Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake review

I didn’t think I’d get emotional over another run through Dragon Quest 3, of all games. It’s decades old, has sold millions of copies, and has already been remade twice. The “HD-2D” look this time around may be very well done, but it’s hardly unique. I thought this would be one more reheated round with something inoffensively retro and pleasantly familiar, as quickly cleared as it would be forgotten after.

But I did get emotional. This game, a place where warm shafts of sunlight break through verdant forests, purple poisons taint the earth, and the gaps in an ancient tower’s crumbling masonry offer a glimpse of the lush grasses far below, finally looks the way it makes my RPG-loving heart feel. The innocent sense of wonder conveyed by the new perspective, combined with a fantastic attention to detail—colourful banners hanging around a peaceful town, the sea catching the light at sunset, flowers blooming by a stony path—make the pixel art feel alive in ways it never did before.

I wanted to explore just for the pleasure of seeing where I’d end up next and who I’d get to meet when I got there, or which impressively animated pixel monsters I’d do battle with. The dungeons have never been as intimidating and claustrophobic as they are here, the warm glow of my brave hero’s trusty lantern gently pushing back the dark. These seemingly small details breathe new life into something old, familiar—and excellent. Dragon Quest 3 has always been a perfect capsule of the very best of the traditional side of the genre, innocence turned into something epic. There are ships to sail, kings to visit, volcanoes to climb and wrongs to right, but the scale of it all—especially the parts only lightly sketched out in most RPGs—is so grand that even just visiting a new town feels like an adventure. These aren’t places to stock up on items and instantly leave; you can poke around and come to feel at home in them, then visit again at night and see what’s open and who’s out and about in the early hours of the day.

Dragon Quest 3’s job system really enlivens battles that only on the surface look like so many other classic RPGs. The warrior, priest, and mage starter trio are sensible, safe, and soon give way to whip-wielding thieves capable of hitting entire groups of enemies at once, treasure hunting merchants with their own questline, and even the unpredictable gadabout, a real clown of a character who is often as much a hindrance as a help.

The skills you learn are built upon over time, leading to characters with an incredible and wholly unique set of abilities. Each party and every playthrough I’ve done over the years has felt entirely my own as a result. Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D retains all of that and adds so much more.

Old warriors, new tricks

This is a remake informed by the past but not held back by it, and its willingness to embrace the new while still being respectful of Dragon Quest 3’s long, long history allows the game to feel comfortable yet genuinely surprising all at once. The layout of a labyrinth won’t perfectly align with an older cart-based cousin’s map, but the exit will still be somewhere in the top-right over a wooden bridge. The shrine I’m looking for is north of the village like always, but I can’t be entirely sure what I’ll see and who I can speak to on the way there. One of the chests in this area is definitely a sneaky mimic, except I’m no longer sure which one.

I always have some idea what I’m doing but still have to explore like it’s my first time playing. Getting that magical new adventurer feeling back in a game as old as this is a real gift.

How the game within this gorgeous remade world behaves is largely up to me. It only takes a quick trip to the menu to tune Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D until it fairly closely recreates the 1988 original’s somewhat unforgiving experience. Or I can go all-in on 2024 comforts. When played in ye olde waye I have to pay close attention to the flavourful NPC dialogue (now occasionally dubbed with a wide range of British accents, encompassing everything from thick cockney to rich northern tones) if I want to learn where to head next, and spend time running around in circles grinding for XP and gold to survive the challenges ahead. I can still allow the game to take a good chunk of my hard-earned cash if I die in the middle of a dungeon because I pushed my luck instead of sensibly retreating to safety, same as it used to.

The game is just as happy to lean hard in the other direction. A convenient bookmarking feature lets me save any conversation I’ve heard and then replay it back whenever I like, sparing me the frustration of standing in an open plain and wondering if the helpful person I spoke to earlier said I needed to head south then east, or east then south. If I’m still not sure where to go I can bring up a handy minimap any time I please, and then dismiss it the instant I decide I’m done with it. If I’ve been away for a while I can have the game remind me of my current objectives and even mark the precise location I need to visit next—and individually hide these features any time I’d rather head off and explore under my own steam. Dragon Quest 3 doesn’t mind how I tweak it, so long as I’m having a good time.

Battles have their own short but sweet set of customisation options, allowing me to easily speed up or slow down the new combat animations whenever I choose (even every turn), and decide how much of a challenge I want the fights to be. The easy “Dracky Quest” setting is so generous it prevents my party from dying in battle. On the other hand the Draconian Quest setting is ready and willing to try and kill off my team whenever I dare activate it, and the frequently updated autosave is still there to catch them if I need it to (or be completely ignored, if I’d rather suffer the old fashioned way).

(Image credit: Square Enix)

One person’s modern helpful addition will always be another’s retro RPG ruiner, and this version of Dragon Quest 3 is smart enough to let everyone decide exactly where that line lies for them.

With these thoughtful options, Dragon Quest 3 is a fantastic RPG for everyone in 2024: a grand adventure filled with exciting monsters, heartwarming characters, and a battle system with enough depth to reward strategic thinking, but not so complex it becomes a second job. It’s focussed and pulled along by an energetic story keen on ushering me from one incredible event to the next with the minimum of filler between. Every twist offers up some extraordinary mini story arc, from false kings to daring rescues, and the overworld—normally the bit between the interesting stuff—is packed with hidden treasures and fun secrets.

It’s a perfect remake. The changes are substantial yet respectful, supremely nostalgic and surprising all at once. This is more than RPG history made accessible to modern audiences, this is a great RPG for anyone who longs to go on a fantastic (dragon) quest.