Honest Thoughts- Why Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince won't replace Pokémon

 “While Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince offers a serviceable and sometimes fun narrative and gameplay, the overall experience is unfortunately bogged down by its performance issues and the lack of simple yet essential features.” -Abdul Saad, But Why Tho?, 6/10

“[Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince] is a well-designed game on paper, terribly executed.”- Javier Escribano, Hobby Consolas (Spanish), 6/10

“If you’re at all a fan of Dragon Quest or monster-catching RPGs, we’d suggest you pick this one up, though perhaps wait a few months to see if Square can sort out the worst of its performance issues.” -Mitch Vogel, Nintendo Life, 7/10

“By rigidly following Dragon Quest traditions, we end up with flat, cartoonish characters who inhabit a repetitive, cyclical world.” -Paulo Kawanishi, Game Informer, 7/10

“… I have no interest in the story, and other than the distant promise of some fun monsters to mix and match into a lethal party, the demo failed to entice me to grab the game – let alone continue playing the demo.” -The Escapist, “Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince Probably Isn’t The Pokémon Alternative We Need.”

Unlike some people I know shooting the breeze online; I actually did see this coming. Any other time in any other year for video games; I simply couldn’t fathom this spinoff being the one to reignite its brand. In a banner year and holiday season for them; it never stood a chance. Much like Miguel O’Hara (I now officially reserve the right to say “told you so”), I had no real interest in playing the full game after the demo (at least at launch). So, let’s get this started. Here is why Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince won’t replace Pokémon.

First, let’s look at the landscape. Though I could easily lead with the sway Pokémon holds over monster-taming RPGs; I’d like to expand the scope even further. The Treasures spinoff last year had to contend with not only Generation IX, but Sonic Frontiers and God of War Ragnarok. This time, the competition is even stiffer apart from The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero and Detective Pikachu Returns. Spider-Man 2, MGS Master Collection, Super Mario Wonder, Sonic Superstars; the Super Mario RPG remake; Avatar Frontiers of Pandora and even the Switch port of Hogwarts Legacy, contentious as the discourse around that game is. Bringing up Tears of the Kingdom and Baldur’s Gate 3 is just overkill. Still, it’s a good segue to the next point.

Second, let’s address the different sales performances across the Pacific. While the title is selling well in Japan (so much so that Square-Enix is telling people to buy the digital version while they wait for more physical stock), the story in North America is different. I once again checked my closest stores that sell new games; and none of them are stocking the title. I also checked the eShop; and it’s yet to have made the top 10 as I type this. When you’re being outsold by Just Dance 2024 and the Bluey game; it’s time to call it a day. (I do like Bluey for the record.)

The third point worth noting is connected to the first two, is the difference in popularity gap between regions. Releases for the series are something of unofficial holidays in Japan; and there is some truth to the urban legends about people taking the day off from school or work to play them. While the debate is ongoing about the exact reasons why; the series has never been able to reach mainstream status in the West the way Final Fantasy or Kingdom Hearts have. Not even featuring the Hero in Smash Bros. Ultimate could move the needle like it did with Fire Emblem.

However, beyond all this; is the state of both series. Even with the infamy of Generation IX’s launch; Scarlet and Violet have been huge hits, and I’m enjoying the expansion so far. The discourse around the Pokédex didn’t stop Sword and Shield from doing gangbusters (ranking alongside Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey among Switch bestsellers). The Dark Prince was already coming off the divisive reception and mediocre sales of the Joker entries (with those being key reasons why multiple games bearing that imprint never got official English releases), so it was always going to be rolling a boulder up a mountain. Personally, I’m even less a fan of this spinoff series than the main DQ games; so I never had much incentive to seek out The Dark Prince. Perhaps I might check it out on sale if Square-Enix fixes the issues of the launch build; but not when there are worse frame rates than games I played on Dreamcast (looking forward to Sega reviving more of their legacy IP).

I know Festivus is about airing grievances among many things; but that’s just one of many things I’ve been doing my best to get across over the years: that other monster tamers should be sold as alternatives to the biggest ever; not replacements (deliberately keeping my expectations low for Palworld and whatever Level-5 is planning with “Ghost Craft”). Honestly don’t think Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is the worst game to come out of 2023 (this is a year that saw both Gollum and Skull Island: Rise of Kong release after all); but I also don’t think it will be a replacement for Pokémon either. On that subject; I just about have my full review of To Be A Master worked out, and I still have a goal of posting it before the year is done. Other writings will spill into 2024 if necessary (having connection problems lately). That’s all for now, season’s greetings.