The long wait for Dragon Quest XI is almost over: today, Square Enix announced that the role-playing game will be available in North America and Europe on September 4th. The game originally debuted in Japan last July, but previously, the developer had been quiet on a Western release.
Unfortunately, not all versions of Dragon Quest XI will be launching outside of Japan. The September 4th release date is for the PS4 and Steam versions, while Square Enix tells IGN that the Nintendo Switch version of the game won’t be available this year, but instead will launch “much later.” The 3DS version of DQXI, meanwhile, isn’t being localized at all.
In addition to the new language options, Square Enix says that the Western version of DQXI will also feature a handful of improvements over its Japanese counterpart, including the addition of a hard mode and an overhauled user interface.
While the series has been a mainstay in Japan since its debut, Dragon Quest has struggled to find a similar audience overseas — though not for a lack of trying. However, 2018 has already seen the similarly Japan-focused Monster Hunter series become a huge global hit, so maybe DQXI can finally be the breakout release Square Enix has been waiting for.
