Square Enix executive and longtime Dragon Quest producer Yosuke Saito has shared new insights into how the Dragon Quest franchise has historically been developed, revealing that Dragon Quest XI was largely created through outsourced development.
Speaking during BitSummit, as highlighted by Genki_JPN, Saito explained that Dragon Quest games have traditionally relied heavily on external development partners rather than being produced entirely within Square Enix.
According to Saito, “Dragon Quest XI was made 1/3 in-house and 2/3 outsourced.” He added that Dragon Quest development is “usually outsourced,” noting that while a portion of Dragon Quest XI was handled internally, most of the work was completed by external teams.
Saito also drew comparisons between the development structures of the Dragon Quest and NieR franchises. He explained that neither series is typically developed entirely within Square Enix, citing NieR: Automata as an example. According to Saito, the game relied on contributions from external partners, including director Yoko Taro, composer Keiichi Okabe, and PlatinumGames, which handled development duties.
The producer also reflected on Dragon Quest X Online, describing it as the most challenging project of his career. Unlike most Dragon Quest titles, the MMORPG was developed entirely in-house at Square Enix.
Saito explained that building the team proved difficult because the company had to establish much of the development structure from scratch. He said staff members were reassigned internally to support the project and noted that Final Fantasy XIV producer and director Naoki Yoshida was among those moved during development. Because of these circumstances, Saito said Dragon Quest X Online was “the toughest game he has worked on.”
The discussion also touched on the origins of Enix before its merger with Square. According to Saito, Enix largely operated as a company of producers and scriptwriters rather than maintaining a dedicated internal development team. Instead, the publisher worked with outside studios on a project-by-project basis, with Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii and Enix selecting external teams to develop individual games.
