If you've played Dragon Warrior I & II on the GBC, you'll be interested to know that this installment represents the last game in the trilogy. While it's not necessary to play the first two games to enjoy the third one, it benefits those that have by tying up some of the story elements. The game begins with the mighty Ortega falling prey to the nasty dragon, Lord Baramos, at the top of a volcano. Sixteen years later his son (or daughter, you get to decide) sets out on a quest that will unravel the mysteries of the evil that has begun to infest itself across the vast world. At the beginning of your quest you will answer a set of questions to help determine your personality. The answers you provide will have a slight impact on your character's attributes, and while it's nothing too serious to worry about, it's a fun little quiz.

At the start of your adventure you will visit Ruida's Tavern to recruit three adventure-seeking companions. There are seven different classes to choose from, each harboring special skills. You will be able to pick any combination of warriors, fighters, mages, clerics, thieves, dealers, and jesters. Your character is considered to be a part of the hero class. The typical battle party consists of a cleric (for healing purposes and holy powers), a mage (for attack spells), and either a fighter (uses punches instead of weapons) or a warrior (combat specialist that utilizes the latest in weaponry). Since I had played through the game way back in 1992, I chose a more difficult journey by taking along a mage, a thief, and a dealer. With no cleric along for the ride I wouldn't have the advantages of white magic and with no fighters or warriors my offense wouldn't be all that great either. However, the thief isn't too bad of a fighter and can find hidden treasures and steal items from battles. The dealer will often pick up extra gold from battles and can appraise unknown items. Later on in the game you will have the opportunity to change your characters' classes. They will retain all of the spells that they have learned, but will start over at level one of the new class they enter into. This provides for a varied team of fighters that makes each adventure unique from the other. First time players of a Dragon Warrior game will want to be careful with the team they select since the game is already difficult to begin with. No use in making it even harder on yourself.

After you've created your team you're free to set out on your adventure. The first noticeable change to the standard Dragon Warrior formula is that as you walk around the overworld the day will slowly shift to night. This impacts the game in several ways. Roaming around the countryside during the nighttime is more dangerous because stronger beasts will have to be fought. In addition, each town and castle that you enter during the night will be slightly different. Some people will have gone to bed. Some people will now be awake. Different buildings may be unlocked during the night and locked up during the day or vice-versa. That's why it's vitally important that you search each town and castle (if the castle is open at night) during the day and the night to obtain all of the clues necessary to carry on your quest. For those interested in leveling up their characters it might be wise to walk about the overworld at night to try and tackle some stronger foes.

The battle system is exactly the same as in the other Dragon Warrior games. Upon entering a random generated battle you will be able to fight, parry, cast a spell, use an item, change your equipment, or attempt to run. Now, back in the NES version it was fruitless to try and run from enemies because 99.99% of the time you wouldn't be able to run. Luckily with this version your chances are much better, but it's still only recommended as a last resort since no experience points or gold will be rewarded. For those unfamiliar with “parry”, it's basically a defensive move where you decide not to attack with that character, instead placing him or her in a defensive stance to avoid taking as much damage from an attack. The battles are often over quickly and generally not a nuisance, although the frequency of the random battles tends to be quite high.

New to the portable version are the pachisi tracks. By finding hidden tokens you can take part in this massive board game. You roll the die and you will move that many spaces on the board. Each square on the board will have varying results. Some will give you gold, some will take gold, some will force you to battle, and some will give you an item. If you successfully make it to the end of the board you will be handsomely rewarded. You can also place your bets at the monster stadiums. All you have to do is buy a ticket and place a bet on the monster you think will win. You can greatly increase your gold stash by guessing correctly. Then there's the medal collector. He will reward you if you bring him tiny medals that are hidden throughout the land. The more medals you find, the more items you will be given. You can also collect Monster Medals. They are given to you at random upon successfully winning a battle. If you manage to collect over 150 different kinds of medals you will be rewarded as well. As you can see, a lot has been added to the game to make it even more enjoyable than it was before.

The graphics in Dragon Warrior III are vastly improved over the NES version. In fact, this game is based off of the Super Famicom (the Japanese version of our SNES) incarnation of the game. Thus the game features colorful sprites, more varied tiles, and animated battles. What's that? Yes, you read right, the enemies have been animated for the first time in a Dragon Warrior game and they look fantastic! The animation is extremely smooth and each enemy has a couple of different animations depending on the attack. Each animation is fairly short so it doesn't slow down the battle system one bit, but the game is definitely more fun to watch now with the new addition. You never see your characters in the battle screen (it's in first person), but the attacks are animated as well so you will see a sword slash across an enemy or the flames from a fire attack. The graphical upgrade is instantly noticeable and does wonders for the entire game.

While it's great to see Dragon Warrior III with new and improved graphics, I was equally excited when I heard the music. It still maintains the catchy soundtrack from the original, but it sounds so much better, which is surprising since the GBC sound chip isn't that great. Not only do all of the music selections sound better, but also they're longer as well so you won't tire of them as quickly.

The challenge of Dragon Warrior III is quite high, as it was in the original NES version. The difference here is that with the NES version I had all sorts of maps to help me out. A map is included with the game, but it doesn't really help all that much (and is it just me or does the world look very similar to our own?). Many of the temples and dungeons are extremely difficult. Not only do you have to put up with an increased rate of attacks from strong monsters, but also there are often traps strewn about. Many times you'll open a treasure chest to find an enemy inside or you'll be walking around the dungeon only to fall through a trap door. While not impossible to play, I do suggest making use of a strategy guide if you need help. I'm not one to use such devices too often, but I made an exception numerous times with this game. You may be wise to do so as well.

The quest of Dragon Warrior III is massive. It will take you a long time to travel the world and conquer Lord Baramos. Luckily the world is filled with exciting quests, plenty of mini-games, and a true sense of adventure. Dragon Warrior III represents the golden age of RPGs where the quality of the game was based upon the quests and not two minute long cinemas. In many ways this game reminds me of the first Final Fantasy on the NES and I think those of you that enjoyed that game will surely enjoy this one. I had a blast playing through Dragon Warrior III again. It's a great portable game that allows you to save your quest anywhere you like. It's easily the best RPG on the system and one that shouldn't be missed by any RPG fan. Enix has struck gold again and I hope that players really take notice.