Kupowered: KOEI, Seriously, Please Start Announcing Localizations

Thursday, September 5, 2013

KOEI, Seriously, Please Start Announcing Localizations

KOEI really, really, really likes the Vita...

....in Japan.

No less than four Warriors titles are in production for the device at the moment, and it borders on absurd at just how much attention the Vita's getting from KOEI, even if it -is- half ports. Yet, when those ports are Samurai Warriors 2 (and Xtreme Legends -and- Empires) and Warriors Orochi 3 (as an enhanced version of the game, same as PS3's enhanced version) you will be surprised at just how fucking okay I am with this. Those two games join the line-up alongside Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends (potentially 8 somewhere along the line too?) and the newly announced Shin Dynasty Warriors Gundam which are both being developed for PS3 -and- Vita. And that's all of just what I know about, who the hell knows if there's other stuff that I've missed completely, because it's entirely possible.

The first reaction to this is supposed to be a level of cautious optimism, of course. They're not exclusive games to the Vita, but they're being developed for it nonetheless, and that likely fosters a sort of side-by-side mentality about them. Consumers will only buy one or the other by-and-large of course (KOEI ain't gonna touch Cross-buy with a ten foot pole) but it broadens the pool of potential buyers at the very least if you put both out, and there's no reason -not- to. That they're coming to the Vita at all is a good sign no matter how you look at it. I basically mention that side-by-side mentality for the localization aspect of the games, of course. Speaking of...

The next reaction is the slow, creeping disdain and cynicism that one has naturally fostered for KOEI by this point when it comes to actually releasing games outside of Japan. We did get the original Warriors Orochi 3 (as digital-only for PS3 which is something that I have ranted about enough), and we did get Samurai Warriors 2, Xtreme Legends and Empires way back in the day easy enough as well. DW8:XL seems a given to come out over here, but I'm not pinning any hopes on disc-based, and Shin Dynasty Warriors Gundam....is the sticky one of the bunch. We don't know anything about it really - is it just another DW: G game with a new name? - so it's hard to say one way or another, especially with Namco Bandai being involved on top of KOEI. Warriors Orochi 3 coming out over here originally might even be a strike against its chances since WO3 Ultimate is a (highly) enhanced version of it. But we'll just have to see on that, I suppose.

Now, as mentioned, the really sticky thing to wonder about if -any- of these games come out is format. KOEI surprised the hell out of me by announcing DW8 on disc with a proper localization and such, but I expect that to be the exception rather than the rule moving forward. I have zero problems throwing money at people at GameStop for a copy of a KOEI game on a disc. Zero. While I've raised a stink about digital-only in the past (and it's still an issue, though definitely something I've chilled out on some), I only have a few issues with throwing digital money at PSN for a copy of a KOEI game in digital form. Those issues are primarily "How big is it" and "That's going to take fucking forever to download". Which was a legitimate concern with my current PS3 - the fans kick on to 100% or seems like it, which means it's not long for this world. It takes the better part of six hours to download one gig of data, I'd bet, so something like WO3 which was eleven gigs? Ridiculous. Cannot, will not ever happen unless I cart my system to someone else and it manages to not die after I delete 22 gigs of data to accommodate the strange way PSN downloads work with full games or something.

When I get a shiny new PS3 with 500 gigs of storage space this will....be far less of an issue. It'll obviously still take fucking forever to download, but the great thing is that I might actually be able to let it. In the end, it's all about just being able to buy and play a game that you want to play. So when there's an unreasonable barrier, of course it's going to be frustrating, but I guess the option then just becomes "Make it work". So maybe I will. I can tell you with certainty that if the games come out in the West on Vita, I don't care what format, I will buy the ever-loving shit out of them. I will make a KOEI page and it will have all the bubbles for Dynasty Warriors Next and Toukiden and whatever of the above titles actually come out, even if I have to buy them all digitally. I will eschew whatever I have to in an effort to have multiple KOEI Warriors games at my fingertips. And I will seriously consider a 32 gig stick if need-be. You just have to make it happen, KOEI.

there is honestly nothing about the prospect of any of those four Warriors games on my Vita that I don't love

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What's all this, then?

This is going to be many things, but first and foremost, it is, quite simply and unsurprisingly, a place for me to write. Sometimes about video games, sometimes about movies, and other times, just to write out mini-stories and the like. As an outlet for me, it will likely reflect how I am; at times it will be entertaining, and other times it will be informative. I just hope that every time it's interesting at the very least.

The current goal is a post every other day to settle myself in; eventually, I will seek to post every day, if just to raise an inquiry that I've found I've tripped over most of that day, or to retell an amusing, or perhaps less so, tale from the day. I find that I can be long-winded at times, so perhaps this will be less of a concern than I imagine!

While it would make sense to change this to grow as "Kupowered" does, I hope to keep this just as it is and, sometime down the road, re-read it with a slight chuckle and mumble to myself, "I did it." So take this as a mission statement, if you will, and we will see how it works out!

Handy Post-Types Guide!

A Look Back: In lieu of reviews (which I might do in the future), these posts will be fond recollections of older games from my past, telling you why I believe them to be good and why you might be interested in playing them.
Giant Robot On: I like Giant Robots. Who doesn't? These posts will always be talking about something with Giant Robots in it, be it video games or anime or movies.
Less-Short Story: On occasion, inspiration will hit me and I'll want to write a short story or, as the name implies, expand on a story from my old Ficly. That will be these posts.
LittleBigThings: In these posts, I will be discussing (read: gushing about) things in the LittleBigPlanet series of games, from the game itself, to user-created levels, to my own adventures in Craftworld.
Music!: Fairly self-Explanatory. In these posts, I will talk (gush) about music I like, and possibly music that I don't care for.
Popcorn On: These posts will revolve around movies that I've seen that are just great in one way or another. The aim is to give you enough to interest you into seeing it without giving too much so that you feel you know what's going to happen.
Quick Note: These will usually be, as can be expected, short posts to keep in touch with the blog and it's readers if I'm not prepared for a full post or if I'm updating on a past post.
Ragequit: Completely opposite of A Look Back, these posts will be about the few games I've had to quit playing because they just weren't fun. (Or that I might have finished, but still hated.)

There will likely be more types of posts added in the future that will be explained here.