It's a shame that so many "professional" reviewers completely missed the point of this game, although it's kind of understandable since roguelikes are a pretty niche-y genre. If you have some patience and enjoy a challenge, Shiren is easily one of the most enjoyable games you'll find on the DS. Give it a chance before it's out of print - you probably won't be disappointed.

Don't let the reviews fool you. This is an awesome adventure game for casual and hardcore gamers alike. For those of you unfamiliar with the 1983 game Rogue, here is the link on some information about the original: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogue_%28computer_game%29 Anyway, as a young nerd, I found this game ridiculously addictive (although primitive) because of it's random item/monster/dungeon mechanics. It was a different adventure EVERYTIME! It was perfect for the A.D.D gamer in me! Although there was an actual goal to the adventure, I found myself playing just to try and accumulate as much gold as I could for a high score! Mystery Dungeon offers the same classic mechanics in a wonderfully dressed up adventure game. It's hard, it's addictive, but most of all, it's FUN! Lots of replay so you don't have to trade it in to gamestop in a week. I've played izuna and although that is fun, Mystery Dungeon is the closest to the classic Rogue experience from the 80's. Hardcore RPG fans are going to need to adjust to the type of game Mystery Dungeon is, and while there isn't a huge final fantasy 5000 dramatic story, there's a lot of hacking and leveling up to do! PICK THIS UP.… Expand

This is an excellent roguelike game. Most elements have been simplified (compared to classic roguelikes) but there are still tons of monsters, items, spells, NPCs, towns, and plenty to keep an RPG fan happy. Reviews of this game will probably be wildly different, as it is quite hard, and you are likely to be eaten by a grue. Fans of nethack and angband will be delighted to have this in their pocket, and I suspect many newer gamers will learn what they've been missing. Others will be discouraged after they are killed twice, and walk away. If you want an easier experience, I would suggest the excellent pokemon games for the DS. Shiren is unforgiving, and therefore extremely rewarding. To surmise: Madden08 doesn't have an AK-47, because that's not what madden does. Roguelikes aren't easy, because that's not what they do, either. :)… Expand

This game is the most satisfying game I have ever played. This game is all about tactics and strategy will snappy game play. Its like diablo but deeper and not about whacking creatures. this game is where the real life XP counts and not just in game XP. I've been playing Nethack for about 9 years, Shiren is the only game that is at par with it. No wonder the japanese have a fascination for roguelike games on consoles....its all because of Shiren. If I could get all the versions of this game, (Wii, N64, DS, SNES, etc.) This is the game that you will play over and over, and will definitely come back to after getting sick of the latest game in the market. Game play rules them all!!!… Expand

This is simply the best rogue-like game ever made. I've spent over 20 hours and haven't gotten past the 3 Trials area of the game (about dungeon level 20). Yes, you die, but you learn from your deaths and the NPCs grow and change over time - so the game is constantly changing.