Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies

With Final Fantasy XIII out the door, all of Square-Enix’s marketing muscle will be thrust onto the US launch of Dragon Quest IX, now slated for a July 11 release. The series has always been a monstrous success in Japan, but IX has shattered even its own lofty goals and sold more than four million copies since its 2009 debut. Square-Enix has always wanted DQ to carry its weight a bit more in the US, so between the continued sales of the DS and the overwhelming Japanese response, expect DQIX to receive a very powerful push...

Forget AWOL, here’s AWOI – Absent Without Intent, the art of accidental fleeing. In a game that’s rammed with Japanese text, it’s a mis-prod of the run-away button that irritates most. Story, job classes, skills, spells and item conditions – you can muddle through without them, but showing a boss your back to stab is suicidal.

2006 marked the 20th anniversary of the original Dragon Quest, and while Square Enix could have rested easy and watched the fan love-fest unfold, they instead dramatically announced a new installment, dropping an unexpected bombshell in the process. IX would be the first Dragon Quest installment to debut on a handheld console, and would do away with the turn-based battling that had up to this point defined the series and given it much of its unique appeal.