Dragon Quest IX sells 2.3 million copies in two days
by JC Fletcher 
{ Jul 13th 2009 at 10:30AM } 
Enterbrain reports that the game sold 2,343,440 copies in its first week -- its "first week" actually being two days. Media Create reports a similar total of 2,318,932 copies. This beats the first-week record set by ... Dragon Quest VIII, of course! Media Create reports a sell-through rate of 81.56%, suggesting (according to Andriasang) that it probably sold out in some locations.
There's something very comforting about reading stories of massive Dragon Quest sales in Japan. It's a reminder that some things in the gaming world are just like we remember them, even after decades. After the break, you can watch the game's intro movie as you begin the long wait for localization.
[Image via GAME Watch, video via Gemaga]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
acefondu @ Jul 13th 2009 10:34AM
Good gravy they love their Dragon Quest games! I like them...but not THAT much. There's just too much grinding for not enough story in those games for me.
Cody @ Jul 13th 2009 10:54AM
Between this and Monster Hunter 3, Nintendo will be doing A-OK.
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 10:36AM
Similar numbers to Halo 3, GTA4 and SSBB... that's very impressive...
dark_inchworm (on Steam!) dark inchworm (on XBL!) @ Jul 13th 2009 10:38AM
Makes me wonder just how big the eventual Starcraft II launch will be in South Korea...
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 10:40AM
Yeah... The Pirate Bay is going to crash a lot that day...
=p
Rob @ Jul 13th 2009 10:44AM
Too bad Pirate Bay went legit, and is now owned by some company who is making it like what Napster is now.
Victor @ Jul 13th 2009 10:46AM
The Pirate Bay? The world is going to crash when Starcraft II comes out!
Mr Khan @ Jul 13th 2009 11:51AM
by the time starcraft II comes out at this rate, we'll be able to directly download it into our brains...
sony boy @ Jul 13th 2009 12:34PM
i must be like the only korean who hates blizzard games. no offense.
keroro645 @ Jul 13th 2009 10:42AM
Those people look too young to be fighting monsters. They look like kids to me.
sam @ Jul 13th 2009 10:55AM
What? But that guy's got a (slightly crumpled) business shirt and smart trousers and everything, pretty sure he's an adult... In fact I don't see a single kid in that queue.
:)
I am amused that the previous record was also held by the last DQ game. Predictable = entertaining.
gordo @ Jul 13th 2009 11:08AM
Tell me about it, blurry heads look soooo immature.
George McBain @ Jul 13th 2009 11:25AM
I believe he is talking about the characters IN the game
sam @ Jul 13th 2009 12:42PM
@george: yes he was... but that content was so pathetic (and teeth-grindingly predictable) that it was more interesting to answer it the other way.
Meh @ Jul 13th 2009 1:06PM
NO SHIT sHERLOCK
WINterfang @ Jul 13th 2009 10:45AM
Great news.
Storm Eagle::The Blood Edge @ Jul 13th 2009 10:46AM
So what I got from the opening scene of the game is that you fight a dragon and then go to a local watering hole to enjoy several steins of mead while girls spin in circles. The end?
Hydrophobicfish @ Jul 13th 2009 10:47AM
Game of the Year material for me.
Skips all the boring parts, gets right to the wam bam thank you ma'am.
koehler83 @ Jul 13th 2009 10:53AM
Every time I see pictures of people lining up for video games, I just have to shake my head and hope for a better tomorrow.
Storm Eagle::The Blood Edge @ Jul 13th 2009 10:58AM
Don't worry. The line has a security check point where it must be confirmed that you are unable to a)produce sperm or b)carry child for protection of the human race.
XBL: Burritoclock PSN:Herbie Hat @ Jul 13th 2009 12:18PM
I see what you're saying, but are you also saddened by people in line at theaters, or lines for CD releases, or the moroons that line up to get the latest iphone/pod, or any number of a thousand different things?
koehler83 @ Jul 13th 2009 12:56PM
If the lines are outside the building, then yes.
JPN @ Jul 13th 2009 1:13PM
Every time I see you post a comment to an article on a blog about video games, I just have to shake my head and hope for a better tomorrow.
Danny @ Jul 13th 2009 4:47PM
The Japanese just like queueing.
When the macdonalds quarter pounder came out a couple of months ago there was a queue 100's of people long. Same for Burger Kings debut. Apparently that getting to the front feeling is worth it.
aj @ Jul 13th 2009 7:19PM
Canadians like to queue as well. I've seen people stand in a straight line for no reason at all, outside, during blizzards.
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 10:54AM
I heart Dragon Quest theme... =p
WINterfang @ Jul 13th 2009 11:01AM
The dead walk among us.
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 11:01AM
I don't know which version I prefer... the original 8-bit one or the orchested one... anyway, both are awesome!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__BiCY6tyZc
PS. Is orchested a word?
=p
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 11:03AM
WINterfang
Huh?
Jacksons @ Jul 13th 2009 11:15AM
Orchested, orchestrated, close enough for the internets.
WINterfang @ Jul 13th 2009 12:51PM
I meant, I haven't see you in months.
jekoln @ Jul 13th 2009 10:56AM
i watched the trailer and thought this was for the ps3, then i saw that it was for the ds, and now i have no idea what it would actually look like.
Lucanso @ Jul 13th 2009 11:20AM
This is a preemptive apology for the offense this question may cause, I'm sorry;
What rock have you been living under that you didn't know that DQ IX was for DS?!
jekoln @ Jul 13th 2009 12:15PM
the rock that usually skips over dragon quest posts.
Lucanso @ Jul 13th 2009 12:26PM
OK OK OK haha I accept that ;)
Adv2k1 @ Jul 13th 2009 10:59AM
This isn't much of a surprise .
Now Wii Sports Resort is a surprise, since it hasn't sold millions like it was expected. I guess it's a slow burn like Wii Fit and Will sell out over months and months and Dragon Quest will probably get all the sales in first month.
Mr Khan @ Jul 13th 2009 11:55AM
1/3rd of a million opening week is far above average for Japan, considering that the top-selling title for the year before that (Mario and Luigi 3) had only sold 2/3 of a million all year
This is far and away the exception. Your GTA, your Halo, etc.
Jacksons @ Jul 13th 2009 11:10AM
Grind away guys, grind away.
MattyG @ Jul 13th 2009 11:13AM
blurryhead army invades!
MRLN @ Jul 13th 2009 11:22AM
Is this 2.3 million PLUS the 2 million pre-orders?
sam @ Jul 13th 2009 12:45PM
No, those are included (the 2 million count was pre-orders from retailers, presumably on behalf of customers who they have now sold the game to).
tmacairjordan87 @ Jul 13th 2009 11:50AM
Siiigh, never change Japan. Never change.
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 11:51AM
Is it a bad thing that Dragon Quest sold this much?
tmacairjordan87 @ Jul 13th 2009 11:53AM
Depends on your viewpoint. If you're ok with Japan liking the same games and making the same games they have for a decade and a half now, then I guess it's a good thing. But if you're like me, and you're waiting for them to stop ramming their head into the wall and changing so they can compete with the west again, then this is a bad thing.
Mr Khan @ Jul 13th 2009 11:59AM
It's merely a question of divergent tastes. Western devs are going back to their PC-centric roots, which is fine for them, but not for Japan, and clearly not for the mass market either (and i certainly wouldn't like to see their brand of gaming overtake everything else), but the question of competition is perhaps the wrong way to look at it
I sure as hell don't want to see the Japanese devs try and clone the westerners. It never winds up well. When they do their own thing, it comes off better, and gives us more variety
Fernando Rocker @ Jul 13th 2009 12:01PM
Are you aware that the same thing happens here in USA?
The hyped games here are shooters (first and third person) just like in Japan are the RPGs, with very few exceptions (just like Japan also has few exceptions)...
And also, are you aware that most of the big sellers, best reviewed games in USA are also sequels? You have God of War 3, Uncharted 2, a new Ratchet, Gran Turismo 5, and a new one, Heavy Rain, as the upcoming PS3 line-up...
And you complain about them not trying different things, but as soon as someone wants to create a unique game (several DS and Wii titles, Natal, etc...) you bash them because they don't use traditional gameplay.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jul 13th 2009 12:04PM
And I'm also aware that all of the innovation and new IPs (well..good ones) come from the west. Japan's still making the same jrpgs they have since the ps1 era, while we got Mass Effect, Fallout 3 (different enough and long enough away from 1 and 2 to be a whole new game pretty much). Sony's made a bunch of new IP's this gen, and just about all of the top rated games are from the west.
What's the next big game from Japan? FF-13. Never change Japan.
Zerokku @ Jul 13th 2009 12:36PM
@ tmacairjordan87
To be fair to Dragon Quest, it's one of those games that fans like me don't want to change, atleast not to much. Especially since an old-school RPG like this is actually so uncommon anymore.Think of DQ as a sort of "comfort food" jrpg for a lot us big rpg fans. We all go on about the disappointment at the monotony within FF and other JRPGs, and it's true. Despite how much I love FF, you can often see me bitching about ridiculous melodrama and the like that's so common in JRPGs.
But I can go and play DQ and have a fun and charming world with no pretenses, just good, clean, fun. It's not the typical JRPG (at least not by todays standards) and thats the best part. I don't have to deal with overly dramatic and pretentious plots, or an overly convoluted story that makes less sense the more you play it. DQ is all about the charming and imaginative world, and it should stay that way. I don't need any angsty beltandzipper types in one of the only refuges I have left when it comes to rpg gaming.
Some things shouldn't try and change too much, and DQ is one of them. But that's my opinion and I'm probably in the minority.
LokeSTL @ Jul 13th 2009 12:52PM
I would rather the US give up shooters and start competing with the Japan market. I don't think I'll ever get tired of saving the world while facing impossible odds. I do, however, realize that I am in the minority. :(
XBL: Burritoclock PSN:Herbie Hat @ Jul 13th 2009 1:03PM
You save the world in shooters too. You should say "I'll (n)ever get tired of saving the world while facing impossible odds by person X selecting an attack and pressing X again!"
Alright, I apologize in advance to the jRPG lovers, to each his own, seriously.