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Nintendo 3DS Region Code confirmed by Nintendo JP Support

Wazzim

Banned
Why do they do this anyways? I don't think many Japanese buy cheap asian copies of their games imported from HongKong or Korea.
 

InfiniteNine

Rolling Girl
swerve said:
They wouldn't have wanted to put their most devoted customers in the position of having to choose a region of hardware to buy.

It must be entirely down to the piracy fight, which makes it an understandable decision business-wise, but a terrible decision for us. Horrible news.
What does region locking have to do with piracy?
 

Foffy

Banned
swerve said:
Hey, if they're learning from Sony's mistakes, it may never be hackable.

It's Nintendo. There will potentially be some flaw so major that they'll ignore it but patch out homebrew channels, thinking that'll fix things. :lol

I didn't want to use homebrew on the 3DS, but bullshit like this all but guarantees I will now. There will be some game in English that'll be worth playing, and some region will be fucked on playing it. Mark my words.
 

otmane

Member
JustAnotherOtaku said:
Yeah, I'm thinking the same. I bought a Japanese and US Wii at launch which suits me well, but with the price that UK games drop to a couple of weeks/months after release, a UK system would be handy. I wish I was as rich as I was back in 2006 and I'd just buy all 3 :p
I'm thinking exactly the same... I'll grab a euro one to get my cheap UK games and I probably buy a us or Jp 3DS lite later...
 

Tempy

don't ask me for codes
Maybe it's like this - a small percentage of gamers like to import games. With region lock they'd appease retailers and some publishers, and while they'd piss off the importers, the importers would get a 2nd system anyway instead of completely boycotting the system! It prints money!
 

jrricky

Banned
Tempy said:
Regioning does not stop piracy, nor is regioning meant as a deterrent to piracy.
Err, I'm sure there is no way to stop piracy (ATM) but I think this can help slow it down...

And stupid Nintendo for trying to protect their investments...
 

Catshade

Member
Freezie KO said:
A lot of posters are saying this is "dumb." I understand your frustration, but does this actually affect anything? I mean, DSi was region-locked. They raised the price on it above the DSLite, and the DSi still sold.

Isn't DS gaming on DSi unaffected by the hardware's region lock? I thought the region lock only applied to DSi-enhanced games (and DSWare, obviously).
 

Jonnyram

Member
zigg said:
DSiWare. And rightly so, from a game quality perspective. There are a lot of neat little (and some not-so-little) titles on the service.

It's part of why region locking hasn't bothered me personally on DSi. Again, though, just to be clear—I'd much rather have it unlocked, and that's why I'm back on the "wait" fence again.
DSi Ware may have been good from a gaming perspective, but seriously, what kind of online store lists in only alphabetical order? That's begging for some "Aaaah! Good game" abuse.

swerve said:
Nonsense. Yamauchi never let a poor-ish battery life, region locked handheld out onto the market
<3
 

otmane

Member
NTom64 said:
Welp, guess I better get used to UK-English Luke's voice in the Layton games.......ugh.
What ? the voices are not the same?? I've played the Us version of the 3 first games, you mean the UK version has different voices !
 

Tempy

don't ask me for codes
jrricky said:
Err, I'm sure there is no way to stop piracy (ATM) but I think this can help slow it down...

And stupid Nintendo for trying to protect their investments...

Regioning does not slow down piracy either. Because the reason there's regioning has nothing to do with piracy.
 

Yagharek

Member
Jonnyram said:
Was DSi actually praised for anything?

Starship Defense!

Seriously a disappointing move. I could cope with 3-5 hours battery life. This however is a problem.

DS games I imported that would never have been available here:
Ouendan
Chrono Trigger (or it may have come to PAL eventually)
Electroplankton
999
Contra 4

...

OK in list form for me its not that many. But it was an awesome feature and no doubt many other people got a shiteload of extra use from ds thanks to this feature.

I'll still get one, probably.
 

Foffy

Banned
jrricky said:
Err, I'm sure there is no way to stop piracy (ATM) but I think this can help slow it down...

And stupid Nintendo for trying to protect their investments...

People hack devices to get past imposed limitations offered by the system. This is one such example.

If people are motivated to hack their devices to do whatever they want with it, to get past such blockades, surely that such a principle applies to a section of the game library that could be presented as unplayable in the systems normal state, no?
 

NTom64

Member
otmane said:
What ? the voices are not the same?? I've played the Us version of the 3 first games, you mean the UK version has different voices !

Nope.

Personally, I prefer a better sounding voice to a more realistic accent, which is why I imported the US versions of the first 3 games.

Oh well. It wasn't that bad in The Eternal Diva, I guess I'll live :lol
 
swerve said:
Nonsense. Yamauchi never let a poor-ish battery life, region locked handheld out onto the market.

Iwata is getting FURTHER AWAY from Yamauchi. Not in the arrogance stakes, in the smart stakes.

Still, give him a few years and he might work out where it all went wrong and the cycle will start again.

My sarcasm meter must be broken today. I actually though this poster was serious for a sec. :lol
 

Stumpokapow

listen to the mad man
jrricky said:
Err, I'm sure there is no way to stop piracy (ATM) but I think this can help slow it down...

But how does it slow it down?

"Best" case scenario for piracy prevention: Whichever hack first allows piracy does not circumvent region protection, and pirates can only play pirated games from their own region.

"Worst" case scenario for piracy prevention: Whichever hack first allows piracy also circumvents region protection.

... so where's the benefit here?

Region coding is designed to allow for regional price segmentation and crush grey market parallel importation. That is the only impact.
 
Catshade said:
Isn't DS gaming on DSi unaffected by the hardware's region lock? I thought the region lock only applied to DSi-enhanced games (and DSWare, obviously).

Apparently it is.

But is there any substantive evidence pointing that this is a "dumb move" that will hurt sales? Anything pointing out that this is as "stupid" as some posts are saying?

I realize it's frustrating. And I agree with similar complaints about battery life (something you can go back to Game Gear to see how important it is). But is there any precedent for region-locking being detrimental to a company rather than just a small vocal minority? Honest question.
 
Foffy said:
People hack devices to get past imposed limitations offered by the system. This is one such example.

If people are motivated to hack their devices to do whatever they want with it, to get past such blockades, surely that such a principle applies to a section of the game library that could be presented as unplayable in the systems normal state, no?

But maybe those limitations are there for a reason.
 

zigg

Member
jrricky said:
Err, I'm sure there is no way to stop piracy (ATM) but I think this can help slow it down...

At the risk of summoning Clipper, I'm pretty sure there has been no instance in history where a region lock has actually deterred piracy. Cracking the region lock does typically have the side-effect of permitting infringing copies of games to be played, though, so...

The only legit reason I'm aware of to region-lock is ratings-related, but even that's iffy. The way I'd deal with that would be just to go ahead and lock out other regions if parental controls are enabled, but otherwise permit all games to be played.

Jonnyram said:
DSi Ware may have been good from a gaming perspective, but seriously, what kind of online store lists in only alphabetical order? That's begging for some "Aaaah! Good game" abuse.

Sure. And, yes, I'd say that's already happened. :lol Still, I dig the software.
 

SovanJedi

provides useful feedback
NTom64 said:
Nope.

Personally, I prefer a better sounding voice to a more realistic accent, which is why I imported the US versions of the first 3 games.

Oh well. It wasn't that bad in The Eternal Diva, I guess I'll live :lol

...you know I THOUGHT something was odd when I played Pandora's Box and heard Luke talk for the first time (I had played the US version of Curious Village) Why did they change it like that though? Both sound cheesy Cockney accents but at least the US one is softer and easier to listen to...
 
Jonnyram said:
Was DSi actually praised for anything?
if you don't have a DSi you missed out on one of the best DS game released last year (and perhaps THE best) which was a DSi ware title: Shantae Risky's Revenge.

i am surprised that anyone is surprised by this. that doesn't mean it isn't a shame, but it was foolish to expect differently (but it's totally cool to be confused by this and wish it was different).
 

RpgN

Junior Member
Oh man, it's true afterall :( This is a big blow in the face...what's the best thing to do? I don't know wether to get a 3DS from EU, import a Japanese one or not get one at all...This is so annoying. I want to be able to play from both regions.

I have always been against hacking, but I hope someone hacks the 3DS and do a lot of shit with it.
 

gerg

Member
Freezie KO said:
But is there any substantive evidence pointing that this is a "dumb move" that will hurt sales? Anything pointing out that this is as "stupid" as some posts are saying?

I think that the number of people willing to import games ahead of their regional release and/or import those titles that will not get released in their region is relatively small, yes.

There will undoubtedly be a bigger, but perhaps still relatively insignificant, number of people who will wish to buy games abroad.

Another way that this might affect sales if if this specifically and/or further encourages people to hack the device for legitimate reasons, unintentionally aiding piracy in the process.

But, personally, I don't buy the argument that a console being region-free is something of a standard which every console maker must upheld, so my frustration will always be mitigated by that.
 

Oxx

Member
Another reason for me to wait until 3DSlite. Not that Nintendo would back-down on region-locking, but to see which region gets the best library.
 

Foffy

Banned
Vinterbird said:
But maybe those limitations are there for a reason.

And personally, I don't care for the reason. If I bought a device, I should be able to play any game made for that device. I don't care if it's to prevent imported sales or anything; if I want to play a game, I should have the input myself if I actually want to or not. I shouldn't have some annoying barrier that prevents me from playing Game X because I have Version C of a device. I consider that to be a pretty fucking stupid situation in today's world.

I was fine with it in the 1990's because I was ignorant to all of the good games that would never come out of one region of the world. Now in 2011 I find it offensive that those kinds are barriers are still in place. I'm even moreso ticked by it as Nintendo is going the opposite route of Sony when it comes to this region stuff lately.
 

Vanille

Member
Polk said:
What made their handhelds so successful? Tetris, Mario, Zelda, Pokemon and other N franchises. All are released worldwide.

None of which would have been as succesful if the hardware wasn't so accessible.
 

Sword Familiar

178% of NeoGAF posters don't understand statistics
This seriously makes me reconsider my interest in this system. Still curious, but very disappointed.
 

swerve

Member
_Alkaline_ said:
My sarcasm meter must be broken today. I actually though this poster was serious for a sec. :lol

I love me some Yamauchi! I can only imagine that his increasing age has meant he has less time for slapping Iwata about when he invites him around for dinner.

Things like this affect the 'vibe' of a system. They affect the most dedicated users, who are usually singing the system's plus points from their rooftops.

Region locking is a slap in the face to those users. I spend around 6 months per year (average) in Japan. I'm supposed to just not buy games for that time?
 

RpgN

Junior Member
gerg said:
I think that the number of people willing to import games ahead of their regional release and/or import those titles that will not get released in their region is relatively small, yes.

There will undoubtedly be a bigger, but perhaps still relatively insignificant, number of people who will wish to buy games abroad.

Another way that this might affect sales if if this specifically and/or further encourages people to hack the device for legitimate reasons, unintentionally aiding piracy in the process.

But, personally, I don't buy the argument that a console being region-free is something of a standard which every console maker must upheld, so my frustration will always be mitigated by that.

You're talking about consoles but it's pretty much a standard with handhelds. And then the DSi came...
 
caligula13 said:
so, which are these games that got released in Europe but not in US and vice versa?

or do you all speak japanese?

Because bitching about a feature they won't ever use is more fun then not bitching (just like backwards compatibility)
 
BGBW said:
If Ouendan 3 becomes a reality I'll be sad, but for the most part I'm a UK only gamer.
i'd import a JP exclusive colour and Ouendan 3 if that happened. the only thing i'd be sad about is how much money i'm prepared to pay for that series.
 

zigg

Member
plagiarize said:
i'd import a JP exclusive colour and Ouendan 3 if that happened. the only thing i'd be sad about is how much money i'm prepared to pay for that series.

I think I have to agree with you; I love my Ouendan but that strikes me as borderline crazy. :lol

Though if there were a critical mass of import-friendly games I was interested in, I might do the same. Eventually.
 

gerg

Member
RpgN said:
You're talking about consoles but it's pretty much a standard with handhelds. And then the DSi came...

I know that this it was a standard for handheld systems to be region free.

However, that all platform makers support some arbitrary feature doesn't mean that consumers should have access to that feature, in my mind. "Should" is a strong word.
 

swerve

Member
plagiarize said:
i'd import a JP exclusive colour and Ouendan 3 if that happened. the only thing i'd be sad about is how much money i'm prepared to pay for that series.

I think we're best friends, yet never met.
 
caligula13 said:
so, which are these games that got released in Europe but not in US and vice versa?

or do you all speak japanese?

On DS? There was a very recent thread listing the US RPGs that came to the US, but not Europe. That's one example of many.

Not all Japanese-only games require a knowledge of Japanese language. Ignoring the fact that over the years I've played many RPGs in Japanese with no real issues, look at Ouendan. No Japanese knowledge required and so many non-importers bought and enjoyed it.
 

Keyouta

Junior Member
The fuck. I expected this though. I'm in Japan until June and really want to buy one here, but I'm going back to Canada after my exchange is over.

Feels bad man.
 
caligula13 said:
so, which are these games that got released in Europe but not in US and vice versa?

or do you all speak japanese?
For the DS, these are the games I've imported which are not released for the European market. There are also a bunch of other niche RPGs that I've been meaning to pick up.
The Dark Spire
Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime
Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard
Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City
Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey
Tony Hawk's American Sk8land​
 

swerve

Member
The number of great games on JP DSiWare massively outweighs the western DSi, right? So I have to start with a JP system, and get a UK system when I get bored of paying so much due to the exchange rate bitch that is the Yen.
 

zigg

Member
JustAnotherOtaku said:
Not all Japanese-only games require a knowledge of Japanese language. Ignoring the fact that over the years I've played many RPGs in Japanese with no real issues, look at Ouendan. No Japanese knowledge required and so many non-importers bought and enjoyed it.

That phenomenon led to Elite Beat Agents, too. I think it's safe to say EBA would never have happened, and Ouendan would have been quite a bit less popular, had the DS been locked.

swerve said:
The number of great games on JP DSiWare massively outweighs the western DSi, right? So I have to start with a JP system, and get a UK system when I get bored of paying so much due to the exchange rate bitch that is the Yen.

Does it? I got the impression most stuff eventually made it overseas, actually. Plus we had Aura-Aura Climber to ourselves in NA for the longest time :D
 
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