Yuji Horii received an Order of the Rising Sun from the Japanese government

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Yuji Horii, the creator of the popular Dragon Quest series, has received a prestigious award from the Japanese government – the Order of the Rising Sun. He’s the first video game creator to ever receive this honor.

Horii received the 4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette of the Order of the Rising Sun, an award from the Japanese government recognizing his significant contributions to art and culture.

Yuji Horii mentioned that Go Nagai, the famous manga artist behind Mazinger Z and Devilman, received the same request around the same time. Horii then recalled that when he was a high school junior, he’d actually applied to be Nagai’s assistant during summer break, hoping to become a manga artist himself.

Horii shared a statement about the award on his official X account, and we’ve translated it for you below.

なんと、本日、旭日小綬章をいただくことが出来ました。

— 堀井雄二 (@YujiHorii) November 3, 2025

I am truly honored and humbled to receive this award. It means a great deal to me.

I didn’t achieve this award on my own. I’m incredibly grateful to the players who loved our games, the dedicated development team who supported me, and everyone else in the gaming community who has offered their help along the way.

I started making games at a time when they weren’t really taken seriously. If kids played them, they’d often get in trouble from their parents and teachers! But it’s amazing to me how quickly things changed. Before I knew it, games became a huge part of Japanese culture, something we could really be proud of on the world stage.

It’s an honor to be the first game creator to receive this award, and I believe it reflects a growing recognition of the positive impact games can have on society.

Games were once considered simple entertainment, but now we recognize them as a powerful cultural force. They connect people across generations and countries, bringing joy, sparking imagination, and sometimes even offering a way to cope with life’s challenges. That impact really resonates with me.

I accept this award on behalf of everyone involved in the world of games, and I hope it inspires young people who dream of becoming game developers. This recognition motivates me to push myself and create even more exciting and engaging games in the future.

A human’s life is about role-playing. Thank you very much.

Yuji Horii, Game Designer

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2025-11-04 19:26