Metaphor & the Silent Hero: DQ Creators Talk RPG Trends

RPG veterans Yuji Horii and Katsura Hashino, directors of Square Enix's “Dragon Quest” and Atlus' “Metaphor: ReFantazio,” explore the use of silent protagonists in games amid advancing technology and the evolving landscape of game development.

Dragon Quest Creator Explores Modern Challenges of Using Silent ProtagonistsSilent Protagonists Seem Increasingly Out of Step in Modern Games

image (c) Den Faminico Gamer

Yuji Horii, the creator of the legendary Dragon Quest RPG series, explored the subject of RPGs with Katsura Hashino, director of Atlus’ forthcoming RPG, Metaphor: ReFantazio. This conversation was featured in a recently published excerpt of an interview found in the "Metaphor: ReFantazio Atlas Brand 35th Anniversary Edition" booklet. The RPG directors covered various aspects of storytelling in this particular video game genre, including the challenges encountered by franchises like Dragon Quest as video game graphics become more realistic.

One of the foundations of the Dragon Quest series is its use of a silent protagonist, or as Horii described it, “the iconic protagonist.” Using silent protagonists allows players to project their own emotions and reactions onto the main character, which could help elevate one's immersion in the game's world. These silent characters typically serve as stand-ins for the player, interacting with the game world primarily through dialogue options rather than spoken lines.

Horii 解释说，由于早期游戏的图形更简单，没有展示详细的角色表情或动画，所以使用沉默的主角更容易且更明智。Horii 开玩笑地说：“随着游戏图形的演变和日益逼真，如果你制作一个只是站在那里的主角，他们看起来就像白痴。”

Horii 提及他最初渴望成为一名漫画家，并表示他对讲故事的热爱和对计算机的迷恋促使他进入视频游戏行业。最终，勇者斗恶龙诞生于 Horii 的激情，以及通过游戏 Boss 互动来推进故事的前提。他解释说：“勇者斗恶龙基本上由与城镇居民的对话组成，几乎没有旁白。故事是通过对话创造的。这就是它的乐趣所在。”

Horii acknowledged the challenges of maintaining this approach in modern games, where realistic graphics can make a non-reactive protagonist seem out of place. In the early days of Dragon Quest, the minimalist graphics of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) era meant that players could easily imagine their own emotions and reactions filling the gaps left by the silent protagonist. However, as games' visuals and audio—apart from other factors—become more detailed, Horii admitted that silent protagonists become increasingly difficult to depict.

"That’s why, the type of protagonist featured in Dragon Quest becomes increasingly difficult to depict as games become more realistic. This will be a challenge in the future too," the creator concluded.

Metaphor ReFantazio Director Thinks Dragon Quest Puts Players' Feelings First

Dragon Quest is one of the few major RPG series that continues to feature a silent protagonist, who, apart from making a few reactionary sounds, remains silent throughout the game. On the other hand, other RPG series like Persona have incorporated voiced lines for its protagonists during battles and cutscenes, prominently since Persona 3. Meanwhile, Hashino's upcoming game, Metaphor: ReFantazio, will feature a fully voice-acted protagonist.

While the Dragon Quest creator pondered on the constrained affective power of silent protagonists in modern games, Hashino commended Horii for the unique and emotionally-attuned experience the game offers. "I think Dragon Quest puts a lot of thought into how the player will feel in a given situation," Hashino told Horii, "even when it's to do with a regular townsperson. I feel like the games are consistently created with the player in mind, thinking about what emotions will arise when someone says something."