{"id":67098,"date":"2026-05-26T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=67098"},"modified":"2026-05-25T18:55:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T09:55:25","slug":"dragon-quests-iconic-weakest-weapon-exists-because-the-famicom-couldnt-display-kanji-according-to-yuji-horii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/dragon-quests-iconic-weakest-weapon-exists-because-the-famicom-couldnt-display-kanji-according-to-yuji-horii\/","title":{"rendered":"Dragon Quest\u2019s\u00a0iconic\u00a0weakest weapon\u00a0exists\u00a0because the\u00a0Famicom\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0display kanji,\u00a0according\u00a0to Yuji Horii\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>First introduced in\u00a0<strong>Dragon Quest<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>II<\/strong>, the\u00a0humble\u00a0Cypress Stick is known as\u00a0a recurring weapon in the series and\u00a0is usually the weakest\u00a0option\u00a0available. It\u00a0has become quite iconic over the years, even\u00a0appearing in\u00a0NieR:\u00a0AutomatA\u00a0as an item that \u201ccan hardly be called a weapon, but somehow grants courage to its\u00a0user.\u201d\u00a0As pointed out by Japanese outlet <a href=\"https:\/\/magmix.jp\/post\/355566\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MagMix<\/a>, since the\u00a0real life\u00a0Japanese cypress (hinoki) is known as a luxurious timber\u00a0that\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0typically convey weakness,\u00a0the phenomenon of the Cypress Stick is\u00a0somewhat unusual. However, series\u00a0creator Yuji Horii revealed it has more to do with\u00a0technical limitations and the workings of the Japanese language.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In an interview quoted by\u00a0MagMix, Horii explains that the limited storage capacity of Dragon Quest II\u2019s\u00a0Famicom\u00a0cartridge forced the developers to adapt. Since\u00a0kanji characters\u00a0(which convey both meaning and sound)\u00a0were not yet supported\u00a0at the time,\u00a0all of the game\u2019s text, including the\u00a0names of monsters, weapons, and items,\u00a0had to be\u00a0written in\u00a0hiragana, which only conveys sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1139\" height=\"579\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1139px) 100vw, 1139px\" src=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260525-67098-001.jpg\" alt=\"Cypress Stick\" class=\"wp-image-67105\" srcset=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260525-67098-001.jpg 1139w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260525-67098-001-380x193.jpg 380w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260525-67098-001-768x390.jpg 768w\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Japanese wooden swords are\u00a0typically\u00a0made\u00a0of white oak or red oak,\u00a0generally known\u00a0as \u201ckashi\u201d\u00a0(\u6a2b).\u00a0But since\u00a0Famicom\u00a0cartridges did not support kanji, Horii said that simply writing &#8220;kashi\u00a0no\u00a0bo&#8221; (\u304b\u3057\u306e\u307c, &#8220;oak stick&#8221;)\u00a0in hiragana\u00a0would\u00a0have\u00a0make it sound too much like the Japanese word for snack (&#8220;okashi&#8221;).\u00a0Shortening the word\u00a0to its base hiragana form\u00a0\u201c\u304b\u3057\u201d\u00a0(kashi) wouldn&#8217;t have worked either, as people\u00a0wouldn\u2019t\u00a0know\u00a0what it\u00a0stood for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To this end, the word\u00a0&#8220;hinoki&#8221; (\u3072\u306e\u304d, meaning &#8220;Japanese cypress&#8221;)\u00a0was chosen.\u00a0While Japanese cypress is more often used in the construction of shrines and temples, the word can easily be understood when written in hiragana\u00a0as\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0distinct\u00a0in sound\u00a0and\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0have any homonyms\u00a0that can potentially create confusion.\u00a0The original Japanese Dragon Quest\u00a0games\u00a0use the term \u201chinoki no\u00a0bo\u201d\/\u3072\u306e\u304d\u306e\u307c\u3046, which prevents confusion and has since become an iconic recurring weapon in the franchise.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Related:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/dragon-quest-9-and-10-director-says-yuji-horii-taught-him-the-important-lesson-that-dragon-quest-isnt-about-the-scenario\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Dragon Quest 9 and 10 director says Yuji Horii taught him the important lesson that \u201cDragon Quest isn\u2019t about the scenario\u201d<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/dragon-quest-creator-wants-ai-game-characters-to-feel-like-real-friends-hopes-dq10-players-will-confide-in-slimey-chatbot\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Dragon Quest creator wants AI game characters to feel like real \u201cfriends,\u201d hopes DQ10 players will confide in\u00a0Slimey\u00a0chatbot<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>According to Dragon Quest series creator Yuji Horii, the humble Cypress Stick emerged from technical limitations of the Famicom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":67102,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[17],"class_list":["post-67098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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