Atlus became the first to pack a soundtrack CD with a Nintendo DS game when it released Luminous Arc 2 in November 2008, and the company has already announced that it will be doing it again for the upcoming Legacy of Ys: Books I & II. When The Dark Spire for the Nintendo DS releases on April 14, 2009, Atlus will be achieving a hat trick.

A soundtrack CD will be included with every launch copy of The Dark Spire, and just like the game this CD will have a mix of both the contemporary and the classic. The Dark Spire is an homage to classic first-person RPGs but with modern-style graphics and music. However, the game allows players to switch to a Classic Mode that changes the graphics to wireframes and the music to chiptunes. The 24 track bonus CD will include both classic and modern versions of The Dark Spire's music, and samples of each can be found at this sample page. As for the reason behind the soundtrack CD's inclusion, Atlus's Aram Jabbari says "We don't want to rush to any conclusions here, but it seems possible that people enjoy free bonus things along with their games. Hopefully, we're actually reading the data correctly this time, unlike that study on whether or not our fans enjoyed bonus live scorpions with their games. We really blew it on that one, and we apologize to those affected." Indeed, Aram, indeed.

The Dark Spire's story begins just outside of the border of the Forest of Mist where the castle of King Kronus resides. After Kronus' most recent conquest, his supposed ally Archmage Tyrhung rips a valuable necklace with a powerful jewel from the Queen's neck and disappears into the night. Tyrhung is then seen mysteriously transforming into a dragon and swooping off to the Forest of Mist's Dark Spire, once the domain of an ancient goblin civilization. Tyrhung lights the Dark Spire's beacon to signify the tower as his new lair.

Players will create their own party and journey into the Dark Spire, earning experience by dungeon-crawling through many floors and encountering 80 different enemies. The game's story will allow for three different endings. The Dark Spire has been rated E10+ and will be released at an MSRP of $29.99. RPGamers wanting to know more about The Dark Spire can visit its official website.