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Ni No Kuni Collector's Edition for EU/NA [failure level well beyond critical mass]
- Thread starter rockman zx
- Start date
Lucent
Member
$30 for a CD that has 2 tracks. $30 for the plush. Crazy that even individually they can fetch a high price. Could pretty much have bought the WE and made your money back with just the extras alone and STILL keep your game and Wizard Companion. lol
Midnight Phoenix
Member
I hope this is a glitch in their system. Sometimes it shows wrong information (it happen sometimes with me, when I make orders from amazon).
Hironobu Sakaguchi
Member
i believe this kind of glitch is globally , even in my place the same is happening when updating the online system
Midnight Phoenix
Member
People who preordered from Ninostarter must have higher priority, because all those copies, that was sold on 17th, is their copies, that was accidentally canceled/screwed.
Err, I think you have that confused (or so I'd hope), they likely deliberately overprinted, sold off the remainder of that (and maybe some extras were held aside for exchanges), then when everything was going screwy on release date a link meant only for Customer Service was discovered and used by people, hopefully most of them being people who got their orders canceled. It's likely the orders from THAT link that were meant for people who pre-ordered and had problems crop up.
Midnight Phoenix
Member
Mmm...yes, they might just sell for "round number" that they have and all those orders that was canceled through all 6 month. But I think you are right, I am was too hasty with my conclusion.
Wizard's Edition is 90 at Amazon.fr if anyone is still looking (book and game are in English)
Makes us seem kind of like jerks just scourging all the foreign Amazon sites taking up the WEs still not sold.
But that's probably an indication that Namco Bandai should've just gone with a standard release of it rather than playing games with this, even if it is a package that went further.
But that's probably an indication that Namco Bandai should've just gone with a standard release of it rather than playing games with this, even if it is a package that went further.
Forbes has posted a story about this fiasco. The writer actually gives some pretty interesting insight on how Namco Bandai could have spun this PR disaster into a positive story instead of just a token coupon and a guide book most people who preordered the Wizard edition like myself already own.
I've made peace that I won't be getting the NA Wizard edition and I hope one of my European preorders actually ships (fingers crossed). During my last phone call to Digital River I asked the supervisor about the customer service only link that leaked onto the internet. She told me it was a mistake and that would not happen again. I also probed into how they will handle CC changes in the future. My order was placed back in early September. She told me in the future to call and make sure my info is changed because apparently doing it online via their site doesn't actually change the CC info on your previous order. She made it vague if their software will change. If I ever have to deal with DR again I'm making sure they have my info correct well before anything ships. DR is used by pretty much all the big publishers so avoiding them on special editions sold via their own stores might be impossible.
I've made peace that I won't be getting the NA Wizard edition and I hope one of my European preorders actually ships (fingers crossed). During my last phone call to Digital River I asked the supervisor about the customer service only link that leaked onto the internet. She told me it was a mistake and that would not happen again. I also probed into how they will handle CC changes in the future. My order was placed back in early September. She told me in the future to call and make sure my info is changed because apparently doing it online via their site doesn't actually change the CC info on your previous order. She made it vague if their software will change. If I ever have to deal with DR again I'm making sure they have my info correct well before anything ships. DR is used by pretty much all the big publishers so avoiding them on special editions sold via their own stores might be impossible.
ROBOKITTYZILLA
Member
I picked up a standard edition copy of the game yesterday. I'm going to leave it sealed for a month or so to see if I can manage to get a WE. I have a big enough backlog and the whole experience has kind of soured me on playing it any time soon.
I'm almost tempted to buy that box and try to source all the other parts individually. Might end up cheaper than the current $400 going price for the complete package.
I'm almost tempted to buy that box and try to source all the other parts individually. Might end up cheaper than the current $400 going price for the complete package.
I don't think Forbes contributors are actually Forbes writers. I think it's kind of like a blog thing with just internet people?
People need to stop saying this and spreading false information. Even if he says he doesn't believe it in a later paragraph.
This Forbes contributor is crazy and acting like everyone got their orders cancelled. This solution would punish everyone who didn't have order problems. Unless he means to print this super special edition and give it to everyone, cancelled or not. Then he's even more crazy and is completely out of touch with reality.
For an idea of how much it would cost for a reprint:
Recently Victor Ireland and MonkeyPaw games tried to do a Kickstarter for a physical special edition print run of Class of Heroes 2. They needed $500,000 for it to be worthwhile (about 7000 copies). They sold the basic package for $59. This was for a PSP game.
A big part of why the Kickstarter goal was so high is because you need to produce things in bulk to lower the per-unit cost of each copy to a profitable level. And of course there are the transportation costs and how long it would take (boats are slow). Note that 7000 is a very small print run.
It's not cheap to reprint things.
I think Namco should've just given copies of the Standard Edition to those affected. They're doing a re-print of those anyway. I think THQ did that with the Darksiders 2 Collectors Edition when Digital River mishandled that too?
CuthbertAllgoodz
Member
Totally agree with you on this.
I also think that people way overestimate the impact this could have on Namco... the % of Ni No Kuni customers affected by this must be ridiculously low. People forget those things even if GAF does not. And amongst all of us who do not forget, a lot might still do business with them again if we really want another special CE coming out in the future, even if they still use DR. How many time people say never again and come back on their words.
I am still appalled by this terrible fiasco, but come on now, as a business point of view, I think Namco gave an ok compensation and they have nothing to fear about this causing a mid to long term noticeable revenue loss.
Edit: I do think that in a perfect world, Namco should just reprint the WE for everyone affected and absorb the high cost of the operation so they could satisfy their customer base. Companies doing moves like that are but a very few, exceptional companies. Namco is an ordinary company, doing usual business practice, there is nothing surprising here.
ROBOKITTYZILLA
Member
Going price is $500 on ebay now outside of auctions and it is seeming less and less likely there will ever be reprint. I'm ready to put this behind me, so I just snagged one in an auction for $390. I'm going to return the regular edition I bought yesterday. Lesson learned, I guess.
RPGCrazied
Member
And reason why scalpers keep doing what they do. Ouch. I love the game, but I wouldn't spend that much on it. I only wanted the Wizard book though.
Wow. I'm glad I'm only paying like £57 (inc expedited shipping) on Amazon UK.
Twilight Princess
Member
For those who paid 400 for we, isn't it better to order the EU edition? Are the extra really worth the money?
ROBOKITTYZILLA
Member
It's worth it to me but I guess that's up to the individual really. Some people just care about the book or the plush or whatever. I wanted the complete package.
Out of curiosity, does the EU and German edition have the full color insert (both sides), full color manual, and alternate disc artwork?
I know a lot of people consider the Prima guide an unsatisfactory replacement for their wizards edition order but damn, it's a pretty good guide. The standard "here's where to go/what to do/what to get" stuff, there's a small section at the back that has interviews with some folks from Level 5 as well as a couple pages of concept art. Really cool.
That is what i did and it turned out to be better in the end
Beside the free guide, i got the 2 familiars that are amazon only, which is uber amazing
Now all i am missing is the art in the back of the US box, hopefully someone will scan it, i would gladly offer my 20$ codes for that scan and the DVD art scan
Twilight Princess
Member
For those who paid 400 for we, isn't it better to order the EU edition? Are the extra really worth the money?
DigitalDevil
Member
That article makes me angry. Sending out newly dubbed SUPER RARE bundles signed by artists etc to all the affected buyers would only infuriate the larger population of people that bought in months ago during ninostarter. So our limited edition becomes very much less desirable and we miss out on signatures from the team because we, showed our support from the beginning? I was excited to read a Forbes article on this issue, but frankly, that is an idiotic solution. It would just create a larger problem!
Samurai_Heart
Member
Didn't you already asked this last page? XD...
Edit: not even an hour since lol.
Cbajd5
Member
This article makes me see how people who got their Wizard's Editions would react if they were put in the situation of us who didn't. You seem really upset over a hypothetical situation.
At least you still got what you wanted in the first place...
I'm still really bummed that I can't get one. I was really hyped about the WE and watched the official unboxing a couple of times. I don't really want the standard edition after all that.
The game is still fantastic. Namco and DR screwed up, but that doesn't mean Level 5's game isn't great.
DigitalDevil
Member
I'm not really upset i just don't appreciate a notable name like Forbes putting their name on a solution that doesn't make sense. I'm all for bamco printing more WE and if i were in your shoes it is what i would want also. That doesn't make it likely however, and publishing articles like that one just makes the possibility that much more distant. The article COULD have had an impact, but unfortunately it won't because the author didn't think things through.
I went with the US edition to get the complete package. If you just want the book and the plush, then the EU edition should be okay.
Here are the pluses of the US edition:
Color manual and innards of game case
Soundtrack cd (only 2 songs though)
Some nice postcards
Metal coin
Different box - has art on the back cover and a flap that opens to a window that shows the contents. There is also extra art on the inside of the flap and the front of the box will match the guide.
That stuff all meant something to me so I went for it. Overall I am happy with it. A little bittersweet because it would've been great to have it for $100, but I'm just going to deal with it...doesn't hurt that I really like the game at this point. I do have to say the book is a lot nicer than I thought it would be (even with how everyone was praising it I wasn't sure how much I would like it).
DigitalDevil
Member
A petition with a few hundred signatures isn't going anywhere, my friend. You literally have no recourse other than letting go, or boycotting namco games in the future.
Or at least boycotting Digital River as best as you can.
And while people will probably forget about this incident in regards to Namco, I think it's going to be a different story with Digital River. Three different companies, three different LEs screwed with. Every time people start to forget they are propmtly reminded that, yes, DR's still a piece of shit, and as this keeps happening there is more of a chance of it actually catching on. Though maybe DR scares people off in the first place through overpriced shipping!
I'd be down for this. I still really want one and can wait.
DigitalDevil
Member
The WE's have already been produced, arranging a reprint for a few hundred copies will cost you more than you are willing to pay.
Twilight Princess
Member
Lucent
Member
Yeah that's what I keep saying. I know it sucks, but it's Namco Bandai and DR's fault, not Level 5's. Level 5 and Ghibli made it and the other two just did a bad job of handling the WE. I think it's strange that pretty much every other place was able to order it on Amazon but in the US and Canada we had Namco Bandai's store.
zeopower6
Member
Yes. It was never really advertised as a full soundtrack (it was always mentioned as a soundtrack sampler CD) and it wasn't even supposed to be in the Wizard's Edition to begin with. They kind of just put it in there after the promotional campaign ended for no reason.
Lucent
Member
Yeah. It's not like the awesome Lunar CDs that were included with Lunar: SSSC and Lunar 2: EB. It's more like the free CD that came with Threads of Fate if you pre-ordered at Gamestop.
I bet you 1000 units will sell at the bare minimum. Enough to recoup whatever cost it would incurr to reprint.
1000 isn't anywhere near close to enough to warrant a reprint. 1000 is an incredibly tiny production. There is no way they can do that.
Also keep in mind there isn't a "Namco factory" or any other one magical factory that produces games, art prints, books, plushies, and coins. This is a production involving several factories.
zeopower6
Member
I think Cinram is the main company that's 'putting the package' together. I imagine that they are pressing the soundtrack sampler and the game itself (maybe the prints too) but then the book/coin/plush are probably done elsewhere before being shipped to their factory.
Eek.
Just a heads up to anyone who may have preordered from Zavvi...
Someone on GameFAQs got this email from them and preordered in August/September of 2012.
They must have been severely limited if he preordered that early and still did not get it.
DigitalDevil
Member
This is a combination of Namco not communicating effectively the true # of these available and the distributors not taking the necessary steps to ensure they didn't oversell.
The Eurogamer unboxing showed a full colour manual. The manual is not in the game box since its multilingual, making it pretty thick. Not sure about the inside art on the insert though - they never opened the game.