Xenoblade and The Last Story in the US?

Going to preorder The Last Story whenever it's available on the PAL sites. Did a search on Game.co.uk and Zavvi and it doesn't look like it's available for preorder yet.
 
[quote name='uncle5555']
It might or might not be localized for the US market, due to the faith NOA has shown in Xenoblade (which is head and shoulders a better game than TLS from all accounts) [/QUOTE]

Out of curiosity, what are you basing that on? I kidna think I'll enjoy TLS more since it's a more traditional JRPG.
 
[quote name='Vinny']Out of curiosity, what are you basing that on? I kidna think I'll enjoy TLS more since it's a more traditional JRPG.[/QUOTE]

Just from people who've played the Japanese versions. They universally consider Xenoblade to be far superior. TLS is still supposed to be good though.
 
Pre-ordered. The guy who rang me up was so happy he danced. Apparently I'm only the 3rd or 4th person to reserve at that store since the announcement.
 
[quote name='Vinny']Out of curiosity, what are you basing that on? I kinda think I'll enjoy TLS more since it's a more traditional JRPG.[/QUOTE]

Sorry, I guess I should have used italics for part of my comment earlier. (on second viewing I did)

So lemme explain.... (and point out the keyword here)

It might or might not be localized for the US market, due to the faith NOA has shown in Xenoblade (which is head and shoulders a better game than TLS from all accounts)
Click to expand...
I was being slightly sarcastic when I said this, only because they've shown no faith in a very high quality title (hence the very limited release behind the Gamestop, after hours inside the dumpster to preorder it...:cool: or you can just order if from Nintendo online too if you like, if people even know they can buy stuff from them, which probably isn't very many), and with the general consensus that TLS is not as good (based on reviews and word of mouth) as DoK so kindly points out below.

[quote name='Dead of Knight']Just from people who've played the Japanese versions. They universally consider Xenoblade to be far superior. TLS is still supposed to be good though.[/QUOTE]

And sales prove this point as well, TLS's sales in Japan were far from stellar, but....

Now from what I've seen it actually looks pretty cool, but I'm far from the center of what the general populace likes (look at any of my mini-reviews in the PS3 section) I don't think Mistwalker has made a crap game, but I don't think people looking for a casual or new-style JRPG romp will enjoy it as much as Xenoblade. It is something new as far as presentation, but very old at it's core. (So I think you'll like it Vinny)

So don't let me dissuade anyone, I'm just pointing out what I think will happen based on the heat behind TLS and what the reviews while positive, won't be as glowing as they are for Xenoblade, and people shouldn't expect these three titles to be everything and more, then need to temper their expectations and know what they are getting for their money is all I'm saying.

[quote name='johnnypark']Pre-ordered. The guy who rang me up was so happy he danced. Apparently I'm only the 3rd or 4th person to reserve at that store since the announcement.[/QUOTE]

When I read your comment my first impression was "ouch..." my impression now is "man that sucks" my spidey-sense is telling me Nintendo is doing all it can to make sure this thing fails, can anyone tell me how well Gamestop is marketing this in store? Because if it is (like I said above) under the counter, or only if your in the know, then the chances of success are going to be slim especially if they are hoping social media and word of mouth will drive sales heavily.

My only concern is for those who have hope that TLS and Pandora's Tower will be US releases shouldn't bet the farm on it since the US release of Xenoblade seems to be not as supported as it needs to be to make it an unqualified success. I want it too succeed, but it just seems like Nintendo is setting it up for failure, which is no surprise (this is the way I see things) and that to me is a sad thing indeed, when people want something, demand it in fact, are ignored then thrown a bone, only after all this.

If Nintendo doesn't do online ads and some TV ads (which is very unlikely) word of mouth is going to be the only thing to help it (which given it's release history, (Ie. news only on gaming sites and then no major announcement any place where normal folks might know about it) seems to not lean toward helping much due to indifference and anger toward NOA about spurning its release to begin with)

I'm sure word of mouth will spur some sales, just not enough to justify releasing the other two especially when they aren't as high quality as Xenoblade and won't sell as much hampering a US release chance when the European sales won't be nearly as strong as they were for Xenoblade. (due to game quality not being as strong and more importantly people thinking a US release is immanent due to the delayed US release announcement by NOA)

I'd love to be proven wrong in this case and truly hope that I am, but I'm still importing it since I don't trust NOA enough to release it here, sadly enough. :cry:

It's a long winded explanation (with some help), but I hope that it answers your question.

Edit: Take my information on sales figures with a grain of salt, these two links say otherwise, so maybe TLS will do just as well sales wise as Xenoblade, we'll see I guess.

http://www.siliconera.com/2011/02/04/media-creates-words-of-wisdom-on-the-last-story/

http://www.siliconera.com/2011/01/23/heres-how-xenoblade-and-metroid-other-m-did-in-japan/

http://graphmag.wordpress.com/2011/...rope-but-what-about-xenoblade-sales-in-japan/
 
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Nintendo, though, has been doing that with *all* of its new IPs in North America. I don't know where it started, but the earliest one I can recall is Starfy. A great game in Japan that got no support in N.A. when it was released. Chibi-Robo never got any support, only to go the exclusive route with the DS sequel which was doomed to failure at Wal-mart. And then rather than go the new IP route, they gimped the Prince and made Kirby the star of Epic Yarn (which should have been Yoshi's game, if anything). Now you have Fortune Street... I haven't seen any ads or marketing, and they have no stores offering any incentives to get people to buy it. Not even sure Mario can save that one. I don't know why, but Nintendo has done a very poor job of introducing new IPs in N.A. for the past several years... It didn't begin with Wii.
 
[quote name='soonersfan60']Nintendo, though, has been doing that with *all* of its new IPs in North America. I don't know where it started, but the earliest one I can recall is Starfy. A great game in Japan that got no support in N.A. when it was released. Chibi-Robo never got any support, only to go the exclusive route with the DS sequel which was doomed to failure at Wal-mart. And then rather than go the new IP route, they gimped the Prince and made Kirby the star of Epic Yarn (which should have been Yoshi's game, if anything). Now you have Fortune Street... I haven't seen any ads or marketing, and they have no stores offering any incentives to get people to buy it. Not even sure Mario can save that one. I don't know why, but Nintendo has done a very poor job of introducing new IPs in N.A. for the past several years... It didn't begin with Wii.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, and they happened to release the first DS title which wasn't nearly as good as the GBA games were, which didn't help. I agree, Nintendo hasn't been kind to it's GC rookies, see the Pokemon offshoots as well as Custom Robo another game that died on the vine.

I agree and that's a thing I use as an example quite a lot their disdain for Epic Yarn, and shoehorning Kirby into the game.

You'll never hear me say that (and I've posted many times in the past to this point) so you're preaching to the choir on this point. Also as I've pointed out, they seem dependent on their trinity of titles Zelda, Mario and Pokemon to keep them afloat and only release other proven franchises when they know it will suit them to make a good profit or they can alter the title to include a known quantity (Ie. Kirby) to make sales happen.

Just look at Magical Star Sign if you need to see no support from Nintendo and the (no pun intended) Mother of them all...err...Mother.

For a company that prides itself on new experiences and playability they have no faith in many of their products (to either not release them outside of the US, or change them so much from their original concepts so they aren't even the same game) or they are so deluded they believe that if they slap their name on it, it will sell the game with no other effort needed. (which is a major misnomer they need to wise up too)
 
Those are all good points. Its as if Nintendo has no idea how to market new ir interesting IPs, so rather than try something they do nothing at all. Store-exclusive releases seem destined to fail because you can't advertise them as broadly. The internet will get them tens of thousands of sales at best, which is no good for a company that wanta million-sellers.
 
[quote name='uncle5555']Sorry, I guess I should have used italics for part of my comment earlier. (on second viewing I did)

So lemme explain.... (and point out the keyword here)

[/QUOTE]

I should be the one apologizing... because I quoted you wrong.:p What I meant to quote was why you think Xenoblade is better than TLS?

But regardless of sales, I think NoA will have to bring over TLS... simply because they have nothing else on the Wii next year (though I'm sure they'll whip up some half-assed crap).
 
I always vow to never go to Gamestop but every 6 months, something comes around that changes my mind. Day 1 for me, even if it is just going into the backlog. I want to support RPGs in NA
 
The Last Story is an easy sell...

"From the Creator of Final Fantasy comes...THE LAST STORY!"

Not only does it sell itself as a Final Fantasy clone, but also a parody.
 
[quote name='Vinny']I should be the one apologizing... because I quoted you wrong.:p What I meant to quote was why you think Xenoblade is better than TLS?

But regardless of sales, I think NoA will have to bring over TLS... simply because they have nothing else on the Wii next year (though I'm sure they'll whip up some half-assed crap).[/QUOTE]

Hey no big deal, I think DoK and myself covered it for you, I think Cao Pi posted a video with the first 10 minutes somewhere around here, so go check it out for yourself and make a decision based on that at the moment.

So glad you brought that up since I have links to Nintendo's offerings on all systems in 2012 (and yes the lists for Wii and DS are anemic to say the least in the US)

NOE release list
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-12-13-nintendo-dates-2012-3ds-wii-ds-software-line-up

NOA release list
http://press.nintendo.com/articles.jsp?id=32044


For those interested, but too lazy to click

US 2012 Wii lineup

2K Sports
MLB 2K12 - March 6

GameMill Entertainment
Country Dance™ Special Edition - Feb. 1

Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
Karaoke Joysound - Q1

Nintendo
Rhythm Heaven Fever - Feb. 13
PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond - Feb. 27
Mario Party 9 - March 11

Europe 2012 Wii lineup

Boom Street (Nintendo/Square Enix) - 6th January 2012
The Last Story (Nintendo) - 24th February 2012
Mario Party 9 (Nintendo) - March 2012
PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond (Nintendo) - March 2012
Winter Sports 2012 (PQube) - Q1 2012
We Sing Pop (Nordic Games Publishing AB) - Q1 2012
We Sing 80's (Nordic Games Publishing AB) - Q2 2012
La-Mulana (Nicalis) - Q1 2012
Pandora's Tower (Nintendo) - Q2 2012
Beat the Beat: Rhythm Paradise (Nintendo) - 2012

Not too much of a difference is there....**sigh**


[quote name='KingBroly']The Last Story is an easy sell...

"From the Creator of Final Fantasy comes...THE LAST STORY!"

Not only does it sell itself as a Final Fantasy clone, but also a parody.[/QUOTE]

But with all of the hate JRPG's get these days (which honestly baffles me where this loathing of Japanese developed games, RPG's specifically, originated at and has proliferated over the past few years) his name being attached too Blue Dragon or Lost Odyssey didn't drive sales as much as it should have (given his pedigree) Lost Odyssey drove 800k in sales Blue Dragon did the same at 800k (both worldwide) and TLS has sold similarly to Xenoblade (if the numbers are accurate) and come out to less than 200k in JPN.

Nintendo shouldn't expect huge numbers on these games, as I've said countless times, the release of these titles should be to engender goodwill to the fans to show them that they'll release the games they want and provide them with a quality product, without worrying about having a massive hit, even if it doesn't do more than just break even.
 
[quote name='uncle5555']
US 2012 Wii lineup

2K Sports
MLB 2K12 - March 6

GameMill Entertainment
Country Dance™ Special Edition - Feb. 1

Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
Karaoke Joysound - Q1

Nintendo
Rhythm Heaven Fever - Feb. 13
PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond - Feb. 27
Mario Party 9 - March 11
[/QUOTE]

Xenoblade should be added to the list.
 
[quote name='KingBroly']The Last Story is an easy sell...

"From the Creator of Final Fantasy comes...THE LAST STORY!"

Not only does it sell itself as a Final Fantasy clone, but also a parody.[/QUOTE]
While Sakaguchi's not involved with Final Fantasy anymore, I dunno if people can really trust the name brand right now after what's happened with XIII and XIV. The misinformed would simply go "Ew, no."

On a separate note, I threw together a video and blog entry to try pushing for a more widespread awareness about Xenoblade's release in North America, where to go pre-order it, what the situation is like and the possibility of getting The Last Story and Pandora's Tower here. Especially clarified some things like why GameStop may have exclusively selling it and that there's an alternative to them for those throwing a fit over it.
 
[quote name='blueweltall']God damn, Batman is in Xenoblade too?[/QUOTE]
I guess that's what's taking them an extra 7 months to localize it for America. :lol:
 
Cheapest shipping through Nintendo is $5. I might as well go to one of the 10 Gamestops surrounding me and preorder there. Seems like maybe that's the best way to encourage further imports such as this? Not sure.
 
[quote name='theflicker']Cheapest shipping through Nintendo is $5. I might as well go to one of the 10 Gamestops surrounding me and preorder there. Seems like maybe that's the best way to encourage further imports such as this? Not sure.[/QUOTE]
One of the challenges in getting games over here is convincing retailers to stock them. So yeah, it would certainly help more than ordering it from Nintendo.

Edit: I guess that's not really an issue with Gamestop though. The Best Buys and Walmarts of the world are the ones that need convincing.
 
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[quote name='Dead of Knight']I guess that's what's taking them an extra 7 months to localize it for America. :lol:[/QUOTE]

So this is how rumors get started
 
I had no clue about this game, but after I watched some gameplay footage online I was hooked. I normally don't preorder but with any game I am interested in on the Wii they seem to be printed in small runs. So I signed up with GS for a copy.
 
So, my Wii is ready, and I'm about to start. Do the battle voices convey important information, or will I miss nothing by playing in Japanese?
 
Not so much important information, but there is some humor. Personally I had it on Japanese for most of my playtime, but switched to English when I was doing some end-game stuff I skipped.
 
I did have a friend in the UK preorder Xenoblade (and Inazuma 11 DS) but didn't get around to modding my Wii to play imports until last week. Enjoying Xenoblade very much right now! 160 hours, Dead of Knight?! Talk about dedication! No qualms about the latter US release announcement...hey, I'm still playing it a few months early! :)

Now my friend will be preordering The Last Story for me. I wonder what other EU releases (Wii or DS) I should get my friend to order for me....any recommendations?
 
[quote name='Tsukento']While Sakaguchi's not involved with Final Fantasy anymore, I dunno if people can really trust the name brand right now after what's happened with XIII and XIV. The misinformed would simply go "Ew, no."[/QUOTE]

When you step out of gaming message boards there's this real world, and out there XIII prints money for Square. XIII-2 sold half a million in a few days in Japan, and they recently registered the domain name for XIII-3.

Back on topic though, I think it's a shame these two games weren't immediately localized, as this is when people start looking to pirate games.
 
I preordered Last Story from 365games.co.uk. While Zavvi did get me my Xenoblade, it took almost a month. Hopefully 365games can get Last Story to me slightly faster. I tried ordering from Shopto.net but I was having problems and they wouldn't let me order.

Panzerfaust, FF13-2 didn't exactly "print money" in Japan. It was by far the worst-selling mainline title at release since FF became popular (we're talking SNES-on).
 
Hm? I'm aware of that. I was responding to the notion that Sakuguchi shouldn't involve himself with the FF name because it would somehow sour the reception of his games. If FF is indeed trending downwards, it's still not at a point where he should be worried, since Square is still pulling great numbers. Mistwalker needs all the marketing it can get.
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']I preordered Last Story from 365games.co.uk. While Zavvi did get me my Xenoblade, it took almost a month. Hopefully 365games can get Last Story to me slightly faster. I tried ordering from Shopto.net but I was having problems and they wouldn't let me order.[/QUOTE]


My friend (pre)orders my games from Amazon UK and gets free shipping (pretty fast there). It's really cool to have a friend or two overseas.

Is Another Code: R worth checking out, by the way?
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']I preordered Last Story from 365games.co.uk. While Zavvi did get me my Xenoblade, it took almost a month. Hopefully 365games can get Last Story to me slightly faster. I tried ordering from Shopto.net but I was having problems and they wouldn't let me order.
[/QUOTE]

I just pre-ordered it from Zavvi a few minutes ago, won't be able to play it (Wii's back home in IL, I'm in ID for a job) so no biggie on the wait time, was going to get it from Amazon, Germany, until I saw the $9 price difference then I was like...um no. I'll wait, a bit longer. ;)


[quote name='Batcave Dweller']My friend (pre)orders my games from Amazon UK and gets free shipping (pretty fast there). It's really cool to have a friend or two overseas.

Is Another Code: R worth checking out, by the way?[/QUOTE]

I bought it, it's a visual novel type of game, point and click adv. type of thing, if that's your style I'd say go for it, check out Youtube for videos if your still not sure, it's one of the few ones that managed to bypass the US, in favor of Europe.

I also grabbed Captain Rainbow for the eventual translation patch coming down the pike from the team who did Fatal Frame on wii (I think they did anyway)
 
[quote name='uncle5555']I bought it, it's a visual novel type of game, point and click adv. type of thing, if that's your style I'd say go for it, check out Youtube for videos if your still not sure, it's one of the few ones that managed to bypass the US, in favor of Europe.[/QUOTE]


Already ordered two days ago. :) Yeah, the last such game I played was 999. Pretty fun.

I also grabbed Captain Rainbow for the eventual translation patch coming down the pike from the team who did Fatal Frame on wii (I think they did anyway)
Click to expand...


I did check out that Captain Rainbow translation progress thread...they have been at it for quite some time. Since I'm quite ignorant on how translation patches work, am I actually able to apply it if I'm only playing the game by booting the disc and using my SD card, not the USB HDD?
 
Well i just pre ordered the last story limited edition form 365gmaes.com.uk , anyone know ow their shipping usually is?
 
[quote name='johnmirra']Well i just pre ordered the last story limited edition form 365gmaes.com.uk , anyone know ow their shipping usually is?[/QUOTE]

I preordered from there as well, first time ordering from them. We'll see how it goes. According to GAF it may take a couple weeks, but it seems like they're more reliable than Zavvi. Shopto is supposed to be fastest but I had trouble ordering from them.
 
yeah, when i ordered xenoblade it took about ten days but i honestly cant remember who i ordered it from so if its anywhere near ten days ill be pleased.

[quote name='Dead of Knight']I preordered from there as well, first time ordering from them. We'll see how it goes. According to GAF it may take a couple weeks, but it seems like they're more reliable than Zavvi. Shopto is supposed to be fastest but I had trouble ordering from them.[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']Me too. Better than waiting several months or never for an unannounced US release.[/QUOTE]

exactly, i ordered the limited xenoblade and then sold the game only for more then i paid when i heard of the US version , ill do the same with this one if it eventually comes here
 
I went to Gamestop yesterday to pre-order Xenoblade

"Hi, I'd like to pre-order Xenoblade"
"360 or Playstation?"

Yup, it was that bad.

I'd love to play Last Story but the Wii is region locked. :( I can only hope for a NA release.
 
[quote name='TheLongshot']Wow, my GameStop had more clue than that...[/QUOTE]

my gamestop had no idea what i was talking about until they looked it up in their computer
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']Pandora's Tower PAL announced for April 13th. :whee:

Gonna be a great few months.[/QUOTE]

Once again, Josh strikes out because he doesn't have a PAL Wii. I hope Xenoblade does well so that I can play Last Story and Pandora's Tower
 
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