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EspañolDRAGON WARRIOR
'''Dragon Warrior''', also known as in Japan, is a role-playing video game developed by Chunsoft and published in Japan by Enix Corporation (now known as Square Enix Co., Ltd.) and Nintendo of America for the MSX and Nintendo Entertainment System video game consoles. It was originally released in Japan, and was later released in North America. North America for the MSX and Nintendo Entertainment System video game consoles. It is the first game in the ''Dragon Quest'' series (then known as the ''Dragon Warrior'' series in North America).
''Dragon Warrior'' has been remade for several platforms including the Super Famicom, Game Boy Color, and mobile phones.
Gameplay
''Dragon Warrior'' uses very basic console role-playing game mechanics. Battles are fought in turn-based format and experience points are awarded after every battle, which allows the main character to level up and become stronger. Gameplay consists of moving him to different cities and other locations, fighting monsters along the way.
Plot
The protagonist of the story is a warrior who is a descendent of the legendary hero Erdrick. Starting in the chambers of King Lorik, the player is made aware that the Dragonlord has stolen the Ball of Light which must be reclaimed to restore peace to the land. Although this minimalistic story presents itself at the beginning, the player will find more minor story elements to the game as it progresses. These mostly occur through dialogues with NPCs that detail rescuing the Princess Gwaelin, the destruction of the town of Hauksness, and the hints about relics needed to reach the Dragonlord.
Although this is the first title released of the ''Dragon Warrior'' franchise, Dragon Warrior I is actually the second, chronologically, of a three game series which share a storyline. The story is preceded by that of ''Dragon Warrior III'' and followed by ''Dragon Warrior II''.
Characters
'The Warrior'
Little is known about the hero besides his ancestry, being of the bloodline of Erdrick. The only hints of personality for the character are a somewhat forced relationship with Princess Gwaelin and the yes or no answers the player can select to certain questions proposed by certain characters throughout the game.
An user can name him arbitrarily.
But in Japanese Nintendo Entertainment System version, his name has to be four or fewer Hiragana letters.
'The Dragonlord'
A dragon from Charlock whose soul became evil from learning magic.[1] He sought "unlimited power and destruction," which resulted in a rising tide of evil throughout Alefgard. He rules from Charlock Castle to the south-east, where surrounding swamps and a destroyed bridge to the mainland have rendered his castle inaccessible. Inside Charlock, a complex maze of turns and monsters further protects his throne. The Dragonlord's origin is unclear, but his motives are to enslave the world with his army of monsters.
Development
North American Localization
The game was localized for the North American release in 1989, but the title was changed to ''Dragon Warrior'' to avoid infringing on the trademark of the pen and paper role-playing game, ''DragonQuest''. The North American version of the game featured improved graphics and a battery-backed ROM savegame, whereas the Japanese version used passwords.
Many differences may be noted in comparing the original ''Dragon Quest'' and ''Dragon Warrior'':
★ The map graphics and character sprites were enhanced, with better definition and multi-directional facing (in the original version, sprites only faced forward regardless of which direction they were moving, and the player had to choose in which direction to interact with objects and NPCs from a menu)
★ Spells went from having nonsensical names in the Japanese version to straight-forward one-word names.
★ Many locations were given names relating to the Arthurian legend, and dialogue was written in a quasi-Early Modern English style.
Nintendo Power Bonus
Nintendo Power provided three feature articles on Dragon Warrior from May/June 1989 - Sept/Oct 1989.[2][3][4] The Nov/Dec 1989 issue provided a Strategy Guide.[5] In March/April 1990, the magazine provided a map/poster of Dragon Warrior/Super C, and it featured a Dragon Warrior text adventure.[6] During that year, Nintendo Power gave away free copies of Dragon Warrior to new (and old) subscribers, along with a card explaining the equipment, monsters, levels, and locations. Brief mention of the subscription bonus appears in volume 80 of Nintendo Power.[7]
Super Famicom
In a compilation known as ''Dragon Warrior I & II'', the Super Famicom remake was marketed exclusively in Japan (due to the absence of Enix America Corporation). It has since been unofficially translated into English and Spanish through emulation by online fan translation group RPG-One in 2002.
BS Dragon Quest was also released for the Satellaview extension for the Super Famicom. This game is based off of the original Dragon Quest.
Game Boy Color
The Game Boy Color release of ''Dragon Warrior'' in North America, based on the Super Famicom version, used an entirely new translation, discarding the Middle English style and giving names closer to the Japanese version's. In this remake Dragonlord's name was changed to DracoLord, and Erdrick was changed to Loto.
''Dragon Quest'', updated for Japanese cell phones.
References in the ''Final Fantasy'' series
Loto's Sword is used during an optional boss fight against Gilgamesh in ''Final Fantasy XII''. This also marks the first time the mix of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest has happened in the light of both Square and Enix merging to be noticed in the western world. (Technically speaking, the crossover has happened a few time previous in a set of board game video games which were only available in Japan.) In the United States, however, Erdrick was referenced as early as the original NES ''Final Fantasy'', where one of the tombstones in Elfland reads, "Here lies Erdrick." (The Japanese version reads, "Here lies Link", a reference to the Legend of Zelda series main character.)
Mobile phone version
''Dragon Quest'' has recently been released for cellular phones in Japan, with updated graphics that are similar to Dragon Quest VI's.
Soundtrack
As with every ''Dragon Quest'', Koichi Sugiyama composed the music and directed all the associated spinoffs. The Dragon Quest I Symphonic Suite was bundled with the Dragon Quest II symphonic suite and a disc of original compositions called ''Dragon Quest in Concert''. List of Dragon Quest I tracks:
# Overture March (3:59)
# Château Ladutorm (3:25)
# People (3:36)
# Unknown World (2:07)
# Fight (2:12)
# Dungeons (3:40)
# King Dragon (3:08)
# Finale (2:40)
Reception and legacy
''Dragon Quest'' was wildly popular in Japan, and became the first in a series that now includes eight games (with a ninth in development for the Nintendo DS), with several spin-offs, including ''Dragon Quest Monsters''. The release of ''Dragon Quest'' is regarded as a milestone in the history of the console RPG, a popular genre that also includes the ''Final Fantasy'' series. It was the first console RPG to use a top-down perspective, a staple of 2D console RPG's, and has since been cited by Gamespot as one of the fifteen most influential games in the history of video games.[8]
Seemingly primitive by today's standards, ''Dragon Quest'' features one-on-one combat, a limited array of items and equipment, ten spells,[9] five towns, and five dungeons. Nintendo Power critics ranked the NES ''Dragon Warrior'' an average of three on a scale of zero to five. Nevertheless, it was successful financially and well received by many fans.
References
1. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power May - June, 1989; issue 6'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 52.
2. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power May - June, 1989; issue 6'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 52-53.
3. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power July - August, 1989; issue 7'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 39-50.
4. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power September - October, 1989; issue 8'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 20-27.
5. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power November - December, 1989; issue 9'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 5.
6. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power March - April, 1990; issue 11'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 4, 51-54.
7. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power January, 1996; issue 80'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 58.
8. 15 Most Influencial Games GameSpot staff
9. Editors of Nintendo Power: ''Nintendo Power July - August, 1989; issue 7'' (in English). Nintendo of America, Tokuma Shoten Publishing, 44.
External links
★ Dragon Quest Official Site (Japanese)
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