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[Nuclear Muffin]

http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interview.html#/how-nintendo-3ds-made/3/0

From the Nintendogs + Cats Iwata Asks. I figured that this deserved its own thread since it'll be of significant interest to us who plan to import a 3DS!

Miyamoto: When a father goes to Tokyo on a business trip, his child can give him his or her Nintendo 3DS system. You can even do that overseas this time.

Konno: Right. Last time, Japan's Tag Mode only worked in Japan, and America and Europe were compatible, but this time we plan for StreetPass to be universal worldwide. So if you go to America, Americans' Mii characters and their puppies will come to play!

Iwata: Whoa! You can brag about your pet on a worldwide scale!

Konno: Absolutely! (laughs)

Great news! (though it's a bit of a kick in the balls considering that the games themselves are region locked...)

 

[Majine]

(though it's a bit of a kick in the balls considering that the games themselves are region locked...)

Iwata: (Laughs)

 

[Jonnyram]

They are only talking about Nintendogs+cats.
It will still be decided on a per-game basis.

 

[Nuclear Muffin]

They are only talking about Nintendogs+cats.
It will still be decided on a per-game basis.

Streetpass is independent of the game itself. If it's region free for Nintendogs, its region free for everything.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

I was thinking region lock was still kinda per game depending on the ratings too

meh I guess its cool if you imported from other regions and want to use the feature locally

 

[Jonnyram]

Streetpass is independent of the game itself. If it's region free for Nintendogs, its region free for everything.

No it's not!
You've still got to have code related to the game.
e.g. if I want to swap treasure maps in DQ9, there must be code uploaded to the street pass part of the OS that tells the 3DS to swap maps with people. If that code is tied to regions, via language or some other variable, it's not going to work overseas. Maybe DQ9 was a bad example, as its tag mode worked worldwide anyway.

 

[Nuclear Muffin]

No it's not!
You've still got to have code related to the game.
e.g. if I want to swap treasure maps in DQ9, there must be code uploaded to the street pass part of the OS that tells the 3DS to swap maps with people. If that code is tied to regions, via language or some other variable, it's not going to work overseas. Maybe DQ9 was a bad example, as its tag mode worked worldwide anyway.

Well, they are talking about Streetpass separately from Nintendogs. Notice how they say "we plan for StreetPass to be universal worldwide" and then talk about Nintendogs' functions are worldwide as a result? It does seem that they want to have Streetpass being region free for the most part at least.

 

[Drkirby]

I wonder if this will carry over to all wireless. If a NA and EU version of Pokemon can trade with each other without going by proxy of the GTC, it would be a step in the right direction.

 

[Nuclear Muffin]

I wonder if this will carry over to all wireless. If a NA and EU version of Pokemon can trade with each other without going by proxy of the GTC, it would be a step in the right direction.

You can already do that over local wireless. All the DS and GBA pokemon games can do local multiplayer cross region. Very few GBA and DS games had region locked local multiplayer from my experience (Kirby Nightmare in Dreamland and Kirby & the Amazing Mirror immediately come to mind but most other games work)

 

[Cheesemeister]

Man, talk about completely missing the point. smh

 

[Drkirby]

You can already do that over local wireless. All the DS and GBA pokemon games can do local multiplayer cross region. Very few GBA and DS games had region locked local multiplayer from my experience (Kirby Nightmare in Dreamland and Kirby & the Amazing Mirror immediately come to mind but most other games work)

Odd, I could of sworn things like the Advance Wars game also did not work, and that it was an issue still.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Smallest consolation prize ever?

 

[duckroll]

Well, they are talking about Streetpass separately from Nintendogs. Notice how they say "we plan for StreetPass to be universal worldwide" and then talk about Nintendogs' functions are worldwide as a result? It does seem that they want to have Streetpass being region free for the most part at least.

I'm pretty sure Jonnyram is right on the money here. The article is about Nintendogs+cats, and hence by extension the Streetpass comments are specifically about how that software uses it. Streetpass itself is just a function of the OS, so it isn't going to be regioned, but that doesn't mean that every game will support the same code. For games released worldwide at the same time by the same publisher, they will probably be compatible since it is easier now, but it doesn't mean that every game will be compatible.

 

[Nuclear Muffin]

I'm pretty sure Jonnyram is right on the money here. The article is about Nintendogs+cats, and hence by extension the Streetpass comments are specifically about how that software uses it. Streetpass itself is just a function of the OS, so it isn't going to be regioned, but that doesn't mean that every game will support the same code. For games released worldwide at the same time by the same publisher, they will probably be compatible since it is easier now, but it doesn't mean that every game will be compatible.

Well at the very least it places Streetpass into the same category as DS local wireless, since we know that the core function isn't going to be region locked.

Odd, I could of sworn things like the Advance Wars game also did not work, and that it was an issue still.

Sorry, I don't know about Advance Wars being region locked. The last game I remember it being an issue with is Kirby & the Amazing Mirror.

Pokemon definitely works though.

 

[duckroll]

Well at the very least it places Streetpass into the same category as DS local wireless, since we know that the core function isn't going to be region locked.

Right but that's the case with tag mode on the DS too. What is impressive here is that Konno is really serious about making the streetpass mode for this particular game something that works on a worldwide scale, so that's pretty new to the system.

 

[Starwolf_UK]

Are Mii parade (or whatever it was called) on the Wii reigon locked?

As for local multiplayer. I think it got better once online games became the norm (as the online is nearly always region free).

As for local multiplayer I seem to remember Metroid Prime Hunters First Hunt being imcompataible which was fun since the Club Nintendo Europe early DS was all US stuff and so you couldn't play Frist Hunt with firends who waited for launch. NoE seem to get good at that. The Miyamoto signing in 2003 was first 10 people in line got US copeis of Link to the Past/Four Swords which they would need to find fellow US players to actualy play Four Swords with...

That said, I can't see all of the 3DS swapping feautres being region free. You're probably not going to be reciving demos for games out of your region.

 

[farnham]

dont care bout street pass

its pretty much a useless feature unless you live in tokyo or new york

 

[mclem]

Sorry, I don't know about Advance Wars being region locked. The last game I remember it being an issue with is Kirby & the Amazing Mirror.

Pokemon definitely works though.

It's not strictly accurate to call it region-locking here, in that it's unlikely the restrictions came in deliberately. Instead, it's the case that as tweaks and bugfixes go in to the codebase after one release, it can break multiplayer; either through the communication protocol changing between the releases, or subtle differences meaning that a small AI change would behave differently on one system than another.

 

[frankie_baby]

dont care bout street pass

its pretty much a useless feature unless you live in tokyo or new york

with the extra incentives to taking your 3ds out I can see it being useful in pretty much any town

 

[Mael]

Are Mii parade (or whatever it was called) on the Wii reigon locked

I'm pretty sure that's not the case or there's a number of Mii I have trouble seeing why they appear in my parade...

 

[Why would you do that?]

I'm glad that the StreetPass is region free. Now I can walk around in int'l airports and get people from random regions!

As for the region lock, I actually believe that the only reason why Nintendo region-locked the 3DS is because of parental control stuff. I guess they don't want to have that liability, when a game is rated something different in one region than it is in another. Quite a few games are like that.

 

[BowieZ]

Slightly off topic and maybe a stupid question: do the dogs/cats physically age, from puppies/kittens?

 

[Starwolf_UK]

As for the region lock, I actually believe that the only reason why Nintendo region-locked the 3DS is because of parental control stuff. I guess they don't want to have that liability, when a game is rated something different in one region than it is in another. Quite a few games are like that.

Thats the only reason they've said (I know David Yarnton in the UK said it but given Nintendo UK are practially bottom feeder sin the decision making/informaiotn part...).

I wonder. Is there anything legal stopping the following solution: having multiple rating systems in the parental controls (with imorts set to off by default) with a disdclaimer saying that parents understand that due to cultural differecences rating can vary between regions, please understand these and select appropiately. Or even setting parental controls a game-by-game parental option (that would be an interesting one to see). I could see some parents keen on the latter actually (as in limit their time with Mario but not an edutainment title).

Thenm again even without the age ratings I guess we get down to retail and retailers buying stock from other regions becuase its cheaper or out sooner which annoys official distributors.

 

[Chorazin]

Slightly off topic and maybe a stupid question: do the dogs/cats physically age, from puppies/kittens?

They didn't in the last game, so I doubt they will in this game.

I wish they'd release more info about all the dog and cat breeds in the game. I want a smooshed face Persian cat SO BAD!!!!

 

[Ronabo]

They didn't in the last game, so I doubt they will in this game.

I wish they'd release more info about all the dog and cat breeds in the game. I want a smooshed face Persian cat SO BAD!!!!

:lol

That how I feel about cats and dogs. Love the smooshed face cats/dogs.

 

[I NEED SCISSORS]

Iwata gets so excited at such simple things. I imagine him like a Japanese Texan prospector.

 

[Why would you do that?]

I wonder. Is there anything legal stopping the following solution: having multiple rating systems in the parental controls (with imorts set to off by default) with a disdclaimer saying that parents understand that due to cultural differecences rating can vary between regions, please understand these and select appropiately. Or even setting parental controls a game-by-game parental option (that would be an interesting one to see). I could see some parents keen on the latter actually (as in limit their time with Mario but not an edutainment title).

If I were Nintendo, I would make the parental controls simple and easy, so that you can't play out-of-region games at all, unless the console is unlocked, no matter what its age rating is. Most kids don't import anything anyway. (Well, in High School, I knew a few kids with Ouendan and/or Jump Super/Ultimate Stars, but 1, that's pretty much a minority, and 2, their consoles wouldn't be locked anyway.)