Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake devs want players to have the "same feeling" exploring the JRPG's open world as they'd have in Zelda: Breath of the Wild

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The remake devs took inspiration from "a lot of modern games"

A screenshot from Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, showing the protagonist and party facing a figure on a throne.
(Image credit: Square Enix)

Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake is shaping up to be a gorgeous revival for the classic 1988 JRPG, but its devs actually took inspiration from "a lot of modern games," including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, to bring it to life over 35 years later.

In a group Q&A session at Gamescom 2024 attended by GamesRadar+, remake producer Masaaki Hayasaka explains (via interpreter) that the dev team wanted to evoke that same feeling you get from seeing something interesting in the distance and wanting to go there that Breath of the Wild pulls off so well. "We really took inspiration from a lot of games, particularly a lot of modern games," he begins. "To give an example that I'm sure you'll all understand, there's Breath of the Wild, one of the Zelda games. 

"As you're traversing the open world in Breath of the Wild, you can see a building in the distance and be like, 'I want to go there,' and then it makes you want to go there and travel," he continues. "We wanted to capture that same feeling with the world map here. So if you see something sparkling in the distance, you're like, 'I wanna go there.'"

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That world that the team has recreated is also housing new secrets to find, so even those who've played the original beginning to end multiple times will be able to find some fresh surprises. On this, series creator Yuji Horii says: "We've made this vast world, and it's really beautiful, so we thought it'd be fun if you could explore it and find lots of different things. We just wanted to capture that sort of sense of joy."

There's only a couple more months to go until Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake's launch on November 14, and from what I played during my hands-on preview session at Gamescom, it definitely feels like it could be the cherry on top of a fantastic year for JRPG fans. With HD-2D remakes of Dragon Quest 1 and 2 also on the way next year, it seems like that trend could be set to continue, too. 

Be sure to check out our list of the best JRPGs for more to play ahead of Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake's release. 

Catherine Lewis
Catherine Lewis
Deputy News Editor

I'm GamesRadar+'s Deputy News Editor, working alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.