I'd pin Dragon Quest II as even harder than the first. At least in DQ1, you can eventually out-level the opposition (or try your luck and just run straight to the Dragonlord at 17, huhuhuh).
But the entire endgame of DQ2 will render your levels and equipment almost meaningless, with many monsters casting instant death spells, damaging spells that will take off huge chunks of your HP, and all sorts of general nastiness. This was improved somewhat in the remakes, but it's still a hell of a ride.