Regardless of how complex you want the game to be there is an incredible amount to see and do. The main quests and optional side quests offer a compelling mix of simple fetch quest mainstays and larger, more complex journeys. You can find treasure maps for more dungeon crawling as well as obtain treasure maps from other DQ IX users via the game's TAG mode in which your DS pings other DS's in the area and trades inn guests and maps. Similarly players can visit the WFC shop every week for maps and other shop items only found online. If playing solo isn't your thing you can also team up with three other players for some questing however this is, unfortunately, limited to only local wireless play.

Whatever you decide to do, and however deep you decide to make your journey into Dragon Quest IX you'll be treated to one of the most accessibly complicated and cheerily good hearted role playing experiences to come along in some time and one of the absolute best role playing games of the year. Doing good has never felt so awesome.

Brandon Cackowski-Schnell is a regular contributor to GameShark and is the cohost of Jumping the Shark , GameShark.com's official podcast. He also writes for the blog The Nut and the Feisty Weasel .