Dragon Quest IX Release Doubles Japan's DS Hardware Sales In Launch Week

Not only did Square Enix's Dragon Quest IX move more than 2.3 million units in its first week on sale, it also doubled Nintendo DS sales in Japan over the week of its release. As the Japanese hardware market has been languishing in recent weeks, Reuters' report that Nintendo DS sales leapt to 126,786 units in DQIX's launch week from 51,601 units the week prior comes as a welcome boon for Nintendo. According to the report, which sources the Ascii Media Works research firm, it's the first time in about six months that the DS has sold more than 100,000 units in a single week in the country. The game launched July 11, and a bundle including DQIX with a red Nintendo DSi hit retail at the same time. Although Japanese merchants expected the release of the highly-anticipated title to drive trade-ups from the prior-model DS to the new hardware, the available data doesn't separate DSi sales from those of its predecessor. The game, whose full title is Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Starry Sky, was developed by Japanese independent Professor Layton publisher and developer Level-5.