Starring Erik and Mia from Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age, the story sees the siblings spirited away to Draconia. They must scour the continents for the Seven Dragonstones while also hunting for treasure. Fortunately, they won’t be alone, as players can hire monsters who can lend their abilities for exploration, navigation and even combat.

Upon returning to base, you can sell treasure for gold and even discover powerful weapons and tools. Check out the overview trailer for more details on the game and its mechanics. Those who purchase the PC version before July 28th, 9 AM PT, will receive 15 Fullheal Pellets, 10 Better Buddy Bullets and 10 Chimaera Wings.

According to Ichimura, long production cycles on games and his own age were factors in his departure. “I’ve started to count how many more games I’ll be able to make in my lifetime,” he said.

Ichimura hasn’t announced any new projects he’ll be working on with a new team, and has said that he would instead like to “reset and reflect”.

“I’d like to leave this blessed environment, and explore what can be made if I dare to push myself into a higher-risk environment,” said Ichimura.

The most recent release in the Dragon Quest franchise is Dragon Quest Treasures, which also got a demo on the Nintendo Switch back in January. The game was released on the Nintendo Switch in December 2022, and features a main story that takes around 15-20 hours to complete.

The last major numbered game in the Dragon Quest franchise was Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age, which saw a number of different releases across various platforms. Dragon Quest 12: The Flames of Fate is also currently in development.

突然の報告になりますが、3/31をもちまして、スクウェア・エニックスを退職致しました。
色々な思いもあって長くなるので、添付のメモをご覧いただければと思います。
一緒に仕事してくれた たくさんのスタッフのみんな、そしてユーザーのみなさま、本当にありがとうございました！#スクエニ #卒業 pic.twitter.com/OQEthv83UC

— 市村 龍太郎 (@RyutaroIchimura) March 31, 2023

Though this is only a week after Forspoken’s launch, president Yosuke Matsuda (who is stepping down in June) revealed that reviews “have been challenging.” “However, the game has also received positive feedback on its action features, including its parkour and combat capabilities, so it has yielded results that will lead to improvement of our development capabilities of other games in the future.

“That said, its sales have been lackluster, and while the performance of new titles with February and March release dates will be the ultimate determinant, we see considerable downside risk to our FY2023/3 earnings.”

Matsuda also spoke about a decline in net sales year-on-year in the HD Games sub-segment. While the “release of major titles a year earlier had created a challenging” hurdle, he revealed that “many of the new small and mid-sized titles we launched this year did not perform as well as we had expected.” Though not specified, some titles that fall into that category include The DioField Chronicle, Valkyrie Elysium, Harvestella, Star Ocean: The Divine Force, Dragon Quest Treasures, and more.

Octopath Traveler 2 and Theatrhythm: Final Bar Line were released last month, and it remains to be seen if they can balance out the underwhelming year-on-year performance.

How long the demo lasts is currently unknown, though titles like Dragon Quest 11 S: Echoes of an Elusive Age had a fairly meaty demo. You can transfer progress to the main game and receive five Better Buddy Bullets. The latter increases the likelihood of a monster joining you, making it easier to hire a crew.

For more details on Dragon Quest Treasures, head here. A new mainline title, Dragon Quest 12: The Flames of Fate, is in development on Unreal Engine 5, but it doesn’t have a release window. Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, a remake of the third game on Octopath Traveler’s engine, is also in the works.

In Japan, Dragon Quest Treasures has got off to an impressive start, debuting in second place with over 143,000 physical units sold. Meanwhile, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are still on top of the charts, making it four weeks in a row for the RPG duo. The two collectively sold over 277,000 units over the course of the week.

Splatoon 3 also continues to sell well, selling over 51,000 units. Meanwhile, Aniplex’s visual novel Witch on the Holy Night also sees a solid debut, with its Switch version coming in at No. 4 (over 39,000 units sold), and the PS4 version following in fifth place (over 26,000 units sold).

On the hardware front, the Nintendo Switch continues to post strong numbers, even seeing a bit of a bump from what it managed last week, with over 158,000 units sold. The PS5 sees a slight drop with over 18,000 units sold, while the Xbox Series X/S collectively moved over 1,500 units.

You can check out the full hardware and physical software charts for the week ending December 11 below.

Software sales (followed by lifetime sales):

1. [NSW] Pokemon Scarlet and Violet – 277,676 (3,702,482)
2. [NSW] Dragon Quest Treasures – 143,650 (New)
3. [NSW] Splatoon 3 – 51,315 (3,497,714)
4. [NSW] Witch on the Holy Night – 39,759 (New)
5. [PS4] Witch on the Holy Night – 26,585 (New)
6. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – 21,583 (4,499,748)
7. [NSW] Minecraft – 21,094 (2,898,728)
8. [NSW] Nintendo Switch Sports – 17,187 (810,251)
9. [NSW] Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope – 13,466 (31,113)
10. [NSW] Kirby and the Forgotten Land – 11,239 (938,508)

Hardware sales (followed by last week’s sales):

• Nintendo Switch – 158,106 (152,284)
• PS5 – 18,822 (27,835)
• Xbox Series X/S – 1,524 (1,854)

Some of the gameplay shown off in the trailer includes recruiting monsters for your party, crafting equipment, partaking in treasure-hunting quests, and even some of the traversal options available while exploring the game’s world.

In a recent issue of Japanese video game publication Famitsu, producer Taichi Inuzuka revealed that Dragon Quest Treasures can be finished in around 15-20 hours. Completionists can expect more content, taking the play time to around 100 hours.

Inuzuka also spoke about how Dragon Quest Treasures doesn’t replace the fan-favourite Dragon Quest Monsters series. He also spoke about the potential for DLC for the game hinging on the reaction from players.

Dragon Quest Treasures is available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch.

Full completion requires 100 hours, so there’s plenty to keep players busy, but if someone doesn’t want to invest a lot of time, they can clear the story through casual play. Furthermore, if you want to reach the ending by just treasure hunting, that’s possible (though some boss battles are unavoidable).

Though there are similarities to Dragon Quest Monsters, Inuzuka said, “Please be assured that the DQM series will not disappear with the release of this title.” As for DLC, the team will decide whether or not to release the same based on reactions from players.

Dragon Quest Treasures is available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch. For more details on combat, Fortes, treasure hunting and selling, head here.

Draconia consists of several different regions, each with unique treasures to discover. Of course, there are several threats, so the siblings must befriend different monsters to stand a chance. Along with assisting in combat, the monsters can also use Fortes to help traverse the world, from executing high jumps to flying over chasms.

They can also use the Fortune Finder ability to narrow down the treasure’s location. Upon returning to base, the player can sort through different treasures, sell valuables and even discover new weapons to aid in their quest.

Dragon Quest Treasures is out on December 9th for Nintendo Switch. Stay tuned for more details en route to release.

The monsters are easy enough to scout. Defeat them in combat, and they’ll offer to join you (most times for a price). At your base, you can check out all the monsters scouted and their different attributes, traits, abilities and whatnot. They have different ratings – from Bronze and Silver to Gold and Rainbow (the rarest).

While some monsters have the same resistances and treasure capacity across a species, each species is unique in its own way. Some may carry more treasure or be suited better to a specific area. Become famous enough, and certain monsters may join you willingly. These include Oozabella, a pink Slime that becomes friends with Mia.

Dragon Quest Treasures sports some familiar monsters but there are also plenty of new additions. The Marble Slime resides in the desert and builds up ingested sand within its body. The Fiery Dragling is found in caves with lava and emits fire. The Stormy Sabrecat signals the coming of a fur and can use electricity.

Finally, there are special abilities that monsters possess called Fortes. These include Launch for sending either sibling into the air to reach out-of-the-way platforms; Glide for floating down from high places or riding air currents from lower areas; Sprint for quicker movement (with speed and stamina varying between each monster); and much more.

Dragon Quest Treasures releases on December 9th for Nintendo Switch worldwide. Stay tuned for more details en route to release.

Throughout one’s journey, there are various treasures or “bric-a-brac” to discover. These can range from items to weapons and armor (including some iconic wares from other Dragon Quest titles). To start a journey, one must first select an island. Purrsula and Porcus, the traveling companions of Erik and Mia respectively, will provide Treasure Forecasts for that destination and outline what can be found.

If the Golden Ratio of the island is high, then finding the treasure will be easier. Once the island is selected, you embark with your monsters and start searching. The monsters themselves can also sense nearby treasure and will help carry it back (though there’s a limit to how much can be carried). You’ll also find various other materials to collect.

Finding valuable treasure is challenging and requires using Fortune Finder. This ability allows Erik and Mia to see the treasure through the eyes of their monster companions. Of course, each monster’s Treasure Vision is different, so you’ll need to compare and contrast them to find the exact location.

Upon obtaining treasure, all that’s left is to return to base and have it appraised. Along with revealing the name and value of the treasure, you’ll also learn its condition. The better the condition, the higher the value. It all sounds easy enough, but there are enemy monsters, rival gangs and so on to also deal with. Expect more information on those later.

Dragon Quest Treasures releases on December 9th for Nintendo Switch. Pre-orders are now available and include bonuses like five Chimaera Wings (which allow for returning to base without losing treasure), 15 Better Buddy Bullets (increases the chances of a monster joining your crew), and five Fullheal Pellets (restores all of an ally’s health).