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Xenoblade coming to the U.S. via Gamestop Exclusive (also avail on Nintendo.com)

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AceBandage said:
Play the waiting game until E3. We have time.
They may choose to do more limited releases, especially if this does well.
Click to expand...

I remember waiting for Xenoblade at last E3, and its no-show communicated to me that it was never coming... which was wrong :/

Hopefully your insinuation is right and they are going to more quickly announce the other two games. They should just put them up on the NoA store as they are released regularly by NoE.
 
Some part of me was telling that NoA would bring it over eventually, but given British English/US English differences and November/Christmas being "packed" and wanted to give sufficient focus to Skyward Sword (or simply wanted to pad out the Wii's life cycle), it was inevitable they would throw it out there given the reports. So I held off on actively seeking an import copy considering I knew it wasn't worth the hassle of buying again.

I have faith they will do The Last Story and Pandora's Tower, if again to buy time before the WiiU's launch.
 
BocoDragon said:
I remember waiting for Xenoblade at last E3, and its no-show communicated to me that it was never coming... which was wrong :/

Hopefully your insinuation is right and they are going to more quickly announce the other two games. They should just put them up on the NoA store as they are released regularly by NoE.
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I agree, but in this case, TLS and PT don't come out until sometime next year anyway.
Might even be Summer titles.
No sense ordering now.

I do agree though. If they're already translated, at least offer them on your website, Nintendo.
 
Kind of wish they put this out sooner though. Not much to play in the way of Japanese console games for the next 4 months. Binary Domain, Final Fantasy, Yakuza, uhh...
 
AceBandage said:
image.php


Copy Image Location -> Post as IMG
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Wow that works now? Apparently.
 
Hehe.

Anyway, this isn't the first time Nintendo has done this.
I mean, they did the same thing for Chibi Robo Park Patrol. Making it a WalMart exclusive.
It does make sense for "low profile" games. Don't have to spend a lot on marketing or on shipping.
Just press some discs and send them to a few thousand stores.
I just hope that GameStop picks up on it and advertises the game themselves. If this goes well, we could see more of this. (Captain Rainbow anyone?)
 
AceBandage said:
Hehe.

Anyway, this isn't the first time Nintendo has done this.
I mean, they did the same thing for Chibi Robo Park Patrol. Making it a WalMart exclusive.
It does make sense for "low profile" games. Don't have to spend a lot on marketing or on shipping.
Just press some discs and send them to a few thousand stores.
I just hope that GameStop picks up on it and advertises the game themselves. If this goes well, we could see more of this. (Captain Rainbow anyone?)
Click to expand...

Gamestop would gain nothing from doing Nintendo's advertising for them.
 
zoner said:
Gamestop would gain nothing from doing Nintendo's advertising for them.
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Besides sales of a game, more foot traffic and possibly more deals with Nintendo?
I'd say that's a pretty big win for them, especially given sales of the DS and Wii...
Them getting exclusive games from, arguably, the biggest publisher out there would be a huge gain.
Obviously, they'd never get Mario or Zelda as an exclusive, but games like The Last Story or maybe Fire Emblem could do well in that setting if they could help market them.
 
AceBandage said:
Besides sales of a game, more foot traffic and possibly more deals with Nintendo?
I'd say that's a pretty big win for them, especially given sales of the DS and Wii...
Them getting exclusive games from, arguably, the biggest publisher out there would be a huge gain.
Obviously, they'd never get Mario or Zelda as an exclusive, but games like The Last Story or maybe Fire Emblem could do well in that setting if they could help market them.
Click to expand...

The sales of the Wii and DS compared to what? The 360 just sold 900K systems. Those companies pay Gamestop and Wal-Mart and whatever else to put up posters in their store. Gamestop's not going to do it for free when I'm sure Ubisoft, MS, Sony, EA, or Activision will have something out that they'll offer them money to put up. Nintendo has to market this thing and no one else.

I highly doubt Xenoblade is going to bring them more foot traffic than say Max Payne, Mass Effect, etc. It's just the reality of it. A store like Gamestop isn't going to do free advertising.
 
If Xenoblade does well, I hope to see more website exclusives from Nintendo for games that have little chance of making it over, such as Fatal Frame 4.
 
zoner said:
The sales of the Wii and DS compared to what? The 360 just sold 900K systems. Those companies pay Gamestop and Wal-Mart and whatever else to put up posters in their store. Gamestop's not going to do it for free when I'm sure Ubisoft, MS, Sony, EA, or Activision will have something out that they'll offer them money to put up. Nintendo has to market this thing and no one else.

I highly doubt Xenoblade is going to bring them more foot traffic than say Max Payne, Mass Effect, etc. It's just the reality of it. A store like Gamestop isn't going to do free advertising.
Click to expand...

Who's saying they'll do it for free?
Nintendo is already paying for shelf and advertising space.
What I'm saying is GS needs to push the game as an exclusive from Nintendo, like they do for other exclusives.
 
zoner said:
The sales of the Wii and DS compared to what? The 360 just sold 900K systems. Those companies pay Gamestop and Wal-Mart and whatever else to put up posters in their store. Gamestop's not going to do it for free when I'm sure Ubisoft, MS, Sony, EA, or Activision will have something out that they'll offer them money to put up. Nintendo has to market this thing and no one else.

I highly doubt Xenoblade is going to bring them more foot traffic than say Max Payne, Mass Effect, etc. It's just the reality of it. A store like Gamestop isn't going to do free advertising.
Click to expand...

All the Gamestop pre-order bonus commercials are not on the publisher's dime.

Gamestop advertises them because they get those things exclusively and want to drive those sales to their store because it will also be the first place they trade those games back in and it means more pre-orders.

More pre-orders means more money sitting in their account and not yours gathering interest. The money in an exclusive deal advertisement is likely set aside beforehand from a particular "game advertising budget." That is partly why they are terrible.

I doubt the sole reason Nintendo partnered with Gamestop is because they'd wave the distribution fees.
 
sfried said:
Some part of me was telling that NoA would bring it over eventually, but given British English/US English differences and November/Christmas being "packed" and wanted to give sufficient focus to Skyward Sword (or simply wanted to pad out the Wii's life cycle), it was inevitable they would throw it out there given the reports. So I held off on actively seeking an import copy considering I knew it wasn't worth the hassle of buying again.

I have faith they will do The Last Story and Pandora's Tower, if again to buy time before the WiiU's launch.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I think the later in the year the Wii U is released, the better the chance is that NoA will release those games. In the previous few investor Q&As, Iwata has made it a point to talk about how they are taking steps to reduce software droughts. When I initially read it, I thought he was only talking about Japan, but it makes some amount of sense if it's a company-wide mandate. The Wii release schedule could look something like this if the Wii U comes out in November:

January: Nothing
February: Rhythm Heaven
March: Mario Party 9
April: Xenoblade
May: Pandora's Tower
June: Pokepark 2
July: Nothing
August: The Last Story
October: Fatal Frame

Here's what will actually happen:
January: Nothing
February: Rhythm Heaven
March: Nothing
April: Xenoblade
May: Nothing
June: Mario Party 9
July: Nothing
August: Pokepark 2
October: Nothing
 
Mockingbird said:
If Xenoblade does well, I hope to see more website exclusives from Nintendo for games that have little chance of making it over, such as Fatal Frame 4.
Click to expand...

It would be a really good thing if Nintendo took this and ran with it... not because these titles make huge money on the level they are used to, but because they generate good will/loyalty in their hardcore base.

Hell... why not do crazy collectors editions, get some profit margins going, and milk the core for all they're worth? We'd be happy to get the games/CEs anyway! We'd be happy to get gouged, lol. Limited runs of hardcore niche games retain their value, too. I think there's opportunity for profit in games that aren't bazillion sellers.

Of course a lot of this worked this time because NoE took the initial risk. There might not always be that luxury.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo still skipped Fatal Frame 4 even if they went full blown crazy here. The reason was reportedly the bugs the game had, and Tecmo didn't care to get it all patched up for US release. If they weren't dumb there it might've even come out long ago.
 
Eusis said:
I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo still skipped Fatal Frame 4 even if they went full blown crazy here. The reason was reportedly the bugs the game had, and Tecmo didn't care to get it all patched up for US release. If they weren't dumb there it might've even come out long ago.
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It's weird how contentious that apparently was when the two are like best friends now.

Was the KOEI merger after that? Maybe that mended some fences.
 
Eusis said:
I just figured Tecmo was cheap.
Click to expand...

They were definitely struggling at the time. They probably didn't or couldn't work for free and Nintendo wasn't going to pay more for something that should have been fixed the first time.

I'm pretty sure there's a partially english version of the game somewhere. NOE was all set to reveal the game at one point. Curious what that sounds like,
 
This has probably been answered multiple times, but....

Canada doesn't have Gamestop. What does this mean for us?

[edit] read the previous pages. never mind
 
ShockingAlberto said:
They were definitely struggling at the time. They probably didn't or couldn't work for free and Nintendo wasn't going to pay more for something that should have been fixed the first time.

I'm pretty sure there's a partially english version of the game somewhere. NOE was all set to reveal the game at one point. Curious what that sounds like,
Click to expand...
Guess it would make a lot of sense if the problem is whether or not they can reasonably afford it and make do then. Probably too late now though, especially since Grasshopper Manufacture seems occupied at the moment.

It would be nice if they went back for Another Code R, maybe even Disaster though that'd probably do better as a wide budget release given the camp value, a $30 Wii game rather than $50.
 
Socreges said:
This has probably been answered multiple times, but....

Canada doesn't have Gamestop. What does this mean for us?

[edit] read the previous pages. never mind
Click to expand...

We DO have Gamestop. First of all most of them are called EB Games, second, there is a small handful that is known by Gamestop branding.
 
Wow great news! I tried to find the game while I was in New Zealand and no luck. I was gonna import eventually, but now I don't have to. Can't wait to see what all the fuss is about.

And considering the praise I'm seeing for British dub in this thread and my own enjoyment of the British DQ8 voices, I definitely hope they keep those in.
 
Man God said:
This thread has gone places.

Awesome, Xenogears/saga bashing places.

Xenoblade is all you need.
Click to expand...

I love Gears and Saga but I don't think I should play them ever again. I played them in my angsty, melodramatic teen years. If I went back and replayed, I'd probably be laughing at all the dialogue. I have fond memories, but ~alas.

Blade is pretty good when it comes to melodrama. I maybe snickered only a couple times and no outright laughing as far as I can remember.
 
Ditto for Xenogears, but for Xenosaga it was probably enough fascination with the plot to see where exactly it was going. It was kind of painful to rewatch sceens from XS3 just months after beating it.
 
So how does this work? Like how many days do I have before I'm fucked. I'm assuming this is probably a limited print run or something. I'm a huge Xeno series fan. Xenogears through Ep.1-3. I've never modded hardware so once it was thought Blade wasn't coming to the states I just stopped pretending it existed. How is Xenoblade btw for those who imported? Is it still story heavy (which I like) or is it more FFXII meets Monster Hunter?
 
nckillthegrimace said:
Yeah, I think the later in the year the Wii U is released, the better the chance is that NoA will release those games. In the previous few investor Q&As, Iwata has made it a point to talk about how they are taking steps to reduce software droughts. When I initially read it, I thought he was only talking about Japan, but it makes some amount of sense if it's a company-wide mandate. The Wii release schedule could look something like this if the Wii U comes out in November:

January: Nothing
February: Rhythm Heaven
March: Mario Party 9
April: Xenoblade
May: Pandora's Tower
June: Pokepark 2
July: Nothing
August: The Last Story
October: Fatal Frame

Here's what will actually happen:
January: Nothing
February: Rhythm Heaven
March: Nothing
April: Xenoblade
May: Nothing
June: Mario Party 9
July: Nothing
August: Pokepark 2
October: Nothing
Click to expand...
I think if Nintendo wants Wii U to be perceived better than the Wii by gamers, they need to pick up the pace with game releases. From launch until Mario Kart Wii came out, they did a really good job at getting a new game out nearly every month, but then they stopped and pretty much all the system's good will died. A big part of that is refusing to release shit in the US for whatever reason (and also NCL slowing down game production recently, but they're moving onto Wii U so it's understandable).

That first line-up would be miles ahead of 2008, 2009, and 2011. Only in 2010 did Nintendo begin to step it up. I'm actually pretty confident now that The Last Story and Pandora's Tower will get US releases. Fatal Frame might be iffier but they did distribute Samurai Warriors 3 I guess, and FF4 probably would've gotten a US release if not for dumb bullshit that's hopefully been ironed over. And if say, DQX were ready by Wii U's launch, 2012 could actually be a decent last year for the Wii, contrary to the barren wasteland that was 2006 GameCube.
 
Eusis said:
Missed this earlier, but... yeah, what the hell do you mean? Redubbing? It's in English and we have some very popular stuff with British VA, even from Japan like Demon's Souls/Dark Souls, so that shouldn't be a problem. They may iron out some subtitles/non-voice acted dialogue, but there's plenty of time for that. If you mean something like regional coding however... uhh, that's piss easy for Nintendo themselves to change, I don't doubt.
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Before, NoA didn't want to bring this over; so...
1) Is NoA presumably changing its mind and bringing it over?
2) Gamestop is paying NoA to bring it over, or something?
3) How exactly is Gamestop involved in it coming over?
4) NoA is then only changing the regional coding?

I'm just confused about the relationships between the game, NoA, and why/how Gamestop is involved, as well as if the game is just the EU version, or what.
 
Karsticles said:
I'm just confused about the relationships between the game, NoA, and why/how Gamestop is involved, as well as if the game is just the EU version, or what.
Click to expand...

Nintendo has already said it's the EU version, and everything that is on their website, from images to the trailer, is from the EU version.
 
Mockingbird said:
If Xenoblade does well, I hope to see more website exclusives from Nintendo for games that have little chance of making it over, such as Fatal Frame 4.
Click to expand...

I'm guessing this only happened because it was already translated for Europe. If that's the case, there's only hope for Last Story and Pandora's Tower
 
I'm really surprised they aren't selling it on Amazon too. I wonder what kind of deal they struck with Gamestop.
Allan Holdsworth said:
I'm guessing this only happened because it was already translated for Europe. If that's the case, there's only hope for Last Story and Pandora's Tower
Click to expand...

May give a chance for Disaster and Another Code: R too.
 
GillianSeed79 said:
So how does this work? Like how many days do I have before I'm fucked. I'm assuming this is probably a limited print run or something.
Click to expand...
I'm no expert but given that it isn't being released until April 2012 I think you have many days. Just don't leave it until the last minute.
 
Leeness said:
I love Gears and Saga but I don't think I should play them ever again. I played them in my angsty, melodramatic teen years. If I went back and replayed, I'd probably be laughing at all the dialogue. I have fond memories, but ~alas.
Click to expand...

I have a friend who keeps telling me to play the Xenosaga games. I just can't get past the purple-haired animu robot girl who is trying to learn what it means to be human.
 
Night_Trekker said:
I have a friend who keeps telling me to play the Xenosaga games. I just can't get past the purple-haired animu robot girl who is trying to learn what it means to be human.
Click to expand...

Despite what I said beforehand, I really do like the Xenosaga games. KOS-MOS is not learning anything. It's more complicated/ridiculous than what you suggested. Cause it's Takahashi. And it's just that.
 
Drkirby said:
May give a chance for Disaster and Another Code: R too.
Click to expand...
Another Code getting a North American release would be amazing. I'm really hoping NoA is now realizing that they should be making use of all these games that are already translated and actually release them during the (assumed) lull between now and the WiiU's debut. (Which I still think is a little farther off than a lot of other people.)
 
So long as we're wishing for next to impossible localizations now, I'd murder a puppy for that LostMagic spiritual successor on Wii (Takt of Magic or something?). It was one of my favorite DS games and it killed me that it never came out in English :(
 
batbeg said:
So long as we're wishing for next to impossible localizations now, I'd murder a puppy for that LostMagic spiritual successor on Wii (Takt of Magic or something?). It was one of my favorite DS games and it killed me that it never came out in English :(
Click to expand...

I hope Nintendo remakes it on the Wii U to take advantage of the new tablet controller
 
Nintendo........ localize Nazo no Murasame Jo!!!!

Time to Occupy Nintendo World Store and make it happen!! >:)
 
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