Indie/Limited/Obscure Physical Release Deals and Discussion Thread

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The Indie/Limited/Obscure Physical Release Thread
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Physical media may not be as popular as it was in years past, but that has not stopped it from finding success in more niche areas of the market. In fact, we're seeing so many physical releases, these days, that it has become difficult for even dedicated collectors to keep up with all of them. Many games, usually indie titles, are seeing releases with highly limited prints, regional exclusivity, retailer exclusivity or are simply appearing with little notification. The purpose of this thread is to identify, catalogue, discuss and post deals for these releases, in hopes of making information more accessible and supporting the medium.​
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FAQ

Q: tl;dr

A: There are probably games that were released physically that you don't know about. Find them here.

Q: What is the "master list"?

A: The master list is a catalogue of all the games that have been identified here that meet certain criteria that differentiates them from standard, mainstream releases. It offers information regarding regional exclusivity, retailer exclusivity, print quantities and more.

Q: What are the criteria? How do you decide which games make the list?

A: For the most part, these will be "smaller" titles that were originally released as digital-only but have been given a physical release. Some exceptions may apply, like if an indie game launches with a physical release, it will likely be listed. Another exception would see a larger title that was only released digitally, for whatever reason, get a limited physical release (example: if Limited Run Games did a print of Fatal Frame V.)

Generally if a game is, as the title says, indie, limited or obscure and has a physical release, you'll see in on the "master list."

Also, the game must be region-free or NTSC-U and in English (subtitles are valid).

Q: Region free or NTSC-U? Doesn't that mean the list is only valid for North American users?

A: This means that every game on the list will be playable on North American consoles, though a few games may have versions that are region-locked on a certain console (this will be noted). Most games are now region free, so if you aren't from the NTSC-U region, it's very likely that the game will work for you. Knowledge of which systems do and don't have region-locking should allow anyone to make use of this list.

Q: What about games for collectors who aren't in the NTSC-U (North American) region or own consoles that can play region-locked games?

A: There may be a separate tab for you guys down the line. One step at a time.

Pre-Orders/Upcoming Releases


Notable Publishers/Distributors

iam8bit

A retailer, located in California, that sells all sorts of limited edition video game merchandise. They occasionally publish physical, indie titles for the PS4.

Limited Run Games

Based in California, Limited Run Games is generally accepted as the company that started the modern trend of releasing physical games in limited quantities. Currently, they publish several games a month but have stated they intend to ramp down. Their games come with collectible, trading cards and are sometimes offered alongside soundtracks, collector's editions and other related merchandise. The two heads of the company are very active on different forums and regularly engage with the community. They currently publish games for the PS4, PS Vita, Nintendo Switch and occasionally the PC.

Play-Asia

Play-Asia is an established retailer located in Hong Kong. They are well known for offering a large variety of imported merchandise, including many games that have not seen western releases but have English subtitles. They've recently partnered with eastasiasoft to distribute exclusive and limited, physical releases. These games are often offered with collector's editions which are highly praised for their presentation, content and low prices.

Special Reserve Games

A company based in Texas, Special Reserve Games currently publishes games in limited quantities with no discernible schedule. Their games are frequently offered alongside collector's editions. They also collaborate with Limited Run Games to create variant covers for some of their titles, which are then sold via Limited Run Games' website. They currently publish for the PS4, PS Vita and PC.

Strictly Limited Games

Based in Germany, Strictly Limited Games seems to publish one title a month with varied but highly limited quantities. Collector's editions and soundtracks are sometimes offered alongside game releases. They've published games for the PS4 and PS Vita.

Super Rare Games

Located in London, these guys are relatively new to the limited game market. Similar to Limited Run Games, they include trading cards and stickers with their games. They publish only for the Nintendo Switch and intend to release one game a month.

 
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Damn, my Ruiner shipped!
Were you one of the early orders (first 500) and did your shipping confirm note anything about the artbook? Pretty sure I was i the first 250 to order but my notification just says the game being shipped. Also the weight suggests it's under 5 oz which seems way too light to include an artbook.

 
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Were you one of the early orders (first 500) and did your shipping confirm note anything about the artbook? Pretty sure I was i the first 250 to order but my notification just says the game being shipped. Also the weight suggests it's under 5 oz which seems way too light to include an artbook.
I was one of the first 120. Mine says .28 lbs. They haven't picked it up so that weight is what LRG entered for pickup. Probably used the same weight regardless if it had the book or not just to schedule it.
 
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Were you one of the early orders (first 500) and did your shipping confirm note anything about the artbook? Pretty sure I was i the first 250 to order but my notification just says the game being shipped. Also the weight suggests it's under 5 oz which seems way too light to include an artbook.
Maybe I'm reading into this too much, but my shipping confirmation has Ruiner listed twice. Perhaps that means one is the game and the other is the artbook?

 
I placed an order on May 23 and it still hasn't shipped, is PA's shipment time normally so slow? I feel like when I ordered in the past, they shipped pretty quickly. 

 
I placed an order on May 23 and it still hasn't shipped, is PA's shipment time normally so slow? I feel like when I ordered in the past, they shipped pretty quickly.
I have an order from the same day that still says packing. This does seem pretty slow for them.

 
Does the switch version offer anything new? Sticking with my vita copies otherwise.
No, just all on one cart it looks like. Plus the Vita LE copies have jumped in price and mine is new. So i can easily sell both games and make a decent profit even after I buy this collection on the Switch.

 
Doesn't the Vita version also have that htol#niq game on the cart too? Looks like you'd have to sacrifice that game if you ditch your Vita copy.

 
What was the deal with the Battle Princess Madelyn PS4 LRG physical copy at the $45 tier? Is KS the only way to get it, or will LRG offer it separately? It's listed as "limited" and currently has 1,562 backers, but I assume there's a nice round number of them available. Weirdly, I'm signed in but still don't see any way to back the game, even though only some of the tiers are marked as "reward no longer available."

 
What was the deal with the Battle Princess Madelyn PS4 LRG physical copy at the $45 tier? Is KS the only way to get it, or will LRG offer it separately? It's listed as "limited" and currently has 1,562 backers, but I assume there's a nice round number of them available. Weirdly, I'm signed in but still don't see any way to back the game, even though only some of the tiers are marked as "reward no longer available."
Thats the Kickstarter Edition pal.

LRG will offer it separately

 
What was the deal with the Battle Princess Madelyn PS4 LRG physical copy at the $45 tier? Is KS the only way to get it, or will LRG offer it separately? It's listed as "limited" and currently has 1,562 backers, but I assume there's a nice round number of them available. Weirdly, I'm signed in but still don't see any way to back the game, even though only some of the tiers are marked as "reward no longer available."
As stated, the KS version is just that, for KS backers. A developer like this who was lucky enough to kill their KS goals, isn't going to spend this much time and effort, to offer a physical game to KS backers only. You may have a few who just want a game made, and digital is fine, but for those who want to reach the most consumers possible, they always offer a standard retail version as well. But those are almost always different than the KS, as they want backers to get the most limited game, as a thank you. So KS normally has a variant cover exclusive, and retail is just that, a version specific to retail.

So long as BPM happens before the US Vita cart production ends, I'm pretty sure you'll see a physical option there as well(an NS option is just as likely).

 
PSA:

Play-Asia/EastAsiaSoft will be starting NS "Play Exclusive" titles starting on June 14 with a yet unnamed title. It will be $34.99 with free shipping, and limited to 3000 copies total. So just keep this title in mind this month, if your on a buying budget, like myself. LOL

 
As stated, the KS version is just that, for KS backers. A developer like this who was lucky enough to kill their KS goals, isn't going to spend this much time and effort, to offer a physical game to KS backers only. You may have a few who just want a game made, and digital is fine, but for those who want to reach the most consumers possible, they always offer a standard retail version as well. But those are almost always different than the KS, as they want backers to get the most limited game, as a thank you. So KS normally has a variant cover exclusive, and retail is just that, a version specific to retail.

So long as BPM happens before the US Vita cart production ends, I'm pretty sure you'll see a physical option there as well(an NS option is just as likely).
Cool, thanks.

The text no longer says Vita, even though they show a Vita logo. Surprisingly, they still say Wii U is a target platform.
 
Cool, thanks.

The text no longer says Vita, even though they show a Vita logo. Surprisingly, they still say Wii U is a target platform.
vita version was a stretch goal that was reached so there is a vita version coming

 
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Cool, thanks.

The text no longer says Vita, even though they show a Vita logo. Surprisingly, they still say Wii U is a target platform.
Yeah, even when this game was first announced, they seemed pretty set on a Wii U version. They still haven't cancelled it, but I really can't see the point in wasting the resources, but we'll see.

 
PSA:

Play-Asia/EastAsiaSoft will be starting NS "Play Exclusive" titles starting on June 14 with a yet unnamed title. It will be $34.99 with free shipping, and limited to 3000 copies total. So just keep this title in mind this month, if your on a buying budget, like myself. LOL
It's probably this game, set to release digitally on Thursday: http://eastasiasoft.com/index.php/8-news-blog/320-retro-shmup-iro-hero-blasts-off-on-nintendo-switch-june-7th

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXtdvFZHhs4

 
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Got Ruiner today in a box. My order number wasn't too far past 500 but got no book. Glad to have at least gotten a copy of the game. I guess there were not too many people weeded out due to ordering more copies than they were supposed to.

 
If anyone NEEDS either version of Ruiner, PM me.  My buddy needs to sell off both copies to fund some unexpected expenses that just hit him.

 
Anyone purchase from mega4superstore? Looking at a few of their cheap indie games.
I’ve bought a few PS4 games from them over the years (they were formally shop4america) and they’ve always arrived in mint condition in a reasonable amount of time considering the shipping is from U.K. to U.S.A. north east region.

If your local USPS branch happens to crush packages on ocassion like mine please keep in mind that the item left shop4megastore in brand new non-crushed mint condition. And somewhere along the line a shipping industry worker took their anger out on your game(s).

But I’m assuming you had a typo and meant to ask about shop4megastore dot com.
 
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https://twitter.com/playasia/status/1005072031745040384
I'm pissed. Bought the PS4 version not that long ago, but would rather have had a Switch version.. and not interested on double-dipping on this one. Why not release these both side by side, or at least let us know that hey there's a Switch version coming up? Unless they did and I just missed it somewhere..? Anyway, totally not buying any more of their PS4 releases.

 
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