Though the exact word used by the Financial Times article is "over-engineered," a word we deemed too complex for today's headline. Yoichi Wada, chief executive of Square Enix, feels that consoles such as the PS3 and 360 are over-engineered and out of place in today's gaming market, noting that handheld platforms will be the ones to dominate this year. After handing Dragon Quest IX (and thus the keys to Japan) to the Nintendo DS and inundating the PSP with remakes, Wada's belief should come as no surprise.

"There is a new breed of gamers in the market – we have to make games for all kinds of people," he says. "In the old days, we could just focus on the PlayStation or the GameBoy, but the environment has changed completely." It's the same story we've been hearing for months, that one filled with flailing grandmas and casual players shouting "Blue!" at the top of their lungs. Wada isn't giving up on the hardcore gamer just yet, though. Despite thinking that "there are too many specs" on the more advanced systems, he reckons they'll fare better in "a year or two years." Isn't that about the time Final Fantasy XIII comes out?

Contrary to previous rumblings, the upcoming Dragon Quest IX for DS will not abandon its turn-based roots for a more action-oriented system. According to the latest issue of Japanese magazine Weekly Shonen Jump, enemies will be visible on screen and contact will commence battle, where you will input commands in a turn-based style classic in Dragon Quest titles. A similar system will also be implemented for the multiplayer.

Also revealed is the ability to visually customize your main character. Weight, height, face, hair and clothing will all be adjustable. Will this affect the protagonist's immersion into the storyline? According to the translation by 1Up, Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Sky will be shown at a Square Enix party May 12 along with nearly a dozen (seriously) Final Fantasy titles.

[Via DS Fanboy]

Today's most-watched YouTube video shows a Japanese-language financial news report on Dragon Quest IX coming out only for the DS. (Many YouTubers have Dragon Quest fever; several top videos are about the game.) Gamers and industry watchers were expecting the Square Enix property to be announced for the PS3, so the news surprised many. And the one-minute video includes a pull-back-the-curtain shot -- the best part of any announcement.

See the video after the break.

The strange and somewhat pathetic sobbing you hear in the background originates from the offices of Microsoft and Sony, where once diligent executives have now completely broken down and given up on much of their lives. Square Enix just handed Nintendo the keys to the Death Star. As if the DS wasn't already an unrelenting steamroller in terms of sales and popularity, it was announced today that Dragon Quest IX would be released exclusively on the most touchy-feely of portable systems.

In the unlikely event that you've been stuck in some sort of spatial anomaly (like Disneyland) for the last few years, it's important to remind you that the Dragon Quest franchise is one of the most popular properties ever in the minds of Japanese gamers. It was widely expected that the next instalment in the franchise would move to the PS3, an expectation that has now been crushed beneath Satoru Iwata's diamond-encrusted boot. Expect more news on the title as the week continues -- for now, all we know is: it's being developed by Level 5, it supports multiplayer battles and the subtitle is something along the lines of "Protector of the Starry Sky."

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]