Alongside the first trailer for the Switch version being released at Jump Festa this weekend, a one hour stage event for the game also took place. This was where first details for the Switch version for the latest title in the popular JRPG series were revealed. Alongside this announcement was the exciting news that Hiro Mashima, best known for his work creating the Fairy Tail manga, would be creating a short prequel manga for the title that will be published in V-Jump magazine.
『ドラゴンクエストXI 過ぎ去りし時を求めて S』ステージにて #DQ11 初の漫画化企画を発表させていただきました！
主人公と出会う前のカミュの物語を、真島ヒロ先生に描いていただきます。掲載時期など詳細は、また改めてお伝えいたします！個人的にも超楽しみですー！/サイトーブイ pic.twitter.com/NoyWLJfSlf
— Ｖジャンプ編集部@2月特大号好評発売中！ (@V_Jump) December 22, 2018
This manga will focus on Erik, a blue-haired thief who joins your party during the adventure. Instead of telling a story that runs concurrently to the game, this manga will instead focus on the characters life prior to the events of Dragon Quest XI, focusing on his life of crime and adventure that he used to engage in before meeting the game’s protagonist.
To coincide with the announcement during today’s live-streamed stage show, a signed shikishi board with Erik drawn in Mashima’s style was shown off as a small preview of what to expect once the manga is published.
While no further details on the story were unveiled at the time, the manga will be published in V-Jump in 2019. As for Dragon Quest XI S on Nintendo Switch, that title is set to also be released at an unspecified date in 2019, with more details on both the manga and game expected over the coming months.