A slime approaches, and by slime we of course mean the DS remake of 1990 Famicom classic Dragon Quest IV. A NeoGAF poster has found that Square Enix has quietly launched the official teaser site for Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen, listing the still unannounced localization for release stateside on September 16.
Even more interesting, the site also shows off logos for upcoming remakesDragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride and Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Reverie as well, though sans release dates, all but assuring that North American role-playing enthusiasts will be neck-deep in metal slimes for the foreseeable future.
And be sure to have your brain thank us for the last-minute headline edit which saw the removal "unshwiithed." It's best we use a concise sentence to inform you that Dragon Quest Swords is, in fact, a Wii game due for release in North America on February 26th, 2008. Oh, and there's a subtitle too: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors. Where most games would settle for just a masked queen or a tower of mirrors, Square Enix goes the extra mile and gives you both for the price of one game. Watch out, Orange Box!
As for the game itself, the press release dutifully reminds us that it's essentially a foray into first-person fencing, placing "a mighty blade, protective shield and special attacks all in the palm of your hand." We're not sure how much of a chance you stand with such teeny tiny weaponry, but hardened Dragon Quest fans should do alright.
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.
If you've got any marrow or plasma to spare, you'd better go get it sucked out now because at midnight tonight, Square Enix opens the online merchandise store to the United States. The online store has been available to Japanese consumers for quite some time now, offering everything from Dragon Quest stationary to replica Gunblades from Final Fantasy VIII.
The US store will have a modest opening, sticking mostly to figurines. A full list and descriptions of featured items are available after the break.
New scans from Japanese gaming magazine Jump show that the Nintendo DS will be receiving three Dragon Quest remakes -- IV, V and VI -- each as separate titles. The scans can be found on the NeoGAF forums; according to a translation from IGN, the first game (DQIV) is expected to be released in Japan this winter.
The scans show that the games will be receiving a graphical upgrade from their original form. While these games are only going to further cement the DS's dominance in Japan, the RPG trio is not guaranteed for release in other regions; of the three, only DQIV has ever received an official launch elsewhere.
A word to Square Enix: you're running out of games to remake.
The latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly's Quartermann rumor mill is coming with a fresh set of rumors to peruse. The juiciest hearsay is that Capcom's Bionic Commando, once rumored to be getting the remake treatment, is now being developed as a full-fledged installment for the PlayStation Network.
Dark Cloud developer Level 5, whose current PlayStation 3 project White Knight Story has been outside of the limelight since wowing us with footage from last year's Tokyo Game Show, is rumored to be announcing four new RPGs at this year's TGS in September. And they're not necessarily PS3 games, either.
Also mentioned? Incoming Dragon Quest remakes, but this isn't exactly a rumor since we heard Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada explicitly say remakes were coming before Dragon Quest IX. The Quartermann does add some details, however, reporting that the first remake will be Dragon Quest IV for the DS.
The Wii exclusive Dragon Quest Swords was released in Japan this week and GameVideos has begun to slash and waggle their way through the first Square-Enix title for Nintendo's console. It's come a long way since its original debut and is looking quite nice by any standards. A knack for pleasant art will do that for you.
Using the Wii remote as a sword and a shield, Swords appears to play like an intensely updated Crossed Swords -- a true, unsung classic of the Neo-Geo. IGN was the last outlet to go in-depth with the title, should you wish to learn more.
A Dragon Quest fan who goes by the handle XB-LIM has done what every retro RPG gamer would have killed for two decades ago: mapped the first four Dragon Quest games in the style of Google Maps. They're zoomable, they're scrollable, and one of them even has bubble annotations (in Japanese). Kind of takes the fun out of wandering around and exploring, which is half the entertainment value of classic RPGs. Fighting hundreds of random battles to gain a few levels so you can actually make the trek to the first town is the other half.
What do you do with a shrunken E3 floor space? Only have playable portable games, of course! Square Enix has unveiled its lineup for this week's E3 2007 summit. Of the seven, we're looking at three Final Fantasies, two Dragon Quests, and an innumerable amount of androgynous protagonists. Release dates were also revealed for most of the titles (Dragon Quest Wii notwithstanding). The playable titles include:
Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker (DS; November 6)
Heroes of Mana (DS; August 14)
Final Fantasy II (PSP; July 24)
Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions (PSP; October 9)
Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings (DS; November 20)
Front Mission (DS; October 23)
Additionally, the following titles will be shown but not playable:
Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors (Wii)
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates (DS; Spring 2008)
Final Fantasy XI: Wings of the Goddess (PS2, Xbox 360, PC; Winter 2007)
Not caught up on your Square Enix portable titles? Check out our features on the PSP and DS lineups.
Unlike its PSP counterpart, the Nintendo DS has been no stranger to North American Square Enix releases. Chocobo Tales, Final Fantasy III, Children of Mana and Dragon Quest Rocket Slime have all graced their presence on Western shores. And Square Enix is far from done supporting Nintendo's money-printer.
Of the eight titles, we've got 4 Final Fantasygames, 3 strategy games, 2 remakes, and one surefire Japanese phenomenon by way of Dragon Quest IX. Have a look at the publisher's upcoming selection after the break.
Role-playing game powerhouse Square Enix have put up a teaser site for an upcoming online merchandise store. Though we're not expecting software titles to be sold, figurines from Dragon Quest, Kingdom Heartsand Final Fantasyare likely (we saw a huge display of fine-crafted figures from those series at Tokyo Game Show last year) and probably clothing with various logos.
Our prediction for best-sellers? Anything with a Slime character on it: key chains, styluses, plush dolls, etc. Our prediction for worst-sellers? Anything sold with actual slime on it. Ew. No date has been given for the grand opening of the store.
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?
Star Ocean has remakes. Final Fantasy has remakes, as does its spinoffs. So why shouldn't Square Enix delve into Dragon Quest's extensive catalog and return to some of the older titles?
Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada confirmed that remakes are being planned prior to the release of Dragon QuestIX. "This summer, we'll release Battle Road in arcades and Sword for the Wii," he said during a Q&A session following a financial briefing, according the online version of Japan's Mainichi Shimbun reported by IGN. "Following that, we're thinking of a release for 9 once we've released remake versions and so forth."
As to which games will be remade and what the "so forth" means we're not sure. Also, seeing as Dragon Quest titles have never quite reached the same popularity in North America as they have in Japan, these releases may never be released outside the region.
The appropriately-named Albert Art sent us a collection of some of his videogame-themed art. Though we do like the one where Mega-Man's dog Rush leaves his owner a power pellet, we love the look on the lower slime's face as his bigger sibling gets stabbed (and ultimately, multiplies). Check out the highlights for today:
Posts with tag DragonQuest
And be sure to have your brain thank us for the last-minute headline edit which saw the removal "unshwiithed." It's best we use a concise sentence to inform you that Dragon Quest Swords is, in fact, a Wii game due for release in North America on February 26th, 2008. Oh, and there's a subtitle too: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors. Where most games would settle for just a masked queen or a tower of mirrors, Square Enix goes the extra mile and gives you both for the price of one game. Watch out, Orange Box!
New scans from Japanese gaming magazine Jump show that the Nintendo DS will be receiving three Dragon Quest remakes -- IV, V and VI -- each as separate titles. The scans can be found on the NeoGAF forums; according to a translation from IGN, the first game (DQIV) is expected to be released in Japan this winter.
The latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly's Quartermann rumor mill is coming with a fresh set of rumors to peruse. The juiciest hearsay is that Capcom's Bionic Commando, once rumored to be getting the remake treatment, is now being developed as a full-fledged installment for the PlayStation Network.
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.
