We have the Right to Buy Import Consoles and Games if We Want

[bobnickelson]

Ever hear of the difference between PAL and NTSC, bobnickelson?

Ever read my whole post ikarimaru?, i mentioned when i said the difference between video formats, i'm sure its possible to just have sort of a dual boot system in the software and have the system load up the correct video format based on system settings, i remeber some dreamcast games had a menu at the boot up of the game to choose which video format is needed

[T-2000]

i hate Pal , its slower, boarded, ntsc anytime..

[ExcruciationX]

What about Free Trade? That's bull$#@!! We should be able to buy, whatever the hell we feel like!

[Emulation_Chief]

Hello:

Okay, The companies have one point about power conversion and NTSC / PAL issues when comes from video games.

But now, that boundaries are gone. Power converters can be used to connect US/JAP equipment to EUR plugs; software can be twitch a little to match the TV screens.

Then, the question comes again: Why developers still uses region encoding for their video games? In case of Japan, national issues is probably the number one reason. You don't bother much about the language when playing an action game or a fighter or even shmup's. But on RPG's and other genres that requires lots of reading and listening are much more difficult to play, even with translated guides.

Altough Japan emerges as an electronics and computing giant during the 80's, their economical philosophy and strategic thinking is too unconventional and nationalistic for a global economy market. Most of their gaming list are in any of the three written languages and sell exclusively inside the country. Porting a game out from their homeland requires some scrutinity. Japanese tastes of video games aren't identical to European or American ones.

However, European tastes are somewhat similar to those of the Americans. You can count that on games like Fable and Halo on Xbox, which are very popular on America and Europe. I would like to see Crazy Frog Racer available here in USA.

If developers decide to bring a game on a global market, they work on three main versions of the same game to be distributed. That stratergy increase the operational cost. If the hardware manufacturer bring a region free console will solve two main problems of today's industry.

The first problem is the reduce of operational costs of creating and developing the games and the second, avoidinig delays in releasing them. To acquire this, developers also has to overcome to big obstacles. First, the language and second, cultural matters.

Apart from that, other factors like distance can overcome using technology, a big bandwidth network and lots of security encryptions to prevent hackers to catch their transmissions.

Let's hope in the future gaming companies can finally support importing and start a real revolution.

[ferds108]

Sony can release their games and systems wherever they want, whenever they want, but companies like lik sang should be able to to the same thing. Sony shouldn't have a problem with other companies doing what they have the right to do. If people want to import things, let them do it.

[Junior]

If only some game companies went ahead a started developing titles with the intention of making them available in all major languages, they'd set an example.

I believe if this strategy was adopted it would greatly increase sales on the long run because the vastly different games will appeal to a much greater (new) audience. If suddenly all the games from Japan were to be made available in America and Europe we'd suddenly find ourselfes amidst a video game boom unlike any we've seen before.

If this was done with every game (even if it was just practise among a few companies) the effort of translating them and converting them would get cheaper overtime, because it would become the new norm. They'd do all the math and calculations with the translation and conversion as factors in mind - right from the beginning, every time, standard procedure!

It's my dream alright. But still .. if some of them would do that, chances are the dream would become reality.

[3x3]

Lik sang rocks!
Bought my first Jap. psp there, and I'm from europe,
and I got a plug to take care of the voltage.
Sony are just a bunch of wankers.

? Some games don't even hit our coast ?

[Turn2]

I don't see a promblem with importing, and anyway, as far as the games their selves go, the Big Blue-Ray disc is supose to carry all regions and languages anyway or that is what they use as a selling point for Blue-Ray. So what is the difference besides whos pockets are getting lined?

[Manya47]

The voltage thing is a crock. Self switching transformers have been out for years and making the exact same console for everyone would reduce costs simply by running one production line. I still don't understand how you cannot save money by making one console for all.

I've got a jap xbox360 and have been happy with it so far, as a lot of games are region free (besides EA and Take2 games)

[R4mbo]

Everytime i start to like Sony again, they go and **** something up. Hope they loose some customers again, i dont gonna buy a ps3 (for the release date&price)