Dragon Quest VII Reimagined gets a demo this week, and your progress'll carry right over into the full game

Grab your dragons and don’t forget those quests, as a Dragon Quest VII Reimagined demo is set to pop up on Steam this week. It’ll offer a taster of the revamped RPG ahead of full release next month, and any progress you make in the demo’ll transfer right over, so you don’t have to worry about sprinting through early game sections again.

Developers Square Enix and HexaDrive have announced that this demo’ll arrive for PC on January 7th, putting out the news alongside the game’s intro movie. WARNING: Do not make the same mistake I did and go top watch the intro movie without making sure your headphones are at a suitably reasonable volume. Anyway, the movie shows off the loveably cartoonly 3D facelift Reimagined gives Dragon Quest 7: Fragments of the Forgotten Past, just in case you missed that being revealed during last September’s Nintendo Direct.

While I have zero Dragon Quest credentials with which to offer in-depth judgement, there’s an undeniable charm to the new diorama-heavy style in which Akira Toyama’s designs have been rendered this time, even if some of the facial expressions occasionally get very weird. Though, this being a cutscene, it seemingly doesn’t offer much in the way of showing off the revamped battle mechanics and “significantly streamlined” story Square Enix have promised, with both of those changes aimed at making things more accessible to newbies and veterans.

Going back to the demo, in addition to the handy save data carryover, Square Enix revealed that everyone who dips their toe into the demo will be given an outfit dubbed the “Day Off Dress” which Maribel can wear in the full game.

That full release is still penned in for February 5th, 2026. You can wishlist Dragon Quest VII Reimagined on Steam if you’re so inclined, and/or check out our review of Dragon Quest III’s HD-2D Remake if you’re keen to inject more words about revamped lizard adventures into your brain.