Also Square-Enix.Region locking is already dead unless you're Nintendo or a 360 owner.
Or Atlus.
Also Square-Enix.Region locking is already dead unless you're Nintendo or a 360 owner.
Or Atlus.
What problems come with making their consoles region-free? I don't understand, someone explain.
The problem there is the DSi introduced region locking to handhelds and I feel that was partly because of the online store (the other part being counterfeit cartridges, not so appealing to manufacture when you have to worry about region). Of course they were using points back then and had probably come off the back of this little headache (I could switch to Japan buy 1000 points for £5 and spend it on £7 worth of content, you don't have to be a maths genius to see the problem there...moreso when NCL are in the black by £5 while NOE are in the red by £7).I think the more Digital Distribution is embraced by Nintendo the less they will see the reason for region locking.
I can't help but feel the reason they have it now is at least partially they don't want anyone making money off of their products that isn't them (ie importers)
I don't understand why these "various problems" only seem to apply to Nintendo and not to every other platform holder, all of whom do not region lock their platform.
Only reason Sony made such a big deal of it last year was because of Microsoft horrid policies before their 180.
I don't understand why these "various problems" only seem to apply to Nintendo and not to every other platform holder, all of whom do not region lock their platform.
Also Square-Enix.
Come on Ninty. Region free games and digital purchases tied to an account rather than a system and I just might love you again!
What exactly would these problems be? Somehow it doesn't seem like the other console manufacturers ran into any problems.
Sony should keep their trap shut after Persona 4 Arena and Joysound Drive on the so called region free PS3. And then there were region locked demos in the PSN store.
They are also not releasing 1 multilingual European version of their games (that's what Nintendo is doing for ages), but instead release multiple to effectively force people to not import from UK. Uncharted 2+3 bought in UK is English only.
The DS was region free. It was the DSi that introduced it, but only for a handful of DSi enhanced games.
For me, other regions basically means US imports. Fucking Atlus and their late/non-existent EU releases...
DS was region free (I know, I have both Jump SuperStars which are never going to get out of Japan), the DSi introduced region locking but only for DSi specific titles / features.
3DS went full lock.
EDIT: beat
Sony should keep their trap shut after Persona 4 Arena and Joysound Drive on the so called region free PS3. There were also region locked demos in the PSN store. And then there is the nightmare with DLC purchases. Some is region locked. Some isn't. Some is even version locked. Some other isn't. It's a nightmare.
They are also not releasing 1 multilingual European version of their games (that's what Nintendo is doing for ages), but instead release multiple to effectively force people to not import from UK. Uncharted 2+3 bought in UK is English only.
In case Nintendo goes region free with their home console, I really hope that they won't create such a mess with DLC and instead do it properly, so that I can buy for example an Asian copy and then buy the DLC in Europe.
Yes. Perhaps another 10 years or so will go by before we get any further comment on it. Those greedy bastards, I was really upset about handheld region locking because it was only recently restricted.So you're saying that...there's a chance?
By the sounds of it, Nintendo's next system might be released in the same decade when region locking is considered by Nintendo to be potentially dropped.
Region locking is already dead unless you're Nintendo or a 360 owner.
Or Atlus.
It won't happen in this generation.
Which means no Dragon Quest VII ever in the west (unless you buy a Japanese 3DS).
Surely you know what this poster meant, BTW? I find these responses so annoying. When people on here refer to a proper account system, they mean one that they can associate and disassociate from a console themselves and reattach to another system to download all their purchases themselves. Without needing to contact/beg/plead with Nintendo. Without having to have two of the systems present to do a system transfer. Basically, without any bullshit. Like most other digitally-present companies at the moment.The latter already exists, btw.
Q4: At present, your company's hardware and games make use of region-locking, by which games purchased in one region cannot be played in another region. Are there any plans to unlock this restriction?
A4: Iwata: The game business has a history of taking a very long time with localization among other things, such as having to deal with various issues of marketing in each particular country, or games that have made use of licensed content that did not apply globally, and had all kinds of circumstances, so to say, that region-locking has existed due to circumstances on the sellers' side rather than for the sake of the customers. In the history of game consoles, that is the current situation. As for what should be done going forward, if unlocked for the benefit of the customers, there may also be a benefit for us. Conversely, unlocking would require various problems to be solved, so while I can't say today whether or not we intend to unlock, we realize that it is one thing that we must consider looking to the future.
His comment about the future makes me think that their next hardware release will possibly be region-free as opposed to unlocking their current hardware (Wii U, 3DS).
As for what should be done going forward, if unlocked for the benefit of the customers, there may also be a benefit for us.
The DS was region free. It was the DSi that introduced it, but only for a handful of DSi enhanced games.
For me, other regions basically means US imports. Fucking Atlus and their late/non-existent EU releases...
Or a Playstation
It won't happen in this generation.
Which means no Dragon Quest VII ever in the west (unless you buy a Japanese 3DS).
Or a Playstation
He's not going to make that big of decision on the fly. People are just glad to hear that they're probably going to look into it for their next platform or something.Ya, I dont see why people are so excited by these statements. It was basically a non answer.
The chances of a translation patch actually being completed seem very low to me.Or wait for region free and translation patch capabilities to become available via homebrew. The Homebrew Channel for 3DS is expected to be released within a few weeks.
Even then, people shouldn't expect wholesale region-unlocking. The best case would still have region-locking decided by publishers and locking purchases of digital content in a particular country/region to that country/region alone, which are common practices.He's not going to make that big of decision on the fly. People are just glad to hear that they're probably going to look into it for their next platform or something.