Genei Ibun Roku #FE Is Now Called Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE In The West, Arrives In June

The release date for this was the second thing I wanted to see.

Style Savvy 3 was the first, so...

TSM backwards is....

Looks great, but I bet it'll be a digital only release...

I don't really have that much of a problem with this game. That said, why are there Fire Emblem characters in it at all? They really don't seem to work with the setting, and they've mostly undergone such drastic redesigns that they're unrecognisable.

I'm so very glad to hear this game have a definitive name and release for my region. I also happen to quite like the name, Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE, and I'm more than okay with getting as English subtitled only.

At the end of last year, I noted this game down as my most anticipated game of 2016. That still hasn't changed and I'm incredibly excited to get this game upon it's release.

Physical release day one! Digital release never. So it's up to Nintendo.

@Souldin to me was the third with FE Fates and Bravely as first and second respectively, but now still as the third because of Pokemon SunMoon, that said, I'll buy only as a physical release.

Looking forward to this one!

Finally we get a name and release date. No more silly SMTxFE nonsense.

I don't mind it not having English vocals; 90% of the time I mute voice acting anyway. I'm stoked and cannot wait for June now!

I was going to buy this... but I think I'll prefer buying that box of frogs instead.

The fact Ninty are 'keeping the authentic Japanese voices' suggests they aren't too hopeful about it, and are saving their cash.

Seems very unusual that there isn't an English dub at all, at least for North America.

I'm just glad that all of the original dialogue and music will be kept intact in all of its colourful, saccharine, ostentatious J-pop glory. ^-^ I won't hold my breath, but I'd love to see the special edition be issued a Western release as well.

It's odd that the title doesn't really illustrate the fact that this is a SMTxFE game though (you'd think that Nintendo would want to capitalise on these two niche audiences). Unfortunately, considering how niche this game is, with the Wii U's abysmal install base, and the fact that a lot of Western reviewers will simply not "get" this game, it will most likely flop disastrously in the West.

@Ralizah I reckon it'll get a physical release as Nintendo ar publishing this. If it was Atlus publishing id agree with you.

My interest has perked up a good bit with this now. Jpop music, rpg? Two things I'm not a fan off but I will be fit this! If it gets a physical release here in Europe I will get it day one.

Hopefully there will be some sweet special edition too.

@MrGawain : So in other words, you want a distinctively Japanese game littered with Californian accents? Whatever floats your boat...

I hope they do a Fortissimo edition. I'll double dip either way to show support.

@ottospooky if it was Atlus publishing it they wouldn't have even mentioned an EU release once in the 2-3 years since the announcement so I'm glad as Hell that isn't the case.

@MrGawain Likely has more to do with the fact the the soundtrack is full of Avex music and its easier (both legally and financially) to just keep the original voices as is.

Plus this game would be a localization nightmare...its obviously set in tokyo so why not just keep the voices as is? I'm playing through it now and am quite fond of the voice acting.

I'm just happy we're actually getting this. Didn't it sell poorly in Japan? Seems like something that would normally never come over here.

I'll definitely be buying it and hoping for some sort of physical special edition.

@sillygostly This game flopped disastrously in Japan already. Nintendo probably wants to make the Fire Emblem connection less obvious now, but at the same time, they're starved for games on Wii U, so they'll just push out any old crap they can.

interesting, that there giving this a "T" Rating, but happy to see it none less.

ah, what the heck, I'll give it a go!

What I gather from the whole 'no English voice actors' thing, is that they basically already knew what their target audience was... which just happens to be one that often doesn't mind not having English dubs.
Still excited about it. No amount of overblown 'censorship' shouts is going to convince me otherwise.

I'll get this day one! I'm happy they are going to keep the Japanese voices, they truly went all out with the voices, working with Avex.
Maybe it hasn't sold well, but reviews in Japan have said this is a good game - although niche.

@Dakt How do you know if there is going to be censorship if they just announced the final localization today? If you mean Kiria's outfit, that was changed for the japanese version.

Good. Very good...

If it doesn't get a physical release, I won't pay over $20 for it. If it DOES release physically, even as a gamestop exclusive or something, then it's a day one purchase.

@Mahe : If anything, I think they should have made the Fire Emblem connection more obvious considering that it has gained traction in the West after the release of Awakening.

@Damo : I realise that, I only pointed out that it was an "unusual" decision considering the audience. This looks like a pretty big budget game for something with so little mainstream appeal. Anybody who really cares about this game would want to play it with the original Japanese dialogue anyway.

@Damo Hopefullyy that means they won't waste money censoring it as well.

@sillygostly

Actually I'd prefer all game characters to speak with a thick Yorkshire accent (That's how I imagine Princess Peach sounds), but the reason I'm not buying it is:

A: It's based around J-Pop with very little to do with Fire Emblem apart from cosplay,

and

B: Nintendo making it a rush release does sort of raise big questions about the quality of the game. All we've really seen is cutscenes with dialogue boxes and Japanese voice instead of any discernible gameplay. I agree it's hard to localize, but I get the feeling it isn't that fun either.

@MrGawain People that have played it say they like it

@Dakt
Well, I hadn't seen that leak... Although as I tell you, the "panties into spats" is in the final japanese version, so that isn't censorship. The final version is here: http://fireemblem.wikia.com/wiki/Kiria_Kurono?file=Idol_Kiria.jpg

Tsubasa aged to 18 wouldn't be really weird, she's 17 on the original version.

And... Yeah, the Hot springs DLC would be unfair.
But on the other two things, let's try to spread the actual info before this turns into another case of FE:Fates!

Finally! It's been a long time coming, but it's almost here

This game actually won a GotY award from one of the Japanese magazines. That alone tells me it's got to be at least a pretty good game.

Release date for this was all I wanted to see from this direct. Pumped it's in June and not end of year. I'm cool with keeping Japanese voice, helps cut their costs a lot. Have been looking forward to this for some time. Will be kind of a Persona game with FE characters for the Wii u.

@MrGawain
Cited from Wikipedia Reception tab

"Japanese critics were generally positive. Famitsu gave it a score of 34 points out of 40. The reviewers generally agreed that it had a interesting and entertaining premise, along with well-designed gameplay typical of an Atlus title. One reviewer noted being disappointed by the lack of Fire Emblem references.[42] It was also awarded Dengeki Online Award 2015: Dengeki referred to the game as a "masterpiece", calling it one of the best recent RPGs and applauding the evolved Megami Tensei battle system and lighter-toned story.[50]"

A masterpiece. Now, tastes will differ among gamers but, no one is going to praise a game to that extent if it's not fun.

This is the one I want and it's in English subtitles. I played Tales of Heart like that on the Vita. At first I was a little annoyed by the sub tittles, I actually loved them for that game. So I can't wait for this great game.

They should do more of this to the games that were only released in Japan.

Tokyo Mirage Sessions? The World Ends With You jokes coming in 3... 2... 1...

I don't know what to make of this game. At first, it doesn't seem too appealing to me, but I really want to give a demo a try in case I enjoy it (I can't remember if this was one of the games getting demos)

@MrGawain : I wouldn't consider it a "rush" release by any stretch considering how long it has been in development. It was announced over 3 years ago, shortly after the release of Wii U, and I doubt that they would announce a game unless it was already well into production (it's probably safe to assume a 4 year development cycle for the game).

I understand that the game won't appeal to you because you don't like J-Pop, and it doesn't appear to have much Fire Emblem influence in it either. As many others have pointed out, it looks more like a Persona/SMT game (franchises than I'm not overly familiar with) than anything even closely resembling Fire Emblem aside from the incidental battle sequences that we've seen in some of the pre-release videos.

As grateful as I am that something this bizarre is being made at all, let alone being released in the West, I'm still confounded that they would even bother localising this as it will flop, and consequently, we'll probably never see something like this again on a Nintendo platform.

Glad there's no English dub, I can only imagine how dire the dubbed songs would have been. A bit more hopeful for this game than I have been previously at the news.

already have this preordered. I'm so glad that it's coming soon

I'm going to be cautiously optimistic and hope it arrives unmolested.

Interesting that it is sub-only. If I'm not mistaken, I don't think Nintendo of America has released a game like that over here before.

Excited. Seems like it'll be an enjoyable RPG, though I have practically zero experience with SMT and Persona.

definitely might get this

So the game has a hastag in the title? Oh jeez.

Still want the game, but OH JEEZ.

@XCWarrior It's a musical notation for sharp notes, hence "sharp" FE being the pronunciation since the game is heavily focused around idols and such.

I'll pick this up used in 6 months at a garage sale. Nintendo is not taking my money this time.

@Maximknight Why though?

I can see this being one of those games that will end up being a cult hit and no one will buy it. So in a couple years I'm sure the price for this will skyrocket on the secondhand market.

"Slay monsters -and slay like a pop star" Oh Yeah!

I'm so excited and hyped for this game! Definitely getting myself a Wii U console soon!

"Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem mash-up Genei Ibun Roku #FE finally has a solid release date in the west, as well as a flash new title."

Supposed to be "flashy?"

Good time to release this game!!! I always hate how Summer seems to have few new games and that is when I've the most time to play them. Will definitely be picking this up. Can't say I'm thrilled about the new title though....

From all the pre-orders I'm almost certain that the game will have a physical release despite flopping in Japan. The game still looks strange but Atlus does have a great track record with Persona and Fire Emblem makes the game more attractive to me.

@Dakt You realize there was soft porn through that link...I saw nipples and pubic hair...well whatever.

Anyway this game failed in Japan. With additional censorship (I think even the Japanese version was censored) added in this game is probably gonna flop even harder. I doubt anyone will be able to tell the difference though. A giant flop or a slightly larger flop. Meh. Apparently this doesn't appeal to Fire Emblem or Shin Megami Tensei Fans so it was never going to be successful. Course if it somehow is successful in the west...hmm. Wow.

Nice that the Japanese voice track is in the game. It's most likely a cost-cutting measure, sure. But really, why is the lack of dual voice tracks being used as a selling point (at least in this Nintendo Direct video)?

Good that they didn't alter the name of the game for international audiences. Except for the "Tokyo" part. That just seems forced. Do they really believe that including "Tokyo" in the title will make the game stand out more? Perhaps it's a little more catchy than simply "Mirage Sessions", but it also takes away from some of the intended feeling the game gives off.

Besides being a cost cutting measure how the hell was dubbing going to work in a game so focused on music with lyrics? They would have had to just sub half of the game anyway.

It's good news since they aren't ruining the music in the game and maybe that filthy treehouse won't get their hands on the game at all not even the subs.

Definitely a must buy!! Looks awesome!!

Please Nintendo of America, don't screw up and make a eShop only release like you did Fatal Frame. Both this and Fatal Frame deserve alot better than just a crappy eShop release.

EDIT: seemingly it is getting a physical release, and they showed of the NA box art

http://nintendoeverything.com/wp-content/uploads/WiiU_TokyoMirageSessions_boxart_01_png_jpgcopy.jpg

I've been pretty interested in this for awhile, though it does seem pretty hard to decide if I should save my money for it and it get at launch or get it later and risk it being sold out as I'm already gonna start saving up for Monster Hunter Generations first.

@Gold en joke. Quick Play with words.

@Gauchorino Reverse the first letters of the name (excluding the sharp FE subtitle) and you get SMT. Pretty sure they did that on purpose.

@Mahe terribly. As in 5,000 with W101 or 23,000 for Dec that was released right after xmas along with a smiliar title from Capcom called Mega man legends with the same sales yet no one called that a flop. Oh well.

The only good thing about the Direct as far as I'm concerned. Monster Hunter, too, but it wasn't a surprise even if that leak hadn't happened.

Find it really cool and also really strange to see an Atlus game with JP audio in America. Dual audio would be better for the people who want it, but I'm happy.

Don't care what anyone says, this looks awesome and I'm getting it day one. And this is coming from someone who has close to zero interest in J-Pop.

@sillygostly why assume it going to flop? Seems like a lot of people are still interested in buying this game. And even in japan If you compare the 23,000 sales to W101 with 5,000 or even mega man legacy collected i would jump the gun yet.

@SetupDisk it was leaked and bits of it being Censored and why complain about the Treehouse writing when they been translating games like Animal crossing for years and only now people complain? Sounds very silly to me but its your opinion.

Pleaaase! Be released on a physical disc, and pleaaaase, don't censore this game.

Announcement trailers need to be exciting and filled with anticipation. Instead I'm worried and unsure what will happen. Way to go NoA. (T-T )

@Ryu_Niiyama Yeah, saw that thought mentioned earlier. Cute, but still a bit strange (if even accurate), considering the Japanese original didn't follow the same convention.

I'd prefer it if they'd dubbed the (non-singing) dialogue, but yeah good call on not messing with the songs in this kind of game.

For me this was the best news from the direct!
The game will finally arrive here and they'll keep it as japanese as possible (at least that's what Shibata words makes me hope).
Not want to be mean to the localizations in general, but this specific game is not 100%, but 500% japanese, keeping the localization at the minimal subtitled translation is a must XD

Wait no English dub at all? That's actually... great news!!!

No sub-par english voice acting! I would have played with subs only. Hopefully they don't change the written dialogue cause that'd be extremely stupid.

Oh well definitely going to buy this. A FE and SMT crossover, count me in! Heck I was in since day one, although it turned out to be much more Persona than I expected.

@JamCar I agree. To me that's been one of the more disappointing elements of the SMT x FE collaboration. The FE elements are barely recognizable. I think for me personally that I'll enjoy this game a lot more if I block out the fact that this was a crossover with FE to begin with

I totally forgot about this game. Wow, there are some games I'm looking forward to the Wii U now.

I'M SO EXCITED! THIS IS COMING OUT ON MY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

Nice, I don´t have to listen to horrible english dubs. I know there are some good out there but just no, I´ll gladly take the japanese voices.

This will be a major flop here in the west as:

A) The Fire Emblem elements are almost non-existent
B) It is aimed at a very limited market of gamers
C) Unless you're an avid fan of j-pop or are willing to become one, this will not appeal to you at all
D) It is being released on a dying console that not everyone has or is willing to buy in the near future
E) No showcasing of gameplay whatsoever
F) It will be largely overshadowed by Fates

Yep, this has written FLOP all over it.

when he said something like"the game takes place in japan so we kept the japanese audio and added subtitles..." i was like FINALLY FIIINAAALYYYYYYYY THEY HAVE SEEN THE HOLY LIGHT!!!!!!!!...anyway,still dont like the setting but a turn based jrpg from atlus cant be so bad,it wont be great but hey i take it,i like that kind of games a lot

@Gauchorino I'm likely reading too much into it but given the more persona slant and that the first persona game was Megumi Ibun Roku (Strange tale of the Goddess) and this one was Genei Ibun Roku (Strange tale of the Illusion) I think the Localization team tried to create a similar tie within the title that doesn't lose the description of the game. I was honestly hoping based on the original title that this would mean a new series for Atlus/Nintendo but with the sales as they are...its a missed boat. Oh well. The game is pretty fun so far.

I hope this gets a physical release. I've been looking forward to this since it was announced as SMTxFE. No English dub pleases me too. If the game is set in Japan it makes perfect sense keeping the original language.

I usually am indifferent on whether its subbed or dubbed as long as it's good. If I have a choice I usually go for subbed but there have been exceptions (I.e Bravely Default). However the immense "Japanese Nature" of this game makes me feel that subbed will likely be the way to go.

I just hope all the songs have remained for its Western release; may be another title I have to import its soundtrack. Unless of course they put together a special edition with the complete soundtrack; though it'll more likely be a small selection of any.

I love Bill Trinen's ''it's based in Japan, so we've decided to keep the Japanese audio with English subtitles''.

I love it because of how hilariously dishonest it is. Most of Atlus' games' setting is Japan and for years and years and years it's been nothing but English audio in the west. The only reason why they're ''keeping'' the original here is because the game flopped VERY hard in Japan and they don't have a budget for dubbing.

I mean, I don't mind because I strongly prefer the original audio of things when I play them, but I just had to mention the hipocrisy at hand here.

@MrGawain 1. The connection is there. It's mixed in with style SMT lore. Why does Chrom look like how he does? Well look at demi-fiend. Tiki is even a special supportive digital entity much like your Comp or gods that stay by your side in SMT games. But what about the writting? all the characters are written as if they came out of Fire Emblem.

2. the game is very music based. its a problem when you try to find enough actors who can actually sing. so it's no wonder that they did not dub it. from what you can hear from import reviews, the game is a very solid and stylish JRPG with plenty of depth.

@LinkSword it only flopped in one store. not all of Japan.

as for the dishonesty part, well the game is very music based and they said a few years ago that it would be a localization challenge when showing it off at E3. it looks like that they gave up trying to find actors who can actually sing and I bet you they got lucky enough to find someone to play Azura in Fates.

@The_BAAD_Man what what doesn't make sense is tl keep the Fire Emblem cast in Japanese even even though they are clearly European

@BRAINFOX Don't justify the hashtag. It's bad. Very bad.

This was what I was looking for in the direct; to see what they were going to do about this travesty outside of Japan. No English voice acting at all really spells out how little confidence they have in this game, and they have good reason to be pessimistic. It was a major flop in Japan in terms of sales, and the primary audience for this outside of Japan is obviously the super anime obsessed crowd, which couldn't care less about anything other than Japanese dub anyways.

@SamirMalik Nope, it did flop. And it was a remarkable flop considering the budget the game must have required. As of now, its lifetime sales in Japan are a little over 40k. A poor number no matter how you look at it.

@LinkSword 60k and no that isn't bad. It's doing pretty well. This isn't your typical square enix FinalFantasy game. It's Atlus. They aren't as big. Took them 3 years for Persona Golden to sell 850,000.

@Ryu_Niiyama I didn't realize that. Thanks much for filling me in. I was supposing they were using an excessive/"attractive" naming attempt similar to their English name for Gyorets Nageloop (ie, "Matrix Throwloop"; international title: Tokyo Crash Mobs), but I shouldn't have jumped to that conclusion. Now I definitely see major plausibility for that allusion behind the new name, and my OCD can finally be at rest.

While the game probably won't sell very well, its very late release (in addition to its uniqueness, quality, and ties to major series) will ensure its status as a cult classic, establishing its longevity as a future success. EarthBound and Shenmue did the same, so, I think we'll see something like this again.

Hmm, not a fan of pop-culture. I first need some reviews before I may dive in. But at the moment it looks unlikely that I'll buy it.

@sillygostly You do realize that this game would make Fire Emblem look bad, right?