Square Enix restarted development on Dragon Quest 12 and gave it a new name
Source: Engadget
Announcement
The next mainline entry in the series is now called Dragon Quest XII: Beyond Dreams.
Square Enix celebrated the 40th anniversary of the iconic RPG series on May 27 with a special livestream that featured several announcements about past and future Dragon Quest games, the most noteworthy being Dragon Quest XII.
Development Reset
Development on the next mainline entry was rebooted sometime within the five years since it was first announced during the previous anniversary livestream. Executive producer Yosuke Saito explained:
“Work on the original version, Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate, hit a lot of hurdles along the way. But as we kept talking with Mr. Horii and pinned down what a mainline Dragon Quest game should look like, we decided to move things around and start over from scratch. It was a major decision, but I believe it was the right one to ensure the next Dragon Quest game will be one that all fans of the series will really love.”
New Title and Story
As part of the reset, the original subtitle was dropped. The game will now be known as Dragon Quest XII: Beyond Dreams. The new name hints at the story, which follows a young adventurer whose sleep is interrupted by strange visions.
“What lies beyond dreams?” teased Yuji Horii. “Surely not a world of darkness, but a bright and exciting future.”
Gameplay Footage
The development team released brief gameplay footage. Dragon Quest XII already looks impressive, featuring Akira Toriyama’s character designs.
Other Announcements
- Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World – a new entry in the spin‑off series, coming soon to Switch, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
- Dragon Quest XI – a Switch 2 version releasing on September 24. The Definitive Edition adds new story content, the ability to toggle between 3D and 2D graphics on the fly, and separate frame‑rate and fidelity settings.
- Save data from the 2019 Switch version cannot be transferred, and no upgrade path is currently available. The game will launch at $40 in early fall.
Series Impact
Dragon Quest remains particularly huge in Japan, and Echoes of an Elusive Age was a worldwide hit, selling nearly 9 million units. Square Enix has been capitalizing on the series’ growing mainstream popularity with recent releases:
- HD‑2D remakes of the first three games.
- Dragon Quest VII Reimagined, a toylike update released earlier this year.
- The original Dragon Quest was inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame this month.