Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Definitive Edition hit Nintendo Switch last year, offering a revamped take on DQ11 loaded with new content. Now that port is making its way to PC, and so is the massive demo that Nintendo launched ahead of the Switch version. That demo is now live on Steam, so if you want about 10 hours of high-quality RPG adventuring, you’ve got it.
The Definitive Edition demo is now live on Steam, and you can head there to download it ahead of the game’s December 4 release. It lets you play through the game’s opening chapters for what the devs say is “up to 10 hours of content”. I’ve played the Switch version of the demo, and that’s no exaggeration – this trial version lasts longer than many full games.
Save progress will carry over to the full game, but you might want to consider which platform you’ll end up playing the full game on. DQ11S will come to Game Pass PC on launch day, so if you want to pick up your progress on that platform, you should probably grab the demo over on the Windows Store.
This is also going to give us a chance to see what exactly the PC port of Definitive Edition looks like, too. The devs have confirmed that this is a port of the Switch release, and while it has better frame rate and resolution options, its visuals are based on those of the game on Nintendo’s handheld hybrid. (There’s also no upgrade from the original PC version of DQ11, so you’re going to have to pay again even if you own the previous release.)
Dragon Quest 12 is in development and creator Yuji Horii is teasing series announcements for next year, so it’s good times for fans of the venerable series of RPG games. If you’re looking for more free PC games, meanwhile, you can follow that link.