The recent Nintendo Direct saw the reveal of Dragon Quest 3: HD-2D, a remake of the original 1998 NES game. The Dragon Quest 3 remake will be launching later this year, followed by HD-2D remakes of Dragon Quest 1 and Dragon Quest 2 in 2025. All three games, known cumulatively as the Erdrick Trilogy, will boast a stylish art design that blends 2D and 3D elements and is very reminiscent of modern JRPGs like Octopath Traveler.
Dragon Quest 3 was originally titled Dragon Warrior 3 when it was localized for a North American release in 1988. For consistency's sake, this article will refer to the original as Dragon Quest 3.
On a visual level, Dragon Quest 3: HD-2D and the original Dragon Quest 3 are almost night-and-day. Square Enix seems to be delivering a true aesthetic feast with the remake, modernizing the game while still retaining classic design elements, such as pixelated character sprites. The remake is also likely to retain certain structural elements of the original, such as class-based gameplay and the general rules of party composition. Dragon Quest 3 is a bit unique in this area, as the protagonist is locked to a specific class, while the player has an exceptional level of freedom when it comes to the classes of their companions: players create their companions, choosing from a list of seven different classes, which can be changed once one of these characters reaches level 20.
Dragon Quest 3: HD-2D's Classes
Class names vary between different versions of Dragon Quest 3. The following are the class names from the original 1988 release.
Hero
Dragon Quest 3's protagonist falls into their own class, simply called "Hero." Hero has a lot in common with the Soldier class, able to use many of the same weapons and armor, but they can also learn a few spells. This allows Hero to be the most versatile and, eventually, the most powerful member of the party, though they definitely lean further into melee builds than magic ones.
Soldier
Soldiers are the most similar to Heroes in terms of melee ability, though they slot more into the warrior or tank RPG archetype, being most useful as damage-dealers and damage absorbers. They cannot learn magic, and they have the lowest Agility stat of all the classes, meaning that they are unlikely to be able to strike first. Ultimately, Soldiers are extremely useful when it comes to overall party composition, but they are not very versatile.
Fighter
In contrast to Soldiers, Fighters have the highest Agility of all the classes. However, they share the Soldier's high Vitality and Strength, though with less overall defense due to their incompatibility with most armor types. They are reliable damage-dealers with a tendency to strike first in encounters, and good alternatives or complements to Soldiers, depending on playstyle.
Pilgrim
Pilgrims are Dragon Quest's version of Clerics, and they share many of the class's most recognizable traits. They are a support class, mostly useful for their healing abilities, but they also have fairly decent Strength and Vitality, making them capable physical damage-dealers, though they can't leverage the same offensive spells as other magic-focused classes. They pair well with classes like Soldier and Fighter, who may require healing after drawing the brunt of an enemy force's attacks.
Wizard
Dragon Quest 3 players looking to leverage powerful offensive magic should consider putting a Wizard in their party, as this class excels at high-damage spells. They can cast a number of spells without consuming MP, making them extremely valuable for a damage-focused party, but they are let down by their low defense.
Merchant
Merchants are one of Dragon Quest 3's less conventional classes. Rather than being particularly useful in battle, they are more like a utility class, able to obtain bonus gold after enemy encounters, while offering additional information about in-game items. Thus, they are far more valuable as part of the overall Dragon Quest 3 experience than as combat assets, as they lack high attack or spell-casting abilities that can help them turn the tide of battle. This makes them good candidates for a class change later on.
Goof-Off
Goof-Offs are something of a wildcard class. They have the highest luck of any Dragon Quest 3 class, which can lead to some interesting gameplay results. Specifically, their high luck can influence enemy drops, which is probably their most direct gameplay utility, as they have low Defense and overall attack power. That said, Goof-Offs can become Sages, a more advanced class, without the use of the Book of Satori, an item that can only be used once. Thus, if a player wants more than one Sage, investing in a Goof-Off can pay dividends in the long run.
Sage
As perhaps the most powerful class, Sages have the potential to make Dragon Quest 3 much easier, though they aren't available from the start of the game. To create a Sage, players must use the aforementioned Book of Satori in the Temple of Dhama (unless they are upgrading a Goof-Off). This is certainly worth the effort, as Sages have incredible spell-casting potential, able to utilize both support and offensive magic while still having high defense and strength. Their stats are based on which class they derive from, but they are always extremely powerful, with more versatility than any other magic-based class.
Thief
Thieves are not in the original Dragon Quest 3, but appear in both the Super Famicom and Game Boy Color remakes, and will presumably show up in Dragon Quest 3: HD-2D as well. Like Fighters, Thieves have high agility, but they are also the only class that can use the whip, allowing them to attack multiple enemies at once. They are useful outside of combat as well, with abilities that help with treasure acquisition and sneaking past enemies, which make them invaluable when looking to loot an area while avoiding fights.
Dragon Quest III
- Released
- February 10, 1988
WHERE TO PLAY
DRAGON QUEST III: The Seeds of Salvation—one of the most highly acclaimed and best-selling games in the franchise is finally here for mobile! Now all three instalments of the Erdrick Trilogy can be played in the palm of your hand!
Every wondrous weapon, spectacular spell and awesome adversary in this rich fantasy world is yours to discover in a single standalone package.
- ESRB
- t
- Engine
- unity
- Franchise
- Dragon Quest
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo Game Boy Color, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation 4
- Developer
- Enix, Square Enix, Tose, Spike Chunsoft, Matrix Software, Armor Project, Heartbeat
- Publisher
- Enix, Square Enix, Tose, Spike Chunsoft, Matrix Software, Armor Project, Heartbeat
- Genre(s)
- JRPG, Adventure
- How Long To Beat
- 30 hours
