THE BUZZ: At a special event held in Japan, Square Enix finally unveiled the first real details of Dragon Quest X: Rise of the Five Tribes Online—including, as the name implies, that the game will have a huge online component.

Though it may seem a strange thought at first, Dragon Quest X is the first internally-developed DQ game since the merger between Square and Enix, with the major staff being producer Yosuke Saito (NIER) and director Jin Fujisawa (DQ8, DQ9).

In a decision that has already seen mixed reaction (including a drop in Square Enix stock price), Dragon Quest X will eschew the hardcore single-player focus the series has been known for, and instead will look and play more like a typical MMORPG (including, rumor has it, a required monthly fee). Those who treasure a solo DQ experience won’t be completely left out, however; the game will also allow for players to recruit AI-controlled NPCs, instead of having to interact with other living humans. However, it has been confirmed that after the first few introductory hours of gameplay, the rest of DQX must be played online, even if those AI teammates are used.

EGM’s TAKE: I can’t help but feel that Square Enix are treading into dangerous territory with Dragon Quest X. Unlike Final Fantasy fans—people who are used to constantly changing gameplay ideas and vastly different concepts each iteration—DQ faithful seem to prefer their beloved series to include as little change as possible. I’m also not at all surprised that DQX has been announced for both the Wii and WiiU—I had no doubt in my mind that, at this point, a Wii-only release would never happen.