If what Level 5 did with Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King is any indication of what we can expect in the future, I’m looking forward to many more Dragon Quest installment. The ease of play and deep gaming experience are a perfect blend for whiling away far too many hours, and marathon sessions with this game are going to be commonplace. It is just really hard to put down. Quite often I had every intention to just go to the cleric, give my confession (DQ8’s save function) and then leave the game. But when that question of continuing the quest or quitting came up after the save, I all too often went right back in. Dragon Quest VIII is truly a compelling game that takes what could be just one more RPG and makes it a must-play experience. Some of the reasons are not even completely clear to me, but both my heart and my head say this game deserves an "A" rating. Oh, and there is that Final Fantasy XII demo to consider when deciding on a purchase.