Before you could lead them, you had to live as each of them.
Dragon Quest IV opens not with a hero, but with a princess sneaking out of her palace to fight — then a soldier, a merchant saving for a dream, twin fortune-tellers. Each chapter is its own story, a life complete in itself, before the game finally hands you the protagonist. By then, Alena and Torneko and the others are not party members you picked from a menu. They are people whose mornings and burdens and small triumphs you already remember. Yuji Horii designed the ensemble structure deliberately — by the time the hero's chapter opens, you are already carrying other people's histories. The chapter that lingers is the merchant's. He spent three chapters building toward a dream shop, and then sets it aside to join your quest. You feel the weight of what you're asking because you lived his dream too.
— inspired by Yuji Horii
About this game
Released on February 11, 1990, Dragon Quest IV was the final and most ambitious Dragon Quest on the Famicom. Its revolutionary five-chapter anthology structure told the stories of the Chosen through multiple protagonists — a princess, a soldier, a merchant, twin warriors — before uniting them all in a classic RPG finale. Developed by Chunsoft with Yuji Horii's scenario, Akira Toriyama's art, and Koichi Sugiyama's music, the game sold over 3 million copies in Japan and showed that JRPG storytelling could be cinematic, personal, and emotionally layered long before 3D technology.
Key Features
Five separate chapters each starring a different protagonist, culminating in a sixth chapter that unites all heroes. The AI-driven Tactics system let players set each party member's battle behavior (fight hard, conserve MP, etc.) rather than manually commanding every action. A Casino in the city of Endor offered slot machines and dice games for rare items. Torneko the merchant, protagonist of Chapter 3, is the most celebrated character — his love of gold and earnest determination made him the breakout star of the game.
Gallery
The Story Behind
Dragon Quest IV arrived at the peak of the Famicom era, just months before the Super Famicom launched. The ensemble chapter structure was unprecedented in console RPGs — each chapter telling a complete story with its own tone, pacing, and protagonist — before they all converged. The Tactics AI system foreshadowed an industry-wide shift toward companion AI in RPGs. The game sold 3.03 million copies in Japan and was later remade for PlayStation in 2001, Nintendo DS in 2007, and mobile platforms.
Tricks & Tales
Torneko the merchant became so beloved that he starred in Torneko's Great Adventure: Mystery Dungeon (1993, SNES) — the game that launched the Mystery Dungeon roguelike franchise, which in turn inspired Shiren the Wanderer, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, and dozens of imitators. The North American NES version used the name Dragon Warrior IV, the last Dragon Quest game localized by Enix America before the subsidiary closed in 1995. The Japan release included a printed monster booklet in the box.
Collector's Guide
Region & Compatibility
The North American NES version was titled Dragon Warrior IV and released in October 1992 — nearly three years after the Japanese Famicom original. Europe received no official NES/Famicom localisation. The 'Dragon Warrior' name was used in North America due to a trademark conflict with a tabletop RPG.
Maintenance Tips
Dragon Quest IV uses battery-backed SRAM for save data — test the save function immediately upon purchase. Battery life is typically 10–20 years; a dead battery erases all save data. Complete-in-box copies with the original monster booklet are prized by collectors.
Going deeper
Explore the machine this game ran on, and what to check before you buy or care for one:
What to Watch Out For
Before buying, these are the points worth knowing — from someone who handles original Japanese Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen copies regularly.
The game is from 1990 — will it still save?
Dragon Quest IV stores your game in battery-backed SRAM — the series moved away from spell-based passwords with Dragon Quest III, and IV continued that system. The save battery is a CR2032 coin cell inside the cartridge, designed to last roughly ten to twenty years; every copy is now past thirty-five. A cart that forgets your progress the moment you power off is almost certainly running on a flat battery, not a broken board. A replacement CR2032 with solder tabs can restore it, though swapping the battery does erase whatever is currently saved inside. Worth testing the save function right after you buy.
Can I play the Japanese Famicom version on my NES?
No — the Famicom and the NES use different cartridge connectors (60-pin versus 72-pin) and the shells are physically incompatible. If you have a North American NES, look for Dragon Warrior IV instead: it is the same game, localized by Enix of America and released in October 1992, with an English translation and the 72-pin connector your NES expects. European players received no official release on either system.
Before You Buy
Things worth knowing before you buy Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen
A short checklist for buying a used Famicom cartridge wisely — useful with any seller, anywhere.
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Choose a seller who tests it before shipping
A copy that has actually been powered on and checked is a known quantity. An untested one is a gamble you only settle after it arrives.
Look for a seller who states it was function-tested and says what they confirmed. A serious seller can tell you exactly what was checked.
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Make sure it fits your console
This is a Japanese Famicom cartridge with a 60-pin connector; a North American NES uses a 72-pin slot, so it will not fit directly.
Play it on a matching Japanese console or a region-free system, and confirm the listing states the region.
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If this title saves your progress, check the battery
Cartridges that save use a small coin-cell battery that fades over decades — a dead one wipes your save without warning.
Ask the seller whether the save function was tested. Replacing the battery is possible, but doing so erases any existing save.
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Check that the contacts are clean
Dirty edge contacts are the most common cause of startup and sound trouble in cartridges of this age.
Choose a seller who cleans the contacts before shipping. A note that it was tested and cleaned means the basics were handled.
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Confirm it is genuine, not a reproduction
Sought-after titles are targets for reproduction boards with replacement labels.
Ask for a photo of the circuit board and look for factory markings. Favour a shop with a licensed second-hand dealer permit (古物商) — by law its stock has a traceable origin, your simplest guard against fakes.
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Read the seller's reviews and return policy
A 100% positive record across thousands of sales is close to a guarantee — packing, communication and problem-solving all work for everyone. A return policy protects you if something is off.
Read the feedback and confirm a clear return window before you buy.
The last step before buying anywhere is knowing what it's worth.
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Rooms this game lives in
Wander deeper — explore the themed rooms where Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen sits alongside its kin.
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