In a statement issued yesterday by the company, it was revealed that sales of Dragon Quest IX on the DS have just pushed past the 4.15 million barrier, allowing the game to pass the lifetime sales of Dragon Quest VIII and become the biggest-selling game in the series.

And that's before it's even out in the West, where DQVIII sold half a million copies. So, yeah, that 4.15 million figure should be a lot healthier by the end of 2010.

After being delayed by Enix for a year plus, the game was originally released on the Super Famicom (Super Nintendo Entertainment System in the West) in December 1995 for the rough equivalent of US$100, going on to sell 3.2 million copies.

This DS remake will finally bring the game to North America and Europe in official, fully localized form. Release dates are TBA.

The Mariners right fielder said, "Oh, I've been indebted to Dragon Quest — especially when I got injured. That was true as well when I played in Japan. The last time I got hurt in Japan, that's all I did, play Dragon Quest."

Wonder if Ichiro suddenly gets injured when new Dragon Quest games come out. Probably not, but still!

Ichiro Interview [YouTube] [Pic]

Japanese website Gpara surveyed 99 gamers in Tokyo's Akihabara, Yurakucho, Shinjuku and Ikebukuro with these three questions:

1. What are your feelings about purchasing DQIX?
2. Out of DQs I-VIII, which is your favourite?
3. What other games are you playing at present?

And here's a diverse sample of answers:

Male, 26 years (Model):
A1. I've been playing DQIX whenever I go to my friend's house, so I've seen it as an example, and so I just kind of lined up to buy it. As such, I think my anticipation level's a bit different from the people around me (laughs).
A2. I haven't played any other ones before.
A3. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G on PSP

Female, 63 years (Author):
A1. I've been playing the DQ series since the first installment, so i'm looking forward to this release, too.
A2. I like Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen.
A3. Ace Attorney Investigations, 3D Picross and Shin Sangoku Musou.

Male, 18 years (High school student):
A1. I'm happy to have bought it. I look forward to battling with monsters.
A2. Dragon Quest III and Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride.
A3. I'm not playing anything else at the moment.

Female, 25 years (Apparel store employee)
A1. I want to enjoy it during break with everyone at work. As a side note, my coworkers are all getting DQIX, too.
A2. I like Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King.
A3. I'm in the middle of playing Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G on the PSP.

Male, 51 years (Office worker)
A1. I didn't think I'd be able to buy it, so I'm happy I was able to.
A2. I love Dragon Quest III.
3. Currently, nothing.

Old and young, male and female, everybody in Japan loves Dragon Quest. (Well, not everybody, but still!) Feel free to answer the survey yourself.

どの作品が好き?「ドラクエ アンケート」『IX』購入者99人に聞きました [Gpara via Siliconera]

Since Famitsu has been doing its 40 out of 40 reviews, the DQ titles have been rated:

Dragon Quest II 38/40
Dragon Quest III 38/40
Dragon Quest IV 38/40
Dragon Quest V 36/40
Dragon Quest VI 34/40
Dragon Quest VII 38/40
Dragon Quest VIII 39/40
Dragon Quest IX 40/40

So by this number logic, Famitsu thinks the newest Dragon Quest IX is the best one ever made — better than all the others. It's the pinnacle. Aren't reviews with numbers just great?

読みゲー ドラクエのファミ通クロスレビュー歴代得点一覧 （新記録追加） [読みゲー]

Japanese developer Illusion seems to be "inspired" by the Dragon Quest III female character designs. The PC game does not yet have a release date, and there is no info on the official website about gameplay so we don't know how much of You Can't Escape From The Hero can escape from ripping off Dragon Quest.

After the Rapelay controversy, Illusion blocked its site to foreign IPs as the Japanese adult gaming industry began revising its standards for what is acceptable in-game content and what is not.

So rape? Certainly not acceptable and now banned. Knocking off other companies? Well.

ILLUSION [Official Site via オレ的ゲーム情報 via Sankaku Complex via HongFire via GameSetWatch]

And no, they don't mean The World Ends With You. The three biggest (at least in terms of units sold) are Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts, and when you combine every game ever released in those franchises, you get the following (lifted straight from the presentation):

So, yes, if you ever find yourself wondering to the night sky why Square Enix insist on milking these franchises - particularly Final Fantasy - to within an inch of their lives, that's why.

As for the Dragon Quest numbers, we'd say in some ways they're even more impressive, given the series' limited popularity in the West.

For her, it's a matter of life or death.

Japanese film actress Keiko Awaji wants to play new Dragon Quest and pronto. Awaji, who has appeared in over 160 movies since 1949 including Akira Kurosawa's police noir Stray Dog, said this about DQ, "I won't live forever. I'd like to play two more more games... I really want them to put out a new game once every two years." Don't we all Awaji-san, don't we all.

Awaji is a big fan of role-playing games, including Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and Mother (known in the West as Earthbound).

Dragon Quest IX was originally dated for 2007. In August of that year, Square Enix changed the game's release date to 2008. Last fall, Square Enix dated the game "March 2009." Square Enix announced last month that the game's release date has been changed to July 11.

3歳が発売延期のドラクエに一言「私はいつまでも生きてない」[Ne-ta NSFW]

After the game, when a reporter said that the entire Japanese team got pumped up, right fielder Ichiro Suzuki replied, "In Dragon Quest, tension increases, and you get stronger, right? It was like that."

And the entire nation of Japan went ooooooh, and it immediately got what he was talking about.

「テンションが上がって強くなった感じ」…イチローに聞く [Yomiuri via my game news flash] [Pic]

It doesn't get more scientific than this.

Here are the results:

10. Queen of Isis (Dragon Quest 3)
9. Gerda, AKA "Red" in English (DQ8)
8. Female Warrior (Dragon Quest 3)
7. Flora (Dragon Quest 5)
6. Alena (Dragon Quest 4)
5. Female Sage (Dragon Quest 3)
4. Maya (Dragon Quest 4)
3. Jessica (Dragon Quest 8)
2. Barbara (Dragon Quest 6)
1. Bianca (Dragon Quest 5)

Oh, so this is what Akihabara surveys are like. Fascinating.

抱きたい『ドラクエ』シリーズのキャラクターベスト10 [Excite News via my game news flash] [Pic]

And four hours later, the illustrator-by-trade had a stack of Slimes. Look at them! They're terrific.

Snow Slimes [The Creative Brainwaves of Anneka Tran]

• The cover art illustration has already been released by Square Enix as previous promotional material.

• The package's barcode is the same as the Dragon Quest IV barcade.

So there you go. This phoney baloney appeared during the winter holidays and got many in Japan green with envy. They, too, wanted an early copy of the game!

Even though the game's not out for three months, it's already available for pre-order. Japan's all excited for DQIX. You could say the country has DQIX fever. Can you feel it?

新年早々、ドラゴンクエスト9をあるルートから入手？の話題とか [情報屋さん]

After announcing the final release date for Dragon Quest IX, which will be released for the Nintendo DS in Japan on March 28 for 5980 yen, Horii confirmed that the series would be returning to consoles for its tenth entry, according to Japanese game site Gigazine (via NeoGAF). Square Enix released a spin-off, Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors, for the Wii in 2007, but DQ X will be the first release in the core series for the Wii platform.

The revelation comes two years after the announcement that DQ IX would be released on the Nintendo DS after two entries on the PlayStation 2.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of The Heavenly Bride is set to his the U.S. on Feb. 17

Never before released in North America, this entry in the Zenithia Trilogy follows a journey that transcends three generations. Travel alongside your father on his quest to see the world, grow to set forth on a journey of your own and face life-altering decisions as you continue your family's legacy. DRAGON QUEST V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride makes its way to Nintendo DS on February 17, 2009.

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume is set for a March 17 release.

Destiny by sinner sought. Tragedy by power wrought. The origins of a cult classic are revealed in VALKYRIE PROFILE: Covenant of the Plume, the third entry in the critically acclaimed VALKYRIE PROFILE series. Development studio tri-Ace returns to craft a gameplay experience that boasts a captivating storyline with ties to Norse mythology and a familiar yet refreshing battle system enhanced with deeper strategic elements. VALKYRIE PROFILE: Covenant of the Plume marks the debut of the series on Nintendo DS with its arrival on March 17, 2009.

These two additions join Star Ocean: Second Evolution, set to hit the PSP on Jan. 6 and Star Ocean: The Last Hope set for a March 17 release on the DS.

That's quite a diverse protfolio Squeenix has going on.

• Chugoku Shimbun states the the "Dagger knife" the killer used is an featured in popular games like Dragon Quest.
• Yomiuri Online also says the "Dagger knife" is also in video games and quite popular with teenagers.
• Zakzak points out that the killer was into doujin games like Eternal Fighter Zero and Chantelise, and he apparently loves a cutesy bullet hell shooter for the PC.
• According to Yahoo, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications Hiroya Masuda is keen to regulate dangerous information on the internet, since the Akihabara killer posted his plans on a cell phone BBS (not 2ch) about his murderous plans before authorities could stop him.

And like clockwork, the agendas descend like vultures. Lovely.

Akiba Incident [Canned Dogs]

English Site Open [Rpgmonkey@NeoGAF via Siliconera]

An Important Notice From TSUTAYA
Regarding reserves for DS title Dragon Quest (7/17 on sale), security the product is difficult as the shipment from the maker is limited. Therefore, we cannot guarantee the game for customers who pre-order from now. Please understand this in advance.

Huh. That sounds a lot like what happened last year at TSUTAYA when Dragon Quest IV went on sale. What a kwinky-dink. Can't wait until the next DQ remake goes on sale at TSUTAYA. Wonder what will happen? Oh, the suspense, it's killing me!
『ドラゴンクエストⅤ』発売を前にメーカーからまた出荷制限！？ [my game news flash]

For those who are relatively green to the world of JRPGs, it's at the very least an informative read. One that makes me think I should get around to that cheap copy of Chrono Cross that never saw the inside of a PlayStation.

A Japanese RPG Primer: The Essential 20 [Gamasutra]

Square Enix has made no such announcements about such a game, but its recently filed trademark for Party Castle certainly makes us think it may have sights set on an English port. Everyone knows "party" translates to "dice-rolling board game" in Nintendo-speak. Plus, Itadaki Street DS has no shortage of castles. Conjecture? Totally. That's why we're getting in touch with Square Enix to learn more about what this new trademark means. (Pray it's not a mobile game!)

Party Castle Trademark [USPTO]

Dragon Quest VIII Mimic Papercraft [PaperKraft.net - Thanks, Sonia]