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Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake

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May 27, 2025

On May 27, 2025

RPGs have been on computers almost since there were computers to play them on. Every Commodore 64 probably had a Temple of Apshai disk somewhere nearby, with about 75% odds it was copied in a high school’s computer lab from someone else’s also-bootleg copy. Wizardry and Rogue kept the dungeon-crawling going while more story-oriented RPGs started turning up like the Ultima games, all part of a long process of genre evolution that eventually sprouted the branch of the JRPG. Dragon Quest was the first, and while it’s incredibly simple by today’s standards, no series survives almost forty years without a whole lot of love behind it. Still, gaming has changed a lot since then so it’s well past time for a refresher of the originals.

A Journey to the Past Through the Lens of the Present

This has already started, in fact, with last year’s release of Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, which probably deserves a little clarification for those who aren’t fully versed in the series. The original three games formed a complete trilogy, with the first two starring descendants of the hero Erdrick and the third being Erdrick’s story. In the original Dragon Quest III the hero being Erdrick was a plot twist, but the game also came out in 1988, so it’s at “Luke, I am your father” levels of shocking revelation nowadays. Choosing to release the HD-2D remakes in chronological order of the story, Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake came first and now it’s just about time for the rest of it, coming soon on October 30 this year in the form of Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake

Review: Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake

Is HD-2D the key to revitalize Dragon Quest III or should it have stayed in the past?

I had the chance to play nowhere-near-enough of Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake recently at PAX East and was instantly charmed by an incredibly thorough rebuild of the two RPG classics. Each game has been expanded from its original size with new abilities and upgrades, and the HD-2D presentation felt modern-day rich in detail while still faithful to the NES classics. The first two games are being bundled together into a single release because the originals were short, artificially expanded by a classic-gaming difficulty curve that could make a little content go a long way. That’s no longer true for the new versions, but they do have new content added in terms of areas and dungeons to explore, not to mention new boss battles to give the heroes a good workout.

In the original Dragon Quest that’s just the one hero, though, with the descendant of Erdrick setting out alone on his journey to indulge in that ’80s-est of videogame tropes, rescuing the princess. The bit I got to play of this was the first town to a dungeon, and I’ll admit to poking around town far more than beating up slimes and other iconic Dragon Quest starter-monsters. This was made easier by finding hidden armor with ridiculous defensive stats to go with its ridiculous look, which I eventually changed out of because it felt a bit like cheating, but even without i, the stroll from starter town to dungeon was RPG-reasonable rather than the grind of the original game.

Each game has been expanded from its original size with new abilities and upgrades, and the HD-2D presentation felt modern-day rich in detail while still faithful to the NES classics.

The sequel introduced a multi-character party, led by a new descendant of Erdrick, and in my play-time for this one I went out exploring the world map rather than getting caught up in town. While the games are HD-2D remakes that doesn’t mean no polygons, but rather that the relatively simple environmental geometry is enhanced with detailed sprite-work on the characters and enemies, plus texturing that’s more detailed but not enough to stand out too much from the 2D elements. There are a number of different art styles that may be on screen at any given moment, especially when magic or skill effects kick off, but it somehow all works together to create a unified whole.

The problem with Dragon Quest, though, is that there’s not much to say about the games that hasn’t already been written in the last almost-forty years. Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake is exactly what it sounds like, an updated version of the original two games you can play in any order, revised and expanded with new content and a more reasonable difficulty curve. For series fans it’s going to be a welcome return to an old favorite, and for those who haven’t played before it’s a great on-ramp to one of gaming’s longest-running and most-loved series. The JRPG started here, and whether you play it to see where it all began, experience the new content in a favorite series or just for the fun of it, Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake is a recreation of a pair of games that influenced decades of gaming history.