In Dragon Quest III, players can form a party of up to four characters, including the protagonist, by paying a visit to Patty’s Party Planning Place at the start of their adventure. Simply have a word with Patty and you’ll be able to add any adventurers registered with her to your party. If you’ve registered any adventurers yourself, then you’ll also be able to recruit them to join your ranks here. This remake also boasts a new feature which allows you to sign up party members to be volunteers. Volunteers can help out parties on other adventure logs (save files) that are tied to the same account. Make a party you’ll be proud to call your own and set forth to vanquish the Archfiend!
—Downstairs you can talk to Patty and swap allies in and out. Head upstairs if you want to register a new adventurer or two.
How to Register New Recruits
—First, you’ll be asked to choose your new ally’s name, vocation, appearance, and how they look from four presets.
—Then you get to pick one of fourteen different hair colors for them. After that, you’ll receive a few stat-boosting seeds which you can allocate as you see fit.
—Last but not least, you get to select what kind of voice they’ll have; their appearance won’t limit the voice types you can give them. It’s also worth noting that the protagonist and all their companions have their own personalities too!
Everyone in your party comes with their own personality, and this will change how quickly certain attributes increase when they level up. If you’re not a fan of a personality, you can always change it with a book or accessory later on.
—The protagonist’s personality is decided at the start of the game, and their companions’ personalities are set whenever they’re registered.
Helping Hands
This remake allows players to share party members between adventure logs attached to the same account. If you’re interested, talk to Patty and select the “Helping Hands” option. This will let you sign up volunteers to aid parties on other adventure logs. You’ll then be able to add a maximum of one volunteer, with the attributes, level, and equipment they had when registered, to your party on another adventure log!
—You can make up to nine adventure logs on a single account, and register a maximum of one volunteer on each adventure log.
■ Know Your Vocations
Everyone in your party has a vocation, the protagonist included, and these determine what spells and abilities they are capable of learning, how their attributes will increase, and what equipment they can use. Make a point of trying out all sorts of vocations to see which combination suits you best. Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake also features an all-new vocation: the monster wrangler. They know more than most about monsters, and will help you befriend any creatures you find who look lonesome.
—There are ten different vocations, including hero, which is unique to the protagonist.
Monster Wrangler
Allies with this unconventional vocation do battle with an array of monstrous abilities. Not only can they learn attacks which deal damage to multiple enemies at once, they are also capable of using abilities which heal their companions.
—Hit several enemies at once with some ratherlarge rocks.
—War Cry: an ability that allows you to stun enemies, causing them to miss their next turn.
Hero
Only the protagonist can possess this vocation. They will learn sword-specific abilities, Zap-family spells, healing magic, and even incantations that revive fallen allies. This versatility allows heroes to switch between attack and defense at a moment’s notice.
—Kazap: a fearsome spell unique to heroes that rains down powerful thunderbolts on the enemy.
Warrior
Excellent damage dealers who can arm themselves with all sorts of powerful equipment. Their high HP allow them to protect their companions during fights too, making them mainstays in most parties.
—The Sword Dance ability unleashes a series of slashes which will damage even the toughest of foes.
Martial Artist
Formidable combatants who are not only strong, but speedy to boot. They favor fighting with their fists or claws and land lots of critical hits in battle.
—The Multifists ability allows martial artists to pummel their enemies with four punches in a row.
Mage
Capable conjurers who boast ample wisdom and equally ample MP. Not only can they hold their own against enemies with a myriad of offensive spells, they can also support their allies with incantations like Kabuff and Oomph.
—Kafrizz: a spell that incinerates an enemy with an enormous fireball. Mages can cast a whole host of elemental spells.
Priest
A helpful healer who can recover allies’ HP and cure them of any nasty status ailments such as poison or paralysis. They can even resurrect fallen companions too!
—Priests can use Multiheal whenever they need to help the whole party recover some much-needed HP.
Merchant
Money makers who are experts at collecting gold coins and appraising items. Their unique skill set will come in handy both in battles and as you explore the world. They even occasionally pick up some extra gold coins post-battle.
—Use their Dig ability while out and about and you might happen upon some gold coins or an item. If you’re lucky, they might even find an extra-rare item!
Gadabout
Party animals who heal and support their allies with a range of abilities in battle. However, be warned: they’re prone to acting out on their own, but this can sometimes have unexpected, positive results.
—While they occasionally ignore orders, their antics can benefit the party in unexpected ways.
Thief
Experts at sneaking past enemies and finding treasure in the darkest of dungeons. Thieves have an array of spells and abilities that aid the party during exploration and can also unleash attacks which inflict status ailments. Post-battle they might surprise you by stealing something from a defeated enemy too!
—The Nose for Treasure ability allows thieves to work out how many sparkly spots are nearby on the world map, and how many treasure chests are nearby in towns and dungeons.
■ Change Vocations to Power Up Your Party
Eventually on your adventure you will reach Alltrades Abbey, where you can give any character over level 20, except the protagonist, a new vocation of your choosing. Party members will revert to level 1 post-vocation change, but they will still retain all the spells and abilities they had in their arsenal. In short, the more vocations a character takes on, the more things they’ll be able to do!
—People come to Alltrades Abbey from all over hoping to switch things up and try out new vocations.
—Swapping vocations will send you back to level 1, but your attributes will only decrease by about 50 percent.
—A self-styled “fashion gooru.” Healizah can change how characters look, their hair color, and even their voice for a fee.
■ A Very Special Vocation
Sage
Only those who have undergone intense training and attainted true enlightenment are ready to take on the sage vocation. They are famed for their abundant MP, and can wield both priest- and mage-specific spells.
Characters can only become sages by meeting certain conditions. Keep changing vocations and make your party as powerful as it can be!
—No one starts out as a sage and the path to becoming one is shrouded in mystery…
—The end of your adventure will be fraught with peril, but having a sage at your side will put you in good stead. Their offensive, healing, and support spells will help guide your party to victory.
■ Monster Arenas: Where Kindly Critters Do Battle (Exclusive to the Remake)
The world is home to several monster arenas, where friendly creatures you’ve rescued on your travels can test their might in combat! Keep your eyes peeled for any monsters of a kinder disposition when exploring towns, dungeons, and other areas. Should you manage to win a monster arena tournament, you’ll earn some special prizes, so do your best to assemble a winning team!
—Any monsters you rescue will head off to see Monty the Monster Monitor in a nearby monster arena.
—Some of the world’s towns have their own monster arenas, where you can take on different tournaments. Each tournament has its own rank, and you can take part in one as long as you pay your entry fee and have enough monsters to form a team.
—Teams are comprised of a maximum of three monsters, and you can set your monsters’ tactics during battles.
—You’ll earn money for each bout you are triumphant in. What’s more, you also get extra gold coins and prizes if it’s your first time winning a tournament!
■ Scour All the Secret Spots
There are some hidden areas in the world that you won’t find on your map. They’re often marked by a conspicuous tree or some boulders. If you enter one of these spots, you might find some items, gold coins, or even a friendly monster. Make a point of searching for these areas on your adventure, you won’t regret it!
Watch the latest hands-on preview footage below, featuring the demo playable at Tokyo Game Show 2024 from September 26 to 29. View the screenshots at the gallery.
