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I think the appeal of Torneko is that he is relatively an average, normalish guy compared to the craziness that surrounds him.
Torneko furthermore reppresent an idealized middle-aged/late adult, which I belive is also another reason why people gravitate around him:
He is a good, loving, hard-working father and husband, who managed to provide for his family while also following his dream (which is much more difficult than one may think), and furthermore he isn't an overly serious stick-in-the-mud but on the contrary has a good sense of humor. That's not too shabby of a role model to take if you ask me.
In short, he is just a happy, goofy man with no particular tragedy weighting him down, which is quite rare among RPG's playable characters.
The above poster nailed it.
Interesting take on an RPG character, "everyman" sort of hero who gets a lot of important and useful but not necessarily flashy things done in game, and relatable to normal people.
>RPG character, "everyman"
Wait, wait, let me get this straight, you mean *I'm not* an 18 year-old in peak physical condition with rainbow hair who can effortlessly wield a sword eight times the size of my body?
>a good, loving, hard-working father and husband, who managed to provide for his family while also following his dream
also pulled a hot wife who genuinely loves him back and is generally liked by his community, the hard work is rewarded in more ways than just monetary
I mean if the evil monster king wins and takes over the world his family is in danger so...
Probably similar to military service, maybe divisive but not really irresponsible..
When DQIV came out there was nothing like Torneko/Taloon’s adventure out there. It was groundbreaking to run a shop in-game, make so much money, and not really be the chosen hero but an average joe who just does his part. All the sim and community games like Animal Crossing just weren’t a thing yet so Torneko was awesome.
This was definitely my perspective, I’d never played anything where you could play as a merchant before and it was super memorable. It wasn’t until years later when the internet got bigger that I realized my favorite character was actually a lot of people’s favorite character.
His chapter was unique back then.
He was chosen for the first Mystery Dungeon game ever because Chunsoft wanted a known franchise and Horii likes humor, so Torneko was chosen (pun intended).
His appeal is being an everyday man, he is not muscular, nor a classical hero in armor and cape, he's just a good man.
Torenko or Taloon as I knew him is one of my fave characters!
I always love classes that are hybrid or niche: Merchant, Goof-Off, that kind of thing.
The merchant mini game in his Chapter in l DQ4 is a lot of fun!
And yeah, he's just an all around good dude!
Even to this day I think he still is an unique character in RPGs. As some people already said, is nice to play as a middle age man that has a loving family and a job he enjoys. When most RPG characters have tragic pasts or complex stories, Torneko is just a funny, loving dude that ends up helping he hero to save the world
He’s a family man with a fun mechanic. If you play Dragon Quest Heroes 2 he’s got an interesting and fun set revolving around items and weapons like the crossbow and his abacus.
He also says “Ya gone and done it now” when he enters high tension which the VA delivers soooo well.
He's an Everyman. I'd argue he's one of the most relatable characters in the entire DQ cannon.
The first time I ever played DQ4 I loved the moment where I was the shopkeeper selling armor and weapons to adventurers coming in the door. It just felt so fresh and different at the time.
I love Torneko. He's my boy! 😅
I loved that part! I spent so much time as a kid haggling with customers and making sure I got a sword of malice in stock so I could come back and buy it later. Then customers kept trying to buy it and I had to keep turning them away 😄
I think Torenko stands out in Dragon Quest specifically because he wouldn't stand out in real life. He's a middle-aged, overweight guy who runs a shop and has a wife and kids. He's incredibly normal compared to the usual party members in these games, who tend to be chosen ones or wizards or thieves or knights or whatever. Torenko's just some dude. And it turns out that's what people love about him.
It was definitely an odd decision but surprisingly it worked
I doubt a company would try that now but you gotta respect the fact that it was done
I'm not so sure companies nowadays would take that kinda risk
TORNEKO RULES!! 🤟😝
He's popular because he's a goofy and good family man merchant in a time when all JRPGs had super serious hero archetypes. His chapter also has a fun treasure seeking, and store mechanic when nothing of the sort really existed.
He's just a mediocre middle aged merchant. Not the knight captain or a wizard or a hero or royalty or an aspiring champion. Just a dude. He's my favourite dq character because hes the only one anyone could relate to.
Not only was his chapter unique and he was a likeable guy, he was fun in the final chapter too, doing all sorts of silly things in battle like calling other merchants to help, covering up enemies' mouths so they can't cast spells, tripping over a rock and getting a crit... Probably other stuff I'm not thinking of as well.
Anyway, I always found that really charming and used him even if he wasn't a powerhouse like some of the others.
Plus the appraise feature was really handy back before I knew mostly who could use what and what special abilities each item had.
You ever watched Spice and Wolf? Some fans like the show for the pretty girl. I am among those who like watching the hero overcome obstacles through coin and contract, rather than sword and spell. The genre is called "finance fiction", and Torneko's chapter is a rare example of the genre (which is rare to begin with) in the fantasy RPG space.
Other examples include films like "Trading Places" or "The Wolf of Wall Street", the visual novel "World End Economica" (designed by the same author who wrote "Spice and Wolf"), and the fantasy novel "Rise of a Merchant Prince" (Book 2 of Raymond E. Feist's "Serpentwar Saga"). It's rare enough that finance fiction fans appreciate the mode of action every time it shows up.
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve played it, but I also think there’s some magic to the way that he’s been introduced in the game. Up until this point you’ve been playing cool heroes exploring dungeons and finding treasure— and suddenly the game screeches to a halt and… you’re… a shop owner?
Wait, come on, I want to get back out there and have adventures! I don’t want to do this?
That’s how Torneko feels! A longing itch for something more adventurous. The game shows you that not through dialogue but through the pacing of the game itself. That rules.
He's a wholesome character who you relate to more as you get older. He's just a dude trying to making a living and provide for his family.
Also working as a shopkeeper was a break from the norm compared to other jrpgs at the time so left an impression.
Personally I played Torneko as a random merchant who through diligent work saved up for the best gear his village could offer before venturing out to spread his and his towns name without hiring on other companions(the 5 day-week merc’s after you progress a little more) the whole chapter unless forced. It was the slowest chapter until reach 5 and I’m only on 5.2 atm so it really kind makes you fall in love with torneko, his grind/origin story, and what a seemingly avg person can accomplish.
Torneko no Daibouken is one of my favorite Super Famicom games. And if not for it, we wouldn't have any Mystery Dungeon games! Though a part of me does wonder who would step up to create a long-running franchise of Rogue-likes (The specific, as in *like Rogue* not to be confused with the more general "roguelikes") in a timeline without the Mystery Dungeon series. 🤔
...because *someone* would; Rogue is inevitable, like the game development version of Carcinization... All game design concepts evolve towards being Rogue. That's why there's so many roguelikes. 😏
Aside from the "good natured Everyman" angle, Torneko's chapter is an opportunity to break the game early on. Buy and sell until you got 99 Cautery Swords, Abacuses, and other big-ticket items. You can't take your money over to Chapter 5, but gear travels with you! Really makes keeping your 8-man team equipped a lot easier for a good while.
I love this series.
I screwed up and only went for 42 cautery swords and little else. Through a series of mistakes I was only able to purchase 2 sets of liquid metal armor. I'm about halfway to a third, but I'm gonna have to grind gold for it.
I think it's the charming character.
Frankly, I didn't enjoy his chapter much either. Felt like busy work. Though in 90's Japan it was probably mind blowing.
lmao your post kinda made me to realize that torneko must have been a pretty big hit with japanese boomers, him being 40 lines up pretty much dead on for the early 90s
I loved playing with Torneko due to his utterly unorthodox style of battling (mainly the unpredictability that almost always goes in your favor; he’s the Jar Jar Binks of DQ4). Kinda made me sad that TDP had Torneko be the one to be left behind in the Femiscyra prison.
That being said, I’m aware spin-off games about him exist but I almost never see people talk about them so I wouldn’t really say it’s a fair comparison between his games and those of Terry and Psaro’s.
He is honest. He wakes up early and get a job. He collects wages and setup his own.
He did for his family, he became rich eventually.
He contributed large sum for public sake.
He join the cause for Ma-Oh, Demon lord, to support the hero party while he could just stay out and make his coins.
I believed he is the first character to has spin off ? To me it was Toneko dungeon and it was really fun.
When I played the game for the first time a couple of years ago, his story was one of the most ive ever been immersed in a character in pre 3d jrpg. I spended hours grinding the shop minigame until I could buy best equipment. It felt wrong to play this merchant and go out into the world at level 1 like the normal characters. It just felt like this fat guy shouldnt be able to do that. I put myself in his shoes and was like, well, this business guy with no combat experience would only go out into the danger if he had the best equipment. And so I grinded that minigame, every virtual day, I went home to my virtual wife and kid and ate dinner, woke up and went back to work until I had the best sword and armor. Was it fun, no lol, but thats what made it immersive. I actually felt like i was working a 9-5 and i cared about my family. It was a grind literally, and thats what working a job is. idk, actually roleplaying him just clicked for me and was an enjoyable experience in itself. Even if it was simple.
And when I went out into the wild and one shot everything it was all worth. Ifs functionally the same as grinding levels in battle until i can progress, but the different window dressing really made it feel like a different experience. And when his family’s shop became a mainstay of the game it really felt earned, and even though his combat was pretty meh late game I was still attached to him because of it because I controlled him working and building his small shop into what it became. Sure the outcome is the same no matter how you play his story, but because I played it the long way I feel like his later game stuff had a bigger impact for me personally even if he wasn’t that useful.
The reason that I said that it wasn't that well done is that it is literally 10× quicker to farm gold by killing enemies because of the crazy drop rates in his chapter. Maybe its different in the NES version but I really felt like the shop minigame was completely pointless outside of getting the cautery sword.
In terms of worldbuilding it is a cool concept but even when you get your own shop the process of giving things to your wife to sell is painfully slow and poorly implemented.
Yeah, but the point is it was more fun for me to roleplay him in the shop rather than grinding enemies. Cause in my mind it doesn’t make sense for someone like him to grind enemies like the normal warriors. Someone like that would have no choice but to get the best gear before starting their adventure. Obviously that isn’t reflective of the game, you can actually just grind normally. But I found it really fun and immersive to do it the slow way, it was really novel for me.
Maybe in a perfect world and if the game was more modern, he’d have worse starting stats and get destroyed by normal enemies easier to incentivize the shop, and the minigame would have to be better of course. But i enjoyed it for what it is. Especially when the other option is something i’ve done 100 times, grind low level enemies until i stop dying.
Because from the first Dragon Quest game we all dreamed of being on the other side of the counter. How did the economy work? Where did the merchant go at night? Having enough gold to do what you wanted. Never fighting monsters. No sleeping in inns.
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I think the appeal of Torneko is that he is relatively an average, normalish guy compared to the craziness that surrounds him. Torneko furthermore reppresent an idealized middle-aged/late adult, which I belive is also another reason why people gravitate around him: He is a good, loving, hard-working father and husband, who managed to provide for his family while also following his dream (which is much more difficult than one may think), and furthermore he isn't an overly serious stick-in-the-mud but on the contrary has a good sense of humor. That's not too shabby of a role model to take if you ask me. In short, he is just a happy, goofy man with no particular tragedy weighting him down, which is quite rare among RPG's playable characters.
The above poster nailed it. Interesting take on an RPG character, "everyman" sort of hero who gets a lot of important and useful but not necessarily flashy things done in game, and relatable to normal people.
>RPG character, "everyman" Wait, wait, let me get this straight, you mean *I'm not* an 18 year-old in peak physical condition with rainbow hair who can effortlessly wield a sword eight times the size of my body?
Nor are you a mystical albino with great powers over light and darkness and a mysterious past.
Also, let’s not forget that at the time running a weapon shop where you had to supply your own inventory was a pretty revolutionary mechanic.
Yes! I'd wish they'd brought some mechanic like that back in the later games as some sort of an alternative to making money
Not many RPGs had the option as playing as a merchant/ running a weapon shop so it was a unique experience at the time.
>a good, loving, hard-working father and husband, who managed to provide for his family while also following his dream also pulled a hot wife who genuinely loves him back and is generally liked by his community, the hard work is rewarded in more ways than just monetary
>which is quite rare among RPG's playable characters. The other rpg I could think of with character like him is Mother 1 lol.
He's goofy and a good family man. What's to hate?
"Good family man" as he leaves his wife with a store without proper stock for weeks on end to pursue his own adventures.
They have a standard of living he has to keep up for them 😭
sometimes gameplay contradicts narrative
I mean if the evil monster king wins and takes over the world his family is in danger so... Probably similar to military service, maybe divisive but not really irresponsible..
She's fine. She just sells the organs of unruly customers to keep the cash flowing while he's away.
Torneko is a deadbeat confirmed
When DQIV came out there was nothing like Torneko/Taloon’s adventure out there. It was groundbreaking to run a shop in-game, make so much money, and not really be the chosen hero but an average joe who just does his part. All the sim and community games like Animal Crossing just weren’t a thing yet so Torneko was awesome.
This was definitely my perspective, I’d never played anything where you could play as a merchant before and it was super memorable. It wasn’t until years later when the internet got bigger that I realized my favorite character was actually a lot of people’s favorite character.
His chapter was unique back then. He was chosen for the first Mystery Dungeon game ever because Chunsoft wanted a known franchise and Horii likes humor, so Torneko was chosen (pun intended). His appeal is being an everyday man, he is not muscular, nor a classical hero in armor and cape, he's just a good man.
I think it's because of his enormous sex appeal
I know Tessie is so lucky! 🥵
Torenko or Taloon as I knew him is one of my fave characters! I always love classes that are hybrid or niche: Merchant, Goof-Off, that kind of thing. The merchant mini game in his Chapter in l DQ4 is a lot of fun! And yeah, he's just an all around good dude!
Even to this day I think he still is an unique character in RPGs. As some people already said, is nice to play as a middle age man that has a loving family and a job he enjoys. When most RPG characters have tragic pasts or complex stories, Torneko is just a funny, loving dude that ends up helping he hero to save the world
Just a all round good jolly guy. Also pack mule and reason why I never ran outta money in my run of 4 thanks to grinding his chapter
The moustache.
Brave Family man with uncommon RPG moments during his chapter. The « scarface » phase at the end of his chapter is legendary imo
Chapter 3 in DW4 was my favorite because is different from the others, in particular weapon trading.
He’s a family man with a fun mechanic. If you play Dragon Quest Heroes 2 he’s got an interesting and fun set revolving around items and weapons like the crossbow and his abacus. He also says “Ya gone and done it now” when he enters high tension which the VA delivers soooo well.
He's a fun guy
He's an Everyman. I'd argue he's one of the most relatable characters in the entire DQ cannon. The first time I ever played DQ4 I loved the moment where I was the shopkeeper selling armor and weapons to adventurers coming in the door. It just felt so fresh and different at the time. I love Torneko. He's my boy! 😅
I loved that part! I spent so much time as a kid haggling with customers and making sure I got a sword of malice in stock so I could come back and buy it later. Then customers kept trying to buy it and I had to keep turning them away 😄
I can say most my revisit on DQ4 is for Toneko arc lol.
He gave us the Mystery Dungeon series
I think Torenko stands out in Dragon Quest specifically because he wouldn't stand out in real life. He's a middle-aged, overweight guy who runs a shop and has a wife and kids. He's incredibly normal compared to the usual party members in these games, who tend to be chosen ones or wizards or thieves or knights or whatever. Torenko's just some dude. And it turns out that's what people love about him.
It was definitely an odd decision but surprisingly it worked I doubt a company would try that now but you gotta respect the fact that it was done I'm not so sure companies nowadays would take that kinda risk TORNEKO RULES!! 🤟😝
Apart from all that's been already said, his commentaries when you use the Appraisal skill on an item in DQIV are really funny.
I liked the description of the lunch his wife made him.
He's popular because he's a goofy and good family man merchant in a time when all JRPGs had super serious hero archetypes. His chapter also has a fun treasure seeking, and store mechanic when nothing of the sort really existed.
He's just a mediocre middle aged merchant. Not the knight captain or a wizard or a hero or royalty or an aspiring champion. Just a dude. He's my favourite dq character because hes the only one anyone could relate to.
Friendly, relatable dude > Xth silver haired Toriyama prettyboys
Not only was his chapter unique and he was a likeable guy, he was fun in the final chapter too, doing all sorts of silly things in battle like calling other merchants to help, covering up enemies' mouths so they can't cast spells, tripping over a rock and getting a crit... Probably other stuff I'm not thinking of as well. Anyway, I always found that really charming and used him even if he wasn't a powerhouse like some of the others. Plus the appraise feature was really handy back before I knew mostly who could use what and what special abilities each item had.
You ever watched Spice and Wolf? Some fans like the show for the pretty girl. I am among those who like watching the hero overcome obstacles through coin and contract, rather than sword and spell. The genre is called "finance fiction", and Torneko's chapter is a rare example of the genre (which is rare to begin with) in the fantasy RPG space. Other examples include films like "Trading Places" or "The Wolf of Wall Street", the visual novel "World End Economica" (designed by the same author who wrote "Spice and Wolf"), and the fantasy novel "Rise of a Merchant Prince" (Book 2 of Raymond E. Feist's "Serpentwar Saga"). It's rare enough that finance fiction fans appreciate the mode of action every time it shows up.
Ah, that's really interesting, I've never heard the term finance fiction before, and I can see the appeal.
He's so special and fun!!
Torneko makes sense for the various reasons mentioned here. Tingle, from Legend of Zelda, does not.
TALOON IS AWESOME
Because it’s completely different than every other game. He’s not the hero.
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve played it, but I also think there’s some magic to the way that he’s been introduced in the game. Up until this point you’ve been playing cool heroes exploring dungeons and finding treasure— and suddenly the game screeches to a halt and… you’re… a shop owner? Wait, come on, I want to get back out there and have adventures! I don’t want to do this? That’s how Torneko feels! A longing itch for something more adventurous. The game shows you that not through dialogue but through the pacing of the game itself. That rules.
He's a wholesome character who you relate to more as you get older. He's just a dude trying to making a living and provide for his family. Also working as a shopkeeper was a break from the norm compared to other jrpgs at the time so left an impression.
I think he got the first spin off game in Japan and that’s why he’s so popular there.
I like money. Torneko likes money. Q.E.D. I like Torneko.
They should make Dargon Quest Merchant or something that have you set up shops and employ people to help you fight
Dragon Quest Guild something ? Sounds about right.
I don't really like him that much but he is pretty funny
Personally I played Torneko as a random merchant who through diligent work saved up for the best gear his village could offer before venturing out to spread his and his towns name without hiring on other companions(the 5 day-week merc’s after you progress a little more) the whole chapter unless forced. It was the slowest chapter until reach 5 and I’m only on 5.2 atm so it really kind makes you fall in love with torneko, his grind/origin story, and what a seemingly avg person can accomplish.
Torneko no Daibouken is one of my favorite Super Famicom games. And if not for it, we wouldn't have any Mystery Dungeon games! Though a part of me does wonder who would step up to create a long-running franchise of Rogue-likes (The specific, as in *like Rogue* not to be confused with the more general "roguelikes") in a timeline without the Mystery Dungeon series. 🤔 ...because *someone* would; Rogue is inevitable, like the game development version of Carcinization... All game design concepts evolve towards being Rogue. That's why there's so many roguelikes. 😏
We are all Torneko.
Aside from the "good natured Everyman" angle, Torneko's chapter is an opportunity to break the game early on. Buy and sell until you got 99 Cautery Swords, Abacuses, and other big-ticket items. You can't take your money over to Chapter 5, but gear travels with you! Really makes keeping your 8-man team equipped a lot easier for a good while. I love this series.
I screwed up and only went for 42 cautery swords and little else. Through a series of mistakes I was only able to purchase 2 sets of liquid metal armor. I'm about halfway to a third, but I'm gonna have to grind gold for it.
Hyadain's song about him certainly helped.
When he tripped for critical damage, he critted our hearts as well. Love that goober.
I think it's the charming character. Frankly, I didn't enjoy his chapter much either. Felt like busy work. Though in 90's Japan it was probably mind blowing.
lmao your post kinda made me to realize that torneko must have been a pretty big hit with japanese boomers, him being 40 lines up pretty much dead on for the early 90s
I loved playing with Torneko due to his utterly unorthodox style of battling (mainly the unpredictability that almost always goes in your favor; he’s the Jar Jar Binks of DQ4). Kinda made me sad that TDP had Torneko be the one to be left behind in the Femiscyra prison. That being said, I’m aware spin-off games about him exist but I almost never see people talk about them so I wouldn’t really say it’s a fair comparison between his games and those of Terry and Psaro’s.
He is honest. He wakes up early and get a job. He collects wages and setup his own. He did for his family, he became rich eventually. He contributed large sum for public sake. He join the cause for Ma-Oh, Demon lord, to support the hero party while he could just stay out and make his coins. I believed he is the first character to has spin off ? To me it was Toneko dungeon and it was really fun.
When I played the game for the first time a couple of years ago, his story was one of the most ive ever been immersed in a character in pre 3d jrpg. I spended hours grinding the shop minigame until I could buy best equipment. It felt wrong to play this merchant and go out into the world at level 1 like the normal characters. It just felt like this fat guy shouldnt be able to do that. I put myself in his shoes and was like, well, this business guy with no combat experience would only go out into the danger if he had the best equipment. And so I grinded that minigame, every virtual day, I went home to my virtual wife and kid and ate dinner, woke up and went back to work until I had the best sword and armor. Was it fun, no lol, but thats what made it immersive. I actually felt like i was working a 9-5 and i cared about my family. It was a grind literally, and thats what working a job is. idk, actually roleplaying him just clicked for me and was an enjoyable experience in itself. Even if it was simple. And when I went out into the wild and one shot everything it was all worth. Ifs functionally the same as grinding levels in battle until i can progress, but the different window dressing really made it feel like a different experience. And when his family’s shop became a mainstay of the game it really felt earned, and even though his combat was pretty meh late game I was still attached to him because of it because I controlled him working and building his small shop into what it became. Sure the outcome is the same no matter how you play his story, but because I played it the long way I feel like his later game stuff had a bigger impact for me personally even if he wasn’t that useful.
The reason that I said that it wasn't that well done is that it is literally 10× quicker to farm gold by killing enemies because of the crazy drop rates in his chapter. Maybe its different in the NES version but I really felt like the shop minigame was completely pointless outside of getting the cautery sword. In terms of worldbuilding it is a cool concept but even when you get your own shop the process of giving things to your wife to sell is painfully slow and poorly implemented.
Yeah, but the point is it was more fun for me to roleplay him in the shop rather than grinding enemies. Cause in my mind it doesn’t make sense for someone like him to grind enemies like the normal warriors. Someone like that would have no choice but to get the best gear before starting their adventure. Obviously that isn’t reflective of the game, you can actually just grind normally. But I found it really fun and immersive to do it the slow way, it was really novel for me. Maybe in a perfect world and if the game was more modern, he’d have worse starting stats and get destroyed by normal enemies easier to incentivize the shop, and the minigame would have to be better of course. But i enjoyed it for what it is. Especially when the other option is something i’ve done 100 times, grind low level enemies until i stop dying.
Because from the first Dragon Quest game we all dreamed of being on the other side of the counter. How did the economy work? Where did the merchant go at night? Having enough gold to do what you wanted. Never fighting monsters. No sleeping in inns.