Dragon Warrior © 1989 Nintendo of America
North American release. Game developed in Japan. See the original Famicom version for more information: "Dragon Quest [Model EFC-DQ]".
Description from the back cover:
All is darkness. The Dragon-lord has captured the Princess and stolen Erdrick's powerful ball of light. You are Erdrick's heir. To you has fallen the most dangerous task - to rescue the King's daughter and recover the mystic ball of light. Search out the Dragon-lord's lair and face your destiny. In this role-playing adventure you are the Dragon Warrior!
CART. ID: NES-DQ-USA
Several years after the Japanese release, Dragon Warrior was released in August 1989 in the USA. It was initially seen as a commercial failure, but the Nintendo Power subscription giveaway was eventually a success and allowed Enix to bring the next three games to North America. According to Chris Kohler, Nintendo profited immensely from the giveaway because "Nintendo Power was essentially a hundred-page monthly ad for Nintendo products", and it was now in thousands of households. The game sold about 500,000 copies in the United States, making it the third best-selling 1989 game release in North America, below Nintendo's Tetris and Super Mario Land.
Changes from the original Japanese game:
Roto was renamed Erdrick.
Graphics are updated.
Password feature replaced by a battery for three files.
Swearing and adult material removed.
Shoreline added on the world map.
Radatome was renamed Tantegel and Breconary.
Maila was renamed Kol.
Mercado was renamed Cantlin.
omudora was renamed Haukness.
Game's ROM.