The popularity of Dragon Quest Monsters is not what it used to be. It wasn't always like this. The series made an ambitious start with its first and second installments, which caused a huge splash at the time by offering solid gameplay quality as monster-collecting spin-offs of Dragon Quest. However, that popularity did not last long.
While the first two games were remade multiple times, a massive gap of 22 years passed without news of a numbered sequel until Dragon Quest Monsters 3 was released on December 1, 2023. Given those circumstances, fans were thrilled when the third game arrived. However, Dragon Quest Monsters 3 fell short in several areas. The biggest problem was its visuals. Although the game itself received praise for its solid gameplay polish, its visuals overshadowed those strengths.
With the series' future once again hanging in the balance, Dragon Quest Monsters 4 (hereafter DQ Monsters 4) made its entrance. It goes without saying how the fandom reacted.
Fortunately, DQ Monsters 4 leaves a fairly strong first impression. While not quite on par with top-tier modern releases, it features noticeably improved visuals, stars the Heavenly Brides from Dragon Quest V as main characters, and incorporates intriguing unique elements like a spherical field layout.
So, how is the most important part—the gameplay? I had the chance to test it out firsthand at Square Enix's Pre-TGS event held for Asian media over two days from August 31 to September 1.
First off, the visuals are adorable
Before diving deep into the game, let's start with the visuals that form the first impression. Many gamers interested in DQ Monsters 4 likely paid close attention to its art direction. Since the third game left much to be desired visually compared to other titles at the time, this area is essential to address.
From that perspective, as shown in the previously released trailers, the visuals of DQ Monsters 4 are impressive across the board. You could call them charmingly cute. While remaining faithful to the original Dragon Quest art style, the game captures a soft, squishy, and tactile feel unique to DQ Monsters 4.
Of course, it does not rely solely on cute, rounded visuals aimed at kids. Monsters that block Bianca and Flora's path—especially Thespidor, who appears to be a commander of the underworld—are designed with realistic 7-to-8-head body proportions to create contrast. This visually communicates that he is a formidable opponent. While maintaining the overall visual tone, the game establishes clear distinctions based on each character's role and personality.
A dash of novelty (field) added to familiarity (combat/raising)
The combat and monster-raising systems do not differ much from the previous installment, Dragon Quest Monsters 3. In fact, they are practically identical. As in the predecessor, you can carry up to four monsters at once. Of course, this applies only to Small (S) monsters. Large (L) monsters take up two slots by default, meaning you can bring three monsters depending on the combination, or just two if your party consists entirely of Large monsters.
This comes with its trade-offs. Large monsters generally have higher stat caps and are more powerful than Small monsters. In other words, you can strategically decide whether to field an elite few powerful monsters at the cost of action frequency, or field multiple Small monsters to gain an advantage in turn actions.
Combat also remains largely unchanged, aside from tweaks to animations and camera angles. Exploiting enemy weaknesses deals high damage, and as an enemy's HP drops, the success rate of a Scout Attack for capturing them increases. If you played the previous title—or even if you simply have a basic understanding of the monster-collecting genre—the mechanics are traditional enough that you can pick them up right away without much explanation.
The progression mechanics follow suit. Depending on how you allocate Skill Points, you choose whether to unlock active skills or acquire passive skills that boost caps like maximum HP or MP. Unlocking skills isn't a simple matter of investing 1 point at a time; some skills require 3 or 10 points to unlock, giving players freedom to spread points evenly or specialize in a specific path.
The synthesis system, considered the core of the Dragon Quest Monsters series, has been improved for better readability. Rather than just checking what monster is born from fusing Monster A and Monster B, you can now see at a glance what parent monsters are needed to create a specific Monster C. Considering there are over 500 monster species in the game, this is a significant quality-of-life upgrade. Furthermore, being able to filter by various conditions marks a clear step forward in convenience.
There are two main things to keep in mind during synthesis. The first is the sparkle mark. A sparkle mark indicates that a higher-rank monster than the parent candidates will hatch, or an unexpected family will be born. Therefore, it pays to actively check for sparkle marks when synthesizing.
The second is skill inheritance. During synthesis, up to three skills can be passed down from the parents. However, they are not transferred completely intact. Only half of the Skill Points spent on selected skills carry over, and half of the points from unselected skills are refunded. Since skills are divided into active and passive types as mentioned earlier, this decision requires careful thought. Otherwise, you might end up with a strange monster that has high stats and plenty of passive skills, but very few usable active abilities.
While DQ Monsters 4 carries over most elements from its predecessor with minor tweaks, it is not without distinct features. The most noticeable change is the field design—specifically, the spherical field. While previous entries and most RPGs feature vast, flat maps, DQ Monsters 4 introduces spherical terrain, reshaping how players explore.
The biggest impact of a spherical field is that you cannot see your entire surroundings at a single glance. While this could be viewed as a drawback in terms of convenience, it adds a fascinating dynamic to the game's atmosphere. Not seeing everything at once means not knowing what lies just ahead over the curve. Asking yourself, "What's over there out of sight?" or "How do I get over there?" made navigating the terrain feel like true exploration.
Naturally, there are drawbacks. Personally, I rarely feel motion sickness even in flashy titles or games where characters somersault through the air, but I felt slightly dizzy while playing DQ Monsters 4. Fortunately, the game offers various motion sickness prevention options in its settings. Since it delivers a unique experience while providing countermeasures, it doesn't seem to be a major cause for concern.
The lack of drastic changes is a strength in itself
Playing DQ Monsters 4 firsthand gave me much to reflect on. The core point is that the game's systems do not differ wildly from its predecessor. While that can often be a double-edged sword, it felt like an advantage in DQ Monsters 4. Because the core mechanics are already well established under the Dragon Quest Monsters brand, forcing drastic changes could have ended up hurting the experience.
What fans eagerly awaiting DQ Monsters 4 want is less a completely revamped game and more an entry that carries forward the classic spirit of the series. In that sense, keeping sweeping changes to a minimum is a choice worth viewing positively.
That is not to say there are no changes at all. Regarding visuals—which faced heavy criticism in the previous installment—DQ Monsters 4 clearly shows meticulous effort. Coupled with the addition of spherical fields, one can see clear evidence of thought put into offering a fresh exploratory charm while retaining the series' roots.
It is too early to tell whether DQ Monsters 4 will surpass the performance of its predecessor. However, one thing seems clear: for players who enjoyed previous Dragon Quest Monsters titles, this is a game well worth being satisfied with.
