Square Enix announced DRAGON QUEST RPG The Cursed Tree and the Chosen Isle on November 8 at 8:14 p.m. MST, calling it "a new turn-based RPG for smartphones in the DRAGON QUEST series." Its announcement trailer premieres on YouTube on Tuesday, November 10 at 4 a.m. MST, which is 11 a.m. UTC and 8 p.m. in Japan. The reveal lands in the series' anniversary year: the original Dragon Quest launched in Japan on May 27, 1986, and Square Enix marked 40 years of the franchise on Dragon Quest Day this May. Here is every mainline game and the current official way to play each one. Check out the official post down below:
Dragon Quest In Brief
Square Enix's press materials describe Dragon Quest as a series created by Yuji Horii, with character designs by Akira Toriyama and music by Koichi Sugiyama. The first game reached the United States in 1989 under the name Dragon Warrior. Square Enix says the franchise has shipped more than 97 million units worldwide across 11 main series titles, and that it holds the Guinness World Record for "Longest-Running Japanese RPG Series."
Every mainline game uses turn-based combat, and most tell a self-contained story. Only two groups of games share a continuity: the Erdrick Trilogy and the Zenithian Trilogy.
Every Mainline Dragon Quest Game
- Dragon Quest (1986)
- Dragon Quest II (1987)
- Dragon Quest III (1988)
- Dragon Quest IV (1990)
- Dragon Quest V (1992)
- Dragon Quest VI (1995)
- Dragon Quest VII (2000)
- Dragon Quest VIII (2004)
- Dragon Quest IX (2009)
- Dragon Quest X (2012)
- Dragon Quest XI (2017)
Those are the original Japanese release years. Most of the games reached North America later, and several were renamed along the way, starting with the Dragon Warrior titles on the NES.
The Erdrick Trilogy: III, Then I, Then II
The first three games form the Erdrick Trilogy, known in some older translations as the Roto trilogy, and their story order differs from their release order. Square Enix's launch release for Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake calls that game "chronologically first in the 'Erdrick Trilogy,'" with a story refined to tie in better to the events of the first two games. Dragon Quest I and II follow the descendants of Erdrick, "the legendary hero whose legacy is passed down through generations" after III.
Square Enix remade all three in its HD-2D style, which blends 3D backgrounds with 2D pixel sprites. Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake launched on November 14, 2024 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, with full English and Japanese voice acting, auto-saves, adjustable battle speeds and an auto-battle setting. Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake followed on October 30, 2025 for Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam and the Microsoft Store. Square Enix says it adds never-before-seen story content, a fully explorable underwater world and a new playable character, and both games are also sold together as the Dragon Quest HD-2D Erdrick Trilogy Collection.
On Dragon Quest Day 2026, Square Enix said the HD-2D Erdrick Trilogy had sold a combined 4 million copies globally. The story order, III and then I & II, matches the order Square Enix released the remakes in.
The Zenithian Trilogy: IV, V And VI
Dragon Quest IV, V and VI make up the Zenithian Trilogy, named for the castle in the sky that links their stories. Each game tells its own story. Only IV reached North America in its original form, as Dragon Warrior IV on the NES in 1992, while V and VI did not get official English releases until their Nintendo DS remakes in 2009 and 2011. Dragon Quest IV splits its story into chapters following different heroes before bringing them together, and Dragon Quest V follows its hero from childhood through adulthood and parenthood. Bianca and Nera, the two women the hero of V can marry, are the dual protagonists of Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World, which Square Enix announced in May for Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.
The Standalone Games: VII Through XI
Dragon Quest VII Reimagined launched on February 5, 2026 for Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam and the Microsoft Store, at a suggested price of $59.99. Its hero and his childhood friends are swept away from their peaceful island home and sent back in time by an ancient tablet, learning that dark forces have sealed away entire lands. Square Enix rebuilt Toriyama's character designs with dolls made in the real world, staged its towns as hand-crafted dioramas and added a "Moonlighting" mechanic for using two vocations at once, plus a new Monster Master vocation.
Dragon Quest VIII and IX are standalone adventures, and Dragon Quest X is an online RPG that Square Enix continues to update in Japan. It has never had an official English release, though Square Enix is testing an AI companion called Oshaberi Slimey there, covered in DRAGON QUEST X Will Have An AI Companion Powered By Google's Gemini.
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition is the most recent single-player mainline game. Square Enix says it has shipped nearly 9 million units globally and won Metacritic's Must-Play award. A Nintendo Switch 2 edition arrived on September 24, 2026, adding a choice between graphics and performance display modes.
Where New Players Can Start
Three games work as starting points. Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake opens the Erdrick Trilogy's story, and Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake continues it. Dragon Quest XI S tells a self-contained story that needs no knowledge of earlier games. Dragon Quest VII Reimagined is the newest release and shows the series' current doll-and-diorama look, and its demo carries save data over into the full game on all platforms. The new mobile game is a separate smartphone project, and Square Enix has not said whether it connects to any mainline story. Square Enix released the Dragon Quest VII Reimagined launch trailer for its February 5 release:
What's Next: Dragon Quest XII
Dragon Quest XII: Beyond Dreams is officially in development. Square Enix revealed the title on Dragon Quest Day, May 27, 2026, along with messages from Yuji Horii and executive producer Yosuke Saito and in-development gameplay footage. The company has not announced a release date or platforms.
Which Dragon Quest game was your first, and would you recommend the Erdrick Trilogy or Dragon Quest XI S to a new player?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.