dragon quest is so good man.
I even enjoyed the ridiculous difficulty spike at the end!!
There's a definite lull after the opening chapter where things get aimless for a while but this game still oozes charm and even at its most haphazard I enjoyed the basic flow of combat and exploration enough to have a thoroughly enjoyable time.
I have many thoughts but I'm working on an essay about the whole trilogy so I'll save them for that. I love Dragon Quest!!!!