Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake's Masaaki Hayasaka opens up about Monster Wrangler vocation, new bosses, connection to DQ11, and more (Exclusive)

Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake’s Masaaki Hayasaka has presided over one of the best games of 2024, without question — to me, at least. It brought to life, again, the frenzied passion many have for the classic NES/Famicom title, whether you’re in the West, or over in Japan. The game did phenomenally well, and as a long-time fan of the Dragon Quest franchise, I was thrilled to speak with Masaaki Hayasaka, producer of this latest entry into the long-standing RPG franchise.

I had a chance to chat with him via a translator after I had completed Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D, and so we had lots to talk about. From a connection to my other favorite game in the franchise (Dragon Quest 11) to the many new surprises that players have to look forward to, it was a very fascinating conversation.

With Dragon Quest 1 & 2 HD-2D Remake on the way as well, there’s never been a better time to dive into this long-standing series.

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Masaaki Hayasaka discusses Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake’s new additions and more

Q. To start, this isn’t a question, but thank you so much for your work on the incredible titles Octopath Traveler and Bravely Second: End Layer! They are some of my favorite games.

While not a Dragon Quest game, Bravely Second is a classic and a must-play. (Image via Square Enix)

Masaaki Hayasaka: Thank you very much! I didn’t expect BRAVELY SECOND to be brought up, but I'm elated because it was the first title I worked on after joining the company as a new graduate!

Q. First, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me! Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake is such an incredible experience, as someone who played the original when it came to the NES. As the game was so incredibly popular on its Famicom launch, what are your memories of Dragon Quest 3?

Masaaki Hayasaka: I was born in 1990, while the original Famicom (NES) version was released in 1988, so I actually wasn’t part of the original DRAGON QUEST III generation of players.

I formally played the game when this project began, but even then, the ending caught me by surprise just like everyone else. I can easily imagine how much more shocking it was for those who played the game back then—what I experienced probably wasn’t even comparable. It made me a little envious of those who played it in real-time.

Q. While the game felt similar, there were some major changes, like the new Monster Wrangler class. It has some truly powerful abilities and made some fights so much easier. Were there any other classes recommended that almost made the cut, or did it and the Friendly Monster system sort of come into existence at the same time?

It's interesting to know how all these systems came to be and were tied together (Image via Square Enix)

Masaaki Hayasaka: No, when it comes to vocations, we weren’t thinking of any other options besides the Monster Wrangler. It’s perhaps quicker to explain how this vocation came about. Firstly, the maps of the towns and fields in this game are larger than they were in the original game, so we needed to find new ways to engage players to fill the space of these larger maps.

Then, we needed to change the Battlefield from the original game for overseas rating purposes, and we decided to add a new feature called the Monster Arena. This new Monster Wrangler vocation was born as a way to neatly tie these seemingly disparate elements together and package them as a major highlight of the game.

So, the Monster Wrangler came about from us exploring:

• Rescuing friendly monsters within the expanded field (secret locations) and towns.
• Having them fight in the Monster Arena.
• From there we thought, why not create a new Monster Wrangler vocation that makes it easier to rescue the monsters?

The friendly monster system was therefore conceived as a set around the same time as this vocation.

Q. On the subject of changes, there were some pretty major changes made to important locations/items - in particular, the Sword of Kings! It was certainly a challenge to find. Did you guys think it was too easy to find in the original, for such a powerful weapon?

This connectivity between DQ3 and DQ11 is an amazing thing to see (Image via Square Enix)

Masaaki Hayasaka: No, it all started with the idea of including an event where players create a sword using the Forging Hammer, so we can allude to a connection with the world of DRAGON QUEST XI.

Furthermore, in the SNES (Super Famicom) version, there was a line of dialogue that says something like, “There is a sword that took the Lord of the Underworld three years to shatter,” so we decided to include a “broken blade.” We created the event for the Sword of Kings in this game by combining all these elements.

Q. Other versions of Dragon Quest 3 had their own bonus content, some of which made it to this game while some of it did not. What discussion went into what would and wouldn't be available in the post-game?

Some of this content is brand-new for some gamers in the West — it's tough, but worth doing! (Image via Square Enix)

Masaaki Hayasaka: Of course, this was something we discussed with the original creator, Yuji Horii, but we didn't have any particularly complicated discussions. Rather than thinking of completely new bonus content, we felt it would delight fans of the original game if we included content that was popular in past DRAGON QUEST III games, so we proposed including things like Xenlon from the SNES (Super Famicom) version in this game too.

The bonus content dungeon from the GBC version has been renewed as a grand, new location, so you could say that the bonus content generally follows the previous versions of the game.

Q. Another popular feature in Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake is the new bosses — though they're quite powerful compared to some of the other bosses! Was the feeling that perhaps, unlocking important items like the Orbs was just too simple, or perhaps a way to add some extra lore/challenge?

The lieutenants of Archfiend Baramos did not mess about (Image via Square Enix)

Masaaki Hayasaka: Largely speaking, there were three main reasons we did this. First, it was from a balancing perspective. If we include a boss, players will naturally have to defeat that boss to progress the game. This enables us to modulate the players’ progress (meaning the degree of their growth) to a certain extent.

Secondly, it's to reinforce the world setting and lore, as we wanted to depict how the minions of Archfiend Baramos covertly operate in various locations. Finally, it was from the perspective of wanting to provide a surprise to players. Because this was a remake, we felt players might be delighted if we included new bosses, so that was another big factor.

Q. For a final, more relaxed question - What is your favorite party makeup? Mine is Hero, Monster Wrangler, and two Sages.

Hero, Warrior, Priest, Wizard? That's how I start all my DQ3 runs, more or less (Image via Square Enix)

Masaaki Hayasaka: It would be the most basic party consisting of a hero, warrior, priest, and mage. Because I’m the producer, I was in a position where I had to check whether the game felt engaging and playable even with its most basic, default game balance, and I tested the game using this party makeup every time. Before I knew it, I had grown attached to them, and now it’s my favorite party makeup, haha.

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Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake is a truly spectacular recreation of a classic RPG You can learn more about the game in our in-depth review.