Topic: Reasons for Region Locking

Please tell me you didn't just equate basic parental supervision with forcibly restraining a minor.

I mean, come on. Seriously.

@WaltzElf That's a pretty decent pro-region lock argument...... except that the media and advertising for these products are moving online. I would argue that for the core gamer who is dedicated enough to want to import games the regional marketing efforts don't make much of an impact.

A consumer who is "savvy" enough to be able to know about a game launched overseas and be willing and computer literate enough to go online and buy it isn't the sort of person who's the target of 30 second spots on commercial TV. They're more likely to be convinced by online press conferences, online reviews from overseas, trailers on youtube and buzz created in social media. So I'm skeptical about the idea that region locking makes marketing data easier to use.... because import gamers are also importing the ads.

Infact if anything the delaying of some of these games in some regions simply makes the dedicated gamers in the those regions bored of the game before it launches. Because they were hit with the US marketing months and months before it's launch in their region.

@WaltzElf That's a pretty decent pro-region lock argument...... except that the media and advertising for these products are moving online. I would argue that for the core gamer who is dedicated enough to want to import games the regional marketing efforts don't make much of an impact.

Agreed. Region locking is a very old school way to do business though, so this is usually one of the excuses we hear when some vendor does it, even though it's less relevant these days.

As for why numbers impact on marketing - it's a budget thing. Marketing budgets are based on sales figures in a given territory, typically. You want to provide just enough marketing funds, without going overboard to the point where you'll never see a ROI.

Marketing budgets don't just pay for TV ads, just so you know. "online press conferences, online reviews from overseas, trailers on youtube and buzz created in social media." The money spent on all of those comes out of the marketing budget. With online stuff, it comes out of the budget for that region (so the Nintendo conference last week was paid for by NoJ's marketing budget).

Everyone is affected by marketing, whether they're savvy enough to be nonplussed by a TV ad or not.

What will happen longer term is the marketing budgets stop being broken down by region, and Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft will have one or two large, global budgets to draw on. Because you're right - marketing is now being done on a global, rather than local scale. (and that's yet another reason to do away with region locks).

If the PSVita can be region free, then I don't see how the 3DS can't survive without being region locked. Simple as that.

@WaltzElf I only mentioned TV advertising separately from the other kinds of marketing because it's one of the more regional marketing tools (unless you get lucky and make a Giga Pudi) in contrast to the more global marketing that the "import gamer" is influenced by. I do realise that they're all marketing and are paid for by some sort of marketing budget.

but yeah, we agree on all sorts of levels with this one methinks

NoAU very kindly handle ratings via OFLC at a discounted price. Beyond that, I have no idea what they do. I'm pretty certain that both game card and download releases go through NoE, but I could be wrong about the game card ones. I've only ever been involved in download releases into the AU region.

I would be amazed if Nintendo Australia doesn't handle retail logistics in Australia. It makes no sense whatsoever if Europe was responsible for that.

I know for a fact that Nintendo has no third party distributor in Australia, so either it handles logistics in Australia. If it operates out of Europe then it's the prices should be ten times more expensive.

Well something is done in Australia given that my first party DS games have "NTR-XXXX-AUS" and my third party DS games have "NTR-XXXX-EUR" written on the label. Infact one of my DS games that I brought from an Australian brick-and-mortar store has a PEGI rating printed on the box, a huge EU manual and an OFLC rating sticker slapped over the top.

Something to think about I guess........

I've bought many Wii games here in Australia that have European boxes... Although I tend to just buy most of them from Europe anyway these days considering it's cheaper.

Oh, on first party game boxes it says "Distributed by Nintendo Australia" and sometimes there's a different distributor for New Zealand.......

Nintendo doesn't have a presence in New Zealand, so it would need to work through a third party for logistics and warehousing purposes.

The reason a games publisher sets up in a local market is to control the logistics personally, as well as localise marketing campaigns. In Australia that means Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, Ubisoft, Bethesda, Rockstar, Activision, Warner Bros, SEGA, Capcom, Bandai Namco and THQ.

Organisations such as Square Enix, Atlus, Lucasarts and Konami need to operate through third party distributors. Square Enix partners with Ubisoft, for instance.

Even if games are shipped from Europe in the initial stages, the local arm of the publisher has a critical role in the distribution process.

I have a question and couldn't find a better thread for it. I know I've read several times that DS games are supposed to work on the 3DS no mater what region they are from.

Now this is the second (!) time I've tried a US game on my EU 3DS and it doesn't work. The console cannot find the game (I have only tried these two games however, but I don't wanna throw any more money down the well).

which games, Arthedain? if they're DSi-enhanced, they require a same-region DSi or 3DS, though they'll play on any DS system regardless of region. there's also a chance they could be counterfeit depending on where you purchased them from (a Hong Kong-based seller on eBay? damn near guaranteed to be counterfeit, lol).

Well from that it sounds like you can't play US DS games on a European 3DS, unless it's completely coincidental that both games you tried didn't work.
I'd love to test it myself and help you out with my Australian 3DS, but unfortunately I don't have any American DS games so there's not much I can do.

First game was Metroid Prime: Hunters, and while this could be a Hong KOng counterfeit (dunno where the guy imported it), the second game was The World Ends With You and I don' think that one is a counterfeit. Could be that the game is DSi-enhanced? How do I know that?

Well if the game's a fake then that explains why that one wouldn't work.
The 3DS has improved anti-piracy and I'd imagine would block it out no problem.

Not sure about the second one though.

Anyone else have any idea?

I've never gotten why ppl complain about region locking. Can't you just be content with the games we have here???

If you have access to a DS Lite or the original model, try the games on that.

Metroid Prime Hunters definitely isn't DSi-enhanced. I didn't find anything about TWEWY being DSi-enhanced just now, so I'm guessing that isn't either.

How can you expect Europeans to "just be content with the games we have here" when they can't play them because of region locking?

@Arthedain: neither of those games are DSi-enhanced. honestly, though, i haven't thought to try my own out-of-region games on my 3DS yet, so i can't say for absolute certain that i know for a fact they'll work. i'll pop 'em in when i get home and see how it goes down — they should work just fine, but we'll see i guess.