| Hero | |
|---|---|
| Dragon Quest character | |
&sq=Envato&lang=en&file=File:Solo_and_Sofia.png) Art of the male and female Hero for the remake of Dragon Quest IV | |
| First appearance | Dragon Quest IV (1990) |
| Last appearance | Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince (2023) |
| Created by | Yuji Horii |
| Designed by | Akira Toriyama |
| Voiced by |
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The Hero is the protagonist of Dragon Quest IV, and can be male or female. They do not have a default name, and can be given a name by the player. They are the second Hero in Dragon Quest to allow players to make them male or female, and the first to give the female Hero a distinct design. During the course of the story, the game's antagonist, Psaro, causes the death of their village, including their friend Eliza. They journey to defeat Psaro, joining other characters along the way.
Their design was created by Akira Toriyama. There was originally meant to be more differences between the male and female Hero, but the game's designer, Yuji Horii, remembered to do this too late in development to implement this. The Hero has been the subject of discussion by critics, both for their tragic story and the female Hero. Multiple critics appreciated the existence of the female Hero, particularly due to being able to play as a woman in a role-playing game, which was not as common at the time.