Dragon Quest VII Reimagined - A Classic Reborn, But Time Hasn't Been Entirely Kind

Dragon Quest VII Reimagined for the Nintendo Switch 2 is exactly what it says on the tin: a reimagining of one of the longest entries in the beloved JRPG franchise. Originally released on the PlayStation in 2000 and later remade for the 3DS, this version brings the sprawling island-restoration adventure into the modern era with visual upgrades, quality-of-life improvements, and selective voice acting. But in a gaming landscape overflowing with options, does a 40-plus hour JRPG that was already known for its glacial pacing deserve your time in 2026? The answer is complicated.

Wokeness: 0.0

Dragon Quest VII Reimagined stays true to its roots as a classic Japanese RPG. The story is about restoring lost islands, battling evil, and the bonds between a group of adventurers. There's no shoehorned messaging, no agenda-driven character redesigns, and no modern political lecturing. It's a game that respects its source material and trusts the player to simply enjoy the adventure. This is Dragon Quest being Dragon Quest, and that's exactly how it should be.

Gameplay: 7.5

The core loop of discovering tablet fragments, traveling to the past, and restoring islands to the present-day map remains satisfying in concept. The job system is deep and rewarding for those who invest in it, and the quality-of-life additions from the 3DS version carry over here alongside some new ones. However, the game's structure is inherently repetitive, and the slow opening hours remain a sticking point even with modern tweaks. By the time you're deep into the back half, the formula can feel like it's running on fumes. Combat is traditional turn-based Dragon Quest fare — reliable, charming, but not exactly pushing boundaries.

Story: 7.0

The episodic storytelling is Dragon Quest VII's greatest strength and its most divisive quality. Each island presents its own self-contained narrative, and many of these vignettes are genuinely compelling — tragic, heartwarming, and occasionally surprising. The overarching plot, however, takes a very long time to come into focus, and the final stretch doesn't quite deliver the payoff that justifies the journey's length. For patient players who savor each individual tale, there's a lot to love. For everyone else, the back third may have you reaching for the skip button.

Graphics: 8.5

This is where the "reimagined" label earns its keep. The Switch 2 version features beautifully updated character models, environments that pop with color and detail, and a visual style that honors Akira Toriyama's iconic artwork while feeling genuinely modern. It's not a technical powerhouse compared to other Switch 2 titles, but the art direction is consistently delightful. Towns feel alive, monsters are expressive, and the world has a storybook quality that suits the material perfectly.

Audio: 7.5

The orchestrated soundtrack is lovely and carries the whimsical, adventurous tone Dragon Quest is known for. However, after 40-plus hours, even the best compositions start to wear thin — there simply isn't enough variety to sustain a game of this length without fatigue setting in. The voice acting, present in key story moments but absent elsewhere, is a mixed bag. When it's there, it adds genuine emotion to the narrative beats. When it's not, the silence can feel jarring by modern standards. It's the halfway approach many Japanese RPGs take, and while it works in shorter games, in something this lengthy, fully voiced dialogue would have gone a long way toward maintaining engagement.

Replayability: 4.0

Let's be real: this is a 40-to-50-hour JRPG with a notoriously slow start and a back half that tests your patience. In an era where your backlog is probably measured in years, not months, the likelihood of running this one back is slim. There's post-game content and job combinations to explore, but the sheer time investment required to reach those points makes a second playthrough a tough sell for all but the most devoted Dragon Quest faithful.

Dragon Quest VII Reimagined is a faithful, visually impressive modernization of a classic that wears its length like a badge of honor — for better and for worse. The individual stories are charming, the job system is deep, and the presentation is the best this game has ever looked. But in 2026, with countless games competing for your attention, the pacing issues that plagued the original haven't been fully solved. If you're a Dragon Quest devotee or a patient JRPG fan who can savor the journey, this is worth your time. If you found yourself skipping cutscenes and playing on mute by hour 35, you're not alone — and that says something about whether this particular classic needed to be quite this long.