Ultra-Fast battle speed
A third battle speed option, Ultra-Fast, lets you speed through battles even faster. In previous versions, the only options were Normal and Fast.
Cutscene changes
You can now skip cutscenes at any time. In previous versions, cutscenes could only be skipped if you'd seen them before. This change should allow those who already played the game on PS4 or PC to have a smoother trip through the story sections they find boring. There's also a new option to have cutscenes autoplay, meaning you won't have to press the "A" button every time a character is done saying a line of dialogue.
Portable Fun-Size Forge
The Fun-Size Forge,
Dragon Quest 11's item crafting station, could previously only be used at campsites. In the definitive edition, the Fun-Size Forge can be used pretty much anywhere, activated as an item in the menu.
Cosmetic-only outfits
In previous versions of
Dragon Quest 11 (and in previous
Dragon Quest games, such as
Dragon Quest 8), changing the appearance of party members required equipping particular items with their own stat values. For example, if you wanted companion character Erik to look like a pirate, you'd have to equip either the Corsairs Coat and Cap or the Pirate King's Coat and Cap. If you found better equipment, you were out of luck, since changing Erik's armor would change his appearance. In the
Dragon Quest 11 Switch version, there's a new tab in the equipment menu called "Outfit," which allows you to choose your character's cosmetic appearance (once you've acquired the necessary items to obtain that appearance the old way) without sacrificing their stats.
Horse Hailer
Rather than requiring you to summon your horse at one of the bell posts near towns and other safe zones,
Dragon Quest 11 S introduces the Horse Hailer item, which allows you to call your horse to you at any time (assuming you're in an area that allows for it).
Quick Commands menu
A new Quick Commands menu can be easily pulled up, allowing you to rapidly select from certain helpful items and abilities without digging into several menu screens. These include items like the Horse Hailer and Fun-Size Forge, features like the new Photo Mode, and abilities like Erik's Nose for Treasure (a new ability in
Dragon Quest 11 on Switch that allows Erik to tell the player how many treasure chests are in the area).
Additional quality-of-life changes*
- Ore and other materials that previously dropped items on the ground when harvested now drop directly into your inventory
- There will be the option to turn off grunt and exhale sounds from the protagonist
- Killing monsters in the overworld using a mount (monsters or the horse) will grant experience points
- You can switch between the classic battle camera and free movement mid-battle
- Menus can be navigated with joysticks in addition to the D-pad
- Purchased materials are automatically deposited in the Bag
- In-battle party member dialogue now appears in a speech bubble in the top right of the screen, complete with an illustrated portrait of the character, in addition to the character's spoken voice lines
- You can now instantly talk with your party members by pressing the minus ("-") button, rather than selecting the option in the menu.
