Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen -- Initial Impression.

Next up for me I'll be moving over to the Nintendo DS for Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen. The game is a remade port of the PlayStation remake of the original Famicom title. It's the first entry in what is often referred to by fans as the Castle In the Sky Trilogy or the Zenithia Trilogy. Said trilogy comprises the Famicom Dragon Quest IV and the Super Famicom Dragon Quest V and Dragon Quest VI. The game's creator Yuuji Horii actively denies any intended official connection between the three games but sees how the fans could interpret it in such a way. They all share the same floating castle of Zenithia. This all probably stems from the fact that the first three Famicom entries in the series are an official trilogy commonly referred to as the Erdrick Trilogy. Anyway, that's what's next for me. The game itself still has the same three creative elements at work. Yuuji Horii handling the overall design and the story and scenarios. Akira Toriyama handling the character and monster design. And Koichi Sugiyama handling the score. What am I expecting from the game? Classic Dragon Quest gameplay with all the extra trimmings. The battle system should be the same old Dragon Quest, and all of the things like mini-medals and the monster book and the like that came after should be placed into the game. I'm expecting a good looking game with a bunch of enemy animation in battle. And I'm hopeful that the Nintendo DS can handle Sugiyama's classic score without too much quality loss. I'm also expecting a high quality translation on par with that from Dragon Quest VIII. I've spent a couple hours with the game. The game contains the full five chapters of the original title and adds in a new prologue and a bonus chapter six. I've completed the prologue and Chapter 1: Ragnar McRyan and the Case of the Missing Children. I'm saved at the start of Chapter 2: Alena and the Journey to the Tourney. Hopefully this 3D gussied up remake of an 8-bit game will contain all the charm the series is known for. And hopefully it will be a sign of great things to come when Dragon Quest V and Dragon Quest VI hit the West for the first time ever later next year on the Nintendo DS.