Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen

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Dragon Quest IV
Box art of the original North American release, Dragon Warrior IV, for the NES.
Developer(s)	Chunsoft Heartbeat, ArtePiazza (remake) ArtePiazza (DS remake)
Publisher(s)	Enix Square Enix
Series	Dragon Quest
Platform(s)	Nintendo Entertainment System, Famicom, PlayStation, Nintendo DS
Release date	Famicom/NES JP February 11, 1990 NA October 1992 PlayStation JP November 22, 2001 Nintendo DS JP November 22, 2007[1] NA September 16, 2008[2] EU September 2008
Genre(s)	Console role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	CERO: A (PS1, DS) ESRB: E10+ (DS)
Media	4-megabit NES cartridge CD (PS1)

Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen (ドラゴンクエストIV 導かれし者たち, Doragon Kuesuto Fō Michibikareshi Monotachi^?, lit. "Dragon Quest IV: The Guided Ones"), known as Dragon Quest: Chapters of the Chosen in Europe and originally published as Dragon Warrior IV in the NES version, is a console role-playing game and the fourth installment of the Dragon Quest video game series developed by Chunsoft and published by Enix (now Square Enix). It was originally released for the Famicom on February 11, 1990 in Japan. A North American version followed in December 1992. The game was remade by Heartbeat for the PlayStation, which eventually was available as a Square Enix Ultimate Hits title. This was followed with a second remake developed by ArtePiazza, released in Japan on November 22, 2007. This remake is planned to be released in North America on September 16, 2008, and the title will be made available in Europe for the first time during the same month.^[3]

Dragon Quest IV differed from the series by breaking up the game into five distinct chapters. The first four are told from the perspective of the Hero's future companions and the fifth one, from the hero's perspective, brings all the characters together as they begin their journey to save the world.^[4]

Contents 1 Gameplay and Features 1.1 Returning from Series 1.2 New to Dragon Quest IV 2 Plot 2.1 Characters 2.1.1 Main Characters 2.1.2 Uncontrolled Party Members (Non-Playable Characters - NPCs) 2.1.3 Other Characters 2.1.4 Main Villains 2.1.5 Endor Tournament Participants 2.2 Story 2.2.1 Chapter 1: The Royal Soldiers 2.2.2 Chapter 2: Princess Alena's Adventure 2.2.3 Chapter 3: Taloon the Arms Merchant 2.2.4 Chapter 4: The Sisters of Monbaraba 2.2.5 Chapter 5: The Chosen Ones 2.2.6 Chapter 6: The Road to the Happy End [5] 3 Legacy 3.1 Reception 3.2 Remakes 3.2.1 PlayStation 3.2.2 Nintendo DS 3.3 Spin-offs 3.4 Manga 4 Soundtrack 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Gameplay and Features

Dragon Quest IV offered several new features over the first three titles, while carrying on many of those introduced in the previous games.

[edit] Returning from Series

• The Ship and a Flying Method of Travel (this time a Balloon) aid in the quest. Both are not available until Chapter 5.
• Day and Night again return, with different things happening in towns and on the field at both points.
• The three levels of Locks and Keys return. They are in order: Thief, Magic and Final.
• Travel doors reappear, but are only in 2 locations, with one not truly going anywhere.
• Like the Hero in Dragon Quest III, the Hero of Dragon Quest IV is the only person that must be in the party at all times when they become available. Because of this, he is again the character that possesses the most powerful healing and attack spells.
• Many Spells, Weapons, Armor, and Shop (including the Vault/Bank).

[edit] New to Dragon Quest IV

• In addition to the new chapter-based storylines, an artificial intelligence system called "Tactics" was implemented that allowed the player to provide strategies to the party members (who become NPCs in the final chapter) while maintaining full control of the hero. Dragon Quest V, Dragon Quest VI and the remake of IV has the option to control the other characters manually.
• The wagon, introduced in this game, allows the player to choose which characters are used in battle. The wagon can also be seen in Dragon Quest V and Dragon Quest VI.
• The Casino as a place to play several mini-games (a slot machine, poker, and the Monster Betting that was introduced in Dragon Quest III) using tokens that could be traded for special items.
• Small Medals, later Mini Medals, were introduced as a new item to search for and trade, for special unique items from a secluded king.
• To save time, one now can save a game in the House of Healing, rather than talking to a king. Also, the save and EXP point to the next level-up ("Divination") are now separate commands.
• A new command was added to the menu that allows users to open a door, rather than searching through their inventory for the key as in previous games. The only limitation was that someone in the party needed to have the key in their inventory. Since this command was added, a new level of door, with no lock was added to this game.

[edit] Plot

[edit] Characters

[edit] Main Characters

They are the main characters of the story, and are controllable party members during their introduction chapters (Chapters 1-4). When they join the Hero in Chapter 5, the other party members become NPC characters that are only controlled by the "Tactics Command". In the re-releases, this setting can be changed to "Follow Orders", which allows the player to choose their actions.

• Hero. The main character of the game, who does not appear until Chapter 5. The player can choose and name either a male or a female hero. There is no impact to the story, other than a few optional pieces of armor and weapons that can be equipped if female.
• Ragnar (ライアン, Raian^?). Captain of the Burland army. He investigates a case of children who are disappearing throughout the kingdom. He first appears in Chapter 1. He also appears as a Cameo in Chapters 2 (Inn by Endor) and 3 (Endor Casino).
• Princess Alena (アリーナ姫, Arîna Hime^?). Tomboyish Princess of Santeem Kingdom. She is bored of the palace life and wishes to travel the world. She first appears in Chapter 2.
• Brey (ブライ, Burai^?). Alena's tutor. He's a magician who travels with Alena to look after her. He first appears in Chapter 2.
• Cristo (クリフト, Kurifuto^?). Chancellor of Santeem. He travels along Alena and Brey. He can use healing magic spells. He first appears in chapter 2.
• Taloon (トルネコ, Toruneko^?). A weapons merchant who wishes to open his own store. He first appears in Chapter 3.
• Mara (マーニャ, Mânya^?). A dancer, who can use attack magic from Monbaraba. Her father died in mysterious circumstances. She and her sister Nara seek revenge. She and her sister first appear in Chapter 4, and are the first to join the Hero in Chapter 5.
• Nara (ミネア, Minea^?). Mara's sister. She is a fortune teller and can use healing magic.

[edit] Uncontrolled Party Members (Non-Playable Characters - NPCs)

These characters join the party for portions of your quest, but cannot be controlled by the player or by a "Tactic". They leave once their purpose is completed, and in most cases cannot be re-recruited.

• Healie (ホイミン, Hoimin^?). A healer (or heal slime) who desires to be human. He joins Ragnar in his search for the missing children during Chapter 1. Later in the game, he begins to achieve his dream.
• Laurent (ロレンス, Rorensu^?). A mercenary who joins Taloon when he is looking for treasure during Chapter 3.
• Strom (スコット, Sukotto^?). Another mercenary hired by Taloon during Chapter 3.
• Orin (オーリン, Ôrin^?). A family friend of Mara and Nara who joins the sisters in their fight against their father's murderer During Chapter 4.
• Hector (ホフマン, Hofuman^?). The son of an inn keeper who lost faith in friendship when his partners betrayed him during a quest. He joins the party during Chapter 5, and gives them the Wagon.
• Panon (パノン, Panon^?). The best comedian in the world. He is the star at Monbaraba after Mara leaves. He is needed during Chapter 5 to make the King of Stancia laugh.
• Lucia (ルーシア, Rûshia^?). A citizen of Zenithia who fell from the sky and helps the party in Chapter 5 return to her home.
• Doran (ドラン, Doran^?). A baby dragon from Zenithia who joins the battle against the Ruler of Evil during Chapter 5.

[edit] Other Characters

These are characters that aid the Hero and his party throughout the game, but do not join the party.

• Master Dragon (マスタードラゴン, Masutâ Doragon^?). The ruler of Zenithia, who will give the Hero the power to beat the true evil.
• Celia (シンシア, Shinshia^?). A childhood friend of the hero. She is, along with all the townspeople, responsible to protect the growing hero.
• Primrose (パトリシア, Patorishia^?). Hector's cartmare. She pulls the party's wagon.

[edit] Main Villains

These are the main villains of the game.

• Necrosaro (デスピサロ, Desu Pisaro^?). Originally Saro (Pisaro), the Ruler of Dire Palace. Leads many of the monsters in a quest to find and revive the Ruler of Evil, Esturk, and to perfect the secret of Alchemy, which is actually the secret of evolution that allows Necrosaro to have the same power as Esturk. In Chapter 6 of the remake, he joins the Hero's team as Pisaro and helps them with the final boss of the Chapter.
• Esturk (エスターク, Esutâku^?). Also known as the Ruler of Evil. Defeated in a battle with the Zenithians ages ago, now sealed in his palace under the Aktemto mine, until it is once again found.
• Radimvice. Assistant to Necrosaro and one of the four minions placing a barrier on his Palace in Chapter 5. Later, it is discovered that he ordered the killing of Rosa. He is the final boss of the remake, in Chapter 6.
• Keeleon (キングレオ, Kingu Reo^?). The new king of Keeleon, a castle on the southwestern continent. Has the head of a lion and multiple arms. His name better translates from the original Japanese as King Leo.
• Balzack (バルザック, Baruzakku^?). Apprentice to Edgar, Mara and Nara's father. Betrayed his mentor and sought the Secret of Evolution, eventually becoming a fierce monster. He is fought during chapter 4, but later returns in Chapter 5 as the new ruler of the Kingdom of Santeem.

[edit] Endor Tournament Participants

These are the fighters Princess Alena faces at the end of Chapter 2. In between each round, Alena is allowed to use a Medical herb to recover her health. She must face all 5 in a row at one time, otherwise she will need to start at the beginning.

• Hun. First fighter in the tournament, who fights like a boxer.
• Roric. Second fighter in the tournament, who uses a boomerang.
• Vivian. Third fighter in the tournament, who casts magic.
• Sampson. The fourth fighter in the tournament, who is a very strong fighter.
• Linguar. The fifth fighter in the tournament, who creates three shadows of himself. This is the last fighter Alena faces.
• Necrosaro. The current winner of the tournament, who ends up not showing up, thus forfeiting.

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

[edit] Story

The first four chapters are dedicated towards introducing the motives and back-stories of the hero's companions, as well as some information on the game's antagonist, Saro. Each chapter gives meaning and attachment to those characters. In chapter one, the royal guard Ragnar must save the missing children and in doing so uncovers a plot to kill the still young hero. In chapter two, the princess Alena of Santeem rebels against her father and sets out to prove her strength and embarks on a journey with Brey, her tutor, and Cristo, Santeem's Chancellor. In chapter three, the merchant Taloon (Torneko in the Japanese version, and recently universally referred as Torneko Taloon) seeks wealth and treasure, and an ultimate weapon that would destroy Necrosaro. In chapter four, the dancer Mara and the fortune teller Nara attempt to exact revenge on their father's murder. All four of these stories lead up to the hero's fifth and final chapter.

[edit] Chapter 1: The Royal Soldiers

The King of Burland issued concern about the cases in which children of the region have disappeared. After he checked through the country, Ragnar found the whereabouts of the children; they were in fact kidnapped by monsters, who intended to get rid of the still young Legendary Hero. Accompanied by a friendly heal-slime "Healie", Ragnar ventures into "Loch Tower", the abductors stronghold, and saved the children. There, Ragnar also learned of the plot to resurrect the Ruler of Evil, and he decided to set off on a quest to find the legendary hero.

[edit] Chapter 2: Princess Alena's Adventure

A hoyden Princess of Santeem, Alena, finally sliped out of her castle. Joined by Brey and Cristo, who noticed her leave home, she began a journey to test her strength. Along the way, they encounter a group of actors who pretended to be the Princess and her companions, but the fake princess was abducted. Alena's party then ventured out to find the "Golden Bracelet", a priceless entombed treasure as directed by the kidnappers as ransom. The kidnappers made off with the bracelet while Alena's father, the King of Santeem, became unable to speak. Alena then set out to find Birdsong Nectar, which could restore her father's voice. After, the King told Alena that his speechlessness started when he decided to speak about his dream in which a giant monster attempts to destroy the world.

Permitted to leave the country by her father, Alena ventures to Endor and enters the tournament for the sake of saving the Princess of Endor from a forced marriage to the winner of the tournament. (That is if Alena (a girl) were to win, a marriage could not take place). After she overcame her first five foes, she was due to fight a man by the name of Necrosaro. He, however, failed to appear, so Alena won the tournament due to forfeit. Alena and her companions returned victorious to Santeem, only to discover that everyone in the castle disappeared. Thus, they embarked on a journey to uncover this mystery.

[edit] Chapter 3: Taloon the Arms Merchant

Taloon worked at Lakanaba's weaponry shop, but he was unhappy with his life. He finally set off on a journey to become the greatest merchant in the world. After he helped restore peace between antagonistic Bonmalmo and Endor, he purchased an empty shop in Endor, and started living there with his family. While doing business, Taloon heard about legendary weapons. After he helped open a tunnel to the eastern continent, he left Endor and his family to find these legendary weapons.

[edit] Chapter 4: The Sisters of Monbaraba

Edgar, the father of Mara and Nara, was a well-known alchemist who was close to turning objects into gold; he was however killed by Balzack for his refusal to help. After the murder, Mara and Nara had remained in Monbaraba and sought after their revenge. But in frustration of not finding him, they finally ventured out on a journey themselves. When they investigated their father’s laboratory, they again met with Orin, Edgar's apprentice.

The three of them ventured to Keeleon castle after they heard rumors of girls being abducted, but were unable to find out anything from the counselor. They then headed to the mining town Akemto in search of explosive powder on a tip that the counselor was afraid of loud noises and would run to the "master" of the castle.

Eventually the three got the powder and scared the counselor into showing them the secret entrance in Castle Keeleon, where they then encountered and fought with Balzack. After their victory against him, however, the true master of the castle, Keeleon beat them into submission and sent them to the dungeon. There, they got a boarding pass to Endor from a dying old man, whom also told them of a secret exit out of the dungeon. During the escape, Orin sacrificed himself to buy time for Nara and Mara so that they could flee to the port town Haville, and then to Endor.

[edit] Chapter 5: The Chosen Ones

The Hero was living in a calm village with his family, but his town was finally discovered by Necrosaro. In an assault of monsters, the hero's best friend used her transform magic to disguise herself as the hero and sacrificed herself to the army to fool them into thinking that the real hero was dead. Having lost his hometown, the hero has to drift from town to town.

Along the journey, the hero first met Nara and Mara in Endor, then obtained a wagon and ship before he joined Taloon, Brey, Alena, and Cristo. Ragnar assisted the hero in defeating Keeleon, thus uniting the eight chosen ones. After they defeated an evolved Balzack in Santeem Castle, it was revealed while he was dying that the "Golden Bracelet" was needed to make the secret of evolution stable.

The Hero's party then began to search the world for the legendary Zenithian Equipment to gain access into the Zenithian Castle, high in the sky. While they worked on this quest, they eventually disguised themselves as monsters and snuck into Necrasaro's stronghold, the Dire Palace. At a conference with Necrasaro, they discovered that in Akemto, the miners had struck too deep and stumbled upon the lair of Esturk, the Ruler of Evil. Necrasaro teleported there while the Heroes chased after him, and after the crawled through the mines they came across the ancient ruins of Esturk's palace. The Heroes then engaged the revived Esturk in combat, and destroyed him, but while doing so Necrosaro approaches prepared to take out the weakened heroes. At the last moment he was informed that something terrible had happened, and he left before he engaged with the heroes.

The Heroes eventually made their way back to Izmit village where they had a strange dream that the entire town had continued to have. The dream showed Necrosaro's sweet-heart Rosa getting abducted by humans. Rosa is an elf, whose tears were made of ruby. The humans were assaulting her to make her cry. The dream sequence shows Necrosaro arrived on the scene and killed the humans. Yet he was too late to save Rosa, and with her dying breath Rosa asked him to give up his mad scheme to destroy the humans. He however gave into his anger vowing that no human would survive his rage. He then went deep into the World of Evil where he hid in his castle using the now perfected secret of evolution on himself to become the next Ruler of Evil.

The Heroes realized his plans finished gathering the armor and made their way to the Zenithian Castle where they confronted its ruler Master Dragon. Master Dragon informed them that they must descend underground after Necrosaro and stop him. While in the World of Evil, the Heroes discovered that Rosa's abduction was part of a plot to drive Necrosaro to insanity by one of his generals. After defeating Necrosaro's generals, they confronted Necrosaro who had evolved himself to the same state as Esturk. While they battle he continued to evolve until he reached the "final stage" of evolution, where the Heroes managed to defeat him.

After the battle had finished, the Heroes were taken back to Zenithian Castle by Master Dragon who offered an invitation to the Hero to stay with them forever and revealed that he was in fact Zenithian. The Hero however turned down the offer and escorted each of his companions to their homes before returning to his own destroyed home. There he used his power to restore it and revived his best friend, and then reunited with his companions.

[edit] Chapter 6: The Road to the Happy End ^[5]

This chapter does not appear in the original NES release, and was only added later into the enhanced remakes.

This chapter focused on the heroes working with Necrosaro to avenge the death of Rosa, and finally put the world back in order. Throughout this chapter, Rosa was revived and the party was able to defeat her true killer, the general that originally set all plans in motion that drove Necrosaro into his insanity.

[edit] Legacy

[edit] Reception

Dragon Warrior IV was awarded "Best Challenge" and 2nd place "Best Overall Game" in 1993 by Nintendo Power, runner-up "Best Role Playing Game of 1992" by GamePro, "Best Role Playing Game of 1992" by Game Informer and "Best NES Adventure/RPG of 1992" by Game Players.

[edit] Remakes

To allow new generations an opportunity to play some of their older games, Enix has released enhanced updates to several of their Dragon Quest games on newer consoles.

[edit] PlayStation

Dragon Quest IV was remade for the PlayStation on November 22, 2001 in Japan. It was developed by Heartbeat and published by Enix. The remake was developed using the Dragon Quest VII's 3D graphics engine, but was still Dragon Quest IV's story and world. The characters, towns, world maps, sound, battles and enemies all received updates. The character sprites were updated to match the original artwork for the characters in the original Dragon Quest IV Manual and artwork. With this remake came several new features. Among these features were a new chapter, a new character, an intra-party talk command similar to Dragon Quest VII, and the ability to turn off the artificial intelligence for party members to allow for direct control of their attacks (except AI Party Members). Enix America originally planned to bring the remake to North America in 2002 and had even advertised this upcoming released on the back cover to the US Instruction Manual for Dragon Warrior VII, but it was later canceled due to Heartbeat closing its video game development operations before the localization and translation could be completed. It was later explained that the cost and time that a different company would need to invest to complete the translation prohibited Enix from passing this to another developer, as Heartbeat was the most familiar with their own design.^[6]

[edit] Nintendo DS

Dragon Quest IV was later re-released for the Nintendo DS in Japan in November 2007, where it has led the DS sales charts since its release. The game has been remade in 3D, similar to the PlayStation version.^[7] This release has kept many of the enhancements from the PlayStation, but has received enhanced upgrades to smooth the graphics further, and improved sound.

Shortly after the Japanese release, several people editing the Japanese ROM file discovered a near complete English translation along with Spanish, French, German, and Italian translations already inside the Japanese game.^[8] Many fans took this to mean such an announcement is imminent. On April 9, 2008, Square-Enix applied for a trademark to the title "Chapters of the Chosen", speculation has begun that this is the new subtitle to Dragon Quest IV for an American Release. ^[9]

On April 18th 2008, Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen was found to have a rating of E10+ by the ESRB, for Alcohol Reference, Animated Blood, Mild Fantasy Violence, Mild Language, Simulated Gambling, and Suggestive Themes.^[10] On April 23rd, 2008, reports began appearing on some online game retailers that Dragon Quest IV may be released on August 27th, 2008 in the US.^[11] A official release date of September 16, 2008 was finally established on the official North American site.^[2] The game has also been announced for a European release on an unspecified date in September under the title Dragon Quest: Chapters of the Chosen, omitting the number IV in a similar fashion to the European version of Dragon Quest VIII.^[3]

[edit] Spin-offs

Dragon Warrior IV is the first game in the series to spawn spin-offs. The merchant Torneko (also known as Taloon in the NES version) was popular enough to star his own series, in which he finds himself in quests in order to expand his store. These games are the Torneko no Daibouken sub-series (Translated as Torneko's Great Adventure), roguelike and random dungeon games produced by Enix (and Square Enix) and developed by Chunsoft. The success of the games later inspired the creation of the Mysterious Dungeon series.

[edit] Manga

A five volume manga called Dragon Quest: Princess Alena was released. It followed the story of Chapter 2, Alena's adventure,^[12][13]but begins to divert during the events in the Birdsong Tower. From this point forward, it introduces several new characters, including the evil Evil Leather Dominatrix Woman, and new locations, including an Arctic location and a haunted house. This story ends with Alena fighting Saro and defeating him before he goes on with the Golden Bracelet to perfect the secret of evolution.

[edit] Soundtrack

As with every Dragon Quest, Koichi Sugiyama composed the music and directed all the associated spinoffs. The song heard during gameplay depends on a number of factors. A specific track is always played for towns, another for caves or dungeons, another while the party is mounted on the hot air balloon, for instance. Lastly, while out in the world, each of the first four acts has its own theme song, as does the Hero--in act five, the theme song played depends on who is the first character in the formation.

The original Dragon Warrior IV was one of the only games to feature a crescendo during the battle music. Such a technique was virtually unheard of for an NES game. Not even the PSX remake, Dragon Quest IV, featured this musical concept.

Dragon Quest IV ~The People Are Shown the Way~ Symphonic Suite is a compilation of music from Dragon Quest IV. The first print of the album was in 1990, the London Philharmonic version came out a year later, and a reprint of the original was released in 2000.^[14]

The tracklisting of the Symphonic Suite is:

1. Overture (1:55)
2. Minuet (3:07)
3. Comrades (10:28)
4. In a Town (8:16)
5. Homeland ~ Wagon Wheels' March (5:58)
6. Frightening Dungeons ~ Cursed Towers (5:19)
7. Elegy ~ Mysterious Shrine (5:03)
8. Balloon's Flight (4:32)
9. Sea Breeze (4:31)
10. The Unknown Castle (4:37)
11. Battle for the Glory (7:51)
12. The End (5:12)

In 1991, Enix released a set of videos featuring Koichi Sugiyama conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra performing the soundtrack in Warwick Castle, along with clips of acting.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Nintendo DS Dragon Quest IV site (English)
• Official Nintendo DS Dragon Quest IV site (Japanese)
• Dragon Warrior IV (NES) at GameFAQs
• Dragon Quest IV (PlayStation) at GameFAQs
• Dragon Quest IV (DS) at GameFAQs
• Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen at MobyGames

v • d • e Dragon Quest and Dragon Warrior video games Main series I • II • III • IV: Chapters of the Chosen • V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride • VI: Realms of Reverie • VII • VIII: Journey of the Cursed King • IX Monsters 1 • 2 • 1+2 • Caravan Heart • Joker Slime MoriMori Shōgeki No Shippo Dan • Rocket Slime Fushigi no Dungeon Torneko no Daibouken • The Last Hope • Torneko 3 • Shōnen Yangus to Fushigi no Dungeon Other I & II • Kenshin • Swords • Monster Battle Road