Koichi Sugiyama
In mid-2006, "Dragon Quest" series composer Koichi Sugiyama confirmed that "Dragon Quest IX" was in development. He said, "I'm not sure when "Dragon Quest IX" will be released, but it seems that progress is continually being made. I'm personally excited." On December 12, 2006, during a press conference celebrating the 20th anniversary of the "Dragon Quest" franchise, Square Enix announced that "Dragon Quest IX" would be released exclusively for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console, making it the first main "Dragon Quest" title to debut on a handheld.