Dragon Quest IX Dated for the West

Nintendo and Square Enix have announced that Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies is to arrive in Europe and North America this July.

North America will get their hands on the game on July 12th - exactly a year and one day from the original 2009 Japanese launch - while Europeans will be able to play the latest in the classic RPG series on July 23rd. 

Dragon Quest is a series that outdoes even Final Fantasy in scope in Japan, but has always struggled to find success in the West. After selling almost 5 million copies since launch in Japan, Square Enix handed off the localization effort of Dragon Quest IX to Nintendo in the hope that they would better be able to replicate the Japanese success in the West. 

Expect Dragon Quest IX to be marketed heavily towards the Pokemon crowd. Check out the new US boxart below.