Dragon Quest Treasures

Dragon Quest Treasures is far from the richest jewel in the Dragon Quest crown, but a laid-back structure, charming world, and endless stream of rewards make it a relaxing RPG still worth admiring.

Despite weak combat and dated visuals, the central gameplay loop of Dragon Quest Treasures is strong enough to keep you coming back.

It’s this buildup of minor annoyances that makes it hard to recommend Dragon Quest Treasures. The experience is driven by charm and nostalgia, but if you don’t have an existing appreciation for the series, there isn’t much here that I could recommend over most other open-world role-playing games. It’s an experience that would greatly vary depending on the player; in other words, one player’s Dragon Quest trash is another player’s Dragon Quest Treasure.

A perfect game for those long winter nights, Dragon Quest Treasures will more than tide me over until Square Enix finally gets around to releasing Infinity Strash.

If you go in expecting to sink 100 hours into Dragon Quest Treasures or think you'll get the same kind of intricate plot that the series is known for, you'll come away disappointed. However, if you are a younger gamer that is itching for a taste of what a JRPG is like or you just want something laid back to tackle, there is a lot of fun to be had here. Everything you'd expect in a JRPG is in this game, just stripped back to the basics, all adorned with that timeless Dragon Quest charm.

Dragon Quest Treasures touts itself as a treasure-hunting RPG, though I'd safely say it fits into the action RPG and monster-collecting genre. While there are performance issues and lackluster bosses, I always treasure a game that encourages exploration and gives me plenty to do.

It's a rich and beautiful world to hunt for treasure in, but enjoyable exploration is interrupted by combat that fails to evoke the same sense of wonder.

Though its core treasure-hunting loop is tedious, there's a lot of charm worth digging up in Dragon Quest Treasures.

Dragon Quest Treasures offers plenty of charm, solid core mechanics, and a certain slot-machine-style appeal, but fortune favors the bold, and the game holds back in too many ways. Unremarkable visuals, simplistic combat, and the eventual repetitive feeling of treasure hunting limit the experience. Younger players and hardcore fans of the franchise may still covet Dragon Quest Treasures, but the game could have truly sparkled with a bit more polish.

Dragon Quest Treasures offers a glimpse into the early years of two intriguing Dragon Quest XI characters.