Dragon Quest 11 Switch Coming Much Later, And Not To 3DS

Dragon Quest XI finally has a release date on PC and PlayStation 4, but not all the news is rosy if you prefer your RPGs on Nintendo systems. Square Enix has indicated that the Switch version may take quite a while to arrive in the West, and the 3DS version simply isn't coming at all.

In a statement shared with GameSpot, the company indicated that the Switch version is still in development for North America and Europe, but that the developer still has "a long way to go until its release." A representative suggested a Switch version isn't coming in 2018, and that it could be much later. The company states that "development is expected to take a long time from a technological standpoint."

The 3DS version is even worse off. The ambitious idea was a standalone version developed alongside the PS4, with pixel art to complement the 3D models. Rather than a delay, that version isn't coming at all.

"Our aim with Dragon Quest XI and the Dragon Quest brand is to grow the audience in the West. From a business point of view, it made strategic sense to release the 3DS version in Japan in 2017," the statement read. "For the West in 2018, it made the most sense to focus on the PlayStation 4 and PC (Steam) platforms."

The PC and PlayStation 4 versions will be coming on September 4. It has been available in Japan since last year, but the extra time and effort is going in to some tweaks to make the US version friendly to western audiences. Changes include an English voiceover, an overhauled menu and UI, a dash function, and a harder Draconian Quest mode. DQXI also introduces a first-person camera mode to check out the landscapes in greater detail.