Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King Reviews
Dragon Quest VIII Journey of The Cursed King was an amazing JRPG back in 2006 and it stood the test of time brilliantly, thanks to the great work by the developers. There's much here to be loved by both the newcomers and the old fans, as we're talking about one of the best Japanese role playing games of all time, all considered.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Dragon Quest VIII: The Journey of the Cursed King definitely sits high up on my ‘must play RPG’s’ list and is a must play for all role playing fans.
A wonderful JRPG, although with twelve years behind him. It's still manages to shine, thanks also to the excellent work of revision by the developers.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Dragon Quest VIII for the Nintendo 3DS is the best way to get into the Dragon Quest mood. A nice way to understand why everyone loves the franchise. But for the veteran player is not mucho of an exercise of nostalgia.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Dragon Quest VIII is something special. It tells a lovely story with memorable characters in a captivatingly colourful style, features fun combat and a beautiful world to explore, and — most importantly — sparks a true sense of adventure and wonder throughout. This isn't just one of the best RPGs on the 3DS, it's one of the best RPGs full stop — and one of the best Dragon Quests to dive into for the uninitiated. Perfectly paced, well written and superbly scored, it's a trip worth taking for any RPG fan, and the updates in this 3DS remake — from faster battles and on-field enemies to a fantastic photography mode — make it a worthwhile return journey for veterans. A true classic.
Whether you’re returning, or you’ve always wanted to play a Dragon Quest game, this is the perfect place to start.
This is the Dragon Quest experience that you have been waiting for, woven around a captivating tale and a wondrous world in which to tell it. This becomes another unmissable addition to the impressive RPG library that the Nintendo 3DS has built, kicking the year off with a jubilant fanfare.
A JRPG classic is revived for 3DS, and the years haven't dimmed its charm in the slightest.
If you have a 3DS, love RPGs and never played the PS3 original, consider Dragon Quest VIII an almost essential purchase. If anything, its easy-going style and accessibility make it a better fit for the handheld console than for the original platform, and you’ll struggle to find a JRPG that’s easier to pick up or harder to put down.
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King truly stands the test of time. Having this PS2 classic on the 3DS, despite its slightly inferior presentation, is a mind boggling feat. Each new gameplay addition or tweak is smart, not taking anything away from the original vision. It helps that the basis for this version was one of the better instalments of the franchise, but Square Enix could have easily just have ported it over and be done with it. If you don’t mind the slight presentation downgrades, this is the definitive version of a modern classic.
Dragon Quest VIII was one of the finest JRPGs upon its initial release and it manages to retain that lofty status through this 3DS edition. Its adherence to the traditional rules of the genre is where it pulls its strength from, the familiarity of the template allowing the design team to worry about making sure each element is as good as it can possibly can be.
As it stands, Dragon Quest 8 on 3DS is the best version of this game right now with fantastic new content and improvements. If you’ve never played it before, and you like RPGs then you owe it to yourself to give this one a go.
Even with its handful of changes, or regretful omissions, Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King on 3DS is a grandiose adventure that manages to evolve the series in terms of technical achievement and presentation, story-telling and overall convenience. It takes advantage of the enhancements of technology to help make this adventure a joy to work through, unlike some older RPGs can be nowadays. It is a definite pleasure, while still delivering the classic feel of a Dragon Quest title that most of its devoted fans, more so in Japan than anywhere else, expect to find with every new release that the series has seen to this day. Lack of orchestrated soundtrack or minimal censorship should definitely not put anyone off this historical masterpiece, even on the humble and ageing 3DS hardware. This, along with perhaps Ever Oasis, might be the last major RPG release for the system, as it probably sees its last year of relevance in 2017, and it could not hope to go out with a bigger bang than with this impressive port.
Dragon Quest VIII: The Journey of The Curse King reaches the 3DS after several versions in other formats and this is most likely the best version of the game so far. Showing the best of what can be done in RPGs, Dragon Quest VIII is already a strong candidate to the title of game of the year on the 3DS and there's virtually no aspect in which this title does not excel. A true masterpiece, that can be enjoyed by RPG fans and non-fans alike.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
The 3DS version of Dragon Quest VIII is realized very carefully, with new added features able to refresh the gameplay experience.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Simple, charming, and considerably improved on the 3DS. Dragon Quest isn’t for everyone but this bridges the gap between retro and modern games very well.
Dragon Quest VIII is hailed as a classic, and rightly so. Dragon Quest VIII on 3DS is a great place for new fans to jump on, as well as a perfect way for those who played it to relive a classic – and on the go, too! One of the PS2’s very best JRPGs is back, and it hasn’t aged a day.
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King was already in the premiere class of RPGs with its initial release on PS2, and now Square Enix has somehow found a way to make it even better on the Nintendo 3DS in its definitive form.
Well made handheld port of one of the best JRPG with some sensible innovations.
Review in German | Read full review
The charm of Dragon Quest VIII for me has always been how it feels like a child’s fairy tale, crafted with the mediocre English impressions and memorable adventures that our parents used to read to us when we were young. While the writing can be cheesy at times, and the gameplay may appear barebones in comparison to newer titles, I actually enjoy that kind of campiness from a series like Dragon Quest and it never detracted from my personal experience.