Joystiq

Sony to begin manufacturing PlayStation 3 units in Brazil

Mike Schramm — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:45:00 EST

Sony has announced plans to build PlayStation 3 systems locally in Brazil. The consoles will be manufactured in Manaus by Sony Brasil Ltda., with the 250 GB version costing 1,099 Reals.

Major upcoming games The Last of Us and Grand Theft Auto 5 are getting localized releases in Brazilian Portuguese as well. A PlayStation 3 bundle featuring God of War: Ascension will hit stores in the region as part of the "Viva Em Estado Play" ("Living in a State of Play") marketing program in South America.

Sony says it's committed to investing in the local gaming development industry in Brazil, and Sony President Andrew House claims the manufacturing setup will "infuse the Brazilian economy with approximately $300 million over the next 12 months." As one more gesture of goodwill, the first ten consoles manufactured in Brazil will be given away to local gamers.

Continue reading Sony to begin manufacturing PlayStation 3 units in Brazil

Sony to begin manufacturing PlayStation 3 units in Brazil originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 07 May 2013 21:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mother 3 translator offers localized files to Nintendo for free

Mike Suszek — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 16:30:00 EST

With the recent announcement that Earthbound will be making its way to Nintendo's Virtual Console service, confirming that the publisher hasn't totally forgotten about the series, Mother 3 translator Clyde Mandelin saw an opportunity to extend an offer to Nintendo. Mandelin recently took to the Mother 3 fan translation blog to express his interest in seeing the Game Boy Advance game officially localized for North American audiences.

"I realize that localizing a game this size can cost a lot, so if it'll help in even the slightest, I'll gladly offer to let Nintendo use my text translation files for any use at all, completely for free," Mandelin wrote. "I'll even edit the files to fit whatever new standards are necessary (content, formatting, memory size, etc.), completely for free. I'll even retranslate everything from scratch if need be. Just whatever it takes to get an official release out."

Mandelin, along with a team of devout Mother 3 fans, launched a patch for the game in 2008 that translates the entire Earthbound sequel to English. Mother 3 was originally developed by Brownie Brown, a Nintendo subsidiary now known as 1-Up Studio.

"In the end, if localizing Mother 3 should ever come up in a Nintendo business meeting or whatever and someone brings up budget concerns or it costing too much, my hope is that someone will at least mention this offer too, even if it isn't accepted," he added.

Mother 3 translator offers localized files to Nintendo for free originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 21 Apr 2013 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nintendo to help Japanese companies bring their 3DS games West

JC Fletcher — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 00:33:00 EST

In order to boost the number of new games coming to the 3DS, Nintendo plans to work with Japanese third parties to bring their games to the North American and European markets. "Among those third-party titles both developed and published in Japan, there have been some games which Nintendo published in Europe, including the Professor Layton series," president Satoru Iwata explained in a presentation today. "We will increase the number of such games for the U.S. market as well as in Europe. We are also willing to flexibly assist third-party developers in distributing their valuable games overseas." In other words, Nintendo will outright publish more games from other companies, and assist in the distribution of others.

It's a simple plan, one that could result in the localization of games that third party publishers would find too expensive to localize and market on their own. Ideally, this would involve games like Bravely Default and Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney; Nintendo's generally reliable curation means we're still safe from humiliating cheesecake ninja game Senran Kagura.

Nintendo to help Japanese companies bring their 3DS games West originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Jan 2013 00:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Harada is pretty confident he can get Project X Zone localized

Jessica Conditt — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 15:00:00 EST

Katsuhiro Harada, producer extraordinaire of the Tekken series, is pressing Namco Bandai to localize Project X Zone, the SRPG 3DS collaboration among Capcom, Sega and Namco Bandai, set to launch in Japan on October 11.

Harada is not only pressing Namco Bandai for a localization - he seems to think he can get the deed done.

"I proposed localization of Project X Zone," Harada tweets. He follows that announcement with, "Not decided yet, but It will be realized if I continue proposing."

Everyone likes a man with confidence.

Harada is pretty confident he can get Project X Zone localized originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Miike: Ace Attorney movie being localized for worldwide release

JC Fletcher — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:30:00 EST

During the International Film Festival Rotterdam, news of a localized release for Takashi Miike's Ace Attorney adaptation came from a reliable source: Takashi Miike himself. At a Q&A following a showing of the film, Miike announced that a worldwide release was planned.

According to Twitchfilm, each version would have both dubbed and subtitled dialogue using the character names from that region's version of the games. So Miles Edgeworth, et al. in America, but ... Benjamin Hunter in France.

Now that we have admissible evidence that we'll be able to see the movie, how is it? "This is definitely a love-it or hate-it affair, and if you don't dig the silly caricature tongue-in-cheek atmosphere which inhabits the universe of 'Ace Attorney,' you will tire of the film way before its halfway point has been reached," Twitchfilm said. "But if you DO have fun with it, this is the fastest way to spend almost two and a half hours."

Miike: Ace Attorney movie being localized for worldwide release originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One of the hardest NES games ever translated to English

Griffin McElroy — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 03:15:00 EST

If you're a stone-cold psychopath whose masochistic gaming tendencies push you away from ... well, normal-people games and into the cold embrace of impossible games, then the unavailability of an English port for Takeshi's Challenge has probably been a sore point for you. We probably shouldn't encourage your self-destruction, but you should know that a few kind souls have translated the bizarre NES title for your localized enjoyment.

The localization comes from ROM modder KingMike (via Tiny Cartridge). Before looking into acquiring the game, though, we'd suggest you also find an English language strategy guide to help you, because this game was made by the Devil.

One of the hardest NES games ever translated to English originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 29 Dec 2011 03:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Final Fantasy Type-0 getting international release

Griffin McElroy — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:00:00 EST

According to Andriasang, Square's Ultimania guide for Final Fantasy Type-0 includes an interview with director Hajima Tabata, who reportedly reveals that his team is currently working on the international version of the PSP title. This would be the first official confirmation of the game's upcoming arrival in Europe and North America -- though the interview doesn't bring up any details about the timetable for said localizations.

Andriasang also reports that the interview contains Tabata's plans for the franchise's future. He reportedly wants to make a direct sequel to the game, titled (what else?) Type-1, and would like to see the next installment on a home console. We've contacted Square for a comment on ... well, everything you just read.

Report: Final Fantasy Type-0 getting international release originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cave and Microsoft's Deathsmiles 2X experiment turned out pretty well

David Hinkle — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 00:00:00 EST

Cave's decision to offer Deathsmiles 2X as a "Games on Demand" title in North America back in May has paid off. In an interview with Siliconera, Cave game development manager Makota Asada said that, as "an experiment," the offer "was pretty good for what we were expecting." So good, in fact, that Asada said Cave would be willing to try this again. "Yes, we do think we might do it again in the future."

According to Asada, it was Microsoft who approached them looking to dip its toes into the digital imports waters. Deathsmiles 2X is, obviously, a sequel to the company's previous shmup, which was offered as a retail disc in North America. "Because our titles are shooting games, language is not that important, so we decided to try it along with Microsoft," Asada concluded. No matter what language you speak, we can all agree things need to get shot -- and Cave is pretty good at that, so kudos to them.

Cave and Microsoft's Deathsmiles 2X experiment turned out pretty well originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 08 Nov 2011 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Operation Rainfall begins phase 2, asks fans to buy Final Fantasy on Virtual Console August 19

JC Fletcher — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 21:30:00 EST

Operation Rainfall, the fan-driven initiative to promote North American releases of Xenoblade, The Last Story, and Pandora's Tower, begins its "phase 2" today. This phase is meant to coincide with, and take advantage of, the August 19 launch of Xenoblade Chronicles in Europe.

"To all residents in the regions of Europe and Oceania," the organizers say, "we encourage you to pre-order and purchase it at your earliest convenience. In the Americas, we encourage you to promote awareness of these titles. Good sales abroad will be a strong indicator for the title making it to American shores."

The initiative also includes a rally of letters to Nintendo of America, to be mailed from August 13 to August 17 in order to arrive at roughly the same time. The group also posted an open letter to Satoru Iwata urging him to greenlight the games for North America, and promising to help promote them.

Finally, "phase 2" includes one (hopefully) attention-getting stunt timed for August 19. As a show of interest in RPGs, the initiative encourages people to purchase Final Fantasy on Virtual Console that day -- if you already have it, you can gift it to someone else or donate to Child's Play through a widget on the site. Can the Virtual Console's servers even handle multiple people buying a game at once? Has that ever been tested?

Operation Rainfall begins phase 2, asks fans to buy Final Fantasy on Virtual Console August 19 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 12 Aug 2011 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nintendo: 'No plans' to localize Xenoblade, Last Story, or Pandora's Tower

JC Fletcher — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 22:30:00 EST

On Sunday, Nintendo of America's Facebook page promised "more updates soon" regarding the status of Xenoblade, The Last Story, and Pandora's Tower, the three Wii games that are the focus of the ongoing grassroots campaign for localization, called "Operation Rainfall."

On Monday, it posted a Super Mario 64 trivia question.

Then, today, it provided the response that fans were waiting for -- but not the one they wanted. "We never say 'never,'" the company stated, "but we can confirm that there are no plans to bring these three games to the Americas at this time." A brief response on Twitter thanked Operation Rainfall-ers for being "such incredible fans," but reiterated that "there continues to be no plans for NOA to release these 3 games right now."

Not that we want to give false hope regarding the actions of a company who is always pragmatic to the point of angering dedicated fans, but "no plans right now" is far from a death knell, especially for Nintendo. Some things that there were "no plans" for in America: the black Wii, the Classic Controller Pro, the Wii Sports Resort hardware bundle. Basically, there are "no plans" until the company decides to tell people its plans.

So even that denial leaves the door wide open for one of these games to be announced at a "Media Summit" or similar event in the fall. We're just mentioning that possibility, to be perfectly honest, so that we can say we totally called it should that happen.

Nintendo: 'No plans' to localize Xenoblade, Last Story, or Pandora's Tower originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 22:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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'Operation Rainfall' campaign seeks localization of Wii RPGs

JC Fletcher — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 10:45:00 EST

Normally, online petition efforts seem doomed from the start. But a grassroots campaign, born on the IGN forums, and aimed at getting Nintendo to localize Xenoblade, The Last Story, and Pandora's Tower outstrips the normal, futile campaign through cleverness and pure vigor.

Fans have taken to spamming Nintendo's Facebook and Twitter pages and email with requests for those three games. "Operation Rainfall" also involves coordinated physical mailings of letters to NOA headquarters, aimed at one game at a time.

Even more clever -- and likely effective -- is a campaign to pre-order "Monado: Beginning of the World" from Amazon. Back in 2009, before it was even called Xenoblade, Nintendo announced this game at E3. Amazon accordingly added a pre-order listing, which has been sitting dormant for two years. Now, that orphaned pre-order listing is Amazon's top seller in video games. Unlike most petitions, this can be translated directly into purchase intent -- i.e. money on the table -- and is more likely than anything to attract Nintendo's attention.

It's at least attracted the attention of Nintendo's social media intern: the company tweeted, "Hey fans, we appreciate your enthusiasm. Look for more updates to come soon!"

'Operation Rainfall' campaign seeks localization of Wii RPGs originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 27 Jun 2011 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Capcom: No plans to localize Ace Attorney Investigations 2 'at this time'

JC Fletcher — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 10:45:00 EST

If you're eager to find out about the ongoing adventures of Miles Edgeworth, Dick Gumshoe, and Kay Faraday (like we are), we have some possibly distressing news to report. Capcom is currently denying any plans to localize Ace Attorney Investigations 2. During a recent "Ask Capcom" video, VP of strategic planning and business development Christian Svensson answered a question about the game pretty flatly: "The answer is 'no.' Sorry about that."

He echoed this sentiment in a less definite manner on other occasions, telling Capcom forum members "Regarding AAI2 sorry guys, there's no plans for Western release at this time." Finally, he clarified Capcom's position in a statement to Siliconera: "Regarding the question, plans change all the time so I would probably rather use the 'There are no plans for a Western release at this time for AAI2.'"

We can't help but be reminded of Atlus's recent declaration of "no plans" to localize Catherine, followed two days later by the announcement of a North American release. As for Capcom, there were no plans for a Western release of the Wii port of Resident Evil Zero, either -- Svensson even said that Capcom USA was "asked twice if we've wanted to bring it Westward and twice we've declined." The third time, it relented; the game came out in North America in 2009. So, yes, plans change all the time.

Capcom: No plans to localize Ace Attorney Investigations 2 'at this time' originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The very short list of Yakuza 4's localization changes

Justin McElroy — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 22:30:00 EST

The more senstive among you are probably still fuming about the US localization of Yakuza 3, which excised chunks of the Japanese version, including a quiz on the country's history and hostess clubs. For the good of all your blood pressures, we're happy to report you'll have much less to get steamed about when Yakuza 4 comes stateside.

Siliconera reports that, though the quiz game is still MIA (its text is in images, which can't be changed), the only other alteration is to the soundtrack for the intro video. So relax. Take a deep breath. And get ready to ogle some hostesses, you creepy double-creep creep-o.

The very short list of Yakuza 4's localization changes originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 22:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Hudson Entertainment shut down

JC Fletcher — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 13:50:00 EST

A blog post by Hudson Entertainment brand manager Morgan Haro reveals that Hudson Entertainment, the California-based American arm of Japan's Hudson Soft, is closing down. "It was revealed today," Haro said in the post, "that all of Hudson's previously planned projects have been canceled and that our office will be closing it's doors at the end of February." Hudson Entertainment has been active since 2003; prior to that, "Hudson Soft USA" published games from 1988 through 1995.

The closing is a result of Konami's full acquisition of Hudson Soft, after which Haro speculates "there apparently won't be any need for the talents within the San Mateo offices of Hudson Entertainment." Haro also speculated that the difficulty of finding an audience for Japanese games in the west, and the proliferation of both giant publishers and indies, as recent problems for Hudson. "You're either a hit, or an indie developer looking to be a hit."

Hudson's most recent American release was Lost in Shadow on Wii.

Report: Hudson Entertainment shut down originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 08 Feb 2011 13:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Namco Bandai teaser site suggests Tales of Graces F localization [update]

JC Fletcher — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:57:00 EST

Yesterday, Namco Bandai posted a link on Facebook to a series of glyphs on its company site. It turned out each glyph represented a letter, and with the puzzle solved a new site was spelled out: ATaleOfTwoRichards.com. And that site has brought us the blurred image seen above, which bears a notable resemblance to the logo (posted after the break) for Tales of Graces F, the PS3 port of Tales of Graces that was released in Japan in early December. Additionally, the "Richard" in the URL could be a reference to the character of the same name, who appears both as a child and an adult in the game (which could sort of be considered "two Richards").

Even more conclusive evidence that Namco is doing the impossible and actually localizing a Tales game can be found after the break, in the form of the less blurred image that was initially posted on the teaser site, according to NeoGAF poster miladesn.

Update: Namco has refreshed ATaleofTwoRichards.com with an even blurrier image and the date "2.2.2011" (February 2).

Update [2/2/11, 3:20PM ET]: Namco has updated the teaser site with -- if you can believe it -- the blurriest image yet. Additionally, the teased date of "2.2.2011" has been removed. So now what?

Update [2/2/11, 4:30PM ET]: Well, hey now!

Continue reading Namco Bandai teaser site suggests Tales of Graces F localization [update]

Namco Bandai teaser site suggests Tales of Graces F localization [update] originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation expansion into China planned

Andrew Yoon — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:00:00 EST

Sony is finally ready to take on one of the largest emerging markets in the world: China. A report in China Daily details Sony Computer Entertainment's plans on expanding into the Asian mainland. According to the report, Sony recently signed a letter of intent detailing plans to implement training and R&D facilities in Guangzhou province. The project is apparently "the first investment by SCEI in the mainland."

In addition to localization, Sony plans on developing games in the region. Facilitating homegrown content for local markets follows the standard set by Sony's other recent expansions into India and South America. Although a timetable for launch hasn't been set, expectations are quite high for PlayStation's first release in the country. Guangdong Animation City (GAC), an investor in PlayStation's Chinese expansion, noted that the industry could expand its worth to over 100 billion yuan (about $15 billion) annually within the next five years. Obviously, Sony would do well to capitalize on such staggering potential.

PlayStation expansion into China planned originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Game Dev Story 2 coming to iPhone, eventually

James Ransom-Wiley — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:30:00 EST

Can you believe this is our first Game Dev Story post? And about the sequel, no less? Believe it.

We'll try to rectify our previous oversight today by bringing you the welcome news that Game Dev Story 2 will be coming to the iOS platform ... at some point. "We will be developing a sequel," Kairosoft, the Game Dev (uh) game dev, told Touch Arcade, "but we are not planning on releasing it soon."

Like the original -- a quirky, standout management sim that's currently just hanging onto a spot in the Top 200 App Store games ranking -- Game Dev Story 2 is expected to be a localized port of an ancient Japanese PC game. The first Game Dev Story actually dates back to 1996, while its sequel debuted on PC roughly a decade ago.

"We are thinking of improving the game by adding elements of networking in the sequel, such as sales score rankings and sending employees to a friend's company," Kairosoft said of the planned iPhone port. "The next iPhone App will be a CMS [construction and management simulation] game like SimCity, where you touch to scroll, zoom in/out, etc." Most importantly, Kairosoft would "like to release English versions" of Game Dev Story 2 and all its numerous, adorable little titles on iOS. Bring on that "Cruise Great Trip" story!

[Pictured: Game Dev Story 2 (PC); source: Kairosoft]

Game Dev Story 2 coming to iPhone, eventually originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Call of Duty: Black Ops getting separate subtitled and dubbed SKUs in Japan

Ben Gilbert — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

Are you in Japan, and simply aren't satisfied with only being able to purchase one version of Call of Duty: Black Ops? Chill out! Square Enix, the game's Japanese publisher, is localizing the game in two separate SKUs. According to the Call of Duty: Black Ops Japanese blog, the subtitled version will be released first on November 18, while the dubbed one -- featuring a "major voice cast" -- won't arrive until December 16.

The dual release comes as a result of a survey of Modern Warfare 2 buyers in Japan, which found a split among consumers (60 to 40 percent, favoring subtitles) when it came to language options. Both versions will carry the same ¥7,980 ($95) price.

Call of Duty: Black Ops getting separate subtitled and dubbed SKUs in Japan originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aksys localizing '999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors' adventure game [Update: it's official!]

JC Fletcher — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 09:35:00 EST

Those of you with a penchant for reading a lot of text in your DS games (or, to put it another way, those of you into adventure games) have something new to look forward to: Chunsoft's Extreme Escape: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors, a graphical text adventure released in Japan last December, appears to be receiving an English localization. Siliconera first spotted a listing for the game on Gamefly and has now posted English screenshots of the interactive novel/room escape game. It appears that publisher Aksys plans to call the game 999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors.

999 is a graphical text adventure with a sort of Saw-like premise. Nine people are trapped on a cruise ship and somehow wired to explode. A sadistic mastermind requires them to work together (but only in groups of up to five people) in order to open the nine doors that correspond to the nine passengers and escape from the rooms in which they're held.

We're contacting Aksys to find out more details about when the game will escape to retail.

Update: There's now a big 999 image at the top of Aksys's site. In case you didn't believe before, the localization is now confirmed! We've also put the press release after the break.

Continue reading Aksys localizing '999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors' adventure game [Update: it's official!]

Aksys localizing '999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors' adventure game [Update: it's official!] originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 09:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage includes both English and Japanese voice

JC Fletcher — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

Chances are, if you're interested in playing Tecmo Koei's Fist of the North Star game, you aren't just tolerant of Japanese voices in video games, you prefer them. The company is aware of anime fans' preference for Japanese audio, and told Eurogamer that it will retain the original voice track in the North American and European releases of the Dynasty Warriors-alike. You'll be able to hear "ATATATATATATATATA" in the original Japanese.

In order to satisfy both the audience who craves authenticity and the audience who likes knowing what the characters are saying, Tecmo Koei is also including a full English voice track. That way, you won't have to have your screen filled with subtitles reading "ATATATATATATATATA."

Gallery: Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage (6/11/10)

Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage includes both English and Japanese voice originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Level-5 opening office in Santa Monica

JC Fletcher — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:56:00 EST

Professor Layton, Dragon Quest IX, and White Knight Chronicles developer Level-5 is moving forward with its plan to establish an office in the US. Level-5 International America Inc. will open in Santa Monica, California this September. The company will further expand in 2011 with an office somewhere in Europe.

CEO Akihiro Hino has said that these expansions are focused on releasing games overseas. At the very least, this should mean more localization staff, but it could also be a sign of Level-5 attempting to establish a publishing business outside of Japan. We're okay with there being a different logo on our Professor Layton games, as long as we have those games soon.

[Via Siliconera]

Level-5 opening office in Santa Monica originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dragon Quest IX launches in North America on July 11 [update]

Randy Nelson — Wed, 19 May 2010 09:30:00 EST

Nintendo and Square Enix have announced that the North American release of Dragon Quest IX: Sentinel of the Starry Skies for DS has been set for ~~June~~ July 11, exactly a year after it launched in Japan. As was revealed in February, Nintendo will be publishing the game here -- although the English localization is being handled by Square Enix and not NOA's Treehouse team.

Dragon Quest IX has sold more than four million copies to date in Japan, where the game's WiFi "Pass-By Guest" feature has proven very popular. North American gamers will get a chance to experience it as the renamed "Tag Mode," silently trading character stats, battle records and play data with other DQIX players simply by walking near each other with their handhelds in sleep mode. If you encounter a player who's logged more than 400 hours in the game, it's probably this guy.

You'll find pre-order information (and a rather delightful trailer) on the game's official website.

Update: Dragon Quest IX will be released in Europe on July 23.

Gallery: Dragon Quest IX (05-19-2010)

Dragon Quest IX launches in North America on July 11 [update] originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 19 May 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Starcraft 2 offering subscription plans in Latin America, Asia and Russia

David Hinkle — Fri, 07 May 2010 13:30:00 EST

Plans for a subscription-based StarCraft 2 are in the works for Latin America, Asia and Russia. While US gamers will only pay a one-time fee to start harvesting Vespene Gas on July 27, players abroad will be offered two different ways to play: subscription or an all-access fee.

A press release detailing plans for localization in Latin American Spanish for Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Chile covers the subscription model. By picking up the title for $299 MXN / $119 ARS / $13,900 CLP -- about $30 USD -- gamers will be given access to the single-player and multiplayer portions of the game for 60 days. Once that period ends, they can re-up their subscription for a fee (which hasn't been disclosed yet). The other option is to download the game directly from Blizzard for a one-time fee of $59.99 USD, granting permanent access to the title.

During Activision's annual investors call yesterday, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime confirmed that Blizzard would pursue a similar pricing structure for Asian and Russian territories.

Source - Official press release
Source - Big Download confirms Asia and Russia inclusion

Starcraft 2 offering subscription plans in Latin America, Asia and Russia originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 07 May 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LukPlus looking for Coropata publisher at GDC

JC Fletcher — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:15:00 EST

If you're reading this and you're in charge of business development for a game publisher, and if you're at GDC -- as unlikely as all that is -- please go talk to LukPlus. According to Siliconera, the publisher has a meeting room at the convention, and is actively working to find a North American publisher for its cute DS puzzle game Coropata.

We sampled Coropata at TGS and found it charming, and we'd appreciate the opportunity to do things like buy it in a store and read all the text. We admit that a cutesy, anime-style puzzle game similar to The Incredible Machine may be somewhat of a niche interest, though.

LukPlus looking for Coropata publisher at GDC originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC: BioWare speaks up about Mass Effect 2's localization

Ludwig Kietzmann — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:20:00 EST

"I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favorite store on the Citadel." - English

"Jestem dowódcą Shepard, a to jest mój ulubiony sklep na cytadeli." - Polish (machine translation)

In a GDC 2010 session entitled "Localizing Large RPGs," which forms part of an ongoing localization summit, BioWare localization project manager Ryan Warden eloquently explored the revered developer's process of adapting a huge, dialogue-driven game like Mass Effect 2 for alternative markets and languages. It may surprise you to learn that BioWare's processes are significantly more elegant than hiring an army of workers to copy and paste lines of text into Google Translate.

With 450,000 words and 30,000 lines of voice-over in the English version, Mass Effect 2 demanded an active approach in its translation to eight languages, including Russian, Czech and Spanish. "Trying to manage this scope is almost unfathomable," said Warden. "For BioWare titles, we don't have the luxury of waiting for the title to be fully complete before starting localization."

The concurrent process was designed to provide as much information and context to translators as possible, allowing them to focus on the job without having to request further information for each new conversation. BioWare compiled a complete localization kit, complete with a pronunciation guide (that's crow-guhn, not kroggin!), an IP glossary, a collection of translator Q&A documents and an extensive character database. "Any time that a translator spends time asking questions and waiting for feedback ... that's wasted time," Warden added. The goal, he said, was to "eliminate any doubt in the confidence of the translator."

Continue reading GDC: BioWare speaks up about Mass Effect 2's localization

GDC: BioWare speaks up about Mass Effect 2's localization originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rising Star crowdsources Spanish localization of Fragile Dreams

JC Fletcher — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:00:00 EST

Rising Star Games has taken an unusual, cost-effective step to get Fragile Dreams into Spanish-speaking homes. In collaboration with fansite DSWii.es, Rising Star is helping a group of 50 fans produce their own translation of the game's 35,000-word script. The translated text will be made available from DSWii and Rising Star's site following the European release of the game on March 19.

This is a clever approach to localization for a couple of reasons. First, fifty motivated kids will be able to get the job done in a fraction of the time a professional localization team would take. Additionally, it'll be much easier for Rising Star to laugh off the inevitable errors than it would with a 'real' localization.

Rising Star crowdsources Spanish localization of Fragile Dreams originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dunaway hints at new Zelda in 2010, unsure about Xenoblade and The Last Story

JC Fletcher — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 13:00:00 EST

As if Satoru Iwata's pronouncement of a 2010 release date for -- let's call it -- "New Legend of Zelda" wasn't exciting enough, Nintendo of America's Cammie Dunaway referenced a similar timeline for the upcoming Wii game at the Nintendo Media Summit this week. Speaking to GameLife, Dunaway said, "If you compare the first half of 2010 with the first half of 2009, it's night and day. And from some of the things that Mr. Iwata has talked about, and things that we will talk about at E3, like Zelda, you know that we're going to have a good back half of the year, as well." So then, Zelda in the back half of 2010? Yes, please.

In regards to North American releases of RPGs Xenoblade and The Last Story, Dunaway somewhat baffling said, "It's too early to say whether we're going to bring those here" -- even though Nintendo of America already announced Xenoblade back at E3 2009 when it was called Monado: Beginning of the World. It's possible Dunaway simply misspoke, or she just forgot about Monado -- like everyone else in the world.

Gallery: Monado: Beginning of the World

Dunaway hints at new Zelda in 2010, unsure about Xenoblade and The Last Story originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 26 Feb 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yakuza 3 loses hostess clubs, quiz game in Western release

JC Fletcher — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:47:00 EST

[GAME Watch]

There's a good chance that many of you were going to play through Yakuza 3 without messing with the hostess club segments or the Answer x Answer arcade quiz game. Now, it's a certainty.

"The content between Yakuza 3 US/UK and Yakuza JP is a little different in that we took out certain bits in order to bring the game to the west in the time alloted for us to do so," a Sega rep told IGN. "The parts we ended up taking out were parts that we felt wouldn't make sense (like a Japanese history quiz game) or wouldn't resonate as much (such as the concept of a hostess club)."

You may have gone on a karaoke date with Rina in the demo. In the original game, you meet her in a hostess club, and have to buy her gifts and learn about her in conversations. Now, we suppose, she'll just randomly call you like she did in the demo. Somehow, the dating won't be affected, as the Sega rep assured IGN that "the story experience was the same as the Japanese version."

Who can blame Sega for cutting some of the more culturally Japanese elements from this role-playing game about modern Japanese culture? After all, it must have been in a rush to release on the same day as Final Fantasy XIII.

Yakuza 3 loses hostess clubs, quiz game in Western release originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Take-Two taking its business to Japan

JC Fletcher — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:15:00 EST

Take-Two is starting an office in Japan to publish its games. Previously, Take-Two and Rockstar games have been published by partners like Capcom, Cyberfront and, most recently, D3 Publisher. It always seemed a bit weird to see a GTA game with a Capcom label, and now we'll be spared that minor cognitive dissonance.

The first game to be released under the new Japanese branch of Take-Two Interactive is Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City. The publisher has yet to offer a date for this Japanese release, or even specify if it will be on both PS3 and Xbox 360.

Take-Two taking its business to Japan originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Japanese gamers split on subtitles vs. dubs for Western games

Andrew Yoon — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST

Hong Kong action aficionados and anime fans have long debated over subtitles and dubs. While some prefer the ease (and comedy) of listening to English dubs, purists believe original language tracks should be preserved. The debate rages on with video games, as evidenced by the complaints of many Final Fantasy XIII fans, upset by the lack of the game's original Japanese track.

The debate seems to garner the same kind of division across the Pacific, where Japanese gamers are equally conflicted about the use of subs and dubs. In fact, according to a poll conducted by games publisher Spike, the opinion amongst gamers is essentially split. The poll quizzed over six thousand individuals over the course of two years, and 49% of respondents said they prefer subtitles while 47% said they prefer dubs.

With such a divided opinion regarding the subject, it seems like the best bet for publishers would be to find a way to squeeze multiple audio and subtitle options into their games. That way, gamers on both sides of the fence can be appeased -- and our sick dream of playing Gears of War 3 in Finnish with Chinese subtitles can finally come true.

[Via Andriasang]

Japanese gamers split on subtitles vs. dubs for Western games originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Level-5 considers opening US office

JC Fletcher — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:30:00 EST

During the same event in which Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino teased new Wii and PS3 games, he also suggested that the company may be setting up operations in the US. According to our own imperfect translation of 4Gamer's summary of statements, "Mr. Hino, in order to release software overseas, spoke about a plan to establish a new company in America," describing his intention to expand the company's activities from its current home of Fukuoka to the world.

This new enterprise would be the second new office opened by the company for this purpose -- it recently established an overseas-focused office in Tokyo. Perhaps we'll see self-published Level-5 games soon. Perhaps that way we can get timely Professor Layton releases!

[Via Siliconera]

Level-5 considers opening US office originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Inafune hints at overseas release for Monster Hunter Frontier

JC Fletcher — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:30:00 EST

Not all Monster Hunter games make it outside of Japan. The Wii port of Monster Hunter G, for example, was passed over, as was Monster Hunter Frontier, the PC MMO upon which the upcoming Xbox 360 game is based. That's why it's noteworthy that Capcom's Keiji Inafune told Famitsu (according to Andriasang's translation) that "I feel Monster Hunter can definitely succeed overseas. There's a high possibility that MHF will kickstart that." For such a kickstart to take place, the game would have to be released overseas.

Unless, of course, it's already kickstarted by Monster Hunter Tri, coming out in North America and Europe this April, right?

Inafune hints at overseas release for Monster Hunter Frontier originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New Yakuza 3 screenshots are sweet, serpentine

Griffin McElroy — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:00:00 EST

Click to Yakuza-size

Though the number of images displaying dudes brawling in the gallery below may lead you to believe that the pictures therein are of a new Street Fighter game, we assure you, they're just images from soon-to-be-localized Japanese crime drama, Yakuza 3. Don't believe us? Just check out the first image in that gallery. See that? That's a back tattoo, which members of the Yakuza are like, contractually obligated to get. This guy's back tattoo is of a snake, which means that his skin gets dry in the winter. Also, it means he likes to swallow whole, completely uncooked eggs. Weird, right?

Gallery: Yakuza 3 (01-18-10)

New Yakuza 3 screenshots are sweet, serpentine originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Level-5 opens new Tokyo office for 'overseas business'

JC Fletcher — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:45:00 EST

Professor Layton, White Knight Chronicles, and Dragon Quest IX developer Level-5 is expanding from its Fukuoka, Japan base, founding a new office in Tokyo focused on its ROID mobile gaming platform, overseas business, and "new enterprises." The move could portend worldwide release of the developer's mobile games, or even expansion of its publishing business.

In Japan, Level-5 publishes the Layton series, Inazuma Eleven, and other titles independently. If a localized Inazuma Eleven is indeed on the way, Level-5 could be looking to start up its publishing business outside of Japan with that title. Or, less spectacularly, we suppose the new office could be tasked with localization of games and dealing with Western publishers.

[Via Siliconera]

Level-5 opens new Tokyo office for 'overseas business' originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Knights in the Nightmare heading to PSP

Griffin McElroy — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:30:00 EST

According to Siliconera, the latest issue of Famitsu brought great news to the loyal fans of Sting-developed strategy-RPGs: Knights in the Nightmare, a former DS exclusive, will soon be ported to the PSP. New features for the port include an animated opening title sequence and some much-needed tutorial missions. There's no official release date or word of an US localization for the title just yet -- we contacted Atlus to try and discern these details, but received a "No Comment" in return.

We're as excited by this news as anyone else -- but all that multitasking in the game was pretty difficult to keep track of on two screens. The thought of trying to manage Knights' utterly perplexing combat system on a single screen is downright terrifying.

Knights in the Nightmare heading to PSP originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Online game sharing confirmed for RPG Maker DS

David Hinkle — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 13:45:00 EST

Image source: Famitsu

The RPG creation game with a very appropriate name, RPG Maker DS, has just raised the bar on itself. Famitsu reports gamers will not only be able to share game data locally, but also online via Wi-Fi Connect. You'll be able to swap the smallest of things, like items and monsters, right up to full games. Now if that doesn't scream replay value, we don't know what does.

Of course, this news really only affects Japanese gamers, as a localization isn't that likely. Still, that's not to say there isn't any hope you'll be able to play the thing, especially considering that there's already an English-speaking community established for the game.

[Via SIliconera]

Online game sharing confirmed for RPG Maker DS originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 28 Dec 2009 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Modern Warfare 2's poor translation, censorship in Japan draws ire

David Hinkle — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 13:28:00 EST

When Square Enix enlisted to localize Modern Warfare 2 for Japan, the publisher went above and beyond the call of duty. The game would be issued a complete Japanese-dialog makeover -- whereas the first Modern Warfare localization was simply subtitled -- in response to a "strong desire from Activision to widen the entrance for beginning FPS players," as Square Enix told Famitsu. However, some gamers are reporting that the extra effort has fallen short, citing numerous translation errors in the localized game. [Insert your Bill Murray joke here.]

Additionally, Japanese site My Game Flash has rounded up other complaints about the localization, most notably an alteration to the sensationalized "No Russian" mission. Rather than delete the mission (as in the censored Russian version), Square Enix had the Japanese version of the mission adjusted to restrict the player from participating in a terrorist assault on an airport. If the player does engage civilian targets, it's game over.

Square Enix has posted an update on the Modern Warfare 2 Japanese site describing the full Japanese language and subtitle tracks and warning of the "No Russian" edits, but has not announced plans to patch the translation errors or change the limitations on the censored mission. The publisher has cited technical limitations, which prevent selectable English and Japanese language tracks. Head past the break to see some footage of the Japanese version of MW2, courtesy of andriasang.

[Via andriasang]

Source - My Game Flash [machine translation]
Source - Famitsu [machine translation]
Source - Modern Warfare 2 Japanese site

Continue reading Modern Warfare 2's poor translation, censorship in Japan draws ire

Modern Warfare 2's poor translation, censorship in Japan draws ire originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 04 Dec 2009 13:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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German retailer lists localized version of Yakuza 3

Andrew Yoon — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:00:00 EST

This should provide hope to those who have been longing for a localized Yakuza 3 release. German retailer amazon.de has added a listing for the Japanese crime game, with a scheduled release of March 12th.

Sega isn't commenting on the listing, but a localization has been rumored since July. While still unconfirmed, this listing adds credence to a project that seems like a no-brainer, considering the franchise's tremendous success in Japan.

[Via 1UP]

German retailer lists localized version of Yakuza 3 originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Alexander O. Smith on localizing games for Square

JC Fletcher — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:00:00 EST

We've heard the horror stories about the conditions under which famous Square translator Ted Woolsey had to work -- strictly constrained time and space limits and no feedback from the games' creators, which led to sometimes odd translations. Alexander O. Smith, who localized games for Square including Vagrant Story, shared some anecdotes about his tenure (and subsequent freelance work on games like Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions) that revealed that it wasn't much better for a translator in the PlayStation era.

"We would get a copy of the game," Smith told Gamasutra about working on Final Fantasy VIII, "and we would say, 'Well, what about files?' And they would say, 'Oh, I don't think you need those.' So we all bought Game Sharks." Smith called the situation "very sad." He compared it to Final Fantasy XII, for which the team got full gameplay footage.

The interview covers not just work for Square, but Smith's subsequent move into freelance with Joseph Reeder, and a lot of inside information about the localization work (and surprise musical careers) of both.

Alexander O. Smith on localizing games for Square originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: 1UP 'source' says Yakuza 3 is Westward bound

Andrew Yoon — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 01:00:00 EST

If fanboys complain loudly enough, can they get a game localized for an English release? The answer appears to be: yes, at least according to an unnamed 1UP source "close to the project," who says that "Yakuza 3 is currently being localized for release in the U.S. and European markets."

If true, it'll be interesting to see if people will actually buy the game. The late-to-the-party PS2 release of Yakuza 2 was largely ignored. Could Yakuza 3 meet the same fate, now that Yakuza 4 is already on its way to Japan?

[Thanks, Marius!]

Rumor: 1UP 'source' says Yakuza 3 is Westward bound originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 21 Sep 2009 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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