Dragon Quest X is getting a new AI-powered companion through a partnership between Square Enix and Google. Learn how "Chatty Slimey" is designed to guide players through the long-running MMO.
Dragon Quest X Partners With Google for AI Companion
Chatty Slimey Joins the Party
Dragon Quest X is getting a Gemini-powered AI chatbot companion called Chatty Slimey. In partnership with Google, Square Enix announced during the Dragon Quest X Spring Festival 2026 on March 21 that the Slime-themed companion will act as a guide that can interact with players through text and voice, offering tips, directions, and responses based on in-game events and player interactions.
Modeled after the series’ iconic Slime monster, Chatty Slimey is a "conversational AI" companion is for players who may feel lost in the game, with Square Enix head of development Takashi Anzai telling Japanese publication Sankei that "new players won’t feel lonely wondering where to start playing; it will become their own personal companion." The system will allow players to interact with Slimey through a chat function, where it can "automatically generate voices and engage in conversation."
The AI will also analyze information from the game screen, and Slimey "may even initiate conversations when a powerful enemy is defeated or a rare item is obtained." A beta test is planned for this new feature, with applications for participants open until March 30.
Google Cloud global director for games Jack Buser, who was also present at the event, spoke about the collaboration. When asked why the team wanted to bring a new experience like Chatty Slimey to Dragon Quest using Google Cloud technology, Buser said the goal was "to bring as much excitement as possible to the world of Dragon Quest using Google Gemini AI technology."
He added that the partnership with Square Enix offers "an entirely new way to interact with your favorite characters," with the broader aim of deepening "the bond between all of you and the world of Dragon Quest."
AI Across Games
The addition also reflects Square Enix’s broader push into AI-driven development. In November last year, the company shared a progress report on its medium-term business plan, outlining efforts to expand its use of generative AI across development, including a joint research initiative with the Matsuo-Iwasawa Laboratory at the University of Tokyo. The project aims to automate up to 70% of QA and debugging tasks by 2027 and "improve the efficiency of QA operations and establish a competitive advantage in game development."
It’s not the first time AI chatbots have appeared in multiplayer games. Wuxia title Where Winds Meet implemented AI-driven NPC interactions that let players communicate more freely with characters, while Fortnite introduced an AI-powered Darth Vader that could respond to players in real time. However, players were later able to prompt unintended or offensive responses shortly after it was introduced, an issue that quickly drew attention online.
Originally released in 2012, Dragon Quest X is a Japan-exclusive MMORPG. Despite its longevity, the game has yet to receive a global release, making it one of the few mainline entries in the series still limited to the region. While an offline version was later launched on multiple platforms, Square Enix has yet to localize the online version for Western audiences or announce plans to do so.
Dragon Quest X is currently available in Japan on PC, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch.
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That Dragon Quest MMO still isn't coming to the west, but it is getting a Gemini-powered AI slime companion
"Dragon Quest X Spring Festival 2026" < Day2 >
Square Enix Progress Report on the Medium-Term Business Plan
Wuxia MMO Where Winds Meet is full of AI chatbot NPCs, and people are doing all the standard obscene stuff to them: 'I made him think that my character was pregnant with his child'
Fortnite added an AI-powered Darth Vader and—surprise—players immediately tricked him into saying slurs
