Because 8's the one that actually made a pretty big splash outside of Japan. Dragon Quest 8 is basically the Final Fantasy 7 of this franchise. It's the one everyone knows. If we're being honest, DQ 8 and 11 are probably the only two Dragon Quests to actually be a big success outside of Japan. If you want easy money, you remake 8.
That's part of the reason why I'm a little surprised they're giving DQ 7 another chance. I can only assume someone over there REALLY loves that story, and wants it to be bigger internationally than it is.
DQ 9 is definitely the one that needs the remake treatment the most, though. But, it also might be the one that might require the most "reworking". Do you keep it as a proto-MMO or do you try and turn it into more of a single player game? Or do you try something completely different with it, trying to work multiplayer elements into the game in a different way? I could see the developers not being sure how to handle remaking that particular game. Dragon Quest 10 kind of improved on the general concept of that game, being a full MMO. How do you make a remake of 9 not feel like a "downgraded" version of 10? And it's not like the MMOs sold like gangbusters outside of Japan, either, so would they really want to make another one? How do you give 9 a unique identity, while still keeping some of the stuff that made it special originally?
Although, we still don't have any version of Dragon Quests 4 through 6 on modern consoles, either. I could see us getting either "Pixel Remasters" of the IOS versions, or HD-2D versions of those games before they try and tackle 9. If only because those are "easier" games to transfer over.
I think eventually they will get to 9. But, maybe not for a while?
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