Great Japanese imports that require little to no knowledge of the language?

VanillaGorilla

VanillaGorilla

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I am looking for great Japanese only PS2 games that don't require a great understanding of the language, because, obviously, I can't read Japanese (katakana?) at all. I already have King of Colosseum 2, by the way. Anyone know of maybe, Japanese only RPG's that have fully translated script FAQ's or anything like that? I would really like to broaden my horizons.
 
If you don't care about the storyline too much, fighting games are always good.
I recommend the newer SNK offerings (but don't pay too much for KOF Neowave, its more or less an enhanced KOF 98) and The Rumble Fish.

In terms of RPGs, Square-Enix has re-released some of its bigger games (FFX, FFX-2, Kingdom Hearts) as "International" versions that retain all the English voice overs and usually have some extras not found in the US versions. The KH one is called "Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix" btw.

If you're into action games, I recommend "Project Altered Beast" from SEGA. Its a 3D sequel to the Genesis game and its pretty damn fun. Plus, ALL of the movie cutscenes are in English! The menus are in Nihongo but they're not too tough to navigate.

Also check out the SEGA Ages/Simple 2000 series. They're re-makes of arcade games and/or really simple games (for example: bowling, chess, breakout, etc) and you really don't need to read much to play.

Oh and music games (Taiko/DDR/etc.) are pretty import friendly.

I'm currently living in Japan and my language skills aren't too hot, but I was able to play through Kingdom Hearts 2 recently and I understood 85% of the story so I guess I'm getting better! Haha.

I bought SEGA Rally 2006 the other day but I haven't tried it out yet. I can post impressions later if anyone cares.
 
well using the translation guide, it is enough for most people to get through Tales of Rebirth. (Translate just about every line you will need.)

As for Altered Beast, it is probably far from a great game. It also got a PAL release so get that if you need the game in English.
 
I would also recommend some shooters such as Raiden III and the like but the problem with those are that they typically don't go on sale or see massive price drops due to the fact that most shooter fans will import them eventually at $50 to $70 a pop. Still, since most shooters don't have any plot, you can probably get away with it. The other problem is that, unless you're a huge fan of shooters, the fun is going to only last for a few hours, at most.

Another thing to consider would be the Taito collections that came out in Japan a few months ago. They are far better than the Taito Legends compilation that came out in the US and the menus are easy to navigate. Considering you get around 22 to 24 games per title, you tend to get a lot of bang for your buck (around $50). Overall, not too shabby.

A final alternative would be to check out the offerings from Europe. There are plenty of budget titles available there that are ports of decent to excellent PS2 games from Japan that have yet to be released (if ever), in the US. I've heard fantastic things about the Gunbird 1 & 2 compilation (should be around $20 to $30 over in Europe, if I recall), and I think they have a remake of Assault Suit Vulkan over there as well (should be around $20, also known as Cybernator for the SNES).
 
I finally decided to break down and buy ps2 imports, i went all out

Berserk-50
Altered Beast-36
Shinsengumi gunrouden-20
FU-UN BAKUMATSU-DEN- under 20
Initial D-38

BTW i picked up altered beast after gameboy mentioning it in an old thread :)
 
How much did those games cost BTW? I've been thinking about starting importing ever since I got Ouenden (for the DS). I can't really afford to go crazy with spending right now though.
 
[quote name='Kapwanil']
A final alternative would be to check out the offerings from Europe. There are plenty of budget titles available there that are ports of decent to excellent PS2 games from Japan that have yet to be released (if ever), in the US. I've heard fantastic things about the Gunbird 1 & 2 compilation (should be around $20 to $30 over in Europe, if I recall), and I think they have a remake of Assault Suit Vulkan over there as well (should be around $20, also known as Cybernator for the SNES).[/QUOTE]


Ive been wanting to get my hands on the new Assualt Suits game for a while now...

But wont there be problems with Euro games cos theyre PAL? Dont they run in black and white, and look all crappy on NTSC systems? You'd need a NTSC/PAL signal converter which runs $50 or more...
 
[quote name='Puffa469']But wont there be problems with Euro games cos theyre PAL? Dont they run in black and white, and look all crappy on NTSC systems? You'd need a NTSC/PAL signal converter which runs $50 or more...[/QUOTE]

That's the one obstacle I'm having with European imports. There are plenty of titles I want for reasonable prices (usually from eBay sellers with great shipping) but I'm concerned about the NTSC/PAL issues.

What strikes me as odd, though, is that my brother picked up the European release of Shenmue II from EB when they had it in (limited time offer back then, came with DC import player as well) and yet we haven't had any problems with that on our NTSC TVs. Then again, I'm not sure if that's just a fluke or not. There are too many odd factors there and I just grow confused.

If I ever test the waters (the Leynos title should go low enough for me to pick it up), I'll post a follow-up as to whether it works or not. I guess I'll just check prices on signal converters in the meantime, or send my friend in NJ out to the greatest junk sale in the world with that in mind.
 
[quote name='Weedy649']I finally decided to break down and buy ps2 imports, i went all out

Berserk-50
Altered Beast-36
Shinsengumi gunrouden-20
FU-UN BAKUMATSU-DEN- under 20
Initial D-38

BTW i picked up altered beast after gameboy mentioning it in an old thread :)

[/QUOTE]

50 for Beserk? Zow. Its kinda crazy.....I got my copy at Sofmap for 1280 yen (roughly $11) but the store across the street was still selling it for 6800 yen (about $65ish!). I haven't really gotten into it too much as I want to finish watching the anime first.

Let me know what you think of Altered Beast! Its not as stellar a game as it could be, but I dig it. Some of the less popular 3D Sega games (AKA: Blood Will Tell) were pretty fucking awesome IMO.

Oh btw, finally fired up SEGA Rally 2006 and its pretty badass. Its totally an arcade racer though. No multiplayer (BUH!?) kinda sucks, but its still funtastic. Plus I got a first print so it came with the original SEGA Rally for PS2 for free! :D
 
I did a little research this morning, and it seems that the Swapmagic discs that I use to play my Jap imports, will also convert the signal of most PAL games, making them playable on your NTSC PS2. In addition to that, Im reading that some PAL games, like Altered Beast for instance, have a 60hz (ntsc)/ 50hz (pal) option you can change, enabling play on a US console! So it looks like we may be okay to play most PAL games, as long as you can already play Jap games... Im gonna try to find a full list of compatible PAL games today...



[quote name='Kapwanil']That's the one obstacle I'm having with European imports. There are plenty of titles I want for reasonable prices (usually from eBay sellers with great shipping) but I'm concerned about the NTSC/PAL issues.

What strikes me as odd, though, is that my brother picked up the European release of Shenmue II from EB when they had it in (limited time offer back then, came with DC import player as well) and yet we haven't had any problems with that on our NTSC TVs. Then again, I'm not sure if that's just a fluke or not. There are too many odd factors there and I just grow confused.

If I ever test the waters (the Leynos title should go low enough for me to pick it up), I'll post a follow-up as to whether it works or not. I guess I'll just check prices on signal converters in the meantime, or send my friend in NJ out to the greatest junk sale in the world with that in mind.[/QUOTE]
 
I haven't gotten it yet, but I ordered a PS2 and some games from playasia. I've never played an import, so I'm really excited. I'll be getting Zwei !! and Ore No Ryouri. I did play Ore thanks to a Psone jampack many years ago. They had a demo of it, and I played it so much. I don't think it'd require much reading so I'd definitly reccommend it.

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-43-49-en-15-zwei-70-q82.html

Anyone played Zwei !! ? I hope I can somehow understand it, it was the graphics that drew me in, and it's a rougelike game, and I'm a sucker for those.

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-r-49-en-15-one%2Bchapara-70-xbm.html

I'm so getting this soon too. It was this game that finally convinced me to import. I was so pissed off! :bomb:

It's worth a shot in the dark: Is there ANY adventure/text game that is somehow in English?
 
[quote name='Supercake']
It's worth a shot in the dark: Is there ANY adventure/text game that is somehow in English?[/QUOTE]
Phoenix Wright on DS. Sadly they usually wont bother with any translation unless they are planning a US release.

As for game with selector to change between 50/60hz, just about every single PAL Dreamcast game has that option. Xbox games has that option if you modded your system. It is also easy to run a PAL gamcube game. However I am sure not every single PAL PS2 game has the option. For games that have that option, it will be easy to run it.

Personally I think Altered Beast isnt that great, and I can see why Sega didnt want to release it in the US.
 
The SNK port on PS2 should be popular with importers. Last Blade 2 in 1 has English option. (However if you set it to English there is no blood)
 
[quote name='flybrione']Can anyone recommend a swap disc for PS2 and can you use them on the new mini PS2?[/QUOTE]

Swapmagic 3.0 is all you need. It works on all ps2 models. The only thing you need to work out is how you will get the disc in and out of the tray, it may require a new case, or a slidetool, or a new lid for the slim ps2, or a special kind of a clip that goes on the slim ps2...


Man, I havent had to worry about pal/nysc conversion since I got a bunch of pal Ali G videotapes many years back... lol
 
Thought i would post the follow up to my short moments with the games so far

Berserk- Seems very fun

Altered Beast- returned to Hong Kong because they sent me the chinese version

Shinsengumi gunrouden- Seems very fun ^_^ like tenchu with samurai kind of

FU-UN BAKUMATSU-DEN- too slow paced for my liking so far =(

Initial D- pretty cool(but i dont play alot of racers to compare)
 
Beware of the whole PAL thing-- swap magic let's you convert some stuff, some games have an option for 60hz (Ntsc) but some games just won't convert for whatever reason. It's hit or miss.



As for imports-- shooters shooters shooters!!! not FPS, but real 2-d overhead or horizontal spaceship shooters! the genre is quietly kicking ass, but they never get released here.

check out DoDonPachi Daioujou, Raiden 3, Ibata, and all the other cool modern shooters at yes-asia. they are a bit pricey though.
 
I really want to get Berserk, but 60 is just too much. I got my jpn ps2 a week ago. So far, It's been just ok. I just blame myself for my game choices. Code Age Commanders seems like a decent game, but without being able to understand anything, I don't feel like playing. I didn't think this would be an issue for me, but that's ok. It was only 10, and I don't mind building a import collection.

Zwei !! is alright, I'm using a FAQ to beat it. Sadly, it's not similar to Diablo style as I hoped. There's no randomness, and it's not open ended. It's still fun, and I intend to finish. Pop'n Music is really good, and very soon I'll have the controller to play it properly. Till then, I haven't touched my ps2. Playasia got copies of Ore No Ryouri in, so I'll be getting that soon also.

I'm on the fence with this right now. I'm dissipointed that I can't enjoy the games as much as I thought I would. I need to put much more thought into what games I buy, and have low expectations.

My main goal was to get the Bemani games. So, if I end up just playing mostly Pop'n Music, that's ok. There's plenty of them. I think once I get Ore No Ryouri, I'll feel much better about this overall.
 
If money wasnt a concern, I'd import tons of games, but $60+ is alot to pay for one game, especially if the language barrier may prevent you from getting full enjoyment out of it. I'd love to grab all those great schmups, and fighting games, but its just too damn expensive! Im totally psyched tho that Bumpy Trot is coming to the US, I would have imported that one.
 
Eh, import prices can get expensive. The only time ive imported a game was for Berserk, and it was worth it.

Berserkgame.jpg
 
Beautiful...

When Bersek hits 30 bucks, it will be mine. I always wanted to play it, it's just too damn expensive at the moment.
 
[quote name='Gameboy415']Some of the less popular 3D Sega games (AKA: Blood Will Tell) were pretty fucking awesome IMO.
[/QUOTE]
Sweet, I just ordered that yesterday because it was cheap and looked kind of cool :)

EDIT: Whoever asked, yes, Swap Magic works for imports. Just don't ask/talk about the other use.
 
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