Tales of Graces not coming to Wii outside of Japan

by JC Fletcher on Jul 4th 2011 5:45PM

It already seems miraculous that Western gamers will get to play Tales of Graces F through an official Namco Bandai localization. We suppose there's only so much we can reasonably expect. Not among the things we can expect: a localized release of the original Wii version of Tales of Graces.

During this weekend's Japan Expo, Namco Tales Studio director Makoto Yoshizumi told Kingdom of Tales that "there will be no Wii release." The explanation he gives sounds kind of odd, for a game originally released on Wii: "We wish to deliver the best and most complete experience for US and European fans, therefore we're localizing Tales of Graces f. The game on the PS3 version is on a blu-ray disc. It would be next to impossible to condense all the game's data on a Wii disc, so unfortunately, there will be no Wii release."

The statement isn't entirely unfounded: the PS3 version includes a new playable chapter not found in the Wii original, with a voice-acted script reportedly 3/4 the length of the original game's. The desire for the "best and most complete experience" likely refers to that extra content, thus explaining why the original Wii version is being skipped.

Via: IGN
Source: Kingdom of Tales

Tags: japan-expo-2011, makoto-yoshizumi, namco-bandai, nintendo, playstation, ps3, tales-of-graces, tales-of-graces-f, wii

Reader Comments (51)

I... guess...?

That kind of makes sense I guess.

That screenshot looks like an image from EVERY OTHER Tales game, so not having Graces come over here isn't really a big deal to me.

Although, it'll probably see a WiiU release at least.

@Yuglyoshi

what

@Yuglyoshi
Seriously! And, like, all those FPSs look the same! Why release them? And those JRPGS...and platformers... hell, why release any games? I mean it's not like there's content OTHER than battle systems, right? Pfft.

@The Infraggable Link

There's a stoic, sword wielding hero and calm-looking mage girl fighting a group of mildly-weird-looking enemies. The girl is casing a fire spell while the guy is doing some sort of spin attack. There's tech points, combo bonuses, and damage appears onscreen. Sorry, but this is a step beyond looking similar.

@Yuglyoshi

Call of Duty - There's a gun with guys behind it.
Battlefield - There's a gun with guys behind it.
Killzone - There's a gun with guys behind it.
Halo - There's a gun with guys behind it.
Resistance - There's a gun with guys behind it.
etc.

Final Fantasy XIII - Bizarre-looking, over-the-top character walking down a narrow hallway.
Most other JRPGs - Bizarre-looking, over-the-top character walking down a narrow hallway.
(I love JRPGs, but it's true.)
Dragon Age 2 - Bizarre-looking, over-the-top character walking down a narrow hallway.

All games of the same genre generally look the same, so of course one Tales game is going to look almost identical to the other 50 or so.

@Yuglyoshi Their game has a bald guy and a girl with a ponytail. Our game has a bald guy and a girl with a ponytail.

Works for me. I prefer we get the enhanced version anyway. I'm just wondering why localization is taking over a year.

@UltraOtaku

Well, if there isn't any version translated from Japanese to... say, European English, it can be rather complicated. Japanese can be a rather complex and crazy language to an outsider, with multiple meanings for just one word based on whether or not it had a "quote" mark at the end of a symbol, or a kanji here or there.

You also have to make sure everything is relevant to the area you are translating it to. If there was a popular japanese pop culture reference, for instance, in the game they might have to change it or outright remove it because its something we wouldn't get.

@UltraOtaku
You know how it goes, man. Localization includes more than just translating. Setting up the QA, Marketing, Ok-from-the-big-Bamco-peeps, Advertising, ...hell, even setting up that website is apart of it.

Meanwhile, we don't get the complete experience with Tales of Vesperia.

Namco, Capcom, Konami, all you Japanese developers whining about the state of gaming, this is why there's a problem to begin with: You're all MORONS.

D:<

raeg

oh well, as long as its coming to PS3 that's better

..... So game developed originally for the Wii in japan is going to be brought over and will not be released on the Wii but instead on the PS3.

Because it has 1/4 less voice acting and an extra playable character so it can't possibly fit on the Wii disk ..... I dunno this just feels more to me like they are jumping ship than anything else.

I mean instead of redoing the voicing and translating a few menus, they went out of their way to port it to a whole other system and add some misc content.

Hell at this point tho, I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo themselves announced that Skyward Sword will be released for the PS3 instead of the Wii.

@Scuffles

You misread.
The extra chapter's voice-work is pretty much the length of 3/4th of the game. So really, its 7/4th total.

@DevilSei

Hmm it would seem that I have.

Fair enough then I can see how the size constraint would make it impossible to add the new character to the NA release of the game on the Wii.

After everything with Project Rainfall, hearing about the US not getting a JRPG is just another "business as usual" thing to me.

@kpaq00
We are getting the game though, its just the "Extended" version released only on the PS3, and not the Wii version.

In a way, that speaks volumes about which system is a preference, since normally you'd expect them to release the basic Wii version considering it be cheaper.

I don't mind that the Wii version isn't getting brought over. I prefer it that way. I don't have a PS3 but I will be buying one (not specifically for this, but it helps) before this is out. I would only prefer to play the complete version than know that I'm missing out.

Hey, let's go ahead and kill the Wii by not releasing ANY of it's latest games from Japan.

Oh well, at least I was able to buy Just Dance 2 on sale this past week for my wife! Joy.

They better not pull this shit when it comes to the 3DS. I want my 3DS Tales of now.

Just so people aren't confused, the added content's voice script is 3/4ths the total of the original content. That means the game has nearly doubled in size, script-wise.

Wii U surprise

Bamco must have horrible planners. If they knew something like this was going to be made, why make the Wii version so small? Cmon, you guys should've learned from the Tales of Symphonia PS2/GC crap. (despite there not being as drastic differences like what was done with Tales of Graces) You KNOW fans like more content.

Stop this silliness. Release all multiplatform games the same.

@The Only Girl
Then again, releasing them the same would just make it so that the PS3 version is dumbed down. ...*sigh* [ Bamco 1 / TOG 0 ]

Very well...proceed, Bandai Namco.

@The Only Girl
I made a third comment because it's funny seeing
all the little Chris Hansens below the big one.

Well it's not like previous Tales of games didn't have a ton of content already, and that was all on regular old DVD's like the Wii, or even teeny tiny Camecube disks in the case of Symphonia.

Namco's just full of shit, and their handling of this series is an incredible mess. Just look at their past history of Tales releases in the west.

@bm111
Of course. Like the lovely Tales of Phantasia, which took ten years to finally bring to america.

yeah i dont care the ps3 version will have more stuff its cool

I'm not sure who was expecting--or wanting--Namco Bandai to release the Wii version Tales of Graces.

@Arteen
Probably Wii owners.

well from my understanding and memory, wasn't the wii game eventually recalled because of glitches?

I have always kinda wanted a ps3 and this gives me more of a reason to get one, wish they would bring over Vesperia though, loved it on the 360!

@lawsmar
Actually...

Yeah, that sounds really familiar... so hey! Even better! PS3 version can just download a patch and no more dead game!

Just put the toe tag on the Wii and lets move on.

I want Lost Odyssey 2.

Tales are fine games and all, better than Final Fantasy had been in years, but dagnabbit Lost Odyssey was the definitive JRPG experience I've been waiting for since FF6.

Just no kids this time, k? thx

@SpiderKnives

Hey, I liked the kids! Or at least one of them, as in, the one who had the voice actor of Phil and Lil from Rugrats doing the character.

@SpiderKnives

Lost Odyssey 2 would be the best thing to happen to the Xbox 360 since Lost Odyssey 1.

Looks like it's time to use region-lock bypassing software once more.

"The statement isn't entirely unfounded..."

Wroooooong. People have already been able to figure out that the PS3 version is only 6.85GB, so Namco is flat out LYING. Smash Bros was bigger.

Namco Bandai can't stop me!

Complete?!?! are they on crack? Without this copy I will not be buying lst alone play the game!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Wii has no (new) RPGs

F you Namco

F you Nintendo

F you Square-Enix

At least the DS is RPG heaven. But why make so many RPGs for the DS but not the Wii? The Wii is way more powerful than a DS, surely developers would be able to craft bigger, more detailed games.

I don't think anyone expected different, honestly. I'm still just overjoyed we're getting another Tales. And with Tales of the Abyss coming out PORTABLE, things have been pretty good for English-speaking Tales fans, lately.

It seems like all I read about the Wii lately is about games that I will never be able to buy. Perhaps Nintendo should try to get developers who are actually willing to sell their games?

Might be a better stagey than this showing us stuff, then telling us we are not allowed to buy it.

Or maybe this has something to do with NoA hating you (and thinking that North American gamers don't want JRPG's, a distinctively mid-to-late-eighties mindset). No Lost Story. No Xenoblade. Now no Wii version of Tales of Graces (probably the least of the three, but still). It seems with Wii U coming down the pipe, Reggie and company don't want anything to interfere with the success of their few first-party sequels, original content be damned.

@(Unverified) We can still get those games, for like 90 bucks a pop from an import store. Then, if we're willing to, *ahem*, resort to shady methods, play out LEGALLY obtained games on a non-Japanese Wii. Or when they're released in Europe, buy them (for an over-inflated price) and use the same method for disabling region locking. As far as I know, it's more than fair. NOA execs must have made a backdoor deal with NOE in order to not release them here. Only viable explanation.

wow Wii gets less and less relevant as the year goes by.

Edit: (Ugh, curse you Joystiq for not having an edit button) "Play OUR LEGALLY obtained games"

I actually like the Tales games for being one of the few multiplayer RPGs out there, and it's not turn based. I know at least with Vesperia and Symphonia the game felt "too similar" on a lot of points. Namely characters, it felt like character personalities from Symphonia were just copy pasted into Vesperia a lot. Regardless, can't say I'm sad the Wii version isn't coming out. I had a Wii for awhile until it broke, didn't use it much anyways though. Outside some Nintendo exclusives, it didn't feel like it had much going for it. I'm a huge huge Monster Hunter fan, and even Tri was a bit of a let down in a bunch of key areas. I eventually sold that game back, something I would not dream of doing with my first PS2 one and all of the PSP. Really hope the WiiU does a hell of a lot better at gaming than the Wii.

Honestly, if I had the choice, I'd buy it on the PS3, just because I prefer JRPGs on Playstation and because it's the superior version. I have nothing against the Wii though. I still use it every now and then.

That's why I haven't bought Tales of Vesperia yet - the PS3 port is the best but only the original Xbox 360 version has been localized.

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Tales of Graces F

Tales of Graces not coming to Wii outside of Japan

Reader Comments (51)

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 5:48PM Roto13 said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 5:52PM chrono said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 5:53PM Yuglyoshi said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:01PM YoungCardinals said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:53PM The Infraggable Link said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 8:11PM Yuglyoshi said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 9:03PM Apsac D said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 10:32PM Hank Hill said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 5:55PM UltraOtaku said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 5:59PM DevilSei said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 7:01PM The Only Girl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 5:56PM FuzzyPierce said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:01PM finalstar2007 said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:05PM Scuffles said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:12PM DevilSei said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:25PM Scuffles said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:13PM kpaq00 said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:19PM DevilSei said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:18PM Richard Jae said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:20PM ItsameMatt03 said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:23PM Anticrawl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:43PM Jason B said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:56PM KingBroly said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:57PM The Only Girl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 6:59PM The Only Girl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 7:03PM The Only Girl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 9:03PM bm111 said

Posted: Jul 5th 2011 12:38AM The Only Girl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 7:13PM ORTHROK said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 7:46PM Arteen said

Posted: Jul 5th 2011 12:39AM The Only Girl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 7:46PM lawsmar said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 7:57PM DevilSei said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 8:12PM Justice551 said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 8:55PM SpiderKnives said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 9:09PM DevilSei said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 9:45PM Anticrawl said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 9:51PM therandomizer said

Posted: Jul 4th 2011 10:00PM SpanWolf said

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Posted: Jul 5th 2011 12:53AM Retrofraction said

Posted: Jul 5th 2011 2:03AM tendoboy1984 said

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Posted: Jul 5th 2011 2:18PM TCJJ said

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