The Wii U ( WiiU ) Thread

[Friendly]

Wii U has just been confirmed to be region-locked, unsurprisingly.

Why oh why can't this anti-consumer bullshit die at last? Why isn't region-locking illegal already?

[trap15]

Because it's profitable.

[Friendly]

That was (mainly) rethorical. The point is, it *should* be illegal; I wish someone with the necessary resources would take one of the region-lockers to court in Europe; EU judges in general seem to have little patience for European citizens getting the short end of artificial trade barriers / protectionism / monopolism.

Furthermore, the real question is, has PS3 been any less profitable because it had no region locked games (except for P4A, thanks Atlus!)? I have seen no data to support this.

[gabe]

Region locking sucks in theory, but in reality it never really bothered me on the Wii. I can only think of about a half dozen titles that are worthy of an import that didn't get localized... And now that my Wii is region free, I've only actually imported one of them (Milestone Shooting Collection II). I can only assume that it will be a similar story on the Wii U.

[Drum]

I'm pretty sure a region-free console would be more profitable all things considered - for the software providers/royalty-receivers, at least. Sony probably made PS3 region-free because they were coming off PS2 and had a lot of leverage - region-locking is supposed to be a concession to retailers, I think, and they figured they could just tell them to go soak their heads.
It's fucking shit, anyhow. Fuck Nintendo and fuck retailers.

[EmperorIng]

I was angry at the 3DS being region-locked, but considering how every single Nintendo console has been region-locked, this really didn't come as a surprise - nor do I imagine a whole lot of WiiU games worth the import unless Cave, G.Rev, Taito, Qute, and whatever's left of Milestone all decide that Nintendo is their best bet.

[Despatche]

I still think that the best game for Wii is Mega Man 9.

please play mm10

[StoofooEsq]

I was angry at the 3DS being region-locked, but considering how every single Nintendo console has been region-locked, this really didn't come as a surprise - nor do I imagine a whole lot of WiiU games worth the import unless Cave, G.Rev, Taito, Qute, and whatever's left of Milestone all decide that Nintendo is their best bet.

Pretty much how I feel about this. The Wii U being region-locked doesn't really impact my chances of getting one, which are already somewhat low to begin with.

[ChainsawGuitarSP]

GBA and NDS weren't region locked. I think it's pure coincidence that they're Nintendo's (second) best consoles though, since I haven't felt any need to import /w GBA.

[MX7]

From a European perspective, it's worrying that 3DS is locked. Several games like 999 and Strange Joirney didn't come out in the UK. Strongly considering getting a US 3DS, when I finally get round to buying one...

Where's a good place to import a console from?

[gabe]

From a European perspective, it's worrying that 3DS is locked. Several games like 999 and Strange Joirney didn't come out in the UK. Strongly considering getting a US 3DS, when I finally get round to buying one...

Where's a good place to import a console from?

Some sellers on Amazon.com are willing to ship internationally. Same with eBay.com. If neither of those work, I'd be willing to help you out.

[EmperorIng]

GBA and NDS weren't region locked. I think it's pure coincidence that they're Nintendo's (second) best consoles though, since I haven't felt any need to import /w GBA.

Back in the day, I imported my copies of Metroid Fusion and Metroid Zero Mission, because at that time they were simply cheaper to get from the PAL region than they were from the US. This was several years after both had come out.

I've imported a few DS games, and a few GBA games here and there. Still need to get my hands on a copy of the Hotel Dusk sequel, which was never released stateside.

[Skykid]

Because it's profitable.

This is the only natural conclusion I can draw on Nintendo's region locking, as unfortunate as it is.

I'm certainly not an advocate of RL, but as mentioned in the 3DS thread (iirc) I think it's to do with the uneven state of currency exchange since the economic crash, strong yen, weakened euro, etc etc.

Put it this way: if there was money to be made from making a console region free right now, I'm damn sure Nintendo would be for it considering what business tacticians they are.

[Jonathan Ingram]

As long as it gets hacked quickly like the Wii was, it shouldn`t be a problem. But still, a very annoying practice.

[Obiwanshinobi]

I was angry at the 3DS being region-locked, but considering how every single Nintendo console has been region-locked, this really didn't come as a surprise - nor do I imagine a whole lot of WiiU games worth the import unless Cave, G.Rev, Taito, Qute, and whatever's left of Milestone all decide that Nintendo is their best bet.

Isn't it the first region-locked handheld device EVER? Nintendo. Handheld gaming. Nintendo...
I keep happily buying GB, GBC and GBA games from all regions to play on my unmodded GBA. Guess how happy the 3DS news made me.
Imagine Sony announcing Walkman 2 and saying it's gonna be region-locked. Yeah, I know Blu-ray films are, but still.
Sure thing, Nintendo are business and they like to have profitable hardware sales from day one, but this is a cheap move of the N64 not having RGB output at all (whereas PSX and Saturn had) caliber. While we're at it, they removed component from PAL 'Cube hardware revisions and RGB from the latest NTSC Wii. I mean, really. Their idea of a desirable gaming device is quite unlike mine (region-free PS2 and GBA SP are where it's at). I don't demand "cool" consoles expensive to produce and tricky to develop for (like Saturn or PS3).

[ChainsawGuitarSP]

Still need to get my hands on a copy of the Hotel Dusk sequel, which was never released stateside.

More than anything, you need to get your hands on that Umihara Kawase collection for some platformin' perfection if you haven't already~

[BPzeBanshee]

As long as it gets hacked quickly like the Wii was, it shouldn`t be a problem. But still, a very annoying practice.

I highly doubt this will happen. Nintendo very much learnt their lesson from the Wii's huge list of security holes going from the lack of success in softmodding the DSis (there was one found and it got patched up and made unavailable in literally less than a few days), and the 3DS. At least there's Action Replay chips for the latter.

[MX7]

From a European perspective, it's worrying that 3DS is locked. Several games like 999 and Strange Joirney didn't come out in the UK. Strongly considering getting a US 3DS, when I finally get round to buying one...

Where's a good place to import a console from?

Some sellers on Amazon.com are willing to ship internationally. Same with eBay.com. If neither of those work, I'd be willing to help you out.

I'll keep that in mind, thanks

[neorichieb1971]

Nintendos RL will only hurt them. It should be law that it cannot be enforced. If a game has international appeal it should be released worldwide with all languages supported on one disc.

On blu ray, Warner Bros don't RL. If they have lots of stock excess in the USA, they can ship them to other countries where the movie isn't released because it would have essentially been the same disc anyway. I find this practice more profitable tbh.

Not to mention wii U will be hacked to pieces in less than 12 months. Most hardcore gamers pirate wii games atm. I've only seen original software on the casual gamers.

[null1024]

Nintendos RL will only hurt them. It should be law that it cannot be enforced. If a game has international appeal it should be released worldwide with all languages supported on one disc.

On blu ray, Warner Bros don't RL. If they have lots of stock excess in the USA, they can ship them to other countries where the movie isn't released because it would have essentially been the same disc anyway. I find this practice more profitable tbh.

Not to mention wii U will be hacked to pieces in less than 12 months. Most hardcore gamers pirate wii games atm. I've only seen original software on the casual gamers.

The 3DS hasn't had any sort of breakthrough, and it's been quite a while. I'm feeling like it'll be the same for the Wii U.

And yeah, I haven't seen a unhacked Wii in a while either, excluding things like demo kiosks and the like. Everyone I know who has a Wii has it hacked. Most of them have pre-black Wii models too, so they run backups off the DVD drive.

That example with Warner Bros is pretty interesting, they seem like they'd be all for region-coding.

[Drum]

The 3ds still hasn't been hacked so I'm not optimistic about a quick solution, unfortunately.

[GaijinPunch]

Nintendos RL will only hurt them. It should be law that it cannot be enforced. If a game has international appeal it should be released worldwide with all languages supported on one disc.

And there by stripping localization profits from other regions, which are different companies? This will never fly.

[Friendly]

So, 10 more days until the US-launch. Was anybody here interested enough to pre-order? I read that there will likely be a massive shortage.

[njiska]

I was going to, prior to losing my job, but to be honest I was less interested in the console itself and more interested in the launch experience. I miss it.

[Octopod]

I pre-ordered and paid off two of them hoping to flip one to help cover the cost of the one I am keeping. We'll see.

[Octopod]

While I'm not going to pretend that its Wii U exclusivity doesn't disappoint me, I'm happy with the sole fact that a Bayonetta 2 exists.

That being said, it's clear Nintendo is aiming for me, but just a Bayonetta 2 alone isn't enough for me to get a Wii U. They're going to have to work much harder at getting titles that I'm interested in to have me even consider one. This isn't the Hardcore/Casual thing that most of the Internet is making this out to be, or this notion that the Wii U doesn't 'deserve' Bayonetta. My stance is the long-term value I'm looking for in a console. Aside from Bayonetta 2, The Wonderful 101, maybe Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge, and some scattered games for the original Wii (which I skipped for the same reasons), there's no other titles that are currently catching my eye about the system.

As for the reaction to the news, is anyone really surprised that there's any negative reception at all? Yes, there's stupid shit being said and done, but both sides of this situation are being fucking obnoxious in my eyes; in particular, the shame parade that follows the initial furor (see also: NeoGAF's Wall of Shame). What really annoys me is that I understand views from those for and against this, but the loudest people on the two sides make me not want to associate with any of them.

Hilarious. That is a lot of tears at that link. I never played the first game or had any interest in the new one but I guess I'll check it out since all the uproar has my interest peaked now. Sin & Punishment SS was one of the best games of the previous generation imo and it was a Nintendo exclusive(I also rebought it to play on my Wii U). Maybe I'm just getting old but I really can't get into the whole 'Nintendo is for kids!' thing. I like fun. Tank Tank Tank is actually the game the looks most interesting to me so far coming out for the Wii U. ZombiU has me interested too and I am also actually excited to play Nintendoland. I have no interest in CoD, ME3, Ninja Gaiden, etc.. I also never played the Batman game because I am just not a fan of Batman or DC characters at all really. I might try it though when the Wii U version drops to a cheap price eventually.

[Friendly]

This just in: Just like with Wii, Wii U ties your downloaded games to your console, not your account. Very intelligent way to handle this Nintendo! Sure to provide lots of entertainment in case a console breaks.

[trap15]

And just like the Wii, they'll probably transfer all your stuff if you send it to them.

[Friendly]

And just like the Wii, they'll probably transfer all your stuff if you send it to them.

I wouldn't have minded Nintendo taking a clue from Microsoft and Sony in this regard.

[Friendly]

So, US launchday incoming tomorrow.

This guy has been camping outside for three weeks to get the first one, probably wearing his power glove again:

http://www.explosion.com/isaiah-triforc ... i-u-buyer/