fantasy VII-XV still have not debuted on Nintendo platforms even to this day.

But its more than just about ties to Nintendo. Dragon Quest laid the foundation for RPGs on home consoles, and even to this day, its influence can be felt. More directly, you can see Dragon Quest's influence on Mother with the battle screen looking like one from Dragon Quest, roughly similar commands, etc. Its most obvious in the first Earth Bound, but the influence is there, and that is not the only series. Other franchises like Phantasy Star and even Final Fantasy owe a lot to Dragon Quest.

So, I think Dragon Quest is the perfect series to join Smash. The franchise is iconic, there are countless games to draw content from, and it's a rich universe that offers a lot to Smash.

As for the hero being the fighter to represent the series, I agree with this. Because of the job system in later Dragon Quest games, there is no limit to what the hero is capable of in terms of abilities and power. As for which hero, I think the costume swap being all the main heroes of Dragon Quest is the best idea. Not only does it honor each game, but fans can pick from their favorite hero to play as.

As for the Slime? He gets in as an assist trophy with Blue, Red, and Metal Variants.

 

[RealLuigisWearPink]

Any ideas for Dragon Quest stages? I was thinking something like the battle screen, and random enemies from the games attack you

 

[shinhed-echi]

While I understand Cloud got the nod due to him pretty much-printing money, he has barely any ties to Nintendo consoles and is the star of Final Fantasy VII, the game that singled the series' jump from Nintendo's systems to the Playstation and ended up being a massive success that was one of the major factors behind the Playstation defeating the Nintendo 64.

So, while I get that Cloud is iconic, popular, and prints money in a way that other Final Fantasy characters can't, it's still a bitter irony to have him being on the roster of a Nintendo all-star fighting game that represents Nintendo's history when he's pretty much the face of Squre Soft and Nintendo's bitter divorce back in the 90s.

Now, this is not a Cloud bashing comment. I get why he's in, and I have no problem with him being in Smash 4. I even hope he comes back.

But the fact is, we don't have anything right now that represents Square Enix's work on Nintendo platforms.

Dragon Quest is a series that fits that bill perfectly. Barring Dragon Quest VII and VIII, all of the Dragon Quest games have debuted on Nintendo platforms, and even Dragon Quest VII and VIII found their way home on the 3DS. That's not even getting into spin-offs and remakes for countless Nintendo platforms.

Compare that to Final Fantasy, which has had a limited at best presence on Nintendo's platforms since the SNES. Most of the new Final Fantasy games on Nintendo platforms during that time have been spin-offs or remakes of the older pre-FFVII games. Final Fantasy VII-XV still have not debuted on Nintendo platforms even to this day.

But its more than just about ties to Nintendo. Dragon Quest laid the foundation for RPGs on home consoles, and even to this day, its influence can be felt. More directly, you can see Dragon Quest's influence on Mother with the battle screen looking like one from Dragon Quest, roughly similar commands, etc. Its most obvious in the first Earth Bound, but the influence is there, and that is not the only series. Other franchises like Phantasy Star and even Final Fantasy owe a lot to Dragon Quest.

So, I think Dragon Quest is the perfect series to join Smash. The franchise is iconic, there are countless games to draw content from, and it's a rich universe that offers a lot to Smash.

As for the hero being the fighter to represent the series, I agree with this. Because of the job system in later Dragon Quest games, there is no limit to what the hero is capable of in terms of abilities and power. As for which hero, I think the costume swap being all the main heroes of Dragon Quest is the best idea. Not only does it honor each game, but fans can pick from their favorite hero to play as.

As for the Slime? He gets in as an assist trophy with Blue, Red, and Metal Variants.

Thanks for a long well thought post. Glad to see the thread is picking up!

And yes, Dragon Quest's ties to Nintendo should automatically give the franchise a place in Smash Bros, because the support is unlike any other 3rd party I've ever seen! Dragon Quest and Nintendo both made history together, therefore, they really should consider ignoring the whole "familiarity" issue (Sakurai wanting to include characters that are familiar worldwide), and just go with the iconic japanese RPG megafranchise. The west will appreciate it later, as they did with FE.
Doesn't matter if Cloud is already in.

Any ideas for Dragon Quest stages? I was thinking something like the battle screen, and random enemies from the games attack you

I have thought of a few.

First there's Dragonlord Castle, which is... pretty standard. You fight on his castle, treat yourself to a few monster cameos in the background, Dragonlord is watching the fight, but if you wreck his castle too much, he transforms into his dragon form and starts breathing fire everywhere. This one's a staple in the Erdrick Trilogy. Where 2 of the trilogy's games end.

Second: Zenithia Castle:
A staple of the 2nd trilogy (DQ 4, 5, and 6).
This castle can fly, and travel the skies. So the scenery will be a sight to behold. Maybe it could even span the times of all 3 games it represents, perhaps even getting to see some of the supporting cast members of each game in key moments of the story while you fight it out.

Third: Empyrea / Ramia
The huge legendary bird from DQ 3 and DQ 8.
You fight atop this constantly moving stage (wings slowly flapping up and down, so edge guarding will be tricky), as you circle around the world. If it's based on the world of DQ 8, then ocassionally you'll fly across Rapthorne who'll just be laughing manically, trying to shoot you down. (This won't be a real hazard, but will make Empyrea move sharply to avoid the beams, so expect the stage to tilt a lot in this part).

What do you mean, mobile remasters? You mean mobile phone versions?

Oops, yes. I meant mobile versions. (I got the word "remasters" as word-predict in my mind). But they have slightly better graphics, which is why I use the word remaster in this case a little more loosely.

 

[Blue_Sword_Edge]

I can get behind this Hero from the first game. I think Dragon Quest should have a playable fighter.

 

[Wolfie557]

I really want Lara Croft and Hero to make it in and having multiple heroes as costume swaps is definitely the way to go imo.

Idc who's DLC and who's base game haha tho I think Hero in base game would make more sense...or both. (with cloud still in )

 

[shinhed-echi]

Just a heads up.
This awesome looking game is coming to the Switch, and the Demo is already available!
This title is extremely closely tied with Dragon Quest 1, not gonna spoil how.
Hoping this boosts a DQ character's chances for Smash on Switch too!

The whole land of Alefgard would make a pretty cool stage.

 

[MasterWarlord]

Dragon Quest definitely makes a lot more sense to get a character than Final Fantasy, and I'm one of the rare few Westerners who heavily prefers the franchise to FF. Akira Toriyama's designs work a lot better for Dragon Quest than Dragonball, as he can let loose and go wild the monster designs more, without an editor to tell him Dr. Gero wasn't cool enough or whatever.

I also am really glad to see a thread supporting the Dragon Quest main character instead of Slime. Seriously, Slime does nothing and has a very minor role in the game. People also always want to make the basic generic Slime playable, when Metal Slime and Healslime are the memorable ones to anybody who actually played the games. The majority of people who want Slime seem to just be people who want to throw a token "Dragon Quest representative" and just jumping on what's been said before.

Any hero from Dragon Quest would work, but my personal pick is Dragon Quest 8. It was remade on a Nintendo console recently, and that's the game that brought the series to the west and thus the game most people know. I would argue it's the highest general quality/budget game in the series.

Going a bit farther, I think Yangus would be an ideal represenative just because he has actual personality, and is there from the start of the game anyway. As far as I'm concerned he's basically the hero, and he's had spinoff games with his name in the title.

I made an elaborate moveset for Yangus featuring monster summons, since he's the one in DQ8 that actually gets the Whistle ability. Whether or not you support Yangus specifically, something like this could work for whatever Dragon Quest hero representative if slightly less fitting. In contrast to the usual moveset that summons minions, to help balance things here the monsters are still hostile to Yangus so he has to play around that and can't just mindlessly summon an army.

As far as stages, the franchise has tons of potential for those if you actually take from the varied locations in the series. Hopefully we get a specific location instead of a general stage like what was given to Fire Emblem.

5: Crocodilopolis, Bjørn the Behemoose stage
6: Gracos' undersea palace, Gallows Moor, Murdaw's dream world, Zenithia Castle
8: Godbird stage (as suggested earlier in the thread), Rydon's tower, Mole Hole, Arcadia (Evil Jessica/Leopold stage)

 

[shinhed-echi]

Dragon Quest definitely makes a lot more sense to get a character than Final Fantasy, and I'm one of the rare few Westerners who heavily prefers the franchise to FF. Akira Toriyama's designs work a lot better for Dragon Quest than Dragonball, as he can let loose and go wild the monster designs more, without an editor to tell him Dr. Gero wasn't cool enough or whatever.

I also am really glad to see a thread supporting the Dragon Quest main character instead of Slime. Seriously, Slime does nothing and has a very minor role in the game. People also always want to make the basic generic Slime playable, when Metal Slime and Healslime are the memorable ones to anybody who actually played the games. The majority of people who want Slime seem to just be people who want to throw a token "Dragon Quest representative" and just jumping on what's been said before.

Any hero from Dragon Quest would work, but my personal pick is Dragon Quest 8. It was remade on a Nintendo console recently, and that's the game that brought the series to the west and thus the game most people know. I would argue it's the highest general quality/budget game in the series.

Going a bit farther, I think Yangus would be an ideal represenative just because he has actual personality, and is there from the start of the game anyway. As far as I'm concerned he's basically the hero, and he's had spinoff games with his name in the title.

I made an elaborate moveset for Yangus featuring monster summons, since he's the one in DQ8 that actually gets the Whistle ability. Whether or not you support Yangus specifically, something like this could work for whatever Dragon Quest hero representative if slightly less fitting. In contrast to the usual moveset that summons minions, to help balance things here the monsters are still hostile to Yangus so he has to play around that and can't just mindlessly summon an army.

As far as stages, the franchise has tons of potential for those if you actually take from the varied locations in the series. Hopefully we get a specific location instead of a general stage like what was given to Fire Emblem.

5: Crocodilopolis, Bjørn the Behemoose stage
6: Gracos' undersea palace, Gallows Moor, Murdaw's dream world, Zenithia Castle
8: Godbird stage (as suggested earlier in the thread), Rydon's tower, Mole Hole, Arcadia (Evil Jessica/Leopold stage)

Hey! Glad to have another supporter! Welcome aboard!

It's always nice to find another person that knows his DQ!

I laughed at that bit about Dr.Gero, because I recently knew about this, and you're right. Monsters are in a league of their own. But I do love Toriyama's work. I WANT his art style in Smash real bad!
But I find the series as a whole to (no pun intended) ooze charm. A kind of Nintendo-like charm, if you know what I mean.

Which is why it's puzzling to me as to why there still isn't a DQ character. I mean, yes, Square-Enix can be quite stingy when it comes to representing their property in other games/media, but hey, they went with Cloud, might as well go the extra mile and push a DQ character to, you know, boost interest in the series and make sure DQXI does extremely well in the west!

There was already another thread about Eight, but I did include him as an alt.costume, because... I love almost all protagonists evenly. I was down to either Hero or Erdrick, but I went with Hero because he started it all.

As much as I love the sidekick characters, I think they have their moments to shine in pretty much the majority of DQ spinoffs. Itadaki Street, DQ Heroes, etc, but that's understandable since they can actually speak, unlike the protagonists. Smash is perfect, because there are lots of silent protagonists (Link, Little Mac, Mario, etc) so any of the main heroes from DQ would fit right in.

(but yeah, sorry Slime. I like you, but I prefer a human character protagonist, which is what DQ is all about).

 

[shinhed-echi]

There is now a release date for Dragon Quest XI for the west.

September 11 is when the game will release for PC/PS4.

Sadly, no specific news on when it'll be released for Switch, although they confirmed it will at some point in 2019.
Even sadder is that we're not getting the 3DS version.

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/dragon-quest-11-release-date-confirmed-for-ps4-pc/1100-6457749/

 

[shinhed-echi]

Excuse my triple posting, but I thought I had included this juicy piece of information before, but I ultimately forgot.

Apparently there was a round table interview between Masahiro Sakurai (SSB) and Yuji Horii (DQ) where the latter shared information about the making of DQXI for 2 systems.
Sakurai weighs in a bit, having gone through a similar experience with SSB4.

Source:
https://gematsu.com/2016/08/dragon-...imultaneous-launch-ps4-3ds-versions-suggested.

...they've met before, and only 2 years ago!

I'm now refraining from quadruple posting. (Unless something DQxSSB related is revealed).

 

[AustarusIV]

While I wouldn't mind seeing DQI's Hero playable, I stand by the belief that if we were to get a DQ fighter in Smash, it would be Erdrick. His game was to DQ the same way FF7 was to the FF series, it serves as an iconic and important landmark in the franchise that elevated it from being a merely popular game series to being the mega-monster success franchise it currently is today (at least in Japan). There's also the added possibility of switching between male and female Erdrick in alt costumes, which I approve of.

Now then, I made this UI mockup of what the DQI Hero would possibly have in Smash, taking the series logo directly from the original Japanese box art.

So yeah, count me in as someone else who'd love to see some DQ content.

 

[slambros]

I absolutely support this.

 

[shinhed-echi]

While I wouldn't mind seeing DQI's Hero playable, I stand by the belief that if we were to get a DQ fighter in Smash, it would be Erdrick. His game was to DQ the same way FF7 was to the FF series, it serves as an iconic and important landmark in the franchise that elevated it from being a merely popular game series to being the mega-monster success franchise it currently is today (at least in Japan). There's also the added possibility of switching between male and female Erdrick in alt costumes, which I approve of.

Now then, I made this UI mockup of what the DQI Hero would possibly have in Smash, taking the series logo directly from the original Japanese box art.
View attachment 140901

So yeah, count me in as someone else who'd love to see some DQ content.

Awesome!
Sweet art btw!

Also, yeah. For the purpose of a more dramatic "30 Year Dragon Quest anniversary" thread, I went with the character that started the counter. But ideally, yeah, I'd go for either Erdrick (although I try to keep it hush-hush because I consider it a HUGE spoiler... like Empire Strikes Back level of spoiler) or the one I consider to be the Cloud of DQ, mainly because of popularity, Eight!

But really, any DQ protagonist will do for me. And if Sakurai could make every alternate costume, a different protagonist (ala Bowser Jr.) then better!

I even thought of including Blade from DQSwords in there because of his exclusivity to Nintendo... But I'm trying not to tread on Spinoffs. Maybe I could... bump your image up to the main post?

I absolutely support this.

Alright! Welcome to the party!
Real glad to see DQ getting some love!


Also, to anyone seeing this.

We can't deny that Square-Enix, when they DO try, they try big. It's like we're getting Dragon Quest XI DX right of the bat!

 

[PSIguy89]

I can’t support this idea enough!!! The DQ Hero might as well be a ninty character!!! How has DQ not gotten in smash yet?? Also I’m curious, where did that render of the hero you use for the OP come from?

 

[shinhed-echi]

I can’t support this idea enough!!! The DQ Hero might as well be a ninty character!!! How has DQ not gotten in smash yet?? Also I’m curious, where did that render of the hero you use for the OP come from?

Awesome! Welcome to the party!

I have no idea. They've done nothing but pure support for Nintendo.
I mean, sure... like Final Fantasy, they also didn't have their 7th installment with Nintendo consoles in mind... but at least they made up for it by bringing both 7 and 8 to 3DS recently. And the crossovers with Mario and co... Oh well.

The render's origin hails from Dragon Quest Heroes. But I tuned it up so that it ended up looking more faithful to what Akira Toriyama did back then.

I'm using this opportunity to put up a little "fan art" if you can call it that, from Tetsuya Nomura (character designer for FF) congratulating DQXI on its smashing success in Japan.

Now I really, Really, REALLY want a DQ hero in smash... To settle that old dispute between FF and DQ (that I wasn't even aware it was happening back then, lol).

 

[PSIguy89]

thats some awesome art right there!!! im with ya 100% my man. ive been getting totally engrossed in DQ lately, just started playing VIII on my 3DS

 

[Eisendrachen]

...how I missed this, I'll never know.

Still think Erdrick (as opposed to his Descendant) is more likely as the first face this series would get in Smash, followed by Terry (and possibly Lizzie).

 

[PSIguy89]

Come on guys! Let’s keep this thread alive!!! Dragon Quest absolutely belongs in Smash! It’s been around since Zelda and Metroid!

 

[SEGAGameBoy]

Never played it before. But, I'm planning on getting Dragon Quest Heroes for my PS4. I support!

 

[shinhed-echi]

So... my brother has a friend that walks the dog of one of the motion graphic designers over at Bandai-Namco, and he took a quick pic at some not-so early footage.

Spoiler

Any chance of this faring well as a fake leak?

 

[FullMetalSlime]

I'd actually prefer Dragonlord as a playable character since a (more or less) customizable character isn't that recognizable.. It would also fit well with the stage idea of his own castle and would mix the third party roaster since it's ruled only by a series heroes. As his ultimate smash move he might even turn into his dragon form

 

[BluePikmin11]

Topic: Should Dragon Quest XI be a huge success in the West (The game came out today), in the scenario a Dragon Quest character gets chosen for Smash for DLC content, which protagonist do you think will get in? Erdrick or the Hero of DQ11. Sakurai seems to put protagonist that are more well known in the West like Cloud and Lloyd (As a Mii costume), so the DQ11 hero might take priority, but DQ3's importance in gaming history might make Sakurai choose Erdrick over DQ11. What do you guys think?

 

[shinhed-echi]

I honestly believe he would go for DQXI Hero, because he's fresh in everyone's minds, he's been already exposed more, and Square Enix would gladly be more willing to work with him rather than Erdrick (since they proved to be too reluctant to work on Cloud in Smash) for being a present DQ character.
Sakurai tends to favor global appeal as well, and sadly, not a lot of people know who Erdrick is.

On the other hand, Erdrick is iconic as hell in Japan, and DQ content in Smash would mostly appeal to them.

...still... I think he'd go for DQXI hero, for cross marketing purposes, and global appeal.