Dragon Quest IX Update

January 6th, 2009, 22:00 Posted By: wraggster

Square Enix has been giving Japan periodic updates on Dragon Quest IX, but until now, these have all been focused on the gameplay side of things. Today, the company detailed one additional area of gameplay and also shared some preliminary character and story details.

Your adventure in DQIX begins in the world of angels. Angels work to gain thanks and appreciation from the residents of the ground below. These feelings are turned into Star Aura, which can be offered to the World Tree, eventually opening a path to the land of the gods.

You happen to be an angel yourself. Dragon Quest IX's story begins when something goes awry as you make your offering of Star Aura. The identity of that "something" will presumably be revealed only once you've played the game.

Joining this initial report on DQIX's storyline is a look at one of the first named characters in the game. Named Sandy, this blond-haired fairy has dark skin and speaks like a "Gal," or a young girl. Square Enix is being a bit vague at the present, and will only say that Sandy has a major role in the game's story.

On the gameplay side of things, Square Enix offered first details on a "quest" system. Quests are mini-adventures that you attempt to tackle apart from the main story. You find and take on quests by speaking with people around town. Quests that you've accepted are added to a quest list and can be dealt with in whatever order you like. Clear a quest, and you earn rewards, and may even unlock related quests.

While Square Enix didn't specifically mention this, it's presumable that quests will tie in closely with DQIX's multiplayer mode, offering groups of players something to actually do when adventuring together.

With Dragon Quest IX's March 26 Japanese release date just a couple of months away, we can probably expect a constant flow of new information over the coming weeks. This is, after all, likely to be Japan's biggest game of the year.

http://uk.ds.ign.com/articles/941/941372p1.html

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