BODY: You don't need a full costume at Dragon Quest Island this Halloween. A Slime T-shirt and two magic words will get you some loot.
Nijigen no Mori is an anime theme park on Awaji Island in Hyogo Prefecture. From October 1 to November 3, its Dragon Quest Island attraction will run a Halloween-only quest called Narikiri Bōkensha to Himitsu no Aikotoba, roughly "Dress-Up Adventurers and the Secret Password." The attraction's full name is Dragon Quest Island: The Ancient Demon God and the Guided Adventurers.
It's easy to take part. You only need to wear at least one Dragon Quest item, and a T-shirt, a hat or even a plushie counts. The park says you don't need an elaborate costume.
First, finish the limited-time Halloween quest. Then find the fortune teller in the town of Onokogarudo and say the secret password: "Happy Halloween!" You'll get a Halloween sticker you can't get anywhere else. There's a limited supply, so they stop handing them out once they run out.
The event costs nothing extra, but you do need a regular ticket for the attraction. On weekdays, Dragon Quest Island is open 10:00–21:00 with last entry at 19:00. On weekends and holidays it stays open until 22:00, with last entry at 19:30.
The insider take
In Japan, Halloween is all about costumes, but the big city street parties have become unwelcome. Shibuya has spent recent years asking partygoers to stay away. That has pushed a lot of the fun to theme parks, where narikiri (dressing up as a character) is actually encouraged. This event keeps the bar low, which is a smart move: most Dragon Quest fans already own a Slime plushie or two. The timing works well too, since 2026 is the series' 40th anniversary. From Tokyo, Awaji takes some effort: a shinkansen to Shin-Kobe, then a highway bus across the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge. It's best as a side trip on a longer Kansai visit. If you go, try for a weekday. November 3 is Culture Day, a public holiday, and the stickers could be gone well before the event ends that day.
Originally reported by GAME Watch (Japanese).