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DQ Joker in early 2008

Make your own monster squad.

Square Enix has said Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker will be available in Europe early next year.

It is the DS game that is similar in spirit to Pokémon; you go around swinging fists at and collect around 200 monsters, which you can then train and use to fight for you. Apparently you can also "synthesize" your own new breeds, too, which sounds interesting.

You will also be able to challenge your friends and their monster squads using Wi-Fi, or go international and compete in the Wildcard World Cup.

The game is put together in the familiar cartoon-style of Dragon Quest, and there is a whole cast of characters waiting to scroll text at you and help you along the way, most of which you will probably recognise from Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King on PS2.

Square Enix has also chosen the DS as the exclusive platform for the ninth game in the Dragon Quest series, which is scheduled to launch in Japan sometime later this year.

Head over to our Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker gamerpage for the latest screenshots.