Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies for Nintendo DS

GF Rating

10

Perfect

Quest for the Ages

posted by Pocky22 (Jackson Heights, NY) Jul 14, 2010

Member since Jun 2010

37 out of 39 gamers (95%) found this review helpful

I'm a long-time Dragon Quest fan, having grown up on the original NES games way back when (you know, when they changed it to Warrior). That out of the way though, I had already expected this game to be great. The series finally got a revival her in the states, thanks to the popularity of DQVIII, and for those who are interested in picking this game up based on how they liked that game, you will be delighted to find that DQIX well lives up to it. Hey, it may have even surpassed it.

This time around you're given a hero or heroine you make from scratch. The system is fun and allows you to make unique characters (or your favorite DBZ character, if that's your thing), even your teammates this time around are self-created. While this takes out the character elements of your team in previous installments, it allows you more personalization to tinker with. Each class feels vastly different in style and what they can and cannot wear/use, allowing each one of your teammates to feel unique in combat.

Combat itself is no longer random, with enemies on the map to choose to battle or not (you can even 'hunt' metal slimes). Taking mix of DQVIII's tension system, you also gain class specific coup' de grace abilities, that range from Monks scaring a group of opponents while building tension to Armamentalist increasing the EXP gained from battle. Battles also move smoothly, as each character actively positions themselves in combat, as apposed to standing in a line.

Multiplayer is superb, with up to 3 people being able to join up for questing and loot. Experienced players can help newer friends by joining up, or friends can share maps for even more questing. an Online store allows you to nab rare items, and bi-DLC quests are coming soon, for free.

By far, this is the best Dragon Quest game to date, even beating out DQVIII in sheer fun and customization. If you're a fan of DQ, or someone who has never tried one, this is a must get for any RPG fan.

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GF Rating

9

Excellent

Familiar RPG elements come together brilliantly

posted by slurmaster (ARLINGTON, TX) Sep 2, 2010

Member since Aug 2007

3 out of 3 gamers (100%) found this review helpful

While Dragon Quest IX does not necessarily pioneer any new terrritories in the RPG field, all of the staples of the genre converge to make an addicting and thoroughly enjoyable experience. You create a character right off the bat, and start off as a sort of guardian angel who watches over a small village. In the interest of keeping this as spoiler free as possible, I'll reveal nothing more than that you fall from your "celestrian" status to the world of the mortals and have to embark on a quest to regain your position in the heavens. After a few quests where you help people out with some menial tasks, you move to a larger town where you can assemble your party. All of the characters you create (you can have up to four in your party at any given time) follow the same guidelines as the main character, and their abilities and levelling are based on their respective classes. One thing I did find annoying was that not even half of the classes are available at first, and by the time you gain access to other classes (or to change the class of characters in your current party) you will have already invested a considerable amount of time getting to your current levels.
Combat is turn-based, but you CAN see every monster on the map, so there won't be any unexpected battles(except when you're in the boat)and the N64-era graphics aren't groundbreaking, aside from the lush cartoon animations of sparse cutscenes. There is also no real protagonist to lead any sort of narrative, and your party's interactions with the denizens of the world are carried out by a spunky fairy that emerges from your pocket whenever necessary. However, I found myself becoming strangely attached to the four little polygonal characters I had created, and would sometimes obsess over tracking down an ingredient to alchemise with another ingredient to make a stave for my martial artist or some boots for my warrior. All of the weapons and armor show up on your characters too.

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Best RPG game for the ds ever!

posted by bobbobbob (MISSION, TX) Aug 1, 2010

Member since Mar 2010

4 out of 5 gamers (80%) found this review helpful

Man i was seeing so many times the commercial of this game and right off the bat i thought it was gonna be a great game and i was right. I never played any Dragon quest games and with this game it made me want to get the other dragon quest games. I love the graphics and the gameplay of this game. If you never played any dragon quest games like me, have no worries because this game is the perfect game to start with!

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Awsome

posted by IceyDeath (OAK FOREST, IL) Aug 12, 2010

Member since Aug 2010

4 out of 6 gamers (67%) found this review helpful

this game is great sure starting a 1 when u change class is a pain but all u need 2 do is hunt some metal slimes down and the customization is awesome yur not wearing the same this all game

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GF Rating

8

Very Good

Wow

posted by Trunks579 (WICHITA, KS) Aug 8, 2010

Member since Sep 2006

2 out of 3 gamers (67%) found this review helpful

ok so what i wasnt expecting from this was the 3-D that was pretty awesome. and to all you dq fans whu always wanted to see what the armor and stuff looks like on your character this is for you.

now to more important things. you start off making your character but you dont get to pick your class so your always a minstrel at the beggining. you can change classes later in the game but you start at level 1. really irritating by the way. once you see that you just say ill stay a minstrel. but when you go shopping for new stuff its only for warriors!

the battles are pretty neat instead of jus seeing a sword slash outta nowhere you can actually see your character move and attack. when you reach a crtain level in the beggining of the game you start to get skill points. these help you upgrade your characters weapon skill and stuff like that. and sometimes when you get it high enough it will say when you use this weapon your attack increases by 10! o snap!

thats all i got to say id rent it before buying it tho

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

play and buy

posted by djsbay (HENDERSON, NV) Jul 27, 2010

Member since Aug 2006

2 out of 3 gamers (67%) found this review helpful

i rented this game from gamefly and i loved it so much i went outand bought it. im stuck on a part so i cant say much about how to the firs boss as a lv.5.the beginning was a little of a bore but it got good after u sent down to the mortal relm.

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GF Rating

9

Excellent

No extra save files!!!

posted by tiloho (IRON RIVER, MI) Jul 26, 2010

Member since Jun 2005

6 out of 11 gamers (55%) found this review helpful

This game is a little different from the norm in that you can see and avoid some of the monsters or chase them if you want. The graphics are great even on the small screen. Some level ups will even give you skill points to distribute to your character. One of the drawbacks for me was the lack of control over some partners. A big one for me was the lack of any extra save files.

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GF Rating

3

Bad

at first i was like :)

posted by havochaos (BOONE, NC) Jul 23, 2010

Member since Jan 2010

4 out of 35 gamers (11%) found this review helpful

at first i was like :) then i was like :(, this game is just way to much grinding for levels, when you switch your vocation or class you go back to level 1! your skills from you previous class carry over but come on, why must i go back to level 1? i was so excited for this game but this game is way to long for a nds game, i played for hours and hours until my eyes literally hurt, then out of the blue i said i dont want to play this anymore, maybe if you could journey with people over WI-FI it would be way better because i could just focus on 1 or 2 of my characters but no, thats not how it is, if there wasn't so much time spent on changing class from level 40 to level one and grinding to get your level back just to find out that there is another class that you just unlocked and you gotta go down to level 1 again, it would be a great game, THE GRAPHICS ARE GOOD THOUGH

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GF Rating

9

Excellent

Great game. Not perfect, but still a lot of fun.

posted by davidstmichael (CHICAGO, IL) Apr 16, 2013

Member since Jan 2013

I enjoyed it very much. The story line is a little weak and the characters aren't all that interesting, so that's why I didn't rate it a ten. However, the customization of characters and the fact that you can create all kinds of items and weapons is a lot of fun. To me, anyway.

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

BEST GAME EVER!!!!!

posted by XDRPGPLAYER (KENNETT, MO) Feb 20, 2012

Member since Feb 2012

this game is by far the best out if you like rpg games and if you dont this could totally get you into rpgs first the custom team system is just amazing and really helps to put yourself into the game and the side quests and job system closer to the end is a good twist and second the story line is well thought out and very chalenging if you want a game that could last a while add this to the top of the list

i hope this helped

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GF Rating

7

Good

nice game

posted by catheal (ATLANTA, GA) Jan 3, 2012

Member since Jul 2011

very cool and the little movies were well done. need to give a shout out to the graphics,they didnt gitch at all which is always a good thing.

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies

posted by 9innail (WEST FRANKFORT, IL) Oct 6, 2011

Member since Oct 2011

This is a truly amazing game, given the platform. Character creation is a great addition, and some of the results I found while creating characters were awesome. I made Super Sayin Goku, and Trunks from DBZ fame which were, of course, created by Akira Toriyama, the character designer for this game as well. I also made Aerith, and Sephiroth from ff7! The story of this game is like a galaxy: many plots, adventures, and places that need your help, while orbiting a massive hidden plot all through. Classes are great, and while some are hidden from activation until a task is completed, they are worth the wait. Classic Turned Based Combat style is breathing new life (visually) thanks to the panoramic style in which the battles are presented. Gameplay time is around 40-60 hours. But, including all side-quests, make that number around 500+!!!!! Great Game, Great Resolution, and Worth more than 2 playthroughs :D

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

a top game

posted by superdragonite (BECKVILLE, TX) Jul 29, 2011

Member since Jul 2011

I have play pokemon,yugioh, and sonic games and I have never played a game like this one . i haved never heard of dragon quest before this game and i can say if you don't like rpgs play this one

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GF Rating

8

Very Good

Close, but no Frygg

posted by timer9999 (LISLE, IL) Jun 20, 2011

Member since Feb 2008

Character models: the Creation is great, but the all look like fat babies!really!

Armor stats:the best(reasonable gaining)armor is just unreasonable, as in, wearing a bikini gives much better armor than big, spikey armor. that doesn't make sence

Story: Awesome story, but ends of main boss battles is just fustrating. You don't kill main bosses, just some relization or somethin'. like tha boss battle in gleeba! >spoiler alert(so I didn't tell)< is really ennoying!

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Dragon Quest IX equals addicting

posted by WhiteDraco (GREENSBORO, NC) Jun 4, 2011

Member since Dec 2010

Dragon quest IX was the first I played out of all the Dragon Quest games. I saw the game reviewed on X-play, got it from gamefly, & now everytime I pick it up, I forget it's a gamefly rental. I could stay up all night playing it endlessly. It makes me wish my DSi never needed to be charged at all.

The character design: Awesome
Monsters: Strong & challenging
Storyline: Bada ba ba ba, I'm lovin' it
Dragon Quest IX: Way too good NOT to be a movie or TV series.

Basically, my only thoughts of this game are:
"If you aren't playing a Dragon Quest game, you haven't experienced the true awesomeness RPGs can give. Always something to do in the game."

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GF Rating

7

Good

Good game! It reminds me of Dragon Warrior III

posted by greg137 (CALDWELL, ID) May 30, 2011

Member since May 2010

Not every day that we get a game that actually tries to please gamers! Most of the time we get games that try too assume that the gamer needs to be told where to go, what too do and how to do it, or they just try to leave the gamers influence as much as possible. This game, while not totally perfect in my book proves that there still might be hope for the dragon quest series! When you get to the next town(the castle town of Stornway) you get to take advantage of a special Dragon Warrior III perk(an eatery establishment just like Luisa'a place in DW 3 that allows you to create new characters). You still have to go a ways into the game to reach all trades abbey(dragon quest 9's version of DW III's Dhama shrine) where you can change classes, but this isn't a big gripe at all! This game is well worth renting, but I shopped around at amazon, and it is cheaper there, as i saved myself $3.00! Plus, Amazon allows you to buy a strategy guide with it! One additional note and is rather anoying is the target selection which automatically selects the target when you face only one adversary, for me, it takes some getting used to. They could use a slightly wider selection of styles for character making, but that is a rather small gripe on a otherwise, Awsome game! I always believed that Dragon Warrior III was a highly advanced game, and was revolutionary, very well ahead of it's time in many ways! I'm glad to see the series attempt to get back on track!! Only question that remains is what took them so long!?

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

posted by loto128 (LOS ANGELES, CA) Apr 3, 2011

Member since Dec 2009

Best DS RPG yet. Funny parts, serious parts, main and side quests, tons of gear, item synthesis, tons of jobs and abilities.. not much more you could ask for on a ds rpg. Definitely get it.

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Great Multiplayer RPG.

posted by INMATE_04064797 (CASTRO VALLEY, CA) Mar 18, 2011

Member since Mar 2011

I had never heard of this game until it was recommended to me by a friend. I have always loved turn based RPG games, especially the Final Fantasy series. But this game gives them a run for their money. The game play is fun and entertaining. Some of it gets a bit goofy, but it makes up for it with such a wide variety of equipment and abilities. I would recommend this game to anyone who loves turn based RPG games.

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GF Rating

7

Good

Good stuff, probably better with friends to play

posted by RoboBedpan (AURORA, IL) Feb 23, 2011

Member since Nov 2010

While i enjoy the leveling system and stat allocation, I'm disapointed by the lack of unique cast of characters. only the main character has a story and the other 3 are just generic party members you pick up at an inn. I'm guessing this is done because they intend for me to play with my friends in local play? Either way this limits story possibilities which is unfortunate because what story is there is good. All in all i'd probably rather play the Final Fantasy III remake on DS, though if you've already played that, it's worth checking out. Especially if you think you could rope some friends into joining you.

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Intriguing!

posted by Chiro16 (SAN DIEGO, CA) Feb 19, 2011

Member since Jun 2010

After seeing so many advertisments about it, I just HAD to play it!
So when i started I imeadiatly fell in love with it! The graphics, the story line, everything from the Celestial beings to the epic battles ahead.

The fact you can choose your gender and your possee is fun! Switching your jobs is a bit of a pain since you start back at level 1 but all in all, this game is a MUST PLAY if you're a fan of the Dragon quest series.

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Dragon Quest IX

posted by darthsonic (FORT SMITH, AR) Feb 1, 2011

Member since Jul 2010

this game is awesome, but I NEED A TEAM INVINCEABLE CHEAT for the levethon and the master of nun'h

PLEASE HELP ME!!!

(THIS GAME IS AWESOME X 10!!!!!!)

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Genius Game

posted by Awesomey (FRANKLIN, OH) Jan 14, 2011

Member since Sep 2010

Not bad, not bad at all. Really good in fact. Customization-10,Gameplay-10,Fun-1000000000000000000000000000000000000!Graphics-eh. Still, really good game. BUY THIS GAME!!!

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GF Rating

7

Good

dragon quest 9

posted by brooks (VENICE, CA) Nov 27, 2010

Member since Nov 2010

the game is very addicting although at some parts it seems a little too difficult and at points if you save in the church twice it will send you back to the first time you saved in a church and that is dissapointing!:(

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GF Rating

10

Perfect

Epic

posted by copperman7 (RAMONA, CA) Nov 11, 2010

Member since Jan 2008

This is by far the best of the rpg games. or at least the traditional style. amazing ds graphics, interesting plot, awesome attacks, great customization, and plenty of challenge for gamers. i would recommend buying this because i really didn't want to send it back.

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GF Rating

5

Fair

I gave it a shot....

posted by Junkie22 (JACKSON HEIGHTS, NY) Sep 30, 2010

Member since Mar 2008

I love old school rpgs becasue they kept game play simple and progressive while providing great storylines that kept u hooked and wanting more.
Dragon quest 9 fails on the story telling .....in fact i found it horrible .............generic and way to religious.....the old school element of the turned based combat mixed with character customization and class progession was addicting. however in the end the game is to easy and requires to much grinding shadowed by an undesirable story that doesnt leave u wanting more. after 10+ hours i felt like i was wasteing my time and there was gonna be nothing deep original and submersive that was gonna unfold within the game.

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Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies for Nintendo DS Reviews by Gamers

Release Date

GF Rating

Number of Players

ESRB

Buy