Three hundred students were arrested the day it came out — and no law was ever passed.
On Wednesday, February 10, 1988, Dragon Quest III went on sale in Japan. Lines formed the night before. By the time stores opened, nearly three hundred students had been arrested — some for breaking curfew the evening before, most for skipping school the next morning. The game sold over a million copies in a single day. A legend emerged that the Japanese government passed a law forbidding Dragon Quest releases on weekdays. It made sense — what else could stop something that size? But no law was passed. Instead, Enix made a different decision. After Dragon Quest III, the company never released another mainline Dragon Quest game on a weekday in Japan. Not because they were forced to. Because they chose to. Maybe that's what influence really looks like — not being regulated, but regulating yourself.
— inspired by Yuji Horii
About this game
Released on Wednesday, February 10, 1988, Dragon Quest III became a cultural phenomenon in Japan that no game before or since has matched. Over a million copies sold on the first day. Nearly three hundred students were arrested for truancy — skipping school to buy it. The event gave birth to an urban legend that the Japanese government passed a law banning Dragon Quest releases on weekdays. No such law was ever passed. Instead, Enix made a different choice: after Dragon Quest III, the company never released another mainline Dragon Quest game on a weekday in Japan again.
The Story Behind
Dragon Quest III was designed by Yuji Horii and composed by Koichi Sugiyama, developed by Chunsoft and published by Enix. The release on a Wednesday in February 1988 triggered a social event unprecedented in gaming history: stores saw lines forming the evening before, police arrested over 200 students for breaking curfew that night, and arrested an additional 300 the following day for truancy. Japanese companies reported a 13% increase in employees calling in sick that Wednesday. The game sold 1.1 million cartridges in Japan within a single day and 3 million in a week. The so-called 'Dragon Quest Law' became an enduring urban legend, though no actual legislation was ever enacted.
Tricks & Tales
The 'Dragon Quest Law' — the urban legend that the Japanese government passed legislation forcing Dragon Quest releases to weekends only — is false. No such law was ever enacted. However, Enix's self-imposed policy became real: after Dragon Quest III, no mainline Dragon Quest game in Japan has ever been released on a weekday. Dragon Quest III for Famicom was one of the early cartridge games to use battery-backed save memory, allowing players to save their progress directly on the cartridge. The cartridge model number is EFC-D3.
Collector's Guide
Region & Compatibility
Famicom and NES are the same hardware family but use physically incompatible cartridge formats — Famicom carts have a 60-pin connector and a narrower shell, while NES carts use a 72-pin connector with a wider housing. You cannot insert a Famicom cartridge into a North American NES slot without an adapter, and vice versa. The Famicom itself has no lockout chip, so any Famicom cartridge from Japan will run on a Famicom console regardless of origin. If you are buying a Japanese Famicom cart to play on a NES, you will need a 60-to-72-pin physical adapter; if you own a Famicom, Japanese-market software is your native format and no workarounds are needed.
Maintenance Tips
The gold-plated edge connectors on Famicom and NES cartridges pick up skin oils and oxidation over decades — a gentle wipe with a cotton swab dampened in 90% or higher isopropyl alcohol, stroking along the length of the pins rather than across them, is the accepted standard. Let the alcohol fully evaporate before reinserting. The old habit of blowing into a cartridge is folklore: the moisture in breath causes slow corrosion of the contacts over time, and any improvement you felt came from the act of re-seating the cart, not from the breath itself. Nintendo eventually updated its own troubleshooting guidance to say explicitly: do not blow into your Game Paks.
Going deeper
Explore the machine this game ran on, and what to check before you buy or care for one:
What to Watch Out For
Before buying, these are the points worth knowing — from someone who handles original Japanese Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation copies regularly.
Will a Dragon Quest III Famicom cartridge still save my game?
Dragon Quest III was one of the early cartridge games to use battery-backed save memory — a small coin battery sealed inside the cartridge keeps your saved progress alive when the power is off. Those batteries were built to last ten to fifteen years; every copy is now over thirty-five years old. If a cartridge forgets your save the moment you turn the console off, it usually isn't broken — the battery is simply tired. It can be replaced, though removing the old one clears the saved game, so back up anything precious first. When buying, it's worth asking whether the save battery has already been changed.
Will a Japanese Famicom cartridge work on a North American NES?
Not directly. Famicom and NES cartridges have different physical shapes and pin configurations, preventing direct insertion. The console also enforces regional settings in hardware. Playing Japanese Famicom software is most reliably done on a Japanese Famicom. Region adapters exist for those wishing to run imports on Western hardware, though compatibility is not guaranteed for all titles.
Before You Buy
Things worth knowing before you buy Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation
A short checklist for buying a used Famicom cartridge wisely — useful with any seller, anywhere.
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Choose a seller who tests it before shipping
A copy that has actually been powered on and checked is a known quantity. An untested one is a gamble you only settle after it arrives.
Look for a seller who states it was function-tested and says what they confirmed. A serious seller can tell you exactly what was checked.
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Make sure it fits your console
This is a Japanese Famicom cartridge with a 60-pin connector; a North American NES uses a 72-pin slot, so it will not fit directly.
Play it on a matching Japanese console or a region-free system, and confirm the listing states the region.
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If this title saves your progress, check the battery
Cartridges that save use a small coin-cell battery that fades over decades — a dead one wipes your save without warning.
Ask the seller whether the save function was tested. Replacing the battery is possible, but doing so erases any existing save.
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Check that the contacts are clean
Dirty edge contacts are the most common cause of startup and sound trouble in cartridges of this age.
Choose a seller who cleans the contacts before shipping. A note that it was tested and cleaned means the basics were handled.
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Confirm it is genuine, not a reproduction
Sought-after titles are targets for reproduction boards with replacement labels.
Ask for a photo of the circuit board and look for factory markings. Favour a shop with a licensed second-hand dealer permit (古物商) — by law its stock has a traceable origin, your simplest guard against fakes.
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Read the seller's reviews and return policy
A 100% positive record across thousands of sales is close to a guarantee — packing, communication and problem-solving all work for everyone. A return policy protects you if something is off.
Read the feedback and confirm a clear return window before you buy.
The last step before buying anywhere is knowing what it's worth.
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