The folks at Square Enix never seemed to get the memo that mobile games are supposed to be cheap, because while the team’s Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger games for Android and iOS are certainly cheaper than console titles, at $16 and $10, respectively, they’re among the most expensive games you can find in the Play Store or App Store.

They’re also some of the most detailed, offering dozens of hours or role-playing game play since these are basically mobile ports of full-fledged console games developed for Nintendo, Super Nintendo, or Nintendo DS systems.

Now Square Enix is upping the game with the launch of Dragon Quest VIII for mobile. The game was originally released in North America in 2005 as a Playstation 2 title, and it’s now available for Android or iOS… for $20.

dragon quest

That’s a lot of money for a mobile game, but this isn’t really a mobile game. It’s a PS2 game that’s been ported to mobile. It has 3D graphics, well developed characters and plot lines, and reviewers say it offers up to a hundred hours of game play if you complete all the side-quests.

Dragon Quest VIII for mobile is basically a direct port of the Japanese version of the game. Text has been translated, but there’s none of the voice-over or orchestra music available from the US version of the PS2 game. Still, the game comes in at over 1.4GB, so it’s likely that the game would take up even more precious disk space on your phone or tablet if the extra audio files were included.

One of the oddest things about this port is that it seems to have been designed more for phones than tablets: the game is played in portrait mode rather than landscape. That could make it tough to play on a 10 inch or larger tablet, but shouldn’t really be a problem on a 7 inch or smaller screen.

via Android Police and Touch Arcade

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12 replies on “Dragon Quest VIII brings epic RPG action to mobile (for $20)”

  1. Hey, if they keep selling at that price, it must be working for them. I personally have four FF games, all bought on sale but still more expensive than typical mobile games, but those FF games are just so good.

    Square Enix must be raking the dough in with their console ports.

  2. I still hate the controls you get on phones/tablets. If someone brought Skyrim to android, I’d still not know how to play the dang thing

  3. I expect most Android and iOS games to be cheap because they’re almost always barely worth that price. If I can get console level games (even mobile console level like PSP, PS Vita and Nintendo DS) I’d pay the typical console/mobile console game price.

  4. Awesome – games aren’t supposed to be cheap, they’re supposed to be entertaining and relaxing. Most IAP riddled crap ends up pushing frustration.

      1. OMG, real racing 3 is SUCH an awesome game let down by it. The tragedy there is STAGGERING. I would have gladly paid the price of a PC game given the time I’ve spent on this, but as it stands I just cannot justify spending money on their virtual currency.

        Imagine – a single car for “900” Gold. An engine upgrade for 300 “gold”. Equivalent dollar values mean that virtual car or engine upgrade is equivalent to buying a proper game or three for the xbox/ps/pc etc.

  5. This is hands down the best RPG series out there. It hasn’t de-evolved into a knuckle dragging fest like those hideous action RPGs.

  6. it’s exciting to see major developers taking phones seriously as a gaming platform. portrait mode and a one-handed interface is perfect for playing on the train/bus or waiting in line. this could be a milestone!

  7. I remember playing this on the Playstation. I couldn’t finish it though. I kept falling asleep. I’m a big fan of jRPGs and find most of the ones on Android are very lacking. Maybe after 10 years, the parts that put me to sleep will be exciting to me now. I know it should be better than the majority of the mobile games out there. Used, the PS game might be $20+.

  9. I’m all for Square Enix’s premium game philosophy; you get good/great games and what you don’t get is endless IAPs and pay barriers. This is the polar opposite of Candy Crush Saga and all the better for it.

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