Plus Alpha is the localization company that is responsible for translating Dragon Quest games into English for North American and European territories, starting with Dragon Quest VIII. They are well known for their use of British English, a variety of puns, and pop culture references to, in their own words, "give our products a fresh flavour.". Though this method of localization has garnered acclaim from many gamers and critics, it has caused some issue with older fans for changing familiar names.
Controversy of localization changes
With the arrival of the English version of Dragon Quest VIII, it was clear than many things had been changed in the transition between "Warrior" to "Quest". Nearly all character, monster, location, item and spell names of the "Warrior" era of Dragon Quest have been replaced with a template that prefers the use of puns, onomatopoeia and general silliness than precise description. While the opinions of the more scorned fans perfectly valid, it should be known that all of Plus Alpha's edits are done under supervision from Square-Enix, and permission must be given by Yuji Horii himself before any change can be made official.
Nintendo Power Support
Nintendo Power has claimed that the DS localization of Dragon Quest IV is closer to the original Japanese version then Dragon Warrior IV. However, this has been proven false.
Staff
Amazingly, Plus Alpha consists of only two individuals: Clare Saracine and Will Blatchley.