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[Omikaru]

Well, I guess my pie in the sky scenario is that Atlus USA gets an additional team of translators and programmers, bringing over Sega games as well.

I'm tired of all the western garbage downloadable game emails and Etrian Odyssey stuff anyway.

We can always dream. Sadly, I see it going the other way: Sega guts Atlus USA and absorbs whoever is left into the SoA bloat. Then when Persona 5 releases and doesn't sell 1m copies, Sega vows to never localise the series again.

 

[2+2=5]

Are we really sure this is a bad news?

GAF history in the making.

 

[casmith07]

RIP Atlus?

 

[IrishNinja]

Fact is recent Sega history isn't supporting your optimism either. If Yakuza is niche, ALL of Atlus games are niche. If they don't think Yakuza is worth bringing over, do I really need to finish that thought? It's not really that hard to understand some well founded concern, is it?

Again, look to Atlus USA, as their fate is what's going to tell this whole tale.

perhaps i'm responding to the extreme take by some on this with what is coming off as a polar reaction - that's honestly not my intent. by no means am i trying to be dismissive of such valid concerns, the crux of my argument again being

a) sega gets dismissed out-of-pocket by some elements on GAF despite taking many chances last gen and putting a decisively stronger creative output - developing & publishing - than any era post-dreamcast
b) i do not think the few alternatives named prior would've created a much rosier outcome

your point on Yakuza being niche is of course a valid one, i'm simply stating that Kenzan aside - a title which, super-meta-niche status notwithstanding, it would've taken some minimal effort to patch in trophies, localize & toss out here at a point when the install base for the PS3 wasn't strong, and all this before the aforementioned controversial elements of its content - we've had the bulk of the series brought over, with great reception to fan concerns for localization and the like.

PSP titles & 1/2 HD, i get. if 5 truly gets passed on & doesnt make it over here somehow, i'd absolutely concede this angle.

Sega is not in the same position as they were 5 years ago, they've been through major changes in that time including transitioning to being a mostly digital publisher and barely having a European publishing arm. We've seen their niche output dwindle to the point where they cannot even bring over Phantasy Star Online 2 in a timely manner - a digital F2P product which is incredibly popular in it's home market and is an established franchise in the west.

Atlus USA meanwhile is basically doing the exact same thing now that they were 5 years ago, localising niche products with realistic expectations and efficient print runs.

another great point, and again i can't for the life of me imagine why they're holding out on PSO 2 information/date. i think the Vita's a stretch but still think PS4 feels more likely...the ecosystem seems great for it, but it's still a hunch, granted.

however, i would like to reply to your bit about their efforts being largely digital: at some point, we've got to make peace with this. this saddens me too, as im still inclined to import physical copies of Way of the Samurai 4, Phoenix 5, Yakuza 1/2 HD but any pub that was gonna pick up Atlus' works, i have a hard time picturing physical releases in the coming years. if this is being used as a knock against Sega's current MO, i'd say you'd be hard pressed to pick another pub who would'ntve pushed likewise, personally.

Yup. I'm not sure where Irish's misplaced optimism is coming from considering the Sega that published Yakuza 2 on the worlds most successful console and the Sega "Sonic, Aliens, Total War, Football" of today are worlds apart.

PSO2 is the just no nonsense argument winner in this case. You can sing the niche tune about Yakuza and Valkyria, but not about PSO. Not to mention that Atlus could have made a success of Yakuza if they'd been given the reigns back in Kenzan and 3's days because they own and perfectly pitch to the base those games appeal to. Instead huge licensing costs and some weird backroom plays by Sega made them want to keep it all internal. Ironic now.

Atlus USA was/is a well managed bloat free outfit that made profit or at the very least money back on projects most other pubs deemed un-profitable. Same thing with XSEED. However, now when you introduce the bloat of a corporation like SEGA, they can no longer operate to that same level of autonomy and the end result is bad. Particularly because Sega has been setting a "we rarely translate these japanese games as much these days" precedent (alongside Square and Capcom of course).

these are more detailed/reasoned arguments, and warrant more of a reply - but looking back, simply taking a shot at your reductive logic back there alone was petty, and i shouldn'tve done it.

you & azure are both pointing to a model they put out after a particularly bad fiscal quarter, but looking at both recent acquisitions & niro's figure on their current worth, i don't think it's fair to say they're staying with just that. again, how does Mikku fit into it, for example? Nagoshi's team also keeps getting work, even on next gen systems.

to your 2nd paragraph: Sega at that point was doing a lot to reach out & see what IPs could work here, as well as polls/etc to test the water with older franchises. that window of 2008 or so doesn't seem like it was an optimal time for them to kick such efforts over to someone else, they were putting out a lotta things on a lotta formats. you just got done pointing out how much more active they were around this time.

to the final bit: this is where i think you're cherry picking. have they not done right by Relic? Creative Assembly? Sport Interactive? i used Konami prior because after the awful mess they did by Hudson, i think i'd rightly be terrified if any studio - much less such a beloved one - went their way. i'm not seeing where Sega has a precedent in recent years of acquiring teams/catalogs and just, as some fear here, cannibalizing them for pachinko machines alone. presumably, they were well aware of Atlus' tight profitability when making the buy, why is it so easy to assume they'd then gut that instead of simply publish some of it digitally?

 

[I'm new be nice]

The meltdowns...

This aint no FF13 on 360 shit, people are just concerned

 

[GeekyDad]

This aint no FF13 on 360 shit, people are just concerned

Concern is one thing, but people are jumping to all sorts of ridiculous and unfounded conclusions -- meltdowns.

I look at like this: the Atlus brand could have died altogether and its properties left doomed to limbo with no one having access to licensing them. No more Persona, no more EO, no more SMT, no more hee-ho. This was a gunshot victim in critical condition. They've now been pulled back from the brink, and instead of celebrating its recovery, people are already arguing over the inheritance.

 

[Brawly Likes to Brawl]

Every time I try to have positive thoughts about this I imagine a thread being made a year from now about some EO announcement we all got hyped for being revealed as some shitty pachislot game. All those GREE Bait 'n Switch threads have broken me.

 

[IrishNinja]

Why did it take so long for anarchy reign to come to the west?

man i totally forgot that game even came out until this post, that's...damn
still not sure who wanted that to happen, to be honest

I guess I'll never see a localization ever again.

pack it up SMT fans, it's been a good ride! even if we clearly peaked at Jack Bros

 

[luca1980]

This aint no FF13 on 360 shit, people are just concerned

of course. it's taking years for Altus announce persona 5 so people cannot be too concerned lol

 

[Pooya]

I am happy with this. Sega have proved that they can handle external devs like Creative Assembly and Sport Interactive and no doubt they will make the best out of Atlus.

if Atlus was putting out games EVERY year that move 600k+ each and growing ont like those two, sure. Atlus better sellers take quite a while to develop.

 

[R_thanatos]

I trully have no idea of what could happen in the future.

This could be the most awesome news ever , or it could be the start of a crazy train of despair that can't be stopped.

 

[I'm new be nice]

Concern is one thing, but people are jumping to all sorts of ridiculous and unfounded conclusions -- meltdowns.

I look at like this: the Atlus brand could have died altogether and its properties left doomed to limbo with no one having access to licensing them. No more Persona, no more EO, no more SMT, no more hee-ho. This was a gunshot victim in critical condition. They've now been pulled back from the brink, and instead of celebrating its recovery, people are already arguing over the inheritance.

I just mean this thread isn't filled with insanity. It feels like the fans of Atlus have a good head on their shoulders.

 

[atomsk]

I would imagine the contracts in place will allow SMT x FE to still come out in english.

I have no such hope for Devil Survivor 2: Break Code at this point though.

 

[Deleted member 13876]

No matter how you look at it, it is very unlikely things will stay the same.

For Europe, this could be a very good thing.

 

[dark_prinny]

This is terrifying. I really hope I'm wrong but this is not good.

We'll see.

 

[News Bot]

(3) maximize the value of acquired IPs by effectively deploying them in the Pachislot and Pachinko Machines segment, Amusement Machine Sales and Amusement Center Operations segments.

Who's up for Persona 5: Pachislot?

They released a Pachislot for Persona 3 quite a while ago...

 

[I'm new be nice]

of course. it's taking years for Altus announce persona 5 so people cannot be too concerned lol

I'm not sure what you mean by this.

I trully have no idea of what could happen in the future.

This could be the most awesome news ever , or it could be the start of a crazy train of despair that can't be stopped.

It's hard to imagine this being anything but detrimental in some form, unfortunately. Was there anything Atlus was doing that any of us were upset about? There really wasn't a single thing I would have wanted changed.

Even a bigger budget wasn't something I was too concerned about since they had the basics nailed so wonderfully.

 

[Pirabear]

Sigh.

So should I start learning Japanese now, or... ?

 

[RoninChaos]

Hopefully Sega doesn't take the approach with Atlus that it has with its own titles. And hopefully they don't have some douche in accounting who thinks the only way something like EO or Persona can be successful is by pushing 5 million units. Atlus has been doing fine because they keep their projections in check. Sega has a history of fuck ups.

 

[Just take it with you.]

Good to see it wasn't a first party.

Not sure what to think about this, though.

 

[Frodo]

Imagine all the people buying the Dreamcast 2 to play Persona 5!

 

[Razma1]

Zero faith in any SEGA branch so I can only hope for the best. Altus was a beast lets hope it continues.

 

[toddhunter]

It's hard to imagine this being anything but detrimental in some form, unfortunately. Was there anything Atlus was doing that any of us were upset about? There really wasn't a single thing I would have wanted changed.

As a PAL gamer I would raise a few choice comments about region locking. I don't see how this move is going to particularly help in that regard.

Will just have to see with the rest.

 

[YosemiteHam]

Guys, I'm so worried right now.

 

[Black Republican]

Only 4 pages?

Gaf iam dissapoint

 

[Coxy]

PSP titles & 1/2 HD, i get. if 5 truly gets passed on & doesnt make it over here somehow, i'd absolutely concede this angle.

What if it does come out but only because sony step in?

I admire your optimism but as a fan of sega's own JRPG IP I just cant share it, which of their JRPG brands do you think they've done a good job of managing worldwide? Shining Force? Dragon Force? Valkyria? 7th Dragon? Phantasy Star?

 

[Khrysler Jerikho]

Could anyone bring me up to speed at ArcSys and Sega Sammy relations post-GG and how it could affect future editions of P4A?

 

[Ravage]

Fuck...this is bad news for western fans who have more interest in Atlus output than just Persona.

 

[Chemo]

God damn it.

 

[Pureauthor]

Only 4 pages?

Gaf iam dissapoint

You missed the earlier thread.

 

[robo_qwop]

Curious: What does this mean for games like P4A? Seeing as how ArcSys and Sammy once had close relations (or were the same company? I'm not sure.) Could this bring about more franchise/crossover fighting games?

I sure hope so.

 

[Omikaru]

Could anyone bring me up to speed at ArcSys and Sega Sammy relations post-GG and how it could affect future editions of P4A?

I believe Sega are publishing Guilty Gear Xrd -sign- (the arcade version, at least), so I wouldn't worry about that at this point. Seems like they are still doing business together.

 

[GeekyDad]

...hopefully they don't have some douche in accounting who thinks the only way something like EO or Persona can be successful is by pushing 5 million units. ...

Does their support of Platinum suggest that?

 

[Kikujiro]

I just mean this thread isn't filled with insanity. It feels like the fans of Atlus have a good head on their shoulders.

If Sony or Nintendo bought Atlus I'm sure you would've seen a lot of insanity.

 

[Samurai_Heart]

This should work for expectation of Sega publishing/localising Atlus games ='

 

[I'm new be nice]

As a PAL gamer I would raise a few choice comments about region locking. I don't see how this move is going to particularly help in that regard.

Will just have to see with the rest.

Fair enough, though I was think more along the lines of the games themselves and less the distribution issues they've faced.

I never felt like there was more they could be doing, so it's hard for me to see how any good could come out of this.

Which is basically what everyone in this thread is saying except for a choice few.

 

[DSix]

I predict a management disaster. Sega can't even do justice to their own IPs. Give it about a year and major parts of Atlus are gonna get destroyed inside-out.

 

[DrROBschiz]

Not sure how i feel about this

 

[FACE]

got a skip in my step this morning. keep it coming guys!

Your avatar is perfect for this thread.

 

[I'm new be nice]

I predict a management disaster. Sega can't even do justice to their own IPs. Give it about a year and major parts of Atlus are gonna get destroyed inside-out.

Disaster is a strong word...

But I certainly don't expect things to be the same

 

[we.are.the.armada]

Maybe we'll see something good soon.

Bwqhahwahawhahaah!

 

[Baron_Calamity]

I can see a scenario where Altus is left alone by Sega to continue to grow. Sega knows what Altus is, just like they know what Relic and Creative Assembly were. The internal conflicts with Sega's ip won't spread to Altus. Sega is making smart purchases to build itself this generation. Yes Sega does dumb stuff with its own IPs that isn't Sonic (and some that is with Sonic) but the company as a whole isn't that stupid or they wouldn't still be around.

Besides, it could have been worse. It could have been Microsoft or EA who bought them.

 

[The Power Of Snap]

Good deal for Sega.

 

[Pie and Beans]

Okay, so we'll go from Yakuza 3's years in odd limbo as the starting point for when Sega began to get weird about localising things in and around 2009-10. This is Atlus USA output from that point:

Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor [NDS]
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey [NDS]
Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City [NDS]
Naruto Shippuden: Shinobi Rumble [NDS]
101-in-1 Sports Megamix [NDS]
Radiant Historia [NDS]
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2 [NDS]

Mahjong Cub3d [3DS]
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Overclocked [3DS]
Code of Princess [3DS]
Etrian Odyssey IV [3DS]
Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers [3DS]
Shin Megami Tensei IV [3DS]

Demon's Souls [PS3]
3D Dot Game Heroes [PS3]
Catherine [PS3/360]
The Cursed Crusade [PS3/360]
The King of Fighters XIII [PS3/360]
Game of Thrones [PS3/360]
Persona 4 Arena [PS3/360]
Dragon's Crown [PS3/VITA]

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona [PSP]
Persona 3 Portable [PSP]
Hexyz Force [PSP]
Metal Slug XX [PSP]
Knights in the Nightmare [PSP]
Persona 2: Innocent Sin [PSP]
Gungnir: Inferno of the Demon Lance and the War of Heroes [PSP]
Growlanser: Wayfarer of Time [PSP]

Persona 4: The Golden [VITA]

101-in-1 Party Megamix [WII]
Naruto Shippuden: Dragon Blade Chronicles [WII]
Trauma Team [WII]
101-in-1 Sports Party Megamix [WII]

Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga [360]
The Testament of Sherlock Holmes [360]
(Also a ton of XBLA/PSN stuff I can't be arsed combing through for unpaid work )

If you're a fan of japanese games, it'd be pretty hard not to worry really. How many of those would Sega have gone in on? What percentage?

The potential to see such a major player in niche software taken out through assimilation leaves the slightly smaller entities of NIS and XSEED to bare the brunt.

 

[Valnen]

Concern is one thing, but people are jumping to all sorts of ridiculous and unfounded conclusions -- meltdowns.

I look at like this: the Atlus brand could have died altogether and its properties left doomed to limbo with no one having access to licensing them. No more Persona, no more EO, no more SMT, no more hee-ho. This was a gunshot victim in critical condition. They've now been pulled back from the brink, and instead of celebrating its recovery, people are already arguing over the inheritance.

Are you not aware of Sega's idiocy?

 

[Volcynika]

I expect Jack Frost to be eventually added to Sonic Racing Transformed!

 

[Trojita]

Concern is one thing, but people are jumping to all sorts of ridiculous and unfounded conclusions -- meltdowns.

I look at like this: the Atlus brand could have died altogether and its properties left doomed to limbo with no one having access to licensing them. No more Persona, no more EO, no more SMT, no more hee-ho. This was a gunshot victim in critical condition. They've now been pulled back from the brink, and instead of celebrating its recovery, people are already arguing over the inheritance.

Conclusions based on what Sega Sammy has done in the past.

The Atlus brand was profitable. There was no way it was ever going to die. At worst Atlus would have been sold for less money.

 

[fatgamecat]

Hope this works out for Atlus, Devil Survivor is a good series and I hope they keep going with it.

 

[erpg]

I expect Jack Frost to be eventually added to Sonic Racing Transformed!

And it'll never appear on consoles (or Japan!).

 

[OccamsBlender]

Hmm...

...an Atlus-developed Valkyria Chronicles...

Tho if the Etrian Odyssey team did a sci-fi game like oh...Phantasy Star 1?

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh my gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawrd