Mistwalker has today released what are (as far as we’re aware) the first official (non-magazine scanned) screenshots for its upcoming Nintendo DS title, Blue Dragon Plus - a spin-off of the popular RPG, which first made its appearance on the Microsoft Xbox 360.

Set a year after the events of the original game, the title continues to focus on the exploration of the cube worlds that resulted from the opening of the planet’s core. When King Jibral and Zola happen upon the shadow of a mysterious dragon at the opening to one of the cubes, they both have a bad feeling about what’s ahead. After letting Shu and the rest of the party on their discovery, they set off together on another quest to discover the source of the perceived threat.

[Source: Jeux-France]

Originally due for release in March 2008 in Japan, we learnt in January that Blue Dragon Plus has been delayed until the summer. There’s no details on a Western release as yet, but we’ll keep you up to date on any new developments. Until then, enjoy the new screenshots and artwork above and let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.