It's the fifth month of 2021 and this has already been the strongest year for Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft's video game subscription service that has become Xbox's main commitment heading into this generation. One publisher that has heavily contributed to the service's success this year is Square Enix, which has brought major titles such as Octopath Traveler, Dragon Quest Builders 2, and Outriders to the service, the latter of which joined the service on its release day. With the success of Dragon Quest Builders 2 and Dragon Quest 11 S on Xbox Game Pass, it seems Microsoft is teasing that more titles will join the service soon.
Dragon Quest made its debut on Xbox Game Pass last year when Dragon Quest 11 S: Echoes of an Elusive Age Definitive Edition joined Microsoft's gaming subscription service upon its release on Xbox One and PC. The original version had initially released on PlayStation 4 in September 2018, however the version released on Xbox was based on the Nintendo Switch "Definitive Edition." Square Enix surprisingly decided to bring the 2019 sandbox RPG Dragon Quest Builders 2 to the service earlier this month, having done the same with the classic JRPG throwback Octopath Traveler in March.
Now, it appears that Xbox Game Pass' Twitter account, which is infamous for teasing fans about titles joining the service, is alluding to more Dragon Quest titles potentially joining Xbox Game Pass in the near future. Responding to a fan praising the overload of Dragon Quest content on Game Pass, the official Twitter account responded "No, that's just the right amount. Maybe... it's not enough?" This seems to imply Game Pass has some bigger plans for Dragon Quest titles joining the service in the near future.
Porting a game like Dragon Quest Builders 2 to Xbox primarily for its inclusion in Xbox Game Pass is surely no small task, meaning it would be a huge surprise if Square Enix were to surprise fans only a few weeks later with another title coming to the service. It may not be until E3 that more is heard about this collaboration, or possibly the the Dragon Quest series' 35th anniversary on May 27. As for what this title may be, it seems unlikely that it will be any other mainline Dragon Quest titles given that all of the numbered entries' most recent ports remain spread out among Nintendo's handheld consoles. The only possibility in this regard could be the recent mobile versions of the first three Dragon Quest titles that came to Switch back in 2019.
The games that Xbox Game Pass are likely alluding to could be the first two Dragon Quest Heroes titles, which were developed by Dragon Quest Builders 2 developer Omega Force. These titles are crossovers with Koei Tecmo's Dynasty Warrior series similar to Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, and feature characters from all across the Dragon Quest franchise.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, Switch, and Xbox One.