A newDragon Questtheme park attraction will soon bring fans into an adventure straight from the beloved JRPG series. CalledDragon Quest Island, the attraction will open in Japan’s Nijigen no Mori theme park early next year.
Few game franchises are more popular thanDragon Questin Japan, where its mascots (such as the iconic Slime enemy) are ubiquitous. While the early games in the series are best known in the West for establishing the archetypal role-playing game formula, its newer games have seen great success both in Japan and abroad. The most recent mainline entry in the series,Dragon Quest 11 S, made waves as the first game in the franchise to be released for an Xbox console. However, someDragon Questspin-offs remain exclusive to Japan, such as thePokemon GOcompetitorDragon Quest Walk.
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According to the theme park’s website,Dragon Quest Islandwill feature an original story that turns each visitor into a hero of their own RPG. Although no specific attractions have been revealed yet, the website mentions Zoma, the final boss ofDragon Quest 3.This could mean that the attraction’s story is canon, taking place at some point before the end of that game, or that it could be an alternate retelling of sorts. In that case, players might step into the shoes ofDragon Quest 3’s iconic protagonist, Erdrick.
Additionally, the attraction will offer exclusive merchandise and themed food opportunities. That said, it remains unclear how unique these aspects of the attraction will be. Giventhe vast array ofDragon Questmerchandisesold in Japan, it would not be hard to simply place theDragon Quest Islandlogo on pre-existing product types. The same goes for possible dining options, as aDragon Questrestaurant already exists in Tokyo. Hopefully, however, the merchandise and food will both be something even hardcoreDragon Questfans haven’t seen before.
It appears thatDragon Quest Islandis the first announcement for the franchise’s 35th anniversary celebration. Series creator Yuji Horii recently hinted ata series of majorDragon Questannouncementsthroughout the upcoming year, and a real-life attraction is definitely a good start. Even before the attraction was announced, fans have already been enjoying the new anime remake of the classicDragon Quest:Adventure of Daimanga and television show.
Some fans may be frustrated by a lack of news aboutDragon Quest 12, which is already in development.Dragon Quest Islanddoesn’t seem to offer much in the way of aDragon Quest 12tease, given its apparent connection to the earliest games in the franchise. Of course, this is just one of several planned announcements, and it wouldn’t be surprising for more sequel news to be announced at some point during the next year.
