Summary
Dragon Questcreator Yuji Horii shares his thoughts on the possibility of the iconic game developer retiring, suggesting that his departure from the gaming industry is still far off. The long-running RPG franchise has been a staple of JRPGs since the genre’s early days, with the first game debuting nearly 40 years ago in 1986 for the NES. The franchise has welcomedeleven main-seriesDragon Questtitlesalongside a plethora of spinoffs, delving intoPokemon-inspired gameplay withDragon Quest Monstersand survival sandbox gameplay withDragon Quest Builders. Now, Yuji Horii is speaking out about his potential retirement.
Since his beginnings with Enix in the early 1980s, Yuji Horii has grown into one of the most recognizable figureheads in the RPG genre. Horii has served in a game design and directorial position for every main-seriesDragon Questgame, as well as the franchise’s many spinoffs. Horii also recently celebrated his 70th birthday at the start of 2024, spending more than four decades of his life as a game designer working with Enix and later Square Enix. A recent interview now suggests that Yuji Horii is here to stay for the foreseeable future.
Dragon Quest Creator Yuji Horii Addresses Retirement Speculation
As reported by MyNintendoNews, a recent interview with Japanese gaming publication Famitsu suggests that Yuji Horii is far from done as a game developer. During the interview, Horii brushed off the idea of retiring, suggesting that he’ll “always be a game developer” and that he intends to continue creating for as long as he can. The interview featured two of the JRPG genre’s most iconic creators, with Horii appearing alongsideFinal Fantasycreator Hironobu Sakaguchi. Horii’s development studio, Armor Project, holds an exclusivity contract with Square Enix.
With Yuji Horii planning to stick around for a while, the iconic creator has already given fans reason to be excited for his next project. Square-Enix first announcedDragon Quest 12: The Flames of Fatein early 2021, with Horii teasing several changes coming to the next main-series game.Dragon Quest 12is expected to overhaul the franchise’s traditional turn-based combat, alongside a “darker tone” for the game’s story.A release window forDragon Quest 12has yet to be confirmed, with the game confirmed to have been hit with further delays earlier this year.
Despite the struggles withDragon Quest 12, the franchise’s most recent remake has seen stellar success following its launch. Square Enix’sDragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remakedebuted to critical and fan acclaim last month, withthe classicDragon Questremakeselling nearly 1 million physical copies in just its first week in Japan. The success bodes well for the upcoming HD-2D remakes ofDragon Quest 1andDragon Quest 2, expected to launch next year. The sustained success ofDragon Questcontinues to cement Yuji Horii’s status as a JRPG icon.
Dragon Quest
Dragon Quest is a fantasy roleplaying game series created by authors Yuji Horii, Akira Toriyama, and Koichi Sugiyama and published by Square Enix. Each game typically consists of a nameless central character know as the Hero fighting evil with their party members. They encounter monsters such as the famous Slime mascot. There are currently 11 games in the main franchise.
