Ringing in the new year in a surprise fashion, Dragon Quest series creator and director Yuji Horii confirmed that the next installment in the wildly popular RPG series is currently in development.
According to a translation of a tweet from January 1st provided by Gematsu, Horii tweeted a New Year’s card and message to his fans reflecting on the work and achievements accomplished by his team in 2019, which included beginning development on Dragon Quest XII.
However, Horii also cautioned fans to temper their expectations, as the game “is still a little while ahead”
Happy New Year. In addition to [what I said in the New Year’s card] below, there are some things I still cannot say, but as for [Dragon Quest] XII, it is still a little while ahead. However, there may be things we can release before that. Please give me your support again this year.
Happy New Year. Last year, we released the Dragon Quest movie Dragon Quest: Your Story, as well as the Switch version of Dragon Quest XI. We also released Dragon Quest Walk for smartphones, and announced anime and game adaptions for Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai. And now, 33 years after the first game, I am extremely happy to be able to challenge new things such as the production of [Dragon Quest] XII. To all the fans who have supported Dragon Quest thus far, as well as the many staff who have sustained it, thank you so much. While I’m not sure how long I’ll be able to keep this up, I want to work as hard as I can for a little while longer. May this year be a wonderful one for everyone. Please give me your support again this year.
あけましておめでとうございます。下にあげた以外にも、まだまだ言えないものもありますが、12は、まだちょっと先になりそうです。でも、その前に発売できるものもあるかも。今年も、よろしくお願いしますね😊 pic.twitter.com/dovPbbkydl
— 堀井雄二 (@YujiHorii) January 1, 2020
Dragon Quest XII was previously hinted at by series executive producer Yuu Miyake during the Dragon Quest Walk announcement event, though at the time Miyake stated that it was “too early” to formally announce anything:
“By the way, about Dragon Quest XII, which I’m sure is on everyone’s mind—[Yuji] Horii and I are currently making preparations on series developments that will connect to XII. I think it’s still too early, but we would like announce it in some form, so please wait a little while longer.”
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Definitive Edition was recently released on Nintendo Switch on September 27, 2019.