Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World announced; set to release before DQ XII: Beyond Dreams

Square Enix's brief but intense livestream to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Dragon Quest has come to an end, and it has finally given us a glimpse into the future of the long-running series.

We've already discussed the next major mainline project, Dragon Quest XII: Beyond Dreams, but during today's stream, producer Yosuke Saito and game designer Yuji Horii announced a second new project, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World. We know nothing about this new title in the spin-off series, as we have only seen a piece of concept art featuring its protagonists, Blanca and Nera, who also played a key role in Dragon Quest V: The Hand of the Heavenly Bride.

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Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World will be released - that much has been confirmed - on PC, PS5, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 at launch. This is somewhat in line with what Horii himself hinted at in the interview we had with him last year, when he said they were backing the Nintendo Switch 2.

Take a look at the brief teaser for Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World below.