Bar none, the best RPG on the NES and the best game of the NES Dragon Quest quintology. Whereas I could point out at least one flaw with the previous Dragon Quest games (even if each one was better than the previous entry), I can confidently say that DQ4 is the only one where anything I'd criticize would be a nitpick.

Being able to select and customize between 8 of the game's predetermined characters at any moment massively expands your inventory space, while still alotting a good degree of party customization to find the setup that works best for you.

The balance is perfect. The game makes sure to introduce each character to you one by one, demonstrating their strengths and weaknesses, but once it gets to chapter 5, the real game begins. The party members you just got to know over the first several hours of the game are now collectibles for you to acquire. Once you have them all, experimentation is encouraged, and the game can be tackled in many ways.

The only downside I could think of is the weak storyline. Even so, I came to understand that story is not what Dragon Quest is about, at least, not to my understanding. It's about the feeling of adventure, and this game nails that perfectly.

Nothing beats the feeling of defeating your first Metal Slime King.