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Character customization and more in Dragon Quest IX
I've you've been passing the days wondering just what your main man (or chick) in Dragon Quest IX will look like, well, uh, keep wondering. Unless you already have an image fixed in your mind, we can't help you. But we can point you to Famitsu, where they have a pretty extensive look at the character customization in the latest from the long-running franchise. Bald? No problem. Pigtails? Done. Crazy, coked-up eyeballs? Hey, it's your game. We're just pointing you to the screenshots. You've gotta wonder if you're stuck with some of these crazier expressions throughout the game. Angry smirking face is less funny in a sad moment. Or is it funnier? That's up to you, too.
First look at Dragon Quest IX's Wi-Fi mode
Game Watch has a dozen new Dragon Quest IX screens, all of which are now ensconced in our gallery. Besides revealing the obvious (the obvious being: Dragon Quest IX is totally beautiful), they include the first glimpse of the Wi-Fi cooperative multiplayer in action (right). It seems to work logically enough: players take turns to issue commands, with each human participant's choices marked out with color-coded symbols, so you can tell what your allies intend to do, and curse loudly when your mage friend neglects to save you with an antidotal herb and decides to attack instead. Another nice touch is the way your on-screen character's appearance changes as you load him up with equipment and accessories. Just imagining you're wearing all that alchemical bling is soooo 2004. %Gallery-15248%
DQIX dated for March release in Japan
We're narrowing in on the release date for Square Enix's upcoming DS RPG, Dragon Quest IX. The company announced today that Japanese gamers can expect to get their hands on the game in March of next year. As for an exact date, they weren't willing to divulge that information at this time. So who's dying to get their hands on this? %Gallery-15248%
Dragon Quest IX coming March 2009 in Japan
After almost two years of waiting, Square Enix has dated Dragon Quest IX. Sort of. Staying true to its previous promise of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009, the company plans to launch the game in Japan sometime next March (Protip: If you don't know Japanese, just keep an eye out for 2009?). No international release has been set, but we're willing to bet the game will see a US release before the impending 2012 apocalypse. Square Enix is hosting a 90-minute Dragon Quest session each day at this month's Tokyo Game Show. [Via Siliconera]
Dragon Quest IX plans shrouded in mystery
It's one of the DS-related mysteries that keeps us up at night: what is the dealio with Dragon Quest IX? Square Enix claimed the game was "almost finished" back on February 1st, developer Level 5 has long been targeting a 2008 release, and the game's official page still has the title down for a launch this year. Despite this, Spencer at Siliconera points out that there has been no recent press coverage of the game, never mind a concrete release date from Square Enix, who plan to make an unholy amount of wonga from the game. Maybe we'll find out more at the Tokyo Game Show next month, though just to confuse matters further, the game won't be playable there. It's all very bizarre. Source: Dragon Quest IX might make 2008 ... Source: ... but it won't be playable at TGS.
Square Enix not lacking confidence in Dragon Quest IX
Is Dragon Quest IX really "almost done"? And does it even matter? We're not so sure, because Square Enix still isn't budging on a release date for the game. Company President Yoichi Wada announced at Square Enix's recent earnings briefing that the game will be released at some point in the current fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2009. Are we about to see that hopeful 2008 release date cruelly taken away from us? How much longer will we be writing paragraphs consisting almost exclusively of questions? However long we wait, Square Enix is confident of one thing: Dragon Quest IX is going to sell like cakes of the exceedingly hot variety. "With the DS, 10 million units is a possibility," proclaimed Wada to a bunch of no doubt beatific investors. He's presumably talking about global sales rather than Japan-only figures, but even so, isn't that a touch optimistic? We think it is, anyway -- as it stands, no game published by a third-party has come even close to the magical eight digit mark.
DS Daily: Such a Square (Enix)
There's a lot of potential Square Enix on the horizon. Between The World Ends with You, Final Fantasy remakes, Dragon Quest remakes, new Dragon Quests, Border of Madness, Final Fantasy Tactis A2, and Crystal Chronicles, that's quite a lot of DS love. Oh, and let's not forget Kingdom Hearts. So, are you a Square Enix fan? If so, what game are you most hoping for or looking forward to? See also: 2008's Biggest Blips -- Final Fantasy IV -- The World Ends with You -- Final Fantasy Tactics A2
Dragon Quest IX almost done?
According to an interview with Square Enix president Yoichi Wada, Japan could be playing Dragon Quest IX as soon as (whenever Square Enix decides to release it.) He told Bloomberg Japan that the game is almost finished, and that they are currently in the process of tuning whatever kind of wireless functionality and insuring the "important" balance between multiplayer and single-player. So, basically, they're in the final stages of creating the game. This doesn't necessarily mean that the game will be released anytime soon -- we'd expect fall at the earliest. This is going to be the cornerstone of Square Enix's 2008 lineup, so it's going to be a holiday release in whichever year it comes out. We're just glad to hear it hasn't been cancelled or moved to another console (though the DS wasn't mentioned, we're pretty sure that would slow development.) [Via NeoGAF]
Dragon Quest IX still exists
We haven't heard much about Dragon Quest IX for a while. Most of the news coming out about the franchise in the last month or so has been focused on the Dragon Quest IV remake, instead of, you know, the new one. These screens are evidence that the game is still being made and still exists, and that non-remake games are still possible these days. Impressively, the more we see of it, the more Dragon Quest IX looks like Level-5's PS2 Dragon Quest VIII. Going full-3D like this is a bold move. Not as bold as making it an action RPG, which didn't end up happening, but still plenty bold for a series that is built on rigid tradition.
Dragon Quest IV and others playable at TGS
It's nice to see that even though Nintendo won't have a booth at the Tokyo Game Show this year, our favorite handheld will still be properly represented at the convention by companies like Square Enix (Sanuk Software, too!).Square Enix has announced its sequels, remakes, spin-offs, and casual titles the company plans to present at the event, most notable on the list -- at least for us -- being a playable Dragon Quest IV. Dragon Quest IX, recently pushed back for a 2008 release, will only show up in video form. Check past the post break for Square Enix's full list of DS RPGs and Style Games for TGS.
Dragon Quest IX delayed until 2008
Dragon Quest IX, the textbook definition of "surefire sales phenomenon" (we hear sociologists are still studying its effects on modern civilizations), has been pushed back from its 2007 Japanese release until sometime next year, according to IGN.Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada had previously said that Dragon Quest IX would be released after some remakes, later revealed to be DQIV, V and VI. Given that, and the general lack of information of the title thus far, we're not too surprised by the delay. DQIX was not going to make a 2007 release outside of Japan anyways, but we're still hoping to see it come to North America and PAL regions before 2009.[Via DS Fanboy]
DQIX gets pushed back to 2008
Those of you who've been eagerly awaiting Square Enix's latest title on the DS will have to wait extra long, as the company has announced that Dragon Quest IX has been delayed until 2008. The reason for delaying the game? Square Enix apparently needs to improve the quality of the game, but we're going on machine translation, so it isn't the best. Who will be joining us for a cry session in the corner?
Dragon Quest IX ditches the Wi-Fi Connect?
Apparently, a couple of scans from the latest Famitsu over at Jeux-France showcase new screens for the upcoming Square Enix romp Dragon Quest IX., but portray the omission of a very important game feature: Wi-Fi Connect compatibility. Well, perhaps that's a bit of an overstatement, as the article apparently does say that Wi-Fi will be used "for something else" aside from what we would normally expect it to include (co-op gameplay, versus multiplayer etc.). That isn't to say this is all set in stone, though. The page has been translated by an individual (registration required) over at The Platformers, so we're mainly going on their translation (darn our inability to read Japanese!). [Via The Platformers]
Etrian Odyssey is 'the last great turn-based RPG'
Etrian Odyssey director Kazuya Niinou has been posting fascinating, and disarmingly honest, blog entries on the game's official website. The fourth page was just posted, and contains a rather bold statement: "So I've decided! Etrian Odyssey will be the last great turn-based RPG." This was a reaction to the rumors of Dragon Quest IX going action-RPG-- rumors that turned out not to be true. While we admire Niinou for his confidence that his game is good enough to exemplify a genre (confidence that increases our frothing demand for the game significantly), we're afraid Etrian Odyssey is going to continue to face stiff competition from Dragon Quest. And we doubt that any number of awesome blog posts will put down that particular cultural phenomenon.
Yet another 'games to watch' list
We can only guess that it wasn't enough for the DS to steamroll everything and everyone in 2006. Nintendo wants to own 2007, as well. Not that we're complaining; after all, we are total slaves to our beloved handheld. But it just seems altogether crazy that there could be so many lists predicting great games in the coming year, and that the lists could vary so much. No matter your pleasure, 2007 is bound to be packed with more DS games than you can possibly afford. And in celebration of our future indecision, IGN has offered a list celebrating ten of the best coming games for the year. We've included the full IGN list after the jump, and we'd love to hear how it compares to some of the other lists you've seen since the end of last year, because there's been a ton. We've even dipped a toe into the list-making process ourselves.
