RIZ-ZOAWD

RIZ-ZOAWD is a simple and difficult but fun game.
First off, the graphics are amazing. They are the best I've seen on DS so far.
Second, battle is simple, yes, in the style of Dragon Quest, with only attack, guard, use items and simple magic commands. It works without you needing to know Japanese. Other than that, enemies have different weaknesses, each of which is one of the four elements that each of the four characters possess. You can switch out characters on the fly during battle but you can only have 4 points used in your lineup. Dorothy and the Scarecrow each take up one, while the Lion takes 2 and the Tin Man takes 3. Of course, you can spend more than one point on each if the points add up, they just get one more action in a round for each extra amount spend.
Third, gameplay is pretty interesting and extremely out of the ordinary for an RPG. There's the hub world, the Wizard's castle, where you can replenish HP and MP, save and buy items you may need (shopping is a bit difficult without knowing Japanese xD). Then there are different levels you go to throughout the different seasons but they're played through with a speedy Dorothy, controlled by a track ball on the touch screen, and consist of paths that involve many risk and reward opportunities. Paths are incredibly directing, yes, but if you go down the wrong path, you sacrifice that much more of your life in battles, maybe only to find a single 50 HP potion or possibly something better. The lack of a need to buy equipment for any of the characters makes you able to spend more on potions (they only cost 1 coin) but coins are scarce and you'll often get a max of 10-15 on a level.
Another part of it that is different from standard RPGs is that each level is called a stage, where you just have to reach the end point alive, and at the end you see all your statistics for that stage, unlock the next stage and get sent back to the Wizard to heal.
Usually a stage will take 2 or 3 tries before i survive all the way through. But not to worry, any party member that dies in battle gets brought back with 1 HP after the battle, and if all party members die, you get sent back to the Wizard with all items and EXP intact, each with 1 HP...but you're at the Wizard, so you can heal anyways. However, you've also lost all progress on the stage and have to make another run through. I guess the stages could be looked at as dungeons that you travel to via World Map.

Overall, I enjoy RIZ-ZOAWD and will definitely buy and play through it again if it gets an NA release. I want to know what's going on story-wise. Yes, it's a little more difficult than the cutesy look makes it seem and no, it is not an entry level RPG, but hey, if you're importing an RPG.
;)