Your Ultimate Guide Through Every Dragon Quest
Alchemy and item crafting might look like a fun side activity in Dragon Quest, but seasoned players know they're often the difference between breezing through tough bosses and hitting a frustrating wall. Whether you're brand new to the series or just never paid much attention to that glowing pot in the corner, this guide breaks down exactly why crafting matters — and how to stop wasting your materials.
Dragon Quest is famous for being the kind of RPG you sink 60 slow, cozy hours into. So why are some players finishing these games in under an hour? We went deep into the speedrunning community to find out what makes gaming's most laid-back franchise a surprisingly intense competitive challenge.
From the original Dragonlord sitting smugly on his throne to Mordegon tearing the sky apart in Dragon Quest XI, the franchise has given us some genuinely unforgettable bad guys. We're ranking them all — and yeah, we know you're going to disagree with us in the comments.
Dragon Quest is one of the biggest franchises in gaming history — in Japan. In the US, it spent decades as a cult curiosity while Final Fantasy and other RPGs dominated store shelves. What went wrong, what's finally going right, and what does the series still need to do to win over American players for good?
Long before orchestral video game scores were commonplace, Dragon Quest was already doing something extraordinary with its music. Koichi Sugiyama's compositions didn't just accompany the adventure — they defined it. Here's a look at how those iconic melodies shaped an entire genre and why the tradition still resonates today.
Dragon Quest XI converted a huge wave of Western players who'd never touched the franchise before, and it's easy to see why — it's charming, gorgeous, and approachable in all the right ways. But once the credits roll and the post-game wraps up, what comes next? This is your roadmap for making the most of everything the Dragon Quest universe has to offer.
Dragon Quest's job system didn't arrive fully formed — it evolved through decades of experimentation, player feedback, and bold design decisions. Whether you're brand new to the series or a returning hero, understanding how vocations changed across titles reveals just how much thought Horii and his team put into letting players build their dream party. Here's the full story.