Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride

"At long last, it finally comes. Does it deliver?"

Finally, after seemingly countless years of waiting, Dragon Quest V makes it long awaited appearance on the Nintendo DS. I should start this review by saying if you haven't already played Dragon Quest IV, that is not a problem. There are no major story twists that have to be known, it's still a good game though. Enough about that, let's get into it!

Gameplay: 9/10

Pretty much the same as Dragon Quest IV, with a few exceptions. Let's start with Party chat. Party chat is just that, you can speak with the people in your party, I've found this helps figuring out some of the games puzzles. Also, a plethora of Mini Games have been introduced, aside from the tedious gambling. One more thing, my personal favorite, monster recruiting. As you get into the game, you can recruit the monsters you fight into your party. All around, very nice here.

Story: 10/10

Oh, wow. The story alone is worth buying this game. Without spoiling anything too big, I can tell you the game begins innocently, with you as a child with your father. As you progress through the game, the game really starts to shine with unparalleled glory. The story transcends time, I have found that usually, most of the games that do this don't pull it off in a proper manner. That most certainly is not the case here. I can't get too deep into this, as it would spoil a great deal of fun for you. I cannot express to you how epic the story is without spoiling everything for you.

Sound: 10/10

Yes, sir. The music in any Dragon Quest game tends to be terrific, and this title is no exception. The classic battles sounds are still here, in all of their glory. The music has been enhanced to the DS's standards, and is quite pleasing to the ears.

Use of Dual Screen: 8/10

The same as Dragon Quest IV. Moving in 360 is great, as opposed to being limited to tile-to-tile movement. I would have given it a 10 if the touch screen was utilized here. Don't get me wrong, that isn't a big problem, it would have been nice though.

Translation: 9/10

I'll tell you why I gave that a 9 in a second. First and foremost, the English language is utilized quite well here, whereas in Dragon Quest IV there were a few minor scratches. I gave it a 9 because some of the NPC's speak with an accent, and it's in text form. Sometimes, it takes effort to correctly make out what they are saying. That doesn't take anything away from the game, though. Not a thing.

Playtime/Replayability: 7/10

This game is quite a long campaign actually. I haven't beaten this game yet, but I am quite familiar with it. This game will take you a good month or so to beat this, I think. The Replayability is so-so. There's something that you can access at the end of the game, but I am not one to spoil anything.

Last word:

This game is just like Dragon Quest IV, only way better. If you crave a competent RPG for your DS, go out and pick this up. You will not be disappointed. This is one of the best RPG's I will ever play, hands down.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/19/09

Game Release: Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride (US, 02/16/09)