Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined is all about enhancing the game’s greatest strengths

Square Enix has been busy reimagining and remaking many of its historic role-playing games in recent years. Along with Final Fantasy, the developer has also paid so much attention to the Dragon Quest series, and the next game on deck is a remake for PlayStation 1 Dragon Quest VIICommonly regarded by fans as one of the most challenging and lengthy games of the series, the developers created Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined – The second remake of the game following its 3DS release in 2013 – aiming to reshape DQVII With a striking new visual style and a refocused adventure.

I recently had a chance to spend a few hours with Dragon Quest VII: ReimaginedLooking at its new interpretation of the 2000 classic JRPG and some of the more notable updates to its combat. So far, the remake is making some interesting choices that aim to not only give the vast time-travel plot a better sense of direction but also streamline some of the original’s more detailed and challenging beats.

Original Dragon Quest VII Carrying on the familiar conceit of previous entries, the series focused on a party of high-fantasy adventurers who set out on an epic adventure filled with dungeons to explore and powerful monsters to fight. But DQVII Deviated from the traditional Dragon Quest story by focusing on the party’s adventures over time. As the hero and his friends uncover the lost history of their world, they will step back into past eras and explore past kingdoms and continents that will uncover a larger conspiracy in the present. Plus, they’ll form a bond of friendship that will stretch over time.

reimagined It captures that sense of adventure that the series does so well. Even though the series has evolved with new entries, it still strikes a balance between old-school, turn-based JRPG gameplay and modern storytelling style. What’s especially new about the remake of Dragon Quest VII It has a sharp, visually expressive 3D art style. Using diorama models and actual doll versions of the party as reference material for the game’s look, the new 3D visuals truly capture the whimsical and emotional style of the late Akira Toriyama’s distinctive art, which gave the series its unique look. But with the move to a new 3D style, reimagined Differentiates itself from previous games by feeling like an animated adventure film.

As well as the visual style, the developers also focused on reshaping the sections and overall storytelling DQVII To provide a more satisfying experience. According to game producer Takeshi Ichikawa, one of the big goals of the remake is Dragon Quest VII The idea was to improve the flow of the game, ultimately creating a more satisfying sense of adventure.

Ichikawa said, “The ‘re-imagined’ elements of the narrative point to improvements in the overall structure of the game, providing a much deeper and more compelling experience.” “In our effort to streamline the overall progression of the story and provide a more engaging narrative, we decided to cut out subplots that have little or no direct relevance to the main scenario. While some content has been removed, entirely new scenarios have also been introduced. Our goal was to build on the strengths of the original game while attempting to provide a deeper, more immersive story experience for modern players.”

During my hands-on time, I got a chance to explore two different sections of the game. These early games focused on the Amberdale dungeon, where the townspeople committed themselves to a volcanic ritual to quench the fire demon within them. The second volume focused on the Wetlock scenario, in which the party encountered a mysterious magic user who had led the townspeople to a mysterious tower in a flooded area.

My memories of the original and the 3DS remake were refreshed while playing reimaginedWhich made it easier to get back into that dungeon-crawling flow. exactly like the original, reimagined Still sticks to traditional turn-based combat, and the new visual style really helps emphasize the sense of effectiveness and strategy in combat – more so than other games in the series. I particularly liked how unique each character feels, especially the wolf-riding bandit Raph, who is fun to use in battle.

During the wetlock section, I generally found the challenge fair, and I even found a nice leveling spot to fight the golems and metal slimes that popped up on occasion. But things can easily kick into high gear when encountering specific enemies and the quest’s final boss. I had to carefully evaluate the skills available and use a range of offensive and defensive abilities to survive. The remake is not about removing the sense of challenge from the original, but about maintaining it while introducing more options to help in the battles.

One of the big innovations of reimagined There is a Combat Moonlighting system, which allows each party member to equip two professions at once. In the original game each character was only allowed to have one profession at a time, and changing classes reset your level. This created a lot of engagement in the original game, so with this new two-class approach, it cuts down on the grind significantly and keeps you feeling empowered. But on a more strategic level, it also adds a lot of utility and variety to each character’s loadout. It also works well for creating a party with more diverse skills, which adds more charm to the group.

A lot of thought has gone into this top-down rework of the original game Dragon Quest VII: ReimaginedAnd I found this change to be a very fascinating and charming approach to recreating it. Even in 2000, the original game was a very ambitious version of the series. Not only is it the first 3D entry, but it actually utilizes many of the different locations and characters from this massive story in a more meaningful way. The original is still a fantastic entry in the series, but it’s one that feels a little difficult to revisit. This seems to be a good fit for the developer’s intention to streamline and refocus, and I took a fairly in-depth look at the changes I observed during my hands-on time.

As yet, Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined Wants to maintain the ambition and scope of the original, but transform it into a more focused and satisfying JRPG. It adds a seriously impressive visual style that brings it to life. According to the remake’s creator, its new approach to reimagining and remaking Dragon Quest is to add a new sense of energy to the series, and it’s doing just that so far.

Ichikawa said, “We believe existing fans will find the game satisfying. Also, since this title has been remastered as a modern release, we’re also excited for many new players to enjoy it as their first Dragon Quest experience.”

Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined Will be released on February 5, 2026 for PC, PS5, Xbox Series