Talk:2005 - play online Yuuji Horii Interview

Should the original disappear:

Yuji Horii Creator and Director, Dragon Quest series

Yuji Horii screenshot - none words: Play Staff

Born in Hyogo in 1954. After graduating from the prestigious Waseda University with a major in literature, Horii-san became a freelance writer to write columns in newspapers and magazines. In 1982, he participated in the Game Programming Contest hosted by the former Enix, Co. and won a prize which led him toward the path of game designer. In 1986 Dragon Quest was released in Japan. Throughout the past nineteen years, Horii-san has continued to develop Dragon Quest sequels, making the franchise into a huge social phenomenon in Japan. The latest installment, Dragon Quest VIII, sold 4 million copies in Japan since its release in August 2004. Horii-san is now known as the father of Dragon Quest. Besides the Dragon Quest series, Horii-san is also known as the scenario writer for the legendary RPG Chrono Trigger.

play: Deep character customization, witty dialogue, ‘Horii-ism’ puzzles, simple yet engulfing stories filled with twists and 70-100 hours play times are all DQ staples, although the graphics have remained on the simple side…until now. Did you team up with Level-5 with express purpose of creating an RPG as cutting edge technically as it masterful in these other areas? (Mission accomplished by the way).

Yuji Horii: First of all, I was amazed when I saw the prototype created by Level-5. Level-5 created a 3D world generated by computer, where Akira Toriyama’s artwork came to life and was filled with a human feel, and a vast field where the player can explore as far as the eye can see. I felt that Level-5 can create what I had dreamed of since the first installment of the series. The key point was that I was able to create what I always wanted to do rather than being limited to the visual technology that was available.

Will you continue working with them? Might we see DQ9 on PS3?

I would love to continue the DQ series in various forms. However, what I always think to myself is “What kind of entertainment can I provide the players next time?” rather than “What kind of game should I make DQ IX?” At this point in time, I still don’t know if that will be “DQ IX” or if it will be developed for the PS3. Currently in Japan we are developing a cute action game called “Slime Mori Mori Dragon Quest 2” for the Nintendo DS. I have to tell you, this game is also a lot of fun.

Do you always work very closely with Akira Toriyama on monster designs?

Akira Toriyama has worked on the character design and monster design for the Dragon Quest series up to now. Since our offices are in distant locations, we are not able to speak in person so often. Instead, I will send the ideas, background stories, and rough sketch of the characters to Mr. Toriyama, which he will then incorporate into his character design. After his design comes to my attention, I would sometimes request for some retouching, but for the most of the time, the designs are exactly what I imagined or far better, so it’s pretty smooth until we complete the designs.

Although the series has been successful in the US, it is practically a religion in Japan. Have you been dissatisfied with the reception of past Dragon Quest titles in the US? To what extent was Dragon Quest 8 developed with an international audience in mind?

I believe that a game can be fun universally, and as long as people have a chance to enter into the world of a game, they should be able to understand how fun this game is. The past DQ titles showed their characters in an icon-like art, so I have to admit that not everyone was able to feel truly emotional about the game. However, thanks to Level-5, players can now enjoy the adventure more realistically. When we made the North American version, we also changed several things. For example, the menu became much more intuitive, voice-overs were added so that the characters’ feelings can be expressed better, and we changed the background music to full orchestra version in order to add more tension to the adventure. During the E3 2005, DQVIII was received well along with various awards for best RPG. I’m sure that the finished product is something that the North American players can enjoy very much.

Even though VII had 3D elements this is obviously the first truly 3D version of the game. Would you say that free roaming 3D has allowed you to reach a new high in RPG creation? The game is certainly filled with stunning vistas and memorable moments.

Thank you very much. Even with the game becoming fully 3D, I still believe that the heart of DQ is still there. It’s no doubt that DQVIII will be the new milestone of new DQ series for the future.

I found myself (gladly) leveling up to bolster my characters caches and skills although not so much as in previous versions. Is this part of a more accessible overall package?

Because of the full 3D visual style, party members in DQVIII look even more unique and interesting. In order for players to enjoy the characters’ personality fully, we incorporated the “Skill System”. It’s all up to players how to customize the characters’ skills, and I believe this system will make players enjoy customizing their characters. I always put a lot of consideration in keeping perfect balance in gameplay which the Psyche up system is a good example of.

Although the characters can wield many weapons is leveling up all of them evenly as you progress key or is it wise to concentrate on powering up one at a time?

In DQVIII, we created unique skills for each character. No matter which skills players raise, they can finish the game, so it’s all up to each player. But in the earlier stage, it might be more beneficial for players to concentrate on raising one skill in order to learn a stronger move for a particular weapon. For example, a player might experience tough battles at first if he or she only raises fighting skill, but further in the game, it will be possible to fight a boss battle with using just a fist. There are many other ways of enjoying the game.

The recent trend in RPGs has been towards linear quests that leave the player little opportunity to deviate from the story, yet at a point in 8 you open up the world for the player (thank you). Are you concerned that casual players might become confused given no specific direction? What devices have you built in to keep casual gamers on track…Or should they simply seek out a strategy guide?

If you look at the field carefully, there is always a road to the next town. Therefore, if players follow the road, they will be able to reach to the next destination. Of course, it’s ok to go off the road and wonder around the field freely. That will give a great chance to discover hidden treasure chests, or encounter with team monsters that can be added to the Monster team. In addition, each time when players resume the game, party members will tell them what have happened so far and what the next goal is. That will hopefully prevent beginner players from being lost on the way.

Dragon Quest 8 will likely be the first Dragon Quest title most Americans have played. Is there anything you would like to tell them about the heritage of the series? What was your favorite DQ title before this one?

The overall theme of DQ series is that players can experience “another life” through the game. DQV represented the theme the most, and I should say it’s my favorite in the series. The basic storyline of DQV is that players will follow the story of the main character growing up from a little child to an adult, being married and becoming a father. Eventually, the main character along with his son and father, will battle with the Great Satan all together. It’s a fun game with such an epic story. I hope there will be a chance for American fans to play this game in the future.

Is there any chance that past Dragon Quests will be remade using the new graphical style?

We, the team are excited that with DQVIII, the DQ series will re-launch in the North American countries. I hope the game will be played by many people. After the launch of DQVIII, I want to take some time to decide on the next plan for the North America.

Chrono Trigger is a legendary game among American RPG fans. What exactly was your role in that title?

In Chrono Trigger, Hironobu Sakaguchi and I were involved together as supervisors. Mainly I worked on the story’s plot. I wrote Chrono Trigger with a vision of time travel. A character would travel to the past, make some actions, and that would change the current or future situation of the character…. As a side note, I am a huge time travel fan. An old TV series, Time Tunnel was my favorite and I never missed an episode.

Thanks for yet another amazing journey…See you again in about 4 years? Maybe sooner…?

I wish the next DQ title will comes out sooner, too. As I said earlier, I want the fans to enjoy the adventure of “Dragon Quest” in many different ways. For example, I would be happy if we can also release “Slime Morimori DQ2” eventually in the US.