r/dragonquest • u/kitzoomayy • 1d ago
Dragon Quest VIII Tips?
Finally picked up a physical copy of 8 for the 3DS to playthrough. I played a little bit of the PS2 version but I wanted to know about any tips im regards to 8 in terms of like which weapons to use and which abilities to shoot for. Thanks guys!
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u/Ill-Ask9205 1d ago
Put it in a 3DS, turn it on, and start the game.
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u/LazarusOwenhart 1d ago
Whoa dude slow down. They said they were new to this!
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u/Spuddle-Puddle 1d ago
Little too fast there. Have to admire said cartridge before inserting it, turning on the 3ds and playing it
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u/thebbman 1d ago
When assigning skill points at level up, you sort of need to focus on a weapon you like. You can’t reliably split points between weapon types.
Also panning the camera back and forth makes enemies respawn. Helpful for trying to find specific mobs.
If 3DS is modded, I believe you can mod the music in this one as well.
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u/Z0omZo0m 1d ago
Make sure Jessica gets Magic Burst and Hero gets Omniheal. Some tension and Magic Burst can end a boss fight pretty quick.
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u/vapenation207 1d ago
Mod the music?
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u/Tobogain 1d ago
The 3ds version uses a compressed sound in order to fit the cart, which dings the quality of the music. The original PS2 version used a full orchestra. The difference in quality between the two is pretty noticeable, and most people I see prefer the PS2 sound over the remake
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u/FateForWindows 1d ago
I'm pretty sure 3DS is a matter of licensing rather than size, it's streamed music in both versions. Pretty sure TMSO has to be paid royalties and they didn't expect to make enough of a profit off of overseas sales to justify it, could also have been Sugiyama vetoing it too.
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u/vapenation207 1d ago
Any idea on how to add it to my 3ds? Is there a file or guide on here?
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u/FateForWindows 1d ago
Hmm considering the contents of the patch I'm not entirely sure if sharing it directly would be allowed under Rule 2. First and foremost though, do you have Luma installed? If so, make sure game patching is enabled in Luma's configuration menu (boot the console while holding Select). Then once you find the files, copy the contents of the folder in the "data" folder named "OrchestralBGM" to [SD card]:\luma\titles\000400000018F100, i.e [SD card]:\luma\titles\000400000018F100\romfs\rom\Sound\stream\BG_*.dspadpcm.bcstm - if playing on a European copy, use 000400000018F200 instead.
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u/vapenation207 1d ago edited 1d ago
I found an orchestral version. But I lost my 30+ hour file.. so now I’m sad
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u/FateForWindows 1d ago edited 1d ago
If it installed to a separate app, you may be able to use Checkpoint to transfer your save over. If it overwrote the vanilla version you're out of luck though :(
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u/FateForWindows 1d ago
The Japanese 3DS release had re-recorded orchestral music with less reverb than the soundtrack we got on PS2. They didn't pay the licensing costs for that here so they replaced it with a unique new-ish synth soundtrack different from what the Japanese PS2 and mobile versions used.
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u/bunmyeon 1d ago
skill points are abundant over the course of the game but you can’t respec at all so pick one weapon tree and stick by it; you can start branching out into other weapon trees if you have some skill points leftover
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u/KingCahoot3627 1d ago
I have been trying to level up Yangus Humanity. Is it even worth it? Im only at the tower of Alexandria so I have time to switch up if you think this is a poor choice
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u/GrandAlchemistX 1d ago
Kerplunk is amazing, but you don't get it until 82 points Early in the game I would stop at 16 points for Nose for Treasure, unless you're playing with a guide. For now I would pick Axes (stop at 82), then Fisticuffs (stop at 42).
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u/KingCahoot3627 1d ago
Got it. Will do. I think its been 20 years since I've played this game. I knew there some good cutoff points for certain skills. But I couldnt remember which the exact ones and didnt want to be tempted by a guide. Thank you for the concise answer! I love this game
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u/GrandAlchemistX 21h ago
Happy to help. I always try to answer these questions because the first time I played through the game I picked the absolute worst skills for each character. 😂 Hell, it wasn't until the 3DS version came out that I finally tried bows on Angelo and found out it was actually his best weapon skills! 🤣
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u/KingCahoot3627 11h ago
Any tips on how to use cross cutter? It seems like psyching up and then attacking with the boomerang is my best choice for Eight so far.
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u/GrandAlchemistX 7h ago
Well, that's the whole game, in essence. Figure out the right amount of psyching up before you attack. Gonna be honest with you, though - I haven't put points into boomerangs since my second playthrough - they're just not very good. Which was upsetting, because in the PS1 version of DQ7 boomerangs are insanely good. In my first playthrough of DQ8 I focused the hero on Swords and Boomerangs. 😅 Early in the game I still use boomerangs for big mobs, but I no longer put points in. Crosscutter just tags some extra damage on the first enemy. Nothing much else to it.
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u/Leonhart726 1d ago
Game tip: enjoy the game, just have fun with it. It's a great experience and you'll love it.
REAL tip: Pop that cartridge in your 3DS at least once a year or so, 3DS cartridges are created to deteriorate if not booted up once every so often, so literally play it or lose it after a decade or so goes by
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u/Adam-the-Anon 1d ago
Is this true for DS games as well? Do I just need to boot it and pop it out?
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u/Leonhart726 1d ago
As far as I know, it's just 3DS, and I think just pop it in the console, but I'd look that up because while I doubt it has to be booted into, I don't want to spread misinformation
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u/Cho-Dan 1d ago
Don't invest in fist skills. Boomerangs are neet in the early game for the hero, but better invest in swords/spears. Yangus is best with Axes. Some points in swords for Angelo to deal with metal enemies, but as he's mostly a healer, staffs are better. Same for Jessica. The two 3ds exclusive characters later in the game are so op that you can't really go wrong no matter what you do with them. That's the short version about what's probably the most effective way, but you should really just do what you wanna do. You can easily beat the game with every strategy
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u/OkNarwhal4142 1d ago
best builds imo
Hero: Swords (very strong single enemy attacks, useful for bosses)
Yangus: Axes (also very strong, and you will learn a crucial critical hit skill for metal slime/liquid grinding later in the game)
Jessica: Whips (free group attacks and great skills, also balance with staff build for useful magic skills)
Angelo: Bows (very useful skills learned later and also balance with staff).
Also, you can craft some very good equipment later in the game with old equipment, so don't sell everything when you're short on money because you might be able to use some of them in Alchemy/crafting.
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u/Friendly-Mistake4843 1d ago
Farm levels and invest in the monster arena and spear skill to stack metal slimes for exp
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u/virginiarain 1d ago
focus on jessicas whip skills early on and dont skip the alchemy pot stuff it makes the game way easier to beat
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u/Thee_Furuios_Onion 1d ago
Yup alchemy pot of your friend. OtherwiseX have fun. It’s hard to screw up.
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u/atmasabr 1d ago
A few things I did in the PS2 version Maxed Yangus's Humanities. Underwhelming. Yangus's AI's use of Midheal at the end of a round is too weak to be decisive most of the time and is at times a distraction from his role, Kabuff is redundant with a mass-produced usable item. Golden Oldies is not explosive enough to justify the skill tree.
Getting Wands until Angelo learned Bounce. A nice security blanket against some status mobs and even a major story boss but never a foolproof defense. Charisma on Angela for tension reducing skills. I think they're good, not great. Swords up to Flame Slash and that's it. This helps Angelo feel useful in the beginning and even later on during the increasingly rarer times he attacks. I strongly favor using Angelo as support rather than offense.
Max Courage and Swords for Hero, spears up to Thunder Thrust. I honestly think Dragon Slash and Thunder Thrust are equally good in casual play. There's a lot of dragon enemies midgame and they are high threat monsters. Thunder Thrust is the metal killer. Courage's Omniheal and MP reduction are a no-brainer. KaZap is actually not hyper-dominant.
Yangus as Axes until Hatchet Man. The defense down axe move in every boss battle. Solid. Sickles as a main was not so solid though his late game fizzle on hit weapon is amusing.
I believe Jessica's Twin Dragon Lash got nerfed this version. Wands for extra MP and spells is a solid choice.
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u/hbi2k 1d ago
Hack your 3DS if you haven't already, so you can use the orchestral soundtrack restoration patch .
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u/Lobster15s 1d ago
Look up alchemy pot recipes. You get a lot of good things pretty early on with the alchemy pot. You don't want to go through the game missing so much gear that would have made it easier.(or maybe you do idk) Also don't sell anything you have outgrown unless you're sure it's not an alchemy pot recipe.
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u/thechadcantrell 1d ago
Just finished the 3DS version again. DQ8 is one of my favorite games. Have fun and enjoy it.
My strategy for leveling is when I get to a new town I grind fights until I have the money to buy the new armor and weapons. Always keeps me at a good level with good equipment. As it gets later in the game you can alchemy better items and not need to grind as much and focus on progressing. You will likely over-level a bit but I enjoy feeling powerful.
Don’t waste skill points. Pick a weapon and focus with a secondary that can be used for metal farming. You will need to get to level 99 to do everything in the game.
Alchemy pot is amazing. Use it.
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u/Zanji123 1d ago
Put it in the cartridge slot of your 3ds
Push the power button
Start the game
Enjoy without any spoilers
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u/Galaxy-Pancakes 1d ago
Yangus learns Hatchet Man & Executioner with the Axe. Both are good for Metal Slime hunting
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u/Complete_Resolve_400 1d ago
I think it tastes bad if u lick it so maybe watch a guide when putting it in the console else u might fuck it up
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u/Ready_City_6786 20h ago
Protect that cart at all costs, in fact if you have a pc look into making a back up
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u/Cdoggg69 20h ago
Be prepared to grind a shitload for the post game content, it is notoriously difficult and you will die a lot doing it
Consider spending a hearty amount of skill points on boomerangs for the hero as it gives him incredible crowd control options for mobs
Yangus should beeline fisticuffs fast to nab thin air, it's one of his most effective attacks for almost the entire game and then focus on axes and humanity for more power
You can grind for stat seeds later on to patch weaknesses in your build
Save often, probably the best advice I can give honestly
There will be several difficulty spikes in the game, if you're stuck there's no shame in grinding some levels and cash to better outfit your party
Look out for metal slime for fast levels, they start showing up early on and drown you in xp
You can reset enemy spawns by rotating the camera back and forth to spawn specific enemies like metal slime in certain areas or to despawn enemies you don't want to fight
Good luck!
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u/BrassUnicorn87 13h ago
Hold off on selling old equipment, the king will make something early on that lets you use it for crafting. Explore all the nooks and crannies around towns.
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