Nintendo Life: What made you want to return to the characters Erik and Mia, from Dragon Quest XI, in Dragon Quest Treasures?
Tachi Inuzuka: Dragon Quest XI characters x popular x men’s and women’s teams = Erik and Mia.
Yuji Horii: All the characters in DRAGON QUEST XI are famous, but we didn’t look much into Erik and Mia’s childhood, so we decided that they would be easy to use in a side story.
Is there any connection to Dragon Quest XI other than the main characters or is this a completely standalone adventure? Will returning players be able to get something more out of the story?
Inuzuka: DRAGON QUEST XI is its own self-contained story, so this game does not extend that story directly. It’s linked by the adventures Erik and Mia have in this game, and is part of their characterization and quirks as we see them in DRAGON QUEST XI.
The Dragon Quest series has quite a long history on Nintendo consoles. What made you want to make this a Switch exclusive?
Inuzuka: Because the nature of the game has a good relationship with the Nintendo Switch.
I want to make this game casually enjoyable,
What made you want to focus on treasure hunting? How has this affected traditional Dragon Quest gameplay?
Inuzuka: I wanted to turn this game into a game that could be enjoyed at random, and after a tortuous process of experimenting, I finally came up with the idea of a treasure hunt game.
Horii: I have a feeling that this project was originally launched as a new DRAGON QUESTION MONSTERS series, but Mr. Inuzuka said he wanted to turn it into a treasure hunt game, so I accepted. agree with that idea. I also feel that Erik and Mia’s characters are well suited to treasure hunting.
How much inspiration have you drawn from previous Dragon Quest spin-offs like Dragon Quest Monsters?
Inuzuka: There’s not a lot of conscious influence we’ve drawn from the DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS series, but the development team is built around the same employees who created those titles, so there could be some unconscious influence there.
Can you share something about Rivals mechanics? Which of them will have a deeper impact on the game’s story?
Inuzuka: As the story progresses, rival groups play a rather important role.
Treasure sees the return of monster recruitment. Are there any changes to this mechanic for this game?
Inuzuka: Recruiting takes place at the bulletin board in your base. You can deliver items that monsters want to recruit them as allies.
Does having multiple monster companions allow you to have more fun with their traits?
Inuzuka: It is designed so that you can combine your own favorite combinations to play, ranging from different powers, field abilities, looks, voices, and the ability to carry different treasures , etc
Not just an open world game, but an “open life” game.
Do you have a favorite monster that you would like to use in Treasure or in any other Dragon Quest game?
Horii: Probably King Slime.
There have been plenty of Dragon Quest spin-offs over the years. Do you have a dream idea that you haven’t been able to fulfill but still want to do?
Horii: Not just an open world game, but an “open life” game.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity. We thank Inuzuka-san and Horii-san for taking the time to talk with us. Dragon Quest Treasures is now on Nintendo Switch
