It means they're likely going to start exploiting disparate markets more aggressively.
No it doesn't, all it means is that games take upwards of 6 months (if they're ever "Localised") to be released over here even when they are already in English and we can't rectify someone not being arsed to release the game we want locally by buying import.
So you bought it early from another market. That meant one fewer sale in the local market, decreasing the value of the local market to the seller. They'd rather you buy it in the local market at the local market price than on the global market. Or, they wouldonlycater to the global market and ignore regionalization beyond the big two (English and Japanese).
When I bought it is of no consequence, there is the game, it's in English, I speak English, here's my £30, let's be playing some Golden Sun. If they honestly cared for me (or any PAL gamer) to buy it in my local area, they'd cater and release games day and date (or as close as humanly possible). It's not an impossible feat (even by Nintendo, Plenty of documented cases of them doing it with relative ease) and failure to do so is just laziness. Besides all this, if your talk is to believed, I might as well have bought a GBA Flash cart and downloaded the game as my and any other person's purchase of this or any other game didn't matter diddly-damn-squat.
In business? Most definitely.
And that's why we're in a recession. The economy can't move when money doesn't exchange hands and exchanges can only happen on mutual agreement.
And that's why we're in a recession. The economy can't move when money doesn't exchange hands and exchanges can only happen on mutual agreement.
Segmented media markets are so far removed from the root causes of the economic downturn as to be completely unrelated. The amounts of money "not exchanging hands" due to region locking effectively rounds down to zero compared to the amounts of money involved in the rest of the economy.
And that's why we're in a recession. The economy can't move when money doesn't exchange hands and exchanges can only happen on mutual agreement.
Segmented media markets are so far removed from the root causes of the economic downturn as to be completely unrelated. The amounts of money "not exchanging hands" due to region locking effectively rounds down to zero compared to the amounts of money involved in the rest of the economy.
Region Locking is a massive billboard marked "pirate this product". Hell, it's been all but advocated here and whilst it's not as bad as "One instance of Pirating this product is a lost sale" as many companies bemoan, it's still a sizable impact on the product.
It would be one thing if the products in question were just being delayed a half year, if every game released for the Nintendo DS was delayed half a year but it was guaranteed to get a PAL release, that would be one thing I would just about live with.
But it's the fact that some games are never released here, good games at that, that is the problem.
And maybe there's no solution to this problem but "Quit getting mad at video games" but dammit I'll be as mad as I can before I get my eye knocked out.
I wouldn't have thought that imports were significant enough to justify region locking in the first place, but I guess they are, or at least region locking is simply so trivial that it takes very little justification.
In any case, in the face of a region lock, your options are fairly simple: 1) Buy local hardware, and continue to complain ineffectually about how shafted your region gets 2) Import everything, including the hardware itself 3) Pirate
If they might shaft you for having imported hardware (e.g. screwing you in online features), then just go for number 3) and you're set.
Region Locking is a massive billboard marked "pirate this product". Hell, it's been all but advocated here and whilst it's not as bad as "One instance of Pirating this product is a lost sale" as many companies bemoan, it's still a sizable impact on the product.
It's a massive billboard, but it's hidden in a corner where comparatively few people actually see it. Quite simply, not enough people currently know or care how much they're getting shafted, and many who do aren't able or willing to take action (2) or 3) above).
Region Locking is a massive billboard marked "pirate this product".
For some, but not most! The majority of people who purchase these products do not have the wherewithal to perform such piracy! Yes, most of the people you know might, but thing broader to the really young, the really old, or the really dumb (and there are a lot of dumb people). Companies can either make a modest profit off of everybody, or leave you to your piracy and make maximum profit off of the rest. They're simply going to choose whichever comes out to be a higher stack of cash. The goal here is to swim around in a big fucking coin-filled bank vault like Scrooge McDuck at the end of the day, and you don't fit into that formula!
P.S. I almost had an aneurysm when my mind contemplated the thought "cause of recession = inability to purchase video games". If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college...
Why is it region-locked. Why?! I buy so many Japanese games at Bookoff!
According to a quick Google search, there isn't really a consensus as to whether or not it is region locked. Nintendo has not said anything either way.
I was actually wondering that myself. We've had this 3-page debate but I don't ever remember anything definitively stating it would be region locked. With Nintendo not having region-locked their handhelds in a while, I feel like they probably won't with this next one.
Okay. They way you guys were going at it, I assumed there was some sort of announcement about it. I looked it up and I couldn't find anything conclusive.
According to a quick Google search, there isn't really a consensus as to whether or not it is region locked.
The DSi is already region lock capable (Pokemon B/W are region locked on it.) so the 3DS is going to be region lock capable most likely. It's whether or not game makers choose to use it that's up for discussion.
I'm not sure how Nintendo's going to try fighting flashcarts or jailbreaks this time round. Hackers have been doing this kind of thing for years and Nintendo has a lot of catching up to do.
The short answer: the hackers will always be one step ahead, aside from some very brief moments where a platform is brand new.
While I agree that the 3DS will eventually be cracked, there are some rumours going around that suggest it will be *much* harder to do this time around.
Random quote from the nets:
"Illegal downloaders beware -- the new Nintendo 3DS is equipped to combat piracy. That's the word coming from THQ's executive VP of global publishing Ian Curran, according to the Computer and Video Games website.
Curran told CVG that the new anti-piracy technology equipped on the newest version of the system is hard to crack. “Nintendo believes that the all-new anti-piracy tech in 3DS will be foolproof to cracks from illegal downloaders, †said Curran. He adds that the technology is so highly advanced that isn't easy to describe. "
Given how long it took the PS3 to be hacked, there is a good chance the 3DS could enjoy many years of piracy free use.
Or it could get hacked to pieces within the first 6 months
Just don't rely *too* much in getting an R4 quickly this time.
I doubt that statement, considering where it's coming from. The number of people with an investment in having the 3DS cracked will make it pretty certain to be cracked ASAP. I'd expect something within the first two or three months at best and that's if Nintendo is lucky.
Also, saying this again, Nintendo is very late to the anti-piracy party.
They've been doing "anti-piracy" like everyone else. The only console that went uncracked for any length of time was the PS3. 360 anti-piracy only works if the pirates are stupid and play online. The PSP's a joke and high profile DS games take about a week to be be playable on flash cards. Nintendo's the oldest school hating pirates and tend to be the most litigious about it.
Well, time to switch it into verbose mode for the metaphorically challenged: Nintendo has lagged a long way behind effective anti-piracy solutions (Pretty much just Steam and Online Xbox games.) and will have it's work cut out for it given the sheer number of people interested in a piracy option.
With the recent announcements of having high priced games, an SD slot, region coding and relatively small game file sizes, the 3DS is beginning to look like the perfect storm of piracy.
I wonder if it will have enough power to emulate N64 games, or if anyone will have the expertise to do so. Maybe they'll do what they did with PSX on the PSP where they hacked the emulation code out of official PSN releases.
I wonder if it will have enough power to emulate N64 games, or if anyone will have the expertise to do so. Maybe they'll do what they did with PSX on the PSP where they hacked the emulation code out of official PSN releases.
I'm not sure about this, but I remember hearing that PSP has some kind of build in emulator for PSX games, so if 3DS doesn't have anything like that for N64 games that won't be so easy.
When you download the PSX games from the PSN, they come wrapped in the emulator so people worked out how to take the emulator out and put it around other games, or so I heard.
Well, it's going to be $250. I was going to pre-order one, but at that price I'm not so sure. The only game exclusive to 3DS that I'm looking at is Kid Icarus, and that probably isn't worth it.
Well, it's going to be $250. I was going to pre-order one, but at that price I'm not so sure. The only game exclusive to 3DS that I'm looking at is Kid Icarus, and that probably isn't worth it.
Comments
It would be one thing if the products in question were just being delayed a half year, if every game released for the Nintendo DS was delayed half a year but it was guaranteed to get a PAL release, that would be one thing I would just about live with.
But it's the fact that some games are never released here, good games at that, that is the problem.
And maybe there's no solution to this problem but "Quit getting mad at video games" but dammit I'll be as mad as I can before I get my eye knocked out.
In any case, in the face of a region lock, your options are fairly simple:
1) Buy local hardware, and continue to complain ineffectually about how shafted your region gets
2) Import everything, including the hardware itself
3) Pirate
If they might shaft you for having imported hardware (e.g. screwing you in online features), then just go for number 3) and you're set. It's a massive billboard, but it's hidden in a corner where comparatively few people actually see it. Quite simply, not enough people currently know or care how much they're getting shafted, and many who do aren't able or willing to take action (2) or 3) above).
P.S. I almost had an aneurysm when my mind contemplated the thought "cause of recession = inability to purchase video games". If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college...
I'm not sure how Nintendo's going to try fighting flashcarts or jailbreaks this time round. Hackers have been doing this kind of thing for years and Nintendo has a lot of catching up to do.
Random quote from the nets:
"Illegal downloaders beware -- the new Nintendo 3DS is equipped to combat piracy. That's the word coming from THQ's executive VP of global publishing Ian Curran, according to the Computer and Video Games website.
Curran told CVG that the new anti-piracy technology equipped on the newest version of the system is hard to crack. “Nintendo believes that the all-new anti-piracy tech in 3DS will be foolproof to cracks from illegal downloaders, †said Curran. He adds that the technology is so highly advanced that isn't easy to describe. "
Given how long it took the PS3 to be hacked, there is a good chance the 3DS could enjoy many years of piracy free use.
Or it could get hacked to pieces within the first 6 months
Just don't rely *too* much in getting an R4 quickly this time.
Also, saying this again, Nintendo is very late to the anti-piracy party.
Nintendo has lagged a long way behind effective anti-piracy solutions (Pretty much just Steam and Online Xbox games.) and will have it's work cut out for it given the sheer number of people interested in a piracy option.
I wonder if it will have enough power to emulate N64 games, or if anyone will have the expertise to do so. Maybe they'll do what they did with PSX on the PSP where they hacked the emulation code out of official PSN releases.
In other thoughts, I'm definitely holding off until Nintendo can show they're going to be stronger with the games.