At PAX Prime, Siliconera caught up with Dragon Quest mobile producer Noriyoshi Fujimoto, and asked whether Square Enix were interested in publishing the Dragon Quest VII remake for the Nintendo 3DS in North America.

 

Dragon Quest VII is famously known for having perhaps the largest script of any game in the series, and this aspect of the RPG has often been presumed to be one of the reasons that Square Enix haven’t committed to localizing it yet. Fujimoto confirmed this when he spoke with us.

 

“In terms of DQVII, it has a lot of text to go through and translate,” Fujimoto said, “and we’ve received so many requests and so much positive feedback about the game, but unfortunately, we have to consider the cost and the manpower needed to handle the sheer load of text. In terms of scenario and script, the game is probably one of the largest in the DQ franchise. If a lot of people can buy it and support it… well, we can’t promise anything.”

 

“From Dragon Quest VIII and beyond, we’ve revamped the translation,” Fujimoto explained. “For example, we’ve added regional twangs like those from Baltic regions sounding Russian and things like that. We’ve also updated the spells and monster names, so any classic titles we revisit, we want to say consistent. That being said, when we go back and update the classic titles, we make these changes. That’s another step in the process.”

 

“Going back to people who want DQVII to come out… we’ve gotten a lot of requests, we really want to do it, but right now, we need to hammer out what kind of resources we’d need to do it. We say this a lot, but, we can’t seem to get to the point where it’s justifiable.”

 

So, here’s the deal. This is one of those cases where making noise is actually a productive thing to do. Square Enix want to bring Dragon Quest VII for 3DS over. They just need convincing that it’s worth their time and money to do so. So if you care about the game and want to see it published in the West, get out there and let them know. Do it via their official Twitter feeds, their Facebook pages. Send e-mails if you can. Get in touch with their community managers. (And do it politely.)

 

If you have trouble finding any of these things, Google is your friend. Let’s make this happen. The 3DS has proven to be a fantastic platform for JRPGs in the West already, not just in terms of quality but also in terms of sales. Square Enix have seen this firsthand in the case of Bravely Default. If they need to see fan support for Dragon Quest, showing it to them is a good first step.

Read more at http://www.siliconera.com/2014/08/31/square-enix-want-bring-dragon-quest-vii-3ds-west-arent-sure-itll-sell-enough/#cYPeWo5Ar7ahTz8Z.99

 

I want it to happen, but it wouldn't sell well.

I want SE to bring Final Fantasy XV to the West (and the rest of the world)

 

They need to get their priorities straight already

Must... Hold... Back... Frustration...

 

DQIX was considered one of the best RPGs on the DS, and DQVII's one of the most requested games to be localized. It would definitely be worth it if the game came to the West. I'd try to buy it day one, personally. I love DQ.

I want SE to bring Final Fantasy XV to the West (and the rest of the world)They need to get their priorities straight already

 

We know XV is coming. Square isn't limited to release one game at a time. (Although it may seem that way.) And this obviously isn't a priority given the question. 

 

In any event, I haven't played the Dragon Quest Series but I've heard a lot about it and would love to give it a go. 

It's like Bravely Default all over again only this time it's with one of their biggest franchises....

 

If I remember correctly Dragon Quest IX sold over a million copies outside of Japan so at least they know their fans exist out there. I fully support a Dragon Quest VII localisation mainly because of three reasons:

1) we all know Dragon Quest fans aren't getting X any time soon (if at all) so at least give them some love that isn't smartphone ports.

2) I would like Square Enix to get better or more active at localising there games. Outside of Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy they really take their time sometimes.

3) I've heard DQVII is actually a really good game

 

At least the team who made it want to bring it over that's always a positive.

Well I wouldn't buy it.  But I'm not everyone like.

It's like Bravely Default all over again only this time it's with one of their biggest franchises....

 

If I remember correctly Dragon Quest IX sold over a million copies outside of Japan so at least they know their fans exist out there. I fully support a Dragon Quest VII localisation mainly because of three reasons:

1) we all know Dragon Quest fans aren't getting X any time soon (if at all) so at least give them some love that isn't smartphone ports.

2) I would like Square Enix to get better or more active at localising there games. Outside of Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy they really take their time sometimes.

3) I've heard DQVII is actually a really good game

 

At least the team who made it want to bring it over that's always a positive.

 

http://www.vgchartz.com/gamedb/?name=dragon+quest

Release it and test that hypothesis.

http://www.vgchartz.com/gamedb/?name=dragon+quest

I never said it sold better than Japan. Everyone knows Dragon Quest is a far more popular franchise there. DQIX still sold over a million outside of Japan like I thought it did.

I never said it sold better than Japan. Everyone knows Dragon Quest is a far more popular franchise there. DQIX still sold over a million outside of Japan like I thought it did.

 

I'm not disagreeing with you. I'm proving you right.

Must... Hold... Back... Frustration...

 

DQIX was considered one of the best RPGs on the DS, and DQVII's one of the most requested games to be localized. It would definitely be worth it if the game came to the West. I'd try to buy it day one, personally. I love DQ.

THIS!

 

Heck if they're afraid of low sales then they should market the franchise outside of Japan even more and give it a try instead of just imprisoning it inside of Japan

It's like Bravely Default all over again only this time it's with one of their biggest franchises....

 

If I remember correctly Dragon Quest IX sold over a million copies outside of Japan so at least they know their fans exist out there. I fully support a Dragon Quest VII localisation mainly because of three reasons:

1) we all know Dragon Quest fans aren't getting X any time soon (if at all) so at least give them some love that isn't smartphone ports.

2) I would like Square Enix to get better or more active at localising there games. Outside of Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy they really take their time sometimes.

3) I've heard DQVII is actually a really good game

 

At least the team who made it want to bring it over that's always a positive.

Which is funny,because Bravely Default,the very title they weren't confident in,sold more than their newest console Final Fantasy game in the market(not XIV,I mean LRFFXIII)

 

So at least they should give DQVII a chance like what they did with Bravely Default instead of spamming the shit out of Final Fantasy

THIS!

 

Heck if they're afraid of low sales then they should market the franchise outside of Japan even more and give it a try instead of just imprisoning it inside of Japan

Which is funny,because Bravely Default,the very title they weren't confident in,sold more than their newest console Final Fantasy game in the market(not XIV,I mean LRFFXIII)

 

So at least they should give DQVII a chance like what they did with Bravely Default instead of spamming the shit out of Final Fantasy

Yeah. Besides, they'll never know how successful it could be if they just shelter it under the assumption it won't sell well. I think after Bravely Default's success, another 3DS RPG could do really well.

Why can't Square Enix do crowd funding for the localisation of their lesser known JRPGs? Set a $500,000 goal (or however much it would cost to translate). And have lower goals which are just merchandise or something.

I'm not disagreeing with you. I'm proving you right.

Oh... Well thanks. Still though those sales in Japan are ridiculous in comparison. Though a number of games haven't been released in the west I guess.