Dragon Quest is a big deal in Japan. A very big deal. For example, there’s a reason that there’s that popular urban rumour that the Japanese government outlawed the release of a Dragon Quest game on a school/ work day: each new “proper” game in the series really does sell in such numbers that it could affect the the national productivity of the country as people take sick days or skip out on school.
But it’s been a very long time since a new numbered Dragon Quest game has landed on a major home console. Dragon Quest VIII was a PlayStation 2 game, but Dragon Quest IX was a Nintendo DS game. That made sense given the size of the install base for the Nintendo DS at the time, but then Dragon Quest X came around, and it was an MMO. And not on the PlayStation 4, which most experts expect to become the dominant console this generation in Japan. And so the desire for a new game in the series on the PlayStation 4 is undeniable.
So much so, in fact, that a mistaken report that claimed Dragon Quest was in fact coming to the PlayStation 4 sent Square Enix’s stock crashing through the roof. After the highly respected business publication, Nikkei, made the mistaken report (mistaking Dragon Quest Heroes 2 for a new “proper” Dragon Quest game), Square Enix’s stock lept to 2788 yen; the highest point it’s been this year.
(For a summary of this story in Japanese click here)
No doubt it was an honest mistake of the reporter, but herein lies a very good reason to verify rumours or a single report of a story against other reports. On the plus side if Square Enix is ever facing a situation where its stock is flagging, it knows what it can do to have it boosted back up again.
– Matt S.
Editor-in-Chief
Find me on Twitter: @digitallydownld
