uses the sequenced music from the Japanese PS2 version. Reception Released for the PlayStation 2 on November 27, 2004, in Japan, Dragon Quest VIII sold 2,167,072 units in two days, in three days, and more than within a week, becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation 2 title in Japan. By September 2008, total worldwide shipments of Dragon Quest VIII surpassed 4.9 million copies, of which over 430,000 were from the North American release. Dragon Quest VIII is the biggest selling game ever for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. It was the first Dragon Quest game to receive a score of 39 out of 40 from Famitsu. It won both 1UP.coms and GameSpy's "Best RPG of E3 2005" award, ahead of runner-up Kingdom Hearts II. The iOS version became the 2nd top-seller of Japan AppStore in the debut half day, highlighting the influence of the series. In 2017, the 3DS version was nominated for "Handheld/Mobile Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards, and for "Best Portable Game" at Destructoids Game of the Year Awards 2017. It was also nominated for "Handheld Game of the Year" at the 21st Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. In 2023, Time Extension included the game on their "Best JRPGs of All Time" list. The US release of Dragon Quest VIII received mostly positive reviews, receiving a score of 89 out of 100 on Metacritic. Critics were quick to praise the 3D cel shaded visuals, noting that it was the first game in the series to be fully three-dimensional. A staple of the Dragon Quest series is the simplicity of its gameplay, a factor which has been criticized in the past. However, several critics pointed out that the simple gameplay works for Dragon Quest VIII. Bethany Massimilla of GameSpot wrote that the lack of "dozens of characters of all types" allows the game to remain simple, letting the player become very familiar with the main characters. Edge magazine, however, commented that the game's substance seemed out of place for 2005. A majority of reviewers cited the English localization of the game as one of its best qualities. Nich Maragos of 1UP.com praised the game's British tinted localization, saying how the humor is often successful except for "a few puns that will, on occasion, make you want to die." Parkin described the voice acting as "a mash up of Monty Python and The Princess Bride: fantasy farce driving the cute