Xenoblade Coming to America or April Is Reyn Time

[Drownball-Champ]

Woot! Xenoblade Chronicles is coming to the US. I've already found other methods to play the game, but still plan to buy it come April.

Announcement:
http://kotaku.com/5864496/xenoblade-chronicles-coming-to-north-america-from-an-unlikely-source
Trailer:
http://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/09LPao0thCWTobgndPH5UTuz4zsz63F4

[Kim]

I would have purchased this if it weren't for two things.

1. Gamestop exclusive. That just skeeves me out.

2. I already have the Europe version, and it's been so long since Nintendo first started denying any and all claims that the game would ever come to the US. I've stopped caring.

Xenoblade will fail miserably in the US, and I can't even motivate myself to care.

[Ryong]

Xenoblade will fail miserably in the US, and I can't even motivate myself to care.

This and then Nintendo will go "See, there really is no reason for these kinds of games to get localized." all over again.

[EVILNess]

I think Nonsy's point is that it's all pretty much their fault there is no fucks to be given. Not really her fault.

[phil_]

Seriously, we can ignore everything but "Gamestop exclusive" as to why this will do poorly. And that's by design, as has been stated. It just annoys me so much that I want to add my peas and carrots.

I might suck up my hatred of buying games from a store and buy this anyway, though. It's a pretty good game, right? 'S what I heard. Almost worth dealing with Gamestop?

[greed]

I'm a bit more optimistic what I've heard is that it is a very limited print which should sell out even given the terrible conditions it releases under. Like less than 10 000 copies. Nintendo is seriously lowballing this.

[Jagos]

I can't tell which is the worst move of Nintendo at this moment...

Supporting SOPA, the Wii U's focus on a "different crowd", this ultimate "FU" to the fans by giving the game no marketing push, or pushing gamers into other markets, leading the DS to atrocious sales figures.

[phil_]

Like less than 10 000 copies."We'd sure like to bring over every game, but, as you can see, Xenoblade only sold 10,000 copies in North America total. Compare that to the sales of more accessible titles like Mario Party 8, which sold 300,000 copies in its opening week, and you'll see why we can't just bring over every game."

[Kim]

the Wii U's focus on a "different crowd"

The Wii U isn't out yet and many of the games that *are* confirmed for it are third party titles with appeal to the "core gamer" demographic. The only case you have for it focusing on a "different crowd" is it's control method, which I think honestly has a lot more potential than the Wii ever did. Even if you don't agree on that, there's nothing about the Wii U that speaks to a "different crowd" any more than the Wii itself ever did.

this ultimate "FU" to the fans by giving the game no marketing pushHonestly, if they're only printing 10,000 copies for the first run, I gotta give them more credit than I was ever going to originally. The game's already been translated into English and given English voice acting in the PAL version. A very small release plus the fact that they're intentionally delaying that release to what is, as far as I know, a fairly empty sales slot next year shows a degree of forethought I'm not used to seeing from Nintendo. It's very possible for the game to sell out or almost completely sell out in those circumstances, and depending on how well the first run does they can always do a second one.

Yeah, they aren't going to market it worth a damn, but they never do. This is no more of an "ultimate FU" than any of the other fifty billion times they've failed to help market third party titles. Plus, given how dismissive the vast majority of core gamers have become of the Wii's third party releases, I can't really blame them for not wanting to market it. It is completely and entirely their fault things have reached this point with the Wii, but it's too late to change that.

What I'm ultimately saying is that their handling of this situation actually makes sense, which is honestly surprising as hell to me.

[Aldurin]

Man, I haven't heard of that game for quite a while. I would try to get it if the closest gamestop to me wasn't two hours away and part of a shopping mall, meaning they will probably sell out in a few hours if word gets out in that area.

I am just pissed off on how Nintendo regards most games that they're not directly associated with.

[Locke cole]

There's always pre-orders.

As for what crowd the Wii U markets to, I thought the entire mission statement was to draw back the "hardcore" crowd while still doing what they can to retain the less "extreme" gamers.

[Kim]

It's really hard to say. We won't get any real clear-cut info on where they want to go with it until E3, I think. I am largely holding off on having an opinion until then.

[Locke cole]

I see. I was just basing it on their rhetoric from the last E3, but you're right. We won't truly know for sure until we see more games.

[Magus]

Man, I am totally looking forward to getting a Wii years from now when I can determine whether or not it is worth purchasing at a yard sale for the dozen-odd games that were released for it that were worth playing. Chalking this right up there with Madworld and...uh...No More Heroes? on my list of Wii games to play some day maybe.

I mean, maybe I could get this on Wii U. If the Wii U is worth buying.

It's kind of like the opposite of how I felt about my Gamecube, which was a situation where I totally bought Nintendo's system and then waited impatiently for six or seven games worth a damn to play on it...Eternal Darkness kind of almost made it worthwhile, though, I guess. They should make another one of those.

[Ramary]

About the Wii U.

The thing I am always cautious about is marketing hype. One trick used by companies during the timeline of something big coming is advertise something that may not interest a certain group, say the "hardcores", to be the "thing that will bring our hardcore crowd back". Since for the most part the "casual" market will know basically nothing about it, it is only smart to advertise to say, us. That said at least Nintendo is advancing the industry with a new console and not stagnating with the same console since 2005 and no new successor announced.

On Xenoblade

The Gamestop exclusive thing is hilarious since Gamestop is basically notorious for hiding from sight the more niche titles. I suggest if you do want it, get directly from Nintendo, it will send them a stronger message since you are giving them more money buying it though them. But yeah, chances are this is gonna be another No More Heroes/Madworld/etc that just doesn't sell all that well, and the extreme limited copies is Nintendo looking at the history.

[Krylo]

That said at least Nintendo is advancing the industry with a new console and not stagnating with the same console since 2005 and no new successor announced.That's because there's really no reason to make a PS4 or 1080 or whatever. Or any real value in them doing so from a consumer point of view. The graphics on both are still pretty close to top of the line, they both have their alternate movement control things etc.

They wouldn't be able to produce anything better, gamewise, on a new system than they can with the old ones, and the consumers would, therefore, probably be a bit pissed at having to drop another 4-600 dollars on a new console if they want to play the next big game.

The Wii on the other hand, could definitely benefit from a graphical upgrade, at least. It's actually jarring to plug in a new Wii game after having played PS3/360/modern computer games. Mostly because of the word 'new' there.

[Locke cole]

To be honest, I'm more intereste in that new controller than in better graphics, because there are definitely some real possibilities, like that "four players fight aliens while one guy controls the alien mothership" thing that was shown at E3.

But I am excited for better graphics, mainly in terms of "maybe now some more third-party guys will port big-name titles to it."

[Ramary]

Admittedly my issue is more for "advancing the medium being hold back by outdated consoles" and less "I want to drop big moolas on a console". Many pure PC gamers are mad cause the current gen consoles are holding back PC games. My PC, for example, is so much more powerful then the consoles, but since every game is made for consoles, I will not see a game that actually pushes it besides say, Battlefield 3, and I have very little love for the modern warshootdempeoples games. At least Crysis had you play as a super human.

But yes, you are correct. There is no financial reason to bring out a new system at the moment for anyone but Nintendo, which started this generation as the extreme wildcard. I am just happy to see something new, and that it is better then the rest of the consoles on the market tech-wise.


EDIT: As Locke was saying, the controller is the interesting thing, but I am not really all that worried, because they done something like this before. Remember the Game Boy Advance connecting to the Gamecube? That is where they got their idea chances are, and Nintendo has a bit of a....reputation...for using old ideas in new ways.

[Kim]

The problem is that with Nintendo being the first out the gate with their new console, and their new console's power being "Catching Up with Everyone Else: The Nintendo Way," when Sony and MS release *their* new consoles, whenever that is, they'll completely control the third party Not-Shit library once again. What also has me concerned is that Nintendo has supposedly said that the Wii-U isn't necessarily meant to replace the Wii and that the two systems can work alongside one another. I'll give 'em to E3 to call backsies on that line, but if they actually mean it that doesn't say a lot in favor of the Wii-U.

[greed]

They said the same thing about the DS and the Gameboy, it's meaningless and not worth worrying about. It's possible they'll keep letting casual companies release games for the Wii with some bonus WiiU features maybe?

[Magus]

I just got a PS3 two weeks ago so as far as I'm concerned it can hang around for another five years or whatever.

Like the PS2 was seriously like a good 8 year console before it really petered out, I'd say we can get another three years out of this generation. I mean Final Fantasy XII didn't come out until what, 2007?

And really the Wii graphics-wise is just now catching up, just like the others caught up in the motion-control/casual-market, so it's not really pushing the envelope anywhere that I can see, it's all about even right now...even the Vita is primed to do that thing where you play the game on your controller, isn't it? (not interested in the Vita, really, but presumably if it does that that would be essentially the same as the Wii U's gamescreen-controller thingy)

[Locke cole]

Ah... the Vita's a handheld, dude.

I apologize if I'm missing something really obvious, but aren't all handhelds a controller that also contains the software for playing the game? I mean, it's not exactly a new thing for a handheld to do. You could say the same stuff about a Game Boy.

I mean, the point with the Wii U's thing is that you can move the display to the controller, while the console is still running the show.

And the other motion-controlly, perspective changing things it claims to be able to do (like making it into a sniper scope).

[Kim]

You will be able to play PS3 games shrunk down to Vita screen-size on your Vita, the last I heard. Which was like last week or something.

That's what he's talking about.

[Locke cole]

I see. Come to think of it, I'm guessing that not all the Wii U games will have that feature, since I'm betting that a good number of them are gonna rely on using both displays at once, but at least it's a feature of the console by itself.

I'm just rambling at this point, I suppose. I just kinda want them to show us more of the Wii U so I can see if any of my thoughts on the system turn out to happen.