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[CSX]

yeah but what percentage would do that?

less than 0.1% I guess. People like to play games in their own language

That's why p4a got region locked right? You were able to change the settings to Japanese text and voices no?
That combined with reverse importing for cheaper price is win win situation

 

[SMT]

citation needed

Let the man hate on Microsoft in peace. You hold your penis to pee [citation needed]*

 

[Eusis]

Why do companies restrict their devices? Initially I though it was rules that were imposed on the companies to do so for screening and censoring issues? but Sony did it! Why don't Nintendo and Microsoft follow suit?

In the case of Nintendo it's because they're possibly the game company most obsessed with playing it safe when it comes to any potential for trouble, at least when it comes to players getting lost in games and whether anyone may find an excuse to sue them. In this case many areas are requiring rating controls to be built in, and while Sony and Microsoft's approach has been to put it in but you sorta have to figure out what you want to do with other regions, Nintendo's is to ONLY allow the one region's ratings and everything else won't work.

I don't doubt profit's part of it, but Nintendo has shown such an obsession with playing it safe and disregarding alternatives that when they say that's why I can honestly believe that from them it's a BIG reason at a minimum.

The common argument is that we should embrace region locking because it protects small publishers and their profits.

Of course this argument only makes sense from regions that actually get those games. For the rest of us, the threat of not getting more games instead of not getting games is somewhat empty.

Yeah, in fact I think this only specifically applies to England and to a lesser extent the rest of Western Europe. Outside of those areas it seems to be irrelevant: either they barely exist there, or in the case of North America we A. have a language barrier when importing from Japan, B. almost always get any games that'd hit Europe (the big three RPG/RPG-esque Nintendo games being the big recent exception), and C. almost always get games at the cheapest anyway. For us importing should rarely actually be an issue for domestic release, though the inverse could be a problem at times as a result.

 

[wizzbang]

You do realize if you can't necessarily afford something where you live, that you don't need to then illegally pirate it, correct?

You just can't expect global parity in prices you know. Though I agree on a comparative basis Australia has some of the highest costs for video gaming. But then other things are cheaper there that are not in other countries.

I'm not saying what I did was right, regardless it became easier and cheaper to simply buy a console and buy games on online stores than to research all kinds of stupid hacks, tricks and stuff, risking bans and so on - just to play games cheaply.

I admit I make more money now too, but ultimately region locking is shit. I shouldnt' need to pay $110 per game.
Also exceedingly few things here are cheaper than in other countries, furthermore digital downloads cost more too. Don't even start this argument with an Australian infact, don't even begin it.

 

[jryi]

I thought XB1 was region free?

Wasn't this one of those really squishy statements, that could be interpreted in at least two ways? The phrasing was something along the lines of "you can play your Xbox games regardless of the country you are in", which everyone read as "it's region free!!!"

I actually saw this as a counter to the earlier announcement that Xbox would only work in the 21 countries where it was to be sold. And due to always online the console would in fact not work outside those countries.

What I mean to ask is: has Microsoft made it unequivocally clear that there will be no region locking in Xbox One games?

 

[web01]

Imagine if the PS3 was region locked we may have never got Demon Souls in the west and Dark Souls thus also would have never been made. Atlas decided to publish off the hype built from importers.

Also we would never have gotten Elite Beat Agents if it wasn't for people importing Ouedan.

Plenty of other examples of stuff like this also.

Region locking in 2013 is a complete disgrace just an example of how backwards and insulated from the outside Nintendo became after the success of the Wii made them arrogant. Sadly they still haven't come to their senses.

 

[Hamster Plugin]

What I mean to ask is: has Microsoft made it unequivocally clear that there will be no region locking in Xbox One games?

Yes, they have. They had region locking but then removed it along with the used game DRM.


http://news.xbox.com/2013/06/update

Xbox One games will be playable on any Xbox One console -- there will be no regional restrictions.

 

[Squire]

Money-grubbing penny-pinchers need to know exactly how many copies of Mario 17 were sold in each region.