The hero of Dragon Quest III, Erdrick, joins the battle!

[MasterWarlord]

People are so blissfully unaware of Dragon Quest's cultural significance over here in the West that people are unironically suggesting and predicting characters like Crono over it as the second Square character, which is nothing short of insulting. Even a second Final Fantasy character pales in comparison to what Dragon Quest has to offer. DQ would be a risky bet under normal circumstances, but with a Square character on the horizon, I just hope Dragon Quest can get out of here without being humiliated by a minor character from the company getting in over representing such a wildly successful franchise.

 

[Minik]

I feel like most of the Smash community is sleeping on Erdrick's/Loto's chances.

Smash community wise, people have only ever discussed Slime. He's the face of the series and even none DQ fans know him which honestly is the vast majority of western smash bros fans by far.

 

[GM_3826]

Once again, late, but you have a good point about not adding Geno because it wouldn't get more people to buy the DLC.

 

[shinhed-echi]

Yes, that's been on my mind as well.
Smash fans will buy dlc regardless. But SE has more ways than 1 to win if they go for a DQ character.

I don't know if we're only just getting more exposure to DQ, but Erdrick has been on a roll lately. With DQ Builders based on his saga, DQ11 with it's ties to it, and the manga Emblem of Roto (which is darn good!), Erdrick has been in the center of the spotlight for a while now.

---

I just thought of the perfect item to represent DQ.
I would love to have a cursed weapon. Sword/Axe/Mace, doesn't matter.
The point would be having insane attack power, but drains the heck out of the wielder's life.
I guess it could take the damage % up to 66 or more before letting go! (Or better yet, until wielder gets KO'd).

 

[UberPyro64]

I feel like some of the heroes would make great alts. But there are a few that don't so I don't think that's what they'll do anymore. However, I think there still might be alts involved. Four specifically. Male Erdrick, Female Erdrick, DQVIII's protagonist (still needs a name or title), and the Luminary. Those would make the most sense to me.

 

[Rumble Red]

There are definitely a few who might not fit as alts. DQI's hero doesn't have lightning magic, DQII's hero doesn't have any magic, DQV's hero is deliberately completely different from the hero archetype, and the character from DQV who does fit the archetype is a child, DQVII's hero is smaller than the others (though that's mostly an artstyle thing and he's not actually any younger, it'd be weird to see him scaled up), and DQIX and DQX have totally customizable heroes since they're multiplayer games.

...that'd leave DQIII Hero, DQIII Heroine, DQIV Hero, DQIV Heroine, DQVI Hero, DQVIII Hero and DQXI Hero as 7/8 costumes, with one spare slot for... somebody from Swords or the Heroes games? Does the blonde lady from DQX fit the archetype? I dunno.

I don't think they'd actually go the Koopalings route, but if they did, I feel like they might use the name Luminary for the hero characters cumulatively, not just the one from XI. The way they used the term in the localization of XI felt kind of like a branding move, like SE wanted something unique to be able to call the heroes in marketing and crossovers other than... hero. It's also in the English title of DQII, so XI wasn't the first time Luminary was used that way.

My personal choice to rep DQ in Smash would be the hero from DQV (could they just bite the bullet and call him Madason?), since he doesn't have to be a swordsman, he could incorporate monsters into his moveset, and V is my favourite DQ game, but Erdrick's probably the sensible choice, especially after XI.

 

[Deleted member]

There are definitely a few who might not fit as alts. DQI's hero doesn't have lightning magic, DQII's hero doesn't have any magic, DQV's hero is deliberately completely different from the hero archetype, and the character from DQV who does fit the archetype is a child, DQVII's hero is smaller than the others (though that's mostly an artstyle thing and he's not actually any younger, it'd be weird to see him scaled up), and DQIX and DQX have totally customizable heroes since they're multiplayer games.

...that'd leave DQIII Hero, DQIII Heroine, DQIV Hero, DQIV Heroine, DQVI Hero, DQVIII Hero and DQXI Hero as 7/8 costumes, with one spare slot for... somebody from Swords or the Heroes games? Does the blonde lady from DQX fit the archetype? I dunno.

I don't think they'd actually go the Koopalings route, but if they did, I feel like they might use the name Luminary for the hero characters cumulatively, not just the one from XI. The way they used the term in the localization of XI felt kind of like a branding move, like SE wanted something unique to be able to call the heroes in marketing and crossovers other than... hero. It's also in the English title of DQII, so XI wasn't the first time Luminary was used that way.

My personal choice to rep DQ in Smash would be the hero from DQV (could they just bite the bullet and call him Madason?), since he doesn't have to be a swordsman, he could incorporate monsters into his moveset, and V is my favourite DQ game, but Erdrick's probably the sensible choice, especially after XI.

Honestly giving DQ1's hero thunder magic would be a pretty small liberty so if they did go with that route, probably him

 

[UberPyro64]

Honestly giving DQ1's hero thunder magic would be a pretty small liberty so if they did go with that route, probably him

Yeah, I don't think that's an issue. It's like how they gave Simon some of Richter's moves. The DQ1 Hero would be fine.

 

[Kuon]

I don't think they'd actually go the Koopalings route, but if they did, I feel like they might use the name Luminary for the hero characters cumulatively, not just the one from XI. The way they used the term in the localization of XI felt kind of like a branding move, like SE wanted something unique to be able to call the heroes in marketing and crossovers other than... hero. It's also in the English title of DQII, so XI wasn't the first time Luminary was used that way.

I did not know that the Luminary was a title used for the hero of DQII. Maybe that means when they mentioned the Luminary in the leaks, they were talking about Erdrick and not the DQXI hero

 

[Calane]

My main problem with having most of the heroes as alts is that they'd probably have to give them extremely generic animations (taunts, win poses, etc.) in order to fit them all into one. I would much prefer that they reference official art pictures and things from each of their specific games during such animations.

Like, I'd love to see Eight have a taunt involving Munchie, or have Solo come down on a hot air balloon for his stage intro. I just personally don't like the idea of most of them being alts.

But that's just me.

 

[Kuon]

My main problem with having most of the heroes as alts is that they'd probably have to give them extremely generic animations (taunts, win poses, etc.) in order to fit them all into one. I would much prefer that they reference official art pictures and things from each of their specific games during such animations.

Like, I'd love to see Eight have a taunt involving Munchie, or have Solo come down on a hot air balloon for his stage intro. I just personally don't like the idea of most of them being alts.

But that's just me.

I agree. It does seem like too much time and effort to make seven or eight different alts with different animations and whatnot. It seems more likely just to go with the male Erdrick with the female alt and leave it at that

 

[Rumble Red]

I don't think it'd be a good marketing move either. Better to give newcomers an individual to latch onto, and then ease them in from there. I think spirits of some of the more distinctive party members would do a better job piquing people's interest in this or that game than hero alts would, for a fraction of the work.

I distinctly remember seeing someone post an image of Psaro on Twitter once and a bunch of people getting curious about the series, so it does actually happen sometimes.

I did not know that the Luminary was a title used for the hero of DQII. Maybe that means when they mentioned the Luminary in the leaks, they were talking about Erdrick and not the DQXI hero

It's not used in the game's text as far as I can remember, but the English subtitle of the most current translation is "Luminaries of the Legendary Line", with Luminaries referring to the three heroes, so that's consistent with the way XI uses it. But then Luminary is also the name of the idol singer job in DQ games with a vocation system, so it's all a bit muddled. And none of this even applies in Japanese, it's just a weird translation thing.

 

[Kuon]

I don't think it'd be a good marketing move either. Better to give newcomers an individual to latch onto, and then ease them in from there. I think spirits of some of the more distinctive party members would do a better job piquing people's interest in this or that game than hero alts would, for a fraction of the work.

I distinctly remember seeing someone post an image of Psaro on Twitter once and a bunch of people getting curious about the series, so it does actually happen sometimes.



It's not used in the game's text as far as I can remember, but the English subtitle of the most current translation is "Luminaries of the Legendary Line", with Luminaries referring to the three heroes, so that's consistent with the way XI uses it. But then Luminary is also the name of the idol singer job in DQ games with a vocation system, so it's all a bit muddled. And none of this is even applies in Japanese, it's just a weird translation thing.

So the Luminary title is not a thing in Japan? What do they call them then?

 

[Rumble Red]

So the Luminary title is not a thing in Japan? What do they call them then?

DQXI's hero does have a unique title in Japanese (shujinko as opposed to the usual yuusha), but there's no room for confusion like there is with Luminary. DQII has a completely different subtitle in Japanese that refers to the villains, with no connection to DQXI, and the idol singer vocation from VI, VII, IX and X is called "superstar". I've just been wondering if future English DQ releases might roll with Luminary and start calling all the heroes that, because of the DQII thing and because they expect DQXI to be a lot of people's first DQ game over here. I'm probably off base, though; that new Bring Arts Erdrick figure just calls him "the hero" like usual.

What really stumps me is what stage you'd bundle with a DQ character. A lot of obvious choices like Charlock Castle, Zenithia or a monster arena would be pretty similar in theme to stages that already exist. A casino stage, maybe?

 

[Kuon]

DQXI's hero does have a unique title in Japanese (shujinko as opposed to the usual yuusha), but there's no room for confusion like there is with Luminary. DQII has a completely different subtitle in Japanese that refers to the villains, with no connection to DQXI, and the idol singer vocation from VI, VII, IX and X is called "superstar". I've just been wondering if future English DQ releases might roll with Luminary and start calling all the heroes that, because of the DQII thing and because they expect DQXI to be a lot of people's first DQ game over here. I'm probably off base, though; that new Bring Arts Erdrick figure just calls him "the hero" like usual.

What really stumps me is what stage you'd bundle with a DQ character. A lot of obvious choices like Charlock Castle, Zenithia or a monster arena would be pretty similar in theme to stages that already exist. A casino stage, maybe?

I wouldn't have a clue about stages for DQ since I've only played DQXI. However, it seems like the people here with inside sources are saying conflicting things about which DQ character it could be. One is saying it can't be the Luminary from DQXI since he's too new and Erdrick only makes sense because he's basically the original one (or at least the most popular) and that he's basically what Marth is to Fire Emblem. Someone else is saying that it's likely we'll get Erdrick with the DQXI Lumiary as an alt, and I just hope we get Erdrick male with an Erdrick female alt, because I don't really like the DQXI Luminary. Plus, the rumor that DLC is of characters from before 2014 would not include the DQXI Luminary since DQXI came out in 2017

 

[MajoraMan28]

Add me as a supporter, my dudes. I respect DQ a lot. People need to know about this series.
Criminally underrated in the West.
I'm rooting for Sephiroth and Geno, but I would be 100% fine with Erdrick.
DQ has a home with Nintendo as FF did.

 

[Rumble Red]

I wouldn't have a clue about stages for DQ since I've only played DQXI. However, it seems like the people here with inside sources are saying conflicting things about which DQ character it could be. One is saying it can't be the Luminary from DQXI since he's too new and Erdrick only makes sense because he's basically the original one (or at least the most popular) and that he's basically what Marth is to Fire Emblem. Someone else is saying that it's likely we'll get Erdrick with the DQXI Lumiary as an alt, and I just hope we get Erdrick male with an Erdrick female alt, because I don't really like the DQXI Luminary. Plus, the rumor that DLC is of characters from before 2014 would not include the DQXI Luminary since DQXI came out in 2017

I haven't paid too close attention to the rumor cycle, but I could see that going basically any way, depending on what exactly Square Enix (or Nintendo) wanted to sell. I'd have predicted Erdrick (male and female) with Luminary as an echo if this was the base game, but with DLC, who knows? My ideal would probably be male and female Erdrick with two colours each of the Aliahan clothes and Erdrick's armour, but four costumes is probably more than they'd bother with.

An advantage to using Erdrick without bundling any other heroes in is that you could incorporate the party member classes into his moveset somehow to make it more interesting than just sword + magic. I'd call the party customization the main gimmick of DQIII, and it feels like the kind of thing that would get a nod in Smash.

 

[Kuon]

I haven't paid too close attention to the rumor cycle, but I could see that going basically any way, depending on what exactly Square Enix (or Nintendo) wanted to sell. I'd have predicted Erdrick (male and female) with Luminary as an echo if this was the base game, but with DLC, who knows? My ideal would probably be male and female Erdrick with two colours each of the Aliahan clothes and Erdrick's armour, but four costumes is probably more than they'd bother with.

An advantage to using Erdrick without bundling any other heroes in is that you could incorporate the party member classes into his moveset somehow to make it more interesting than just sword + magic. I'd call the party customization the main gimmick of DQIII, and it feels like the kind of thing that would get a nod in Smash.

As long as we get male and female Erdrick I'm happy. I just love the way female Erdrick looks and really want to play as her

 

[Garteam]

Personally, I would've predicted Eight as Erdrick's echo, seeing how DQVIII is probably the most successful DQ outside of Japan.

 

[Lunacial]

If Erdrick does get in, I don't think they'd have the other heroes as alts. They'd have to do all of them or none of them I think, and there's not enough room to do all of them. I could see Male Erdrick in his normal clothes, and one in his Armour, or both Male Erdrick and Female Erdrick in their normal clothes, like RumbleRed said that'd be too much work.

There are definitely a few who might not fit as alts. DQI's hero doesn't have lightning magic, DQII's hero doesn't have any magic, DQV's hero is deliberately completely different from the hero archetype, and the character from DQV who does fit the archetype is a child, DQVII's hero is smaller than the others (though that's mostly an artstyle thing and he's not actually any younger, it'd be weird to see him scaled up), and DQIX and DQX have totally customizable heroes since they're multiplayer games.

About Dragon Quest 9 and 10 having customizable characters, I don't think that matters, really. Remember that Corrin, Robin, Inkling, and Villager are customizable characters too, and they're in smash as well. You could argue that it's different since they're not just an alt of a character, like the DQ IX and DQ X hero would be, but seeing as they just went for the default for Corrin, Robin, and technically Villager (you get that villager if you choose the first answer to each of Rover's questions on the train, in New Leaf at least.) They'd go with the default for the DQ IX hero and DQ X hero, or just do what they did with Inkling and go with the design that's on the boxart of the game (Unless the default and the ones on the boxart are the same, I haven't gotten to DQ IX yet and DQ X is a Japan exclusive)

Spoiler: Dragon Quest IX boxart

Spoiler: Dragon Quest X Boxart

I just thought of the perfect item to represent DQ.
I would love to have a cursed weapon. Sword/Axe/Mace, doesn't matter.
The point would be having insane attack power, but drains the heck out of the wielder's life.
I guess it could take the damage % up to 66 or more before letting go! (Or better yet, until wielder gets KO'd).

That'd be amazing, I can't think of any Dragon Quest item ideas and that one's really creative!

 

[Rumble Red]

About Dragon Quest 9 and 10 having customizable characters, I don't think that matters, really. Remember that Corrin, Robin, Inkling, and Villager are customizable characters too, and they're in smash as well. You could argue that it's different since they're not just an alt of a character, like the DQ IX and DQ X hero would be, but seeing as they just went for the default for Corrin, Robin, and technically Villager (you get that villager if you choose the first answer to each of Rover's questions on the train, in New Leaf at least.) They'd go with the default for the DQ IX hero and DQ X hero, or just do what they did with Inkling and go with the design that's on the boxart of the game (Unless the default and the ones on the boxart are the same, I haven't gotten to DQ IX yet and DQ X is a Japan exclusive)

Yeah, there's a default Hero and Heroine for DQIX, and a default for each of the races in DQX, but that's nine characters from those two games if you wanted to include them all. There's gotta be some picking and choosing somewhere, and frankly the default designs for IX and X feel very default. You could throw one in for sure, but I think they're the weak links to cut if you have to cut somewhere.

This is all just idle talk, though. The only thing that would actually bother me as a costume is V's hero. There might be little issues with some of the others, but V's hero is the one who's deliberately, for story reasons, not like Erdrick, and shoehorning him in like that would totally miss the point.

Personally, I would've predicted Eight as Erdrick's echo, seeing how DQVIII is probably the most successful DQ outside of Japan.

Square Enix seems to agree with you, if that costume they added to XI is any indication. The poor guy needs a better name than Eight, though.

 

[Takasmash]

Fine I would not mind a DQ character in smash ultimate the series made 70 million dollars what I have heard from people. Even know I love to see Sora or Chrono Trigger over DQ character but oh well. And I disagree with the theory that Sakurai or Nintendo is going to do a Mewtwo in the Game Awards I dont think so. The Think we will get a Smash DLC Trailer showing off Square Enix I mean think about Verge been rumoring of a Square Enix character and this is a theory but take it with a grand of salt I think Sakurai been developing this Square Enix alongside Piranha Plant plus if you look at Square Enix character from over crossover games they were all DLC they make more money from fans.

 

[shinhed-echi]

My ritual is complete!

 

[Deleted member]

My ritual is complete!

And so they went on to become known as Erdrick, savior of Alef- I mean newcomer of Smash Bros.

 

[Michael the Spikester]

Wishing all the supporters luck in Erdick being revealed tonight. Try to cling onto that hope guys!

 

[Deleted member]

Wishing all the supporters luck in Erdick being revealed tonight. Try to cling onto that hope guys!

Thanks! I wouldn't really say my hopes are super high for Erdrick (or any DQ character) but I won't give up.

 

[TheYungLink]

I'm not watching the Game Awards because they're a corporate-backed embarrassment on video games as a whole, but since it's so corporate-backed then hopefully the rumor that we'll get a Smash DLC announcement there will turn out to be true and I'll hear about it on my feed.

Here's to the character being Erdrick (or anyone from DQ, really)!

 

[Calane]

I'm just waiting to see if my dreams are crushed or granted. The worst case scenario is nothing happening at all regarding the rumored SE character. I just want this to be over with.

Let's go, Erdrick! Let's go, DQ! Don't let the dream die tonight!

 

[Rumble Red]

It'll be lucky if DQXI even wins in its category. My hopes are as high as maybe they'll officially announce that we're getting Builders 2. Smash is right out.

(c'mon Erdrick)

 

[Deleted member]

Hello everyone! Just came from the Geno thread to say good luck!

 

[Deleted member]

Hello everyone! Just came from the Geno thread to say good luck!

Same to you guys!

 

[Deleted member]

Same to you guys!

Thank you!

 

[Kuon]

Hello everyone! Just came from the Geno thread to say good luck!

Why thank you. Best of luck to Geno as well

 

[Deleted member]

Why thank you. Best of luck to Geno as well

Thank you

 

[Kuon]

It'll be lucky if DQXI even wins in its category. My hopes are as high as maybe they'll officially announce that we're getting Builders 2. Smash is right out.

(c'mon Erdrick)

I don't expect DQXI to win a category, but at the same time the videogame awards won't affect what character is chosen for dlc, since the character was probably chosen long before this

 

[Oblivion129]

I don't think they'd see it as one way or the other.
Promoting the character of the current game in the series IS thinking long term because never have they tried SO HARD to appeal to the western market as they have with DQXI, so if there's a game that will be easily accessible to almost every Nintendo fan (other than DQ8 3DS, but they already see it as a failure for some reason) and granted, they say it's among if not the best, then I believe it's a no-brainer decision. DQXI was made to be a LOT of people's first DQ game, which will lead them to the first three, and then onwards.


The only way for people to play as Erdrick in current-gen systems is on mobile devices. Unless you live in Japan where it still ranks high on 3DS I think.
I mean, don't get me wrong, I get exactly what you mean by having a character associated with the latest entry instead of the more iconic one. But TBF, for the majority of the western audience, whichever hero they go with, it'll be all the same to them.
--

Thread is so lit, might as well throw in my 2 cents.

Sephiroth: Unlikely. Square-Enix was already baffled by the request for Cloud. I don't think it's in Nintendo OR Square-Enix's best interest to go here. And since no other Final Fantasy name has been brought up, then I guess that's lights out for another Final Fantasy character.

Geno: This one is a special case. It has EVERYTHING going for him, except the VGA announcement thing. Neither Square-Enix nor Nintendo will waste billions of views for an obscure character that mostly only the Smash community is familiar with, and brings nothing else to the table (he's not attatched to any future game that's coming that would be worth announcing at VGA, unless Super Mario RPG 2 is happening). So I don't think of Geno as a long-term investment.

Luminary: A genius, albeit obvious marketing move. Dragon Quest could have it's cinderella moment at the VGAs and boldly take the stage with the protagonist of the latest DQ entry appearing in Smash as they announce a particular season when the game's coming out.

Slime: Similar to Luminary, Slime would indeed be a great marketing tool, with the added bonus that he's more universally known to both japanese and especially western gamers.

Erdrick: Probably the least known to the western public, but like Luminary, would be a genius move to force DQ into the spotlight worldwide. People will finally have a "face", or a relatable character to be the face of DQ, something that Slime has been doing for a while, but IMO fails to make people want to play DQ. Erdrick is the character that the audience needs, and the face that DQ deserves. :D

Crono: Similar to Sephiroth, Crono is an ancient character, from an ancient game. But Chrono Trigger is HUGE in game pop culture. Almost everyone knows him. It would be a tremendous sucker punch to have him in Smash. I wouldn't really put Chrono Trigger so far behind Final Fantasy. I know a LOT of people who have played CT who haven't played FF.

Sora: If he's REALLY gone, then things are boding well for us. He was a major threat.


Still, I'm not holding my breath for this. Vergebin could still be wrong. Not going to get Grinch-leaked again. Hoping for the best, though.

Looks like you accidentally quoted me lol

Yeah I agree with this. Crono is nowhere to be seen these past decades, FF is already represented with Cloud, and Sora is Disney. I'd say the ones with more chances are Geno and DQ rep. Geno for his fan demand and DQ rep for what they represent and marketing. I personally like all the characters from the list anyways, except Sora who I have no attachment to since I didn't play KH.

 

[Rumble Red]

Well, RIP for tonight, but there's a Dragon Quest XI S stage event on the 22nd if anyone wants to get worked up again.

I'm mostly peeved we didn't get that Builders 2 announcement, or a Metroid trailer. Joker's cool.

 

[Kuon]

DQ still has a shot for future DLC. No need to worry. Now just may not be the time

 

[Deleted member]

DQ still has a shot for future DLC. No need to worry. Now just may not be the time

Yup, 4 slots left and obviously Joker isnt a SE character. I'm remaining hopeful.

 

[Calane]

DQ still has a shot for future DLC. No need to worry. Now just may not be the time

Yeah, DQ's not out of this yet. We just have to wait a little bit longer for some closure on this whole "SE rep" thing, I suppose.