Dragon Quest IX: Guardians of the Starry Sky Announced
December 12, 2006
Today Square-Enix announced that Dragon Quest IX: Hoshizora no Mamoribito (translated means Guardians of the Starry Sky) exclusively for the Nintendo DS. Yes, you read that right–for the first time in the history of the Dragon Quest franchise, a new title will appear on a handheld first. While many had rumored Square-Enix to announce Dragon Quest IX today, most felt like the title would appear on the Nintendo Wii instead.
Utilizing the unique features of the Nintendo DS, Dragon Quest IX: Guardians of the Starry Sky will offer 4 player support over the built in Wi-Fi connection. The upper screen will show dungeon maps and the bottom screen is where all of the gameplay will take place.
DQ9 will feature gameplay that is more like an Action RPG than the traditional Dragon Quest game. This may disappoint some fans but I have full faith in Producer Yuji Horii and his team. The primary Development responsibilities will be headed up by Level 5. No Wii version of any other version is planned. So if you are a Dragon Quest fan, you need to look to purchase a Nintendo DS when this title comes out in late 2007. No word on when the title will appear outside of the Japanese market.
One final thought is since Dragon Quest has been exclusive to Sony since Dragon Quest VII, will the franchise now appearing exclusively on a Nintendo platform hurt Sony? We will have to wait and see how this impacts the industry and what other franchises change primary platforms. We will have more information on Dragon Quest IX when it is made available.
Dragon Quest IX: Guardians of the Starry Sky
Developer: Level 5
Publisher: Square-Enix
1 to 4 Player Game
Genre: Action/RPG
Release Date: Late Q4 2007
Platform: Nintendo DS
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