New Dragon Quest Monsters game reveals its weird new creatures

First revealed during the Dragon Quest 40th anniversary event back in May, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World got a full trailer and a Dec. 3 release date at the June Nintendo Direct. Now, co-developers Square Enix and Tose Co. have revealed a boatload of new details about the latest installment of the spinoff series.

The DQ Monsters games are the Dragon Quest franchise’s answer to Pokémon, letting players capture, battle, and breed a sprawling collection of adorable monsters. This new adventure sees the return of Bianca and Nera, the hero’s two potential wives in Dragon Quest 5.

Your main party will consist of four monsters, and you’ll also be able to keep four additional monsters as backup. During exploration and combat, you’ll be able to befriend more than 500 distinct monsters across eight families. Each monster is characterized by one of nine ranks (G through X), a specific size (small or large), and a unique personality.

In addition to a host of familiar monsters from the mainline series, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World will also feature plenty of new critters. These include the Slime Balls, a tasty trio of buddies inspired by onigiri. They come in three flavors: sour plum, veggie mix, and shrimp tempura. Bamboo Badboy lures in hungry passerby by taking on the guise of a succulent bamboo shoot. Finally, Groovy Grouse lives up to his name by constantly dancing to the beat of the nonstop music playing in his head. (Sounds like a waking nightmare, but he’s making it work, I guess!)

You can check out more of the adorable creatures the Dragon Quest Monsters team has cooked up below.

The Wrangler’s Spirit ability is another new addition for DQM: The Withered World. It has a chance to trigger once per battle and provide stat boosts to your party, potentially turning the tide in your favor. The Wrangler’s Spirit will have different effects depending on whether you’re playing as Bianca or Nera. Bianca’s version of the skill heals HP and boosts attack power, while Nera’s restores MP and raises defense.

The breeding mechanic, known as synthesis, returns for DQM: The Withered World. Once you’ve befriended a monster, you’ll have to raise it to level 10 before you can use it as a parent for synthesis. After synthesis, both parents will disappear, leaving behind a child monster that has the potential to become stronger than its predecessors by inheriting their combat moves and passive buffs. Some monsters can only be obtained through synthesis. As was the case in 2023’s Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, some especially desirable monsters can only be created by merging four monsters (i.e., grandparent synthesis).

Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World will be released on Dec. 3 for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Windows PC (via Steam), and Xbox Series X.