Japan invited to Halo 3 Beta, will anyone RSVP?

by James Ransom-Wiley { Jan 29th 2007 at 2:45PM }

Siliconera reports that copies of Riot Act (a.k.a. Crackdown) will contain download codes for Halo 3 Beta, extending Microsoft's promotion to Japanese gamers. Peter Moore recently reiterated to IGN that Microsoft is "not going to back down" in its aggressive campaign to popularize the Xbox brand in Japan.

Including the download code inside Riot Act retail boxes is a friendly gesture, but it's not going to generate as many sales as the promotion will in North America or Europe, where Halo is a dominant franchise; and FPS in general, a leading genre. Still, Moore insists that the beta promotion isn't about boosting Crackdown's exposure, but rather, is simply an opportunity to pair potentially M-rated Halo 3 with an M-rated title. Guess that explains why Viva Piñata didn't include keys to the beta.

Riot Act will be available on February 22 in Japan, two days after the game is released in North America. Halo 3 Beta download codes will also be included with the European version of Crackdown.

Tags: Crackdown, Halo, Halo 3 Beta, Halo3Beta, Japan, Promotion, Riot Act, RiotAct, Xbox Live, XboxLive

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Jon @ Jan 29th 2007 2:50PM

but when does the beta start?
i dont believe it to be any sooner than one month after the launch of crackdown.
i hope its in april or may personally so i can have time to enjoy playing crackdown and that gives bungie time to get the beta ready.

Crono @ Jan 29th 2007 2:53PM

Wait, you mean I can get a full game for free when I purchase the Halo 3 beta?

Jerm @ Jan 29th 2007 2:55PM

It would be interesting to know who all received a email invitation to the Beta. I got one, but are they rare or is everybody getting one?

Genius @ Jan 29th 2007 2:58PM

I didnt get one, I dont mind though. If I want to play an FPS thats what my PC is for.

Intentless @ Jan 29th 2007 3:00PM

I got an email that I'm in and I'm getting crackdown...

benjamin @ Jan 29th 2007 3:03PM

I got what I figure is the e-mail for losers ('in the next two weeks we will...') and no positive confirmation.

Pity, since I've done MS beta tests for Windows and Office, so I'm pretty familiar with error reporting.

This is much opposed to the lamers that'll download the client, play for 5 minutes, tell their friends 'lolz, imma in da b3t4, d00d!' and promptly delete it.

Naw, I'm not bitter.

Vidikron @ Jan 29th 2007 3:05PM

I didn't get one, but one of my friends did. I don't think they are all that rare, but not everyone got them.

After playing the demo of Crackdown, I have to say that I love the game so far. I think it could have done well on its own even without the H3 Beta packed-in.

howardmoon @ Jan 29th 2007 3:10PM

Is the cop in the Japanese crackdown different? or do you get to make your own character?

benjamin @ Jan 29th 2007 3:12PM

I'm interested in knowing if that's the official box art for 'Riot Act.'

Arglor @ Jan 29th 2007 3:14PM

Is the beta going to have japanese language translation? if not, then how can they expect it to be widespread?

if so, then how much work is going into production of a beta.

Matt @ Jan 29th 2007 3:16PM

@ howardmoon

The artwork on the cover is different, but I doubt the game is any different. In the demo there are about 7 or 8 skins that you can choose from for your character. I imagine that they just made a different one of the skins the default for Japan (I imagine most of the gamers over there don't associate well with large black men).

Vidikron @ Jan 29th 2007 3:20PM

@10

It's just a multiplayer beta, I doubt there will be any cinematics or anything. It wouldn't be hard to change the menu options to Japanese.

Maylon @ Jan 29th 2007 3:26PM

4. I didnt get one, I dont mind though. If I want to play an FPS thats what my PC is for.

You suck. You are a huge dork for posting that on a page about consoles. Go play WOW and then hang yourself.

Caboose @ Jan 29th 2007 3:46PM

I didn't get an email to get in. I was originally going to buy crackdown just for the Halo 3 beta, but after playing the demo, I found that the game itself is pretty awesome.

Genius @ Jan 29th 2007 3:46PM

Uh ok, OR! (get this!) Maybe you just arent bright enough to realize FPS games are better on the PC. In any case, good luck in your 360 endeavors, wherever there is trouble, Maylon will be there to save the day and tell people how much they suck.

Chameleon @ Jan 29th 2007 3:48PM

heh ^^^^^^

Intentless @ Jan 29th 2007 3:52PM

FPS on PC is a different animal than on a console. I prefer console because everyone has the same video card and processer. As opposed to the opponent on the other end of the PC having more financial support and having a top of the line rig that gives him that slight advantage with the frame rates and such... Console FPS doesn't suck and PC FPS doesn't suck. Neither is better than the other. Problems exist for both...

Jake @ Jan 29th 2007 4:09PM

Yes, PC games make FPS sooo much better because you can aim faster. Please, leave that crap to your lan party circle jerks. If it were true, my buddy (Battlefield 2142 junkie) wouldn't be hooked on Gears and R6V to the point where he is now getting a 360.

The truth is that "twitch shooters", a sub-genre of shooters, is practically unplayable with thumbsticks and must be on PC. Run and Gun where the emphasis is on circle strafing and quick click aiming is best suited for mouse. Anyone played Counterstrike on Xbox? It sucks arse. How about Unreal Tournament? They don't work. I mean, they work, but if you are used to how it plays on PC, its intended platform, you will be disappointed on console.

Slower paced, realistic, tactical shooters and 3rd person action shooter hybrids actually work much better on consoles. It isn't the mouse that sucks, so much, as it is the keyboard and immediately available buttons. If a game is all about running and aiming super-fast a kb/m works fine. But when you have complex cover, action, and command features in a game it is nice to have so many buttons within easy reach, with the option of easily holding several at the same time.

Gears of War and R6Vegas would NOT be better on a PC, due primarily to the control interface. Creeping up to a corner, holding cover, leaning out, shooting, is very clunky on a keyboard.

kftgr @ Jan 29th 2007 4:10PM

@17,

Overall, console gaming is the more even platform. However, don't forget about the disparity between SD and HD gaming, as that's a biggie.

As for Crackdown, the demo was fun, but one thought kept bothering me:
How will the mid to late game play? Will you still be thrashing on average-joe thugs while you're a superleaping powerhouse, or will the gangs also have powered up fellows of their own? Also, why aren't any of the Agency npcs super-powered either?

howardmoon @ Jan 29th 2007 4:14PM

@ #11
Hey Thanks Matt!

I figured it was some kind of character choice... are there any good sites to go and see the box art from other regions?

I love gscentral.org @ Jan 29th 2007 4:19PM

Is this game GTA but with police or am I missing a mode?

Anyone remember the C.O.P.S. cartoon that was on saturday mornings in the early 90's?

SquirrelPhister @ Jan 29th 2007 4:25PM

I got an invite, but I'm still going to buy this game. I've been playing the demo pretty much every day (great way to unwind after work). I used to love climbing trees and shit when I was a kid, and this game really captures that essence of fun in climbing up buildings and jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

plus, you gotta hand it to them for getting the best voice actor ever to do the narration. In case you kids don't recognize him, it's Frank Welker. He was the voice of Freddy on Scooby Doo back in the day, but you might recognize him more as Megatron from Transformers (he better be in the movie) or as Nibbler on Futurama (his deeper voice as well as his goofy little animal sounds)

Vidikron @ Jan 29th 2007 4:32PM

@19

I think your are part of what would be similar a special-ops force. You are part of a small elite force that is separate from the general police force... so you are genetically enhanced, and they aren't.

@21

That is sort of right. The gameplay is in the same vein as GTA, except you are supposed to be working to stop crime. Hence the name. Where it really differs from GTA is how your character levels up. In GTA you can get stronger, run farther, etc... but in Crackdown this concept it taken to a whole new level. As someone else put it, you build up Matrix like abilities. Eventually you can jump 30+ feet in the air, pick up half a ton, etc... It's a lot of fun.

VampireHunter Z @ Jan 29th 2007 4:48PM

It's amazing how we can localize a game quickly for Japan but it takes months for them to localize a game in English.

Maylon @ Jan 29th 2007 5:21PM

15. Uh ok, OR! (get this!) Maybe you just arent bright enough to realize FPS games are better on the PC. In any case, good luck in your 360 endeavors, wherever there is trouble, Maylon will be there to save the day and tell people how much they suck.

I am bright enough to not be suckered into buying more memory and a 2-$300 video card every 9 months to a year for hardly any difference in performance.Anyway, thats beside the point, you were enough of an ass to bring up how much better FPS's are on a PC, and I disagreed. Doesnt mean I am not bright, just means I obviously have more money sense than you.

Matt @ Jan 29th 2007 5:25PM

@ VampireHunterZ

Judging from the demo there's really only one voice that would need to be localized which is the narrator. Not sure about the other gangs, but the gang in the demo is Hispanic and all the members speak Spanish, so no need to localize that.

Compare that to a game like FF XII or Blue Dragon which include hundreds of hours of dialogue from multiple voice actors. Of course all of this speaks nothing to the quality of the localization either.

Mr Khan @ Jan 29th 2007 5:52PM

So Microsoft attempts to push their brand in Japan by forcing the same games that are popular in America down their throats?

They would've been better off buying Capcom like the rumors said they had

Sparkstalker @ Jan 30th 2007 8:09AM

#19, remember, the levelling in the demo is highly accelerated..

SMERSH @ Jan 30th 2007 8:53AM

@27: It's not like they're forcing people to play it. Doesn't Japan have a kind of cult idea about American games, like they're a niche? I don't really know, but it seems ridiculous to criticize a company for introducing something relatively original into a game market flooded with franchises and 'spiritual successors' (my favourite bullshit euphemism for 'The same old shit').