Similar to Donkey Kong 64, this was a game that was also stuck in my backlog for a very long time. I don't remember exactly when I got Quest 64 but I remember starting it around 2012-2013-ish which was not too long after my initial unfinished DK64 playthrough. Similar to that game, I had around 2 unfinished playthroughs before I decided I would put an end to the journey through it once and for all years later. Despite what a lot of players and critics think, I find Quest 64 to be a guilty pleasure of mine.

Quest 64 is the textbook definition of basic. Most of the areas you explore look basic, the NPCs are generic, the fact you only have 4 elements to cast spells from, the story (or what little there actually is of it), and even the MC's name are all so plain and average it would put most people to sleep. However, I'm an average person with a sometimes below-average taste in video games so it isn't too surprising I would enjoy it. Mini rant aside, its simplicity is also one of Quest's greatest qualities.

Before I get deeper into the game, the first thing I'd like to mention is how pretty the graphics look for its time. It's classic N64 eye-candy and played a big role in my curiosity in trying this game out. Quest 64 has 4 types of spells, water, rock, fire, and wind. Each of them have attacks that are of those 4 elements, but some additional perks like being able to heal or weaken your enemies' defenses are linked to leveling up certain elements. It isn't much, but having more doesn't always equate to being better. There are two ways to level up your spells, the first way is to do it the regular way by fighting enemies and watching your spirit/exp build up and the second is by searching for spirits scattered all around the game's towns and overworld. Collecting spirits is a clever way of leveling up as it not only benefits you for going slightly out of your way but also heavily reduces the need to grind. You also gain more MP by using spells and HP by either using your staff to attack or by taking damage. Since you will be doing that by simply playing the game, you won't have trouble building those stats and should have more than enough HP & MP by the time you reach the endgame. Quest 64 is pretty short for an RPG. It only took me about 8-10 hours long and it doesn't overstay its welcome for very long. Even though I appreciate a lot of what Quest 64 does, it still has some obvious problems.

The spells are not well-balanced at all. Besides leveling up wind for the first boss, it & fire become pretty much irrelevant for the rest of the game. A lot of RPGs have broken spells and abilities but for a game as simplistic as Quest 64, they definitely could have found a way to make each element useful. The characters have virtually no personality. It may not have the most complex story or anything, but I wish that the MC, his dad, and the villains had at least SOME personality and more information about them. The overworld and dungeons also could have included more details that could indicate where you are or/and also add a little more variety to them. I couldn't count how many times I got lost despite its linearity. This was a problem that greatly contributed to why it took me so long to beat the game.

It's certainly no Final Fantasy killer but Quest isn't as bad as people say it is and it had the potential to become a good franchise had the sequel have gotten released. For those who are new to RPGs or just want something that isn't very complex, Quest 64 isn't as terrible of a choice as one may be led to believe.