The State of Things: Take Europe Seriously

I'm not sure how many times it's happened now. Too many to count, certainly. A promising new title appears on the horizon, word begins to spread that it's going to be the next big thing. As new details and images appear, you realise you'd really like to play this game. It's released across the sea to rapturous critical acclaim. People play the game, they tell their friends how good it is, those friends go out and buy the game. And pretty soon everyone's talking about it.

And then you find out it's not going to be released in your territory.

Well, bugger.

The most recent kick to the teeth was Katamari Damacy, a quirky little game from Namco that quickly made a lot fans on both sides of the Pacific. The momentum gathered on the internet by pretty much every US-based gaming site has led to surprisingly strong sales. And yet we'll probably never know how good it really is. Namco have been reported as citing "techical problems" to be the reasons behind the lack of a European launch - although I'm inclined that there is a far simpler reason - money.

Because there's more than one language to translate the game to, it makes it that bit more expensive to localise. Instead of releasing it in one country, you release it in a dozen. Each country needs its own marketing and promotion - the numbers all add up. And because Katamari's success was never garunteed, released at a competitively low price in the US, Namco's European division probably decided that they didnt want to take the risk with it - never mind the fact the game all but sold out a week after its US launch.

Well, we'll get the sequel at least, but only because the first performed so well stateside. I can't help but wonder if it's little more than an attempt at a peace offering... But Namco will have to do better than that to get back into my good books - we're still missing Xenosaga, to name but one, and it's a fair bet we'll never see upcoming crossover RPG Namco X Capcom or Gundam: the One Year War (which would be huge missed opportunity, as the movie trilogy it's based on is set to be released in the UK later this year). All the while we're subjected to the same substandard sequels - which nobody buys. So Namco end up with less money, which means they're afraid to take risks, which means no Katamari. A vicious cycle that shows no sign of stopping any time soon.

Namco are not the only ones guilty of this, however. Too many times have the European branches of Japanese companies decided not to release titles in this territory, despite relative success in others. Capcom haven't yet brought over the Megaman Anniversary Collection, although we've had the majority of Megaman games to date (thirty and counting).

In my eyes the worst offenders have to be Square. It took them until the seventh game in the series to release a Final Fantasy over here (excluding Mystic Quest, which doesn't count), and while we did get Secret of Mana, we have missed out on many others now considered classics. Legend of Mana, Chrono Cross, Xenogears and Einhander, to name but a few. And even when they did take the hint and begin releasing the classic Final Fantasy games on the PS1 (or were desperate to make some quick bucks after the whole Spirits Within mess), they still
managed to botch it. So while we did get FF1&2 and FFIV&V in double packs, VI was released on its own - and what is probably my favorite game ever, Chrono Trigger, was completely ignored It's especially unforgiveabe when t it was released as a double pack with FFIV in the States, with V&VI going together... They didn't even follow other companies leads and rerelease their old games on a system better suited for them - the GBA. Capcom revamped the first two Breath of Fires and released them for the GBA, and they sold pretty well. While the first two FF games are available for the GBA - and they have sold very strongly, as anything called Final Fantasy will - I can't help but feel it's another attempt at quick money - these games have been rehashed already on the Wonderswan Color and the PS1. Come on, Square, is it really that difficult to convert a couple more old games that are guarunteed suceesses, especially considering the huge fan following they have gained already?

It's not that I can't understand their reasoning. The market in Europe for the RPGs Square are famous is smaller than in other territories. Recent numbers for the sales of the new Star Ocean game indicate sales in Europe are just under a third of those in the US. But however much of a minorty such fans may be, they are no less fanatical for it. Those that we do get are usually snapped up very quickly, and become some of the most sought-after titles for any system. Just you try finding a copy of Paper Mario for the N64 - or worse, Panzer Dragoon Saga for the Saturn - without playing an arm and a leg.

Okay, so I've gone off track a bit, but my point still stands. Europe is usually last to get anything, although it's not all bad news, and sometimes this can even work to our advantage. The wait for Metal Gear Solid 3 resulted in a number of new features that the US and Japanese gamers have to wait for an updated version - and the Japanese will get their "special edition" or "director's cut", and happily devour it, as they always have. We also occasionally get the odd surprise that the US doesnt - Sony released Vib Ribbon here (no sign of the sequel as yet, but here's hopin).

Sega have had the right idea for a while. They have the nerve - or the financial power - to release titles that may be a little bit niche. We did see Space Channel 5 released here, we got Sega Bass Fishing, with the rod accessory, we got Bangai-O. Hell, we even got Samba de Amigo, complete with maracas - you don't get much more niche than that . The fact that we got Shenmue II while the US had to wait until the X-box release still brings a smile to my face (yes, I'm a bitter, resentful person), as does the fact that we got Rez (they had to wait for the PS2 version to see what all the fuss was all about). Minor victories, to be sure, but they do exist.

Nintendo have also been getting better in recent years. There was a time I was convinced we'd never see a PAL version of Donkey Konga, and yet there it is, one of the surprise hits of last year. And despite delays of well over a year, we've now got The Legend of Zelda: The Four Swords and Animal Crossing. We even got Zelda: The Minish Cap months before it ever surfaced stateside. Is this simply due to the fact that they need all the titles they can get for their system, though? The Gamecube has never been the most popular console in Europe - almost criminal when you consider the sheer number of quality titles in its arsenal.

Katamari is but the most recent of a long line of disappointments. I can't count the number of times a game has failed to materialise on this side of the ocean, which has then gone on to become one of the most talked-about titles stateside. It all gets a bit frustrating after a while. In the end, there are few options for European games gettin to play such games. Importing them is an expensive and often difficult practice, with few shops carrying them. And even if you do get the games, there's still the matter of getting to play them. Importing the console can be expensive, but is perfectly legitimate way of doing it. The cheaper option is to have your console mod-chipped - although doing so can have all sorts of implications, ethical and legal. Having a console chipped will usually mean not only the region locking is disabled, enabling play of imported titles, but also the copy protection. So, with the right equipment and a little know-how, anyone can download or copy console games. Sometimes though, this can be the only way to play such games, particularly for those with limited funds.

The other option is emulation, if the system is old enough. There's a whole wealth of gems for older systems that are undiscovered by most gamers, either because they didn't get a domestic release, didn't get enough publicity, or the gamer was too young to appreciate it (I know this was the case for me, and I let a good many games pass me by in my early years). This is how games like Chrono Trigger are often discovered - if you know how to find them. There are even groups dedicated to translating games that would otherwise never have been heard of - Seiken Densetsu 3 and Front Mission are but two examples of excellent games never released outside of Japan, but through the efforts of enthusiasts, they have found a whole new lease of life. But the moral and legal implications of such practices are another article in itself.

In the end, it doesn't look like such practices are going to stop any time soon. As long as companies see money over creativity, we're going to keep seeing more sequels to the same tired old games. If we're honest, they wouldnt be much of a company if they didn't put profit first, would they? But what I'm saying is that there should be room for both. As Europe is usually last to get everything of Japanese origin, they could at least use America as a testing ground. See which games sell and which don't. There can't be that much of a difference in market tastes (I sometimes wonder if the UK is little more than a mini-America). Even if they wanted to cut costs and release an english-only version for the whole of Europe, there are enough English speakers on the continent to warrant such a release, and all the work would have been done already by the US team. Just an idea..

As it stands, though, Europe will continue to be last to get all the good stuff. It's just the way it always has been, frustrating as it may be. So what do I see in store for the next year? Sega and Ninty will continue to release as many of their titles as possible in every territory, because frankly, they can't afford not to. The biggest release from Squenix this year is likely to be the Fullmetal Alchemist media onslaught, and possibly a Dragon Quest, if they feel nice enough. Capcom will continue more or less the way they have done, by rehashing the same old characters time and time again. Namco.. well, Soul Calibur 3 had better be good, to make up for recent transgressions.

I want my Katamai...