Square Enix renamed the town of Isis in Dragon Quest III to Ibis for Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake.
A screenshot from Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, (2024), Square Enix
The official Dragon Quest account posted, “Ibis. A kingdom in Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake surrounded by miles of desert, full of vegetation that can only be found in arid climates. The ancient structures here might be home to long-lost treasures.”
📍Ibis
A kingdom in #DragonQuest III HD-2D Remake surrounded by miles of desert, full of vegetation that can only be found in arid climates. The ancient structures here might be home to long-lost treasures. pic.twitter.com/G6EH54D8bu
— DRAGON QUEST (@DragonQuest) August 20, 2024
In the original game the town was called Isis as can be seen in the screenshot below. It was clearly a reference to the Egyptian goddess and the town was heavily inspired by Ancient Egypt.
The town was located in an oasis in the middle of a desert next to a lake. It also featured a large pyramid, numerous sphinx statues, and allowed players to explore various crypts and tombs.
A screenshot depicting the town of Isis in Dragon Quest III
An Ibis is a wading bird that can be found in much of Africa as well as parts of Iraq, Iran, and Kuwait. The Egyptian god Thoth was depicted with the head of an ibis.
Sacred ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus), Lake Ziway, Ethiopia. Photo Credit: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Square Enix did not provide any explanation for why the name of the city was changed, but it likely has to do with the terrorist organization that operates across the world, but is primarily centered in Iraq and Syria.
A Congressional Research Service report published in May notes the organization “is a transnational Sunni Islamist insurgent and terrorist group. At its 2015 height, the group controlled large areas of Iraq and Syria from which it launched attacks in the region and beyon. While the group no longer controls territory outright in Syria and Iraq, U.S. military officials warn that it continues to operate and has worked to expand its global presence through affiliates in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.”
A screenshot from Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, (2024), Square Enix
The change of the city’s name comes as Square Enix faces a boycott over the game’s removal of male and female character options in favor of Type A and Type B.
A preview for the game in the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine was shared by X user Scratch_Point_Z who wrote, “This preview in the latest issue of Japanese magazine Weekly Shonen Jump confirms Dragon Quest III HD-2D is using Type A & Type B in place of male & female.”
This preview in the latest issue of Japanese magazine Weekly Shonen Jump confirms Dragon Quest III HD-2D is using Type A & Type B in place of male & female. pic.twitter.com/9UHilfFW2w
— Scratch Point (@Scratch_Point_Z) July 9, 2024
Following this confirmation the game was added to the Sweet Baby Inc. detected Steam curator list as well as Kabrutus Rambo’s DEI Detected website. On top of the removal of the option to choose between male and female characters, Kabrutus cites that the game also censored the trolls in the game by removing their lips.
He wrote, “On a much more personal and nerdier level, and this one really pisses me off, I must say, is the censorship of the Troll’s lips.”
A comparison of various depictions of trolls from different versions of Dragon Quest III
Furthermore, Kabrutus Rambo also notes that Sweet Baby Inc. lists Square Enix as one of their clients.
Screenshot of Sweet Baby Inc.’s clients
Not only has the game been added to the Sweet Baby Inc. detected Steam curator list as well as DEIDetected.com, but numerous gamers have expressed on the game’s Steam forums that they do not plan to purchase the game due to the changes Square Enix has made.
McRav posted, “no man/woman? DEI cenorship? you don’t get my money. no man/woman? DEI cenorship? you don’t get my money.”
McRav on Steam
The Kurgan added, “DQ is my favorite jrpg franchise and I have put this on ignore.”
He continued, “I have played all the DQ games now and in fact just played 1,2,3,5,6 again on the snes Japanese versions. I even paid full price and preordered DQ 11(something I never do cause I have too many games already). That being said, it pains me to put my favorite jrpg franchise on ignore now. You win DEI nonsense, I won’t spend anymore money on you.”
The Kurgan on Steam
WarriorOfLight wrote, “SE Disband Your Ethics Department.”
“I really hope they get rid of all these idiots before the next FF game comes out. Gamers are rejecting games that have even the smallest wiff of woke BS. I’ve spent over $3,000 just on SE games on Steam (this doesn’t include prior to PC gaming and physical stuff I have bought) I will not buy this game. Even if it goes on sale. If you are tired of them pushing this BS on us then vote with your wallet along with me,” he concluded.
WarriorOfLight on Steam
What do you make of the change of the town from Isis to Ibis?
NEXT: Square Enix Shareholder Questions Company About Sweet Baby Inc.’s Involvement
