My Mushi Futari is not region free...

[HeLGeN-X]

My friend gave me a copy, but the region is not free, why is that? I thought all versions were region free?

[oboewan42]

Are you sure your friend gave you a copy of Mushihimesama Futari and not Mushihimesama HD? (They're two different games, the latter is not region free)

[HeLGeN-X]

It is Futari, I can read the kanji. And by copy, I mean "copied." Damn, it's okay, going to jtag my system nonetheless.

[Vyxx]

Just buy the platinum version for like $40 >_>

[BareKnuckleRoo]

I'm pretty sure around the Playstation era they started encoding discs with a special initial section of garbage standard CD copiers can't mimic or something, so a 'copied' disc isn't the same as an original one, as this was a big issue with Dreamcast (you could get it to read copies using standard CD-Rs). So it's not so much a region locking issue, it's that you're trying to get a pirated copy to run.

This is how you fix it.

[Vyxx]

This is how you fix it.

Amen

[shmuppyLove]

You should be able to find a legit used copy for $30-40 these days

Totally worth it, and yes it is indeed region-free.

[HeLGeN-X]

Believe me, I highly support Cave, I have a lot of old and new releases I've bought officially while in US and Japan, but I can't always afford to buy everything. Sometimes I buy two of one game, but I really shouldn't be doing that at the moment, so don't think I'd want to hurt them. I just want to play on the only other alternative than a PCB and it's frustrating, because when I was in Japan I could play anytime I wanted. Now I'm back in the states, and I'm fiending to play badly!

[Drake]

That's all fine and dandy but it doesn't change the fact that if playing a pirated copy just won't work, then the only way you can solve your problem is by buying the game. Saying you won't buy it right now is like "well ok then that's your deal".

[Bananamatic]

or use mame

[system11]

Nobody here can help you get pirated games working, it's against the rules.

[BareKnuckleRoo]

Believe me, I highly support Cave

By... not buying one of their few region free releases that's pretty readily available and not too expensive or difficult to acquire?

I can understand if we were talking about a really old game with no port (we use MAME all the time for stuff like this, kinda difficult to find an arcade locally with Xevious or even Dangun Feveron if you're in the mood) or a game with a strict region-lock (having to buy a japanese console is a tad annoying), but this is a fairly recent port (2006) that's not particularly hard to get a hold of that's region free. It's practically begging for you to buy it, and you won't find much sympathy by complaining about how your pirated disc won't play on a normal console.

Just save up the money and buy a copy. It is totally worth every penny.

[Grumpius]

JTAGing is a LOT of effort even if you have the oldest/cheapest Xbox version to hack (xenon) and even then you need to buy fans to stop your system killing itself. IMO it's cheaper just to buy the game unless of course you're planning on pirating a bunch of games, not that I'd neccessarily judge you for that though I wouldn't do it myself
The ios versions are pretty good and they're only like £2.99 if you have a device that can play it.

[casualcoder]

Mushi Futari is so reasonably priced on play-asia, and if you really are cheap then do keep in mind that no non-domestic Cave release that I know of has ever dropped in value so one day you will get your money back or even earn more than you spent.

And if you just have to play pirated games (not judging) then both can be true. You can jtag your console and still buy futari and support the dev.

[lilmanjs]

pirated game help is against the rules here, yet this thread isn't locked? lol. Just do what everyone has said. save up and buy the region-free port.

[CStarFlare]

Mushi Futari is so reasonably priced on play-asia, and if you really are cheap then do keep in mind that no non-domestic Cave release that I know of has ever dropped in value so one day you will get your money back or even earn more than you spent.

Appreciating or holding their value is the exception rather than the rule. Platinum Hits, reprints, domestic releases all drop value. With the exception of Mushi PS2, Ibara, and PS/MMP you'll probably take a loss on sale of 30% if you bought at release.

(you'll do OK if you buy it now, since prices for most of them have probably bottomed out at this point)

[casualcoder]

Appreciating or holding their value is the exception rather than the rule. Platinum Hits, reprints, domestic releases all drop value. With the exception of Mushi PS2, Ibara, and PS/MMP you'll probably take a loss on sale of 30% if you bought at release.

Could you give some examples? I have not seen one game from the previous gen that has depreciated value, and the current gen prices are either stable or have gone up. That's also ignoring the point that one day these will all be out of stock and I believe will go up in value.

[Fudoh]

When the Cave collection box was released some months ago, several collections of Cave LEs went up for sale here and on ebay, some of them at incredibly low prices.

[CStarFlare]

Appreciating or holding their value is the exception rather than the rule. Platinum Hits, reprints, domestic releases all drop value. With the exception of Mushi PS2, Ibara, and PS/MMP you'll probably take a loss on sale of 30% if you bought at release.

Could you give some examples? I have not seen one game from the previous gen that has depreciated value, and the current gen prices are either stable or have gone up. That's also ignoring the point that one day these will all be out of stock and I believe will go up in value.

Ketsui can be had for under $40 BIN on eBay. My copy of Daifukkatsu 1.5 (with 1.51 DLC) went for under $20. Almost every Cave 360 release has a budget reprint (even MMP/PS, so I take that one back). The only one I can think of offhand that hasn't gone down is DOJ BL. If you buy at today's prices you probably aren't going to lose out on reselling, but they've come down considerably since their initial prices. Which in this case is really all that matters - you're suggesting he buy now (because it's cheap anyway) and prices aren't likely to fall past where they're at now.

Last gen, DOJ and Espgaluda both sell in the $65 range. It's not cheap, but they probably cost $75+ and shipping when new. Not sure what Mushi PS2 is taking these days, but it's not the premium it once was.

[casualcoder]

When the Cave collection box was released some months ago, several collections of Cave LEs went up for sale here and on ebay, some of them at incredibly low prices.

Thats a temporary phenomenon due to the market being temporarily flooded. Scarcity and demand determines prices so in the long run I expect virtually all of these games to maintain or gain in value because their prints were so low to begin with and demand will likely exceed supply in the future. I imagine very high prints will probably stay fairly cheap however, (ie: deathsmiles) but I was referring to Japanese releases anyways.

[casualcoder]

Ketsui can be had for under $40 BIN on eBay. My copy of Daifukkatsu 1.5 (with 1.51 DLC) went for under $20.

I'm not sure of how many prints were issued for ketsui or Daifukkatsu but I wouldn't expect those values to hold going forward. EDIT: checking eBay and I think you undersold even with current minor devaluation considered. Supply will eventually decrease even more and demand will likely increase as newcomers who missed the boat this time around want a shot at these games (no pun intended). Just look towards the previous generations for, what I think, will be the trend.

Last gen, DOJ and Espgaluda both sell in the $65 range. It's not cheap, but they probably cost $75+ and shipping when new. Not sure what Mushi PS2 is taking these days, but it's not the premium it once was.

Mushi PS2 is atleast $60, usually more. At any rate I would say those prices you quoted a pretty stable given some of them released nearly a decade ago. Honestly, given the trend I would expect them only to go up as a collectors item as time goes on.

[HeLGeN-X]

When they put these games on XBLA or PSN, I'll happily pay for them. I think I've spent about the same price for the game when I lived in Japan in the arcades, so I feel I did contribute even though I am "pirating" them at the moment, and I will admit that, but I do have real copies of most of the games, just not the ones that are Japan region only. I need my Ketsui fix so bad, damn. You all have to understand that feeling when you need to see a blanket of bullets and maneuver through them, you just need it bad, man... It's like crack. Never did crack, but I am assuming shmups are what crack looks like in your head when you do that drug.

Anyway, I'm definitely not trying to shit on cave, when I can get a Japanese 360, I will buy all the games officially. Till then, only games I'm pirating are the ones I can't officially play because I live in the US again until they are region free. They need to stop hating on foreign countries for their juicy shmups...

By the way, void this thread nonetheless, I didn't look closely, it was Mushi HD. I drink too much. I'll buy the real game when I find one under $50, because I spent way too much in Taito Arcade and Mikado in Tokyo playing this.

[BareKnuckleRoo]

Are you sure your friend gave you a copy of Mushihimesama Futari and not Mushihimesama HD? (They're two different games, the latter is not region free)

It is Futari, I can read the kanji.

By the way, void this thread nonetheless, I didn't look closely, it was Mushi HD. I drink too much.

this is the first time i've seen alcohol as an excuse for illiteracy

[CStarFlare]

you've never been so drunk that letters split into two and become a different squigglier language?

(firefox's spellcheck doesn't underline squigglier, I can't believe it)

[brentsg]

I love the way people rationalize piracy.

[trap15]

I love the way people rationalize piracy.

[Pretas]

When they put these games on XBLA or PSN, I'll happily pay for them.

when I can get a Japanese 360, I will buy all the games officially.

Make up your mind.

[BPzeBanshee]

this is the first time i've seen alcohol as an excuse for illiteracy

Make up your mind.

You can't tell he'd nab the purchase either way when it actually becomes convenient to purchase? Maybe he wasn't the only drunk one in this thread.

Actually, you know what, let's all get wasted. I can't tell any of these games apart because of fucking purple bullets hurrrrrrrrrr~

[BareKnuckleRoo]

you've never been so drunk that letters split into two and become a different squigglier language?

His original post was 5 days before the 'drink too much' post. I find it hard to imagine he was drunk to the point where he couldn't read 5 days straight (but that would explain a lot, LOL).

[Nasirosuchus]

I love the way people rationalize piracy.

That so-called "piracy" is how a lot of people got into shmups. Without the exposure that it brings, shmups would have died off just like 2D beat-em-ups.