Dragon Quest VII Reimagined PS5 Review. It’s another year and another fantastic remake of a Dragon Quest title. Square Enix has once again taken a classic and modernized it for current day audiences, with plenty of quality-of-life features and potentially our first look at the franchise since Akira Toriyama’s fantastic, unique art style. It’s safe to say that the franchise is still in great hands.
Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined PS5 Review
A Fairy Tale World
Dragon Quest VII was always a unique title in the franchise, though it still retained its medieval, magical setting. This time around, time travel played a considerable role. You embark on your quest with your two young friends, Kiefer and Maribel, as you begin to research and wonder if there is anything out there beyond the vast ocean.
Turns out there is. You discover mysterious fragments that, when put together in a secret temple, transport you to a different land in a different time. The beauty of Dragon Quest VII’s narrative is that it feels like an episodic game. Each island you visit has its own tale to tell and its own problems.
As you solve these problems and free the citizens from their plight, you return to your time and discover that the island has appeared there.
An Adventure Where Every New Island Tells Its Own Story
Though it’s the same island, it’s now in modern times, so the people you meet and help are long gone, but your deeds have been passed down through the generations.
The game truly feels like an adventure; the episodic-like storytelling may not be for everyone, but it all comes together at the end. This reimagining also streamlines the game quite a bit. One of the most significant issues with the original PlayStation One release of the game was its bloated size.
Dragon Quest VII took a long time to get going, and it had a lot of bloated content that didn’t feel like it moved the game forward. Reimagined has cut a lot of the fat, and some islands have also been removed that just felt like filler content in the game.That’s not to say Reimagined has solved all of these issues. The game still has moments when it chugs along, but fewer than in its original release.
Same Old Combat, Fresh Coat Of Paint
Combat remains your tide-and-true Dragon Quest. Turn-based battles play out with you issuing commands or setting up auto-battle commands. What’s great now is just how much the interface has been improved and the options you have in combat.
The interface is more modernized, and watching your characters move and perform attacks is fun, especially with the game’s great effects. It’s simple, but it’s worked for the franchise for generations. Just like in Dragon Quest I & II and Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remakes, you can adjust the difficulty of combat to your heart’s content.
You can set up an option that restores your health to full after every battle, or turn off enemy attacks altogether. Square Enix is once again opening up another Dragon Quest remake for everyone to experience, however they want. I wish that every company would allow this kind of flexibility with all its games.
Vocation Systems Lets You Combine The Best Of Two Classes
One of the best new additions to Reimagined is the updated Vocation system. The Vocation system acts as Dragon Quest’s Job System, allowing you to change your class from a fighter to a mage if you so choose.
The Vocation system here allows you to use two Vocations simultaneously. You can go and make a Mage who’s also a Monster Tamer, or a Warrior and a Mage, and dish out powerful magic attacks while going in melee when you run out of MP to use.
You can experiment and find the perfect builds for your team. The only genuine concern is that the double Vocation system makes the game very easy. Even on harder difficulty settings, you can take out most enemies in one attack.
Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined has vastly improved its interface and menu system. You no longer have to slog through your inventory and put specific items in an individual character’s pouch or equipment bag.
It’s all shared across the entire party. The menu system is also straightforward to navigate and manage.
Small Islands Lead to Linear Exploration
Exploration has always been a key factor in Dragon Quest, but in Dragon Quest VII, its exploration is somewhat linear. Each island is small and doesn’t have many areas to explore. Some have one dungeon in them that you access through the story, and one or two towns.
Enemies this time appear on the map, eliminating random encounters. You can strike the enemies to score an advantage in combat or defeat an enemy in the attack altogether.
Furthermore, if your party becomes high level in the area, you instantly defeat the enemy with a preemptive strike, but you still get the rewards they offer.
Stunning Visuals
Visually, the game is a joy. It’s almost like a fairy tale. The visuals retain the spirit of Akira Toriyama’s unique style while blending it with a panoramic sculpture and doll design.
The world looks and feels like a built model of a town in your living room, and you get to jump into it and play to your heart’s content. It truly is a fantastic achievement with plenty of charm and personality. The enemies, in particular, look great, although one issue is that there doesn’t seem to be a large variety of NPCs.
As such, you’ll see the same character model appear a lot throughout the game, sometimes even seeing the same NPC model standing feet away from each other.
Great Voice Acting And Soundtrack
The music is once again a standout for a Dragon Quest title. Koichi Sugiyama’s legacy lives on in an excellent reworking of his original Dragon Quest VII soundtrack, with updates in key areas.
The voice acting is also phenomenal, bringing your party to life and adding a fantastic insight into each character and their personality. Even the monster bosses sound great.
One of my favorite aspects is that the further back in time you go, the more traditional and thick their English sounds, matching the period and region you’re in.
Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined is yet another grand achievement for Square Enix. Dragon Quest VII was always a significant departure for the franchise, and even though it got a Nintendo DS remake, the Reimagined version is a welcome addition in its own right.
Dragon Quest VII has a great cast of characters and a charm that only this venerable franchise can deliver. Reimagined does a lot right and opens the game up to everyone. It’s another must-have not only for Dragon Quest fans, but for RPG lovers in general.
Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined releases on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, Xbox Series S/X, and PC February 5, 2026.
Review code kindly provided by PR.