Xenoblade Chronicles - Operation Rainfall Collectors Edition Box $10

Operation Rainfall is raising money to hopefully localize Pandora's Tower in the US as they have managed with Xenoblade and Last Story. A $10 donation nets you a collectors edition box to keep the three games in - HMV and some other UK retailers sold these as a limited edition preorder and they're fetching nice sums on eBay so it's not a bad deal. Plus there's the chance PT will be localized and if there's one thing that the Wii needs it's more first class third party titles.

Anyway long story short, Operation Rainfall collectors edition box for $10

http://operationrainfall.com/help-pitch-pandoras-tower-to-publishers/
 
Sounds kind of shady. If they don't get enough donation your out $10. At least through Kickstarter if not enought money is raised you get your money back.
 
[quote name='SMBScooby']Sounds kind of shady. If they don't get enough donation your out $10. At least through Kickstarter if not enought money is raised you get your money back.[/QUOTE]

Meh. It's a donation. By definition, you shouldn't really be expecting to get it back either way.

In for 1. Thanks OP
 
I like the idea but I'm not sure about donating. They seem to suggest that they had some financial involvement in the current titles targeted with Op. Rainfall being localized in North America. While I'm sure the movement itself had an effect that resulted both Xenoblade and The Last Story coming over I don't think they submitted funds to make that happen.

Not only that, but Xenoblade has seen release and now The Last Story is heading up in June. I'll wait a bit and see if the trifecta is completed with a Pandora's Tower announcement. Seems likely especially since they [Nintendo/XSeed] aren't really having to localize the games for our market, they're keeping things like the voice overs as they were in the European versions so a straight up release of Pandora's Tower I'm expecting as well.
 
I can't help but think that this is a bad idea. A group of people who are in no way affiliated with any developers or publishers really have no say in whether or not a game gets localized no matter how much money they raise.
 
Just to clarify, the box you will get is NOT the same one HMV distributed - ie, it's not an official box. From the OR page:

The case is made of high quality glossy paperboard, featuring a black background with the Operation Rainfall raindrop logo and the words “The Operation Rainfall Collection” embossed on the sides.

I just wanted to point this out, after I read the OP I was under the impression you would get the same box offered in the UK.
 
So they are mailing the games to the publishers like they don't have access to them? I dont understand and want no part in this. I'll just pick up my preordered Last Story the day it comes out like I did Xeno. I think the better idea would be to do the same of what was done in the past and have the company kick start it for localizing.
 
I read their page twice and I still don't get how it works. Do you get a case regardless of what happens, or only if it reaches $600 OR only if the game is picked up by a publisher?

This whole thing seems very iffy. I'm still wary of this kickstarter craze but at the very least with KS you know it's going straight to the project... this is going to a glorified letter-writing committee who want to hype a project.
 
[quote name='UnrealZero']So they are mailing the games to the publishers like they don't have access to them? I dont understand and want no part in this. I'll just pick up my preordered Last Story the day it comes out like I did Xeno. I think the better idea would be to do the same of what was done in the past and have the company kick start it for localizing.[/QUOTE]

It doesn't even need to be localized. NoE already did that. It just needs to be published.
 
Sorry, but this is ridiculous. While I agree that the attention they brought to the games probably helped in some small way to convince Nintendo, Gamestop and Xseed to make the decision to publish two of the three here, the game media played a huge role as well in making consumers aware of the games and Operation Rainfall. The fact that Americans ordered so many copies of the first game from Europe was probably more than enough evidence for Gamestop to smell potential financial success with publishing the game in coordination with Nintendo. In fact, Nintendo probably delayed the release in response to the pressure from Operation Rainfall as Japanese business practices would have dictated that Nintendo couldn't cave in to pressure and had to wait until Operation Rainfall essentially backed down so they could save face.

I have a real issue with Operation Rainfall using trademarks they don't own to publish an unlicensed case and asking people to support their unnecessary advocacy effort. Does anyone really believe that the publishers they are targeting are not aware of the game and will be persuaded by a package from a small group of fans? The only information these companies are interested in is how many copies of the first two have sold and what the estimated sales of the third will be. This is just a ridiculous effort and I can't believe anyone is rushing to hand over money for this.
 
$10 gets you a box that holds three games, one of which might not even come out? That's funny. So if Pandora's Tower doesn't get a release, you have a box with a space missing, featuring the logo of a game that is not inside. I know, it's mostly a token prize of appreciation, but I still find it humorous.

So their goal is $600? That shouldn't be too difficult. I wish they had some indication of how much they've raised at any given moment. Transparency is important when it comes to these sorts of things.
 
[quote name='bojay1997']Sorry, but this is ridiculous. While I agree that the attention they brought to the games probably helped in some small way to convince Nintendo, Gamestop and Xseed to make the decision to publish two of the three here, the game media played a huge role as well in making consumers aware of the games and Operation Rainfall. The fact that Americans ordered so many copies of the first game from Europe was probably more than enough evidence for Gamestop to smell potential financial success with publishing the game in coordination with Nintendo. In fact, Nintendo probably delayed the release in response to the pressure from Operation Rainfall as Japanese business practices would have dictated that Nintendo couldn't cave in to pressure and had to wait until Operation Rainfall essentially backed down so they could save face.

I have a real issue with Operation Rainfall using trademarks they don't own to publish an unlicensed case and asking people to support their unnecessary advocacy effort. Does anyone really believe that the publishers they are targeting are not aware of the game and will be persuaded by a package from a small group of fans? The only information these companies are interested in is how many copies of the first two have sold and what the estimated sales of the third will be. This is just a ridiculous effort and I can't believe anyone is rushing to hand over money for this.[/QUOTE]

Spot on. Contrary to what OpR wants to think, they had little to nothing at all to do with 2 of those games being released here.
 
I'd buy this if it was available at local retailers like Gamestop or Best Buy. Kind of like as a pre-order bonus. I'd put $10 down to reserve Pandora's Tower and/or as an upgrade / collector's edition of Last Story.
 
How can their box use official logos that they don't own? Also doesn't sound like any of the money will go to the publisher.


If you want to make a difference put $5 preorder towards Last Story
 
I will donate if refunds are given in the event this does fail.


I'm sure Pandora will come out sometime this year here. If the game comes out later than expected, I hope these guys still ship the boxes because there will be a huge uproar.

it really does not make any sense why these people need to send a PAL copy to publishers. I would think there are dev copies that can be sent from the Japanese/European/etc branches to the American hqs so all the legal garbage credits can be added.
 
Wow this is disgusting, some morons trying to capitalize on the good graces of Nintendo to bring over the first two, which were only brought over in the first place because they did so well in Europe. Screw that, what on Earth would this money be put towards? I think we can all guess. Damn thing screams SCAM from a mile away.
 
Uh... what? They don't own the rights to any of this, and there's no way to track how they're using the funds. Cool concept, but incredibly sketchy.
 
[quote name='argyle']Just to clarify, the box you will get is NOT the same one HMV distributed - ie, it's not an official box. From the OR page:



I just wanted to point this out, after I read the OP I was under the impression you would get the same box offered in the UK.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for pointing that out. I wish it were an actual case & not a cardboard sleeve. I might donate because of the initiative the OR headed up, and I believe they did cause Ninty to think twice when they had "No current plans to bring these titles to America."
 
Yeah... This sounds more like a scam and not a deal. I'm not sure why anyone would donate to this cause. You're getting a fan made box that isn't sanctioned by anyone so there isn't really any collectors value.
 
Yeah please don't.. just go buy Xenoblade if you haven't already and pre-order/buy The Last Story to help get Pandora's Tower published in the US.

The things is they will get more money than they need, too many gullible people out there.
 
[quote name='bojay1997']Sorry, but this is ridiculous. While I agree that the attention they brought to the games probably helped in some small way to convince Nintendo, Gamestop and Xseed to make the decision to publish two of the three here, the game media played a huge role as well in making consumers aware of the games and Operation Rainfall. The fact that Americans ordered so many copies of the first game from Europe was probably more than enough evidence for Gamestop to smell potential financial success with publishing the game in coordination with Nintendo. In fact, Nintendo probably delayed the release in response to the pressure from Operation Rainfall as Japanese business practices would have dictated that Nintendo couldn't cave in to pressure and had to wait until Operation Rainfall essentially backed down so they could save face.

I have a real issue with Operation Rainfall using trademarks they don't own to publish an unlicensed case and asking people to support their unnecessary advocacy effort. Does anyone really believe that the publishers they are targeting are not aware of the game and will be persuaded by a package from a small group of fans? The only information these companies are interested in is how many copies of the first two have sold and what the estimated sales of the third will be. This is just a ridiculous effort and I can't believe anyone is rushing to hand over money for this.[/QUOTE]

Because the world is filled with suckers, apparently there are a few on CAG. Glad to see you're not one of them.
 
[quote name='renique46']Spot on. Contrary to what OpR wants to think, they had little to nothing at all to do with 2 of those games being released here.[/QUOTE]

lol what? OpR is one of the primary group that has been rallying to get these games over here.

seriously how is such a large group of gamers that exist here on this website unaware of this fact?

if i had 10 dollars i'd donate just because they really helped push these games to america and if i get a box great if not oh well. its called a donation people. there is no promise of a reward by very defintion of the word donation.
 
[quote name='kayne2000']lol what? OpR is one of the primary group that has been rallying to get these games over here.

seriously how is such a large group of gamers that exist here on this website unaware of this fact?

if i had 10 dollars i'd donate just because they really helped push these games to america and if i get a box great if not oh well. its called a donation people. there is no promise of a reward by very defintion of the word donation.[/QUOTE]

First of all, Operation Rainfall is just a small group of game fans, not a non-profit, so this is not a "donation", it's a request to subsidize some unnecessary work. Second, all of us are aware of what they claim to have done, but those of us who have been following things understand that the decision was made to bring these over here not because of their pressure, but because it was seen as profitable by Nintendo, Gamestop and Xseed, nothing more, nothing less. Finally, whether they have good intentions or not, their plan makes no sense, it's preaching to the choir and most importantly, the premium they are planning to offer is not authorized in any way by Nintendo or any other rights holder and is a form of copyright and trademark infringement. So, you'll forgive me if I don't support their fundraiser and excuse me if I work hard to try to convince others not to pay them for this absurd plan.
 
Nope. Renique is right. I'd be willing to grant that what they did might have influenced getting these games released, but there is no ACTUAL proof that what they did actually led to their localization. Maybe Gamestop planned to do this well before the fact. Maybe someone higher up in NOA played and loved the game. Maybe the great reviews for Xenoblade changed some people's minds in NOA. Who knows?

Speaking of who knows, how do we know that Atlus and Xseed haven't already tried to get the license from Nintendo for Pandora's Tower already? What would be the point of pitching in to buy them copies then?

I find the whole thing appalling. The box itself says that these games were "presented by Operation Rainfall" front and center and calls the games "The Rainfall Collection." Someone should tell these guys that they did not in fact, make these games nor did they incur the costs to print, distribute and stock them.

Instead of giving your money to these guys you should give them to the people who you know, are actually putting Xenoblade and Last Story on the shelves.

Edit: This whole donation thing. The idea that someone would donate money to convince a for profit corporation to make a specific product is absurd to me. A donation should have a cause. "Making this cool video game I want" is not a cause.
 
Uh, as much as I appreciate the Operation I won't be supporting this. Nintendo is well aware of the three games initially set forth, there's no way they don't. Secondly, I think it's funny how the Operation Rainfall logo is bigger than any of the individual game logos.
 
This reminds me of a recent episode of Tosh.O where he sells some of his crap on ebay, and he says proceeds will go to benefit the Daniel Tosh house, a place where Daniel lives.
 
Ridiculous, meaningless, and arrogant. It is literally impossible that any of the six publishers do not know of Pandora's Tower. The OpRainfall leader(s) have actively inspired my distrust and showcased some meaningful immaturity over their campaign. I believe Pandora's Tower is also rated the lowest of the three. At this point, Pandora's Tower will get its release if Xenoblade and The Last Story sell well enough, as those games are better and I would think anyone interested in Pandora's Tower is contained within the group that bought/will buy Xenoblade + The Last Story.
 
Yeah I've heard Pandora's Tower is the worst of the three. A mediocre game at best. Why bother? There are TONS of mediocre games that don't make it from Japan to America. Why does this one get special treatment? Because it's on Wii? yipee.
 
[quote name='argyle']Just to clarify, the box you will get is NOT the same one HMV distributed - ie, it's not an official box. From the OR page:

The case is made of high quality glossy paperboard, featuring a black background with the Operation Rainfall raindrop logo and the words “The Operation Rainfall Collection” embossed on the sides.

I just wanted to point this out, after I read the OP I was under the impression you would get the same box offered in the UK.[/QUOTE]


[quote name='twztid13']Thanks for pointing that out. I wish it were an actual case & not a cardboard sleeve. I might donate because of the initiative the OR headed up, and I believe they did cause Ninty to think twice when they had "No current plans to bring these titles to America."[/QUOTE]


FWIW, I have the official HMV box they are obviously modeling this one on, even to the point of using the image of it and photoshopping a raindrop over it, and the box is nothing to write home about. It's just a flat piece of paper that you fold up into a box. I mean it's okay to have as a free bonus but I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

If someone wants to donate for this cause and they think that in and of itself is worth it that is fine but I wouldn't pay just specifically for this box because if it's just like the HMV one you will probably disappointed.

[quote name='DQT']
Speaking of who knows, how do we know that Atlus and Xseed haven't already tried to get the license from Nintendo for Pandora's Tower already? What would be the point of pitching in to buy them copies then?
[/QUOTE]

[quote name='Charles.Surge']It is literally impossible that any of the six publishers do not know of Pandora's Tower. [/QUOTE]


I can't imagine that any company that meets their criteria of even being interested in this sort of game in the first place would not know about it. XSeed in particular is really good at communicating with their fans and somebody can probably just go over to their forum and ask them 'Hey guys, do you know about Pandora's Tower and if so do you have any plans for it?' and probably get an answer. I know they do play important games so I'm sure they have to be aware of it.
 
[quote name='Motoki']FWIW, I have the official HMV box they are obviously modeling this one on, even to the point of using the image of it and photoshopping a raindrop over it, and the box is nothing to write home about. It's just a flat piece of paper that you fold up into a box. I mean it's okay to have as a free bonus but I wouldn't go out of my way for it.[/QUOTE]

Oh don't get me wrong, I'm not paying $10 for a box period. And I agree w/ the others here who have stated that this whole thing sounds sketchy at best.

Someone else said it, but go buy Xenoblade and preorder/buy Last Story. Support the companies that are actually publishing these games in the US, and not these internet yahoos.
 
[quote name='Murderstorm']If you guys give me $10 I can make you a cardboard box with taped xenoblade and the last story pictures![/QUOTE]


Bought! :bouncy:
 
If you really want a box for holding all the 3 games, do yourself a favor guys. Get the one from HMV (ebay or something).
Original logos from Nintendo & from all the games not just makes it look official, but the color scheme is pretty decent too. Got mine today & loving it!
 
hmmmm this donation thing is making me wonder if people can start a kickstarter campaign to get games localized in certain areas. I mean we are resurrecting some old games from these kickstarters why not use it to bring over games that people have been wanting to play for years.
 
I, for one, think that without OR these games would have never seen the light of day in NA. Yes, Nintendo and Xseed had to see a profitable market for the games but who helped make that market visible? It was a very focused effort by OR and I applaud them for it. I think they made a real impact.

At the same time, I'm sad to see that money has come to play in all this. They should have left it as is, a well run fan effort to get some good Wii games to NA. Hopefully they'll come to their senses and call this nonsense off. They were doing great without it.
 
[quote name='exaznkid']hmmmm this donation thing is making me wonder if people can start a kickstarter campaign to get games localized in certain areas. I mean we are resurrecting some old games from these kickstarters why not use it to bring over games that people have been wanting to play for years.[/QUOTE]

I'll start it, Operation Acid Rainfall. I'll send a box of junk to various game companies that cost me nothing to produce.

If you donate $10 now, I'll email you some wallpapers that I found on google.

If you donate $20 now, I'll mail you a limited edition xeroxed copy of my ass box.

If you donate $30 now, I'll mail myself to your house and slap you across the face for being such an idiot.
 
[quote name='exaznkid']hmmmm this donation thing is making me wonder if people can start a kickstarter campaign to get games localized in certain areas. I mean we are resurrecting some old games from these kickstarters why not use it to bring over games that people have been wanting to play for years.[/QUOTE]

You can't run a Kickstarter for things you don't own, that's actually why these guys are doing Paypal instead. I dunno, maybe there's some indirect way to do it, maybe incorportate yourself as a publisher and then try to get it brought over via Kickstarter... not sure.
 
This whole thing is absolutely absurd. The idea of sending anonymous people money for a product based on ideas that they do not own is ridiculous enough. Factor in that you may or may not receive the product and that the "cause" it seeks to promote is an attempt to sway strictly business decisions made by others and it becomes even more ridiculous.

I would say that only the internet could make something like this happen but American culture has been doing this kind of thing for a long time. Look at the examples of sly individuals selling the Brooklyn Bridge from back in the day. A guy even bought it from Bugs Bunny in a cartoon released in 1949 (Bowery Bugs).

Absurd, absolutely absurd.
 
[quote name='ehorre01']I, for one, think that without OR these games would have never seen the light of day in NA. Yes, Nintendo and Xseed had to see a profitable market for the games but who helped make that market visible? It was a very focused effort by OR and I applaud them for it. I think they made a real impact.

At the same time, I'm sad to see that money has come to play in all this. They should have left it as is, a well run fan effort to get some good Wii games to NA. Hopefully they'll come to their senses and call this nonsense off. They were doing great without it.[/QUOTE]

I think we should wait and see here... lets see if they actually stop at these press kits or if they just keep going.
 
We were getting the games with or without OPR. Just because they "did" something and the games came over, they seem to take credit for it. Look at the sales for most games in japan that come over to the states. Most of those games sell way more than they do in japan. Its one thing if it was a niche game but these are Rpg games that people want to play and are in demand. Everyone will agree just go buy Xenoblades and The Last Story to show we do want these games and want more like it. If they see they are selling well and making profit, then they will bring them here. I am glad what OPR "did" but no way in hell I would donate money to them. I'd rather go buy another copy of xenoblade.
 
[quote name='Motoki']
I can't imagine that any company that meets their criteria of even being interested in this sort of game in the first place would not know about it. XSeed in particular is really good at communicating with their fans and somebody can probably just go over to their forum and ask them 'Hey guys, do you know about Pandora's Tower and if so do you have any plans for it?' and probably get an answer. I know they do play important games so I'm sure they have to be aware of it.[/QUOTE]

Yup. Atlus and Xseed are not obligated to tell their fans what games they've tried to vet. Given how in touch they are with this genre of game, you'd have to think people there talked about it internally.

Which brings up another point: If I worked at either of these publishers, chances are I could check with the accounting department and import these games, at which point it would be expensed as a cost of doing business.

So why would I, as a consumer be interested in buying these publishers free copies of Pandora's Tower again?
 
[quote name='KtMack23']Donated. At worst I'll be out $10, at best I'll have a very limited, very nice collectors item.[/QUOTE]

Theres nothing limited or collectible about a box that some dudes had made at Cafe Press or kinkos.
 
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