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DSi-only software is region locked
Nintendo's decades-long streak of region-free handhelds is coming to a close. In a statement to CVG, the company confirmed that Nintendo DSi-only cartridges and downloadable content will be locked to the region where you buy the Nintendo DSi. Web browsing, photo sharing and playing DS games will be region free, but US gamers hoping to import the console between now and "well into 2009" will probably have to brush up on their Japanese to enjoy the best new features.We're not too worried, though. Something in our gut tells us that SD card slot will give region-unlocking ninjas in the homebrew community an easy "in."
Play with Sackboys around the world: LBP not region locked
A post on the official European PlayStation forums states once and for all that LittleBigPlanet will have one region: "LittleBigRegion," aka Earth. Although future Sackboys around the world hoped there'd be no region lock, the possibility did come up after the game's senior producer allegedly made statements about region locking during Leipzig.The confusion about region locking revolved around moderation requirements required in different sections of our own little big planet. Apparently Sony has "worked around" this issue and now all shared levels will be available worldwide when the game releases in October.[Via PS3 Fanboy]
E308: Updates on PS3's Home
Our sister-sites Joystiq and PS3Fanboy managed to get some new information and pictures for Sony's Home at E3 last week. The biggest piece of news is somewhat disappointing -- public areas in Home are region locked. You can still visit anyone's private area, but outdoor mingling will be restricted.On the bright side, we are treated to a gallery of the "Game Spaces" for two of the PS3's biggest hits, Warhawk and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. These Game Spaces are decorated with apparel relating to the game's they're based on, and feature interactive elements. Warhawk's room has a sand-table to formulate strategies with friends for an upcoming game. The Uncharted room has a locked door that can be opened after visitors discover a secret code, as well as a platforming mini-game to play.
Rumor: Freeloader not compatible with Mario Kart Wii
If you tried importing the Japanese version of Mario Kart Wii to Europe or the U.S. in order to get your copy early, you may have received this message from Play-Asia: "We received the first small delivery today for testing and unfortunately we have to inform you, that the game is not compatible with the Datel Freeloader (US and PAL Version)."However, we've heard from NWF reader Nils that this isn't true, and an imported copy of Mario Kart has worked just fine on his Wii (we're still waiting to hear back on what version he imported). Still, we're sure Play-Asia wouldn't make such things up, since this will only lead to the site losing sales. So, at this point, just be cautious with your imports, and let's hope that Datel's Freeloader isn't outdated already.We'll update the post if we find or hear more accounts from Mario Kart Wii importers, so be sure to tip us if you've tried it first hand.%Gallery-4772%[Via Go Nintendo]
Uncharted demo is region "locked"
Those of you with European PlayStation 3s who are downloading the Uncharted: Drake's Fortune demo - please stop now. The demo has been region locked for use on American PS3s only and when played on a PAL machine will show only a message saying "Please insert the game disc". Whether this was done intentionally, we're uncertain. Judging by Sony's previous allowance of demos to be played on any machine (such as Heavenly Sword and Folklore) as well as the region free nature of the machine itself, we're going to assume it was a mistake. Uncharted is due out on the 19th of November in America, with a European release of December the 7th. As a result SCEE will be waiting for a couple of weeks before releasing the demo to the EU Store, in order to maximise profitability. Until then, we are at the mercy of SCEA who may or may not resolve the "issue" by sneaking up a "fixed" version for eager Europeans to enjoy.If this is an intentional region-lock, then this doesn't bode well for the future of the PlayStation Store and those of us with dreams of a single, worldwide store sometime in the future will be sorely disappointed.
Wii not even remotely region-free
Remember when Nintendo's Perrin Kaplan told Wired News that first-party Wii games would be free of regional shackles? Well, it turns out that she never received the internal memo stating the exact opposite: The Wii will not be region-free. Not even a little. Some confusion arose after David "there's no DS redesign" Yarnton told UK press that the system would indeed be region-locked. Were Kaplan's comments misinterpreted somehow? After all, having region-free games and a region-free system are two very different things. We took the issue to a Nintendo US spokesperson and received the clarification we desired, unpleasant as it was."We've heard conflicting reports from lots of folks out there, but can tell you that Wii will be region encoded, as will first-party software."It's a segmented world after all.
Wii to be region-locked after all?
After getting promised the beauties of region-free content by our American Nintendo PR peeps, our hopes have been shattered by Nintendo UK who has now gone on record denying the claims. They put it rather bluntly, stating: "We are region-locked," and that Nintendo America made a mistake by claiming otherwise. UK General Manager David Yarnton seems to think that Wii games and online content will be region-encoded, locking out European gamers from US and Japan titles, with the same being true in reverse. Seems to be a pretty major slip-up, though it's possible that since Nintendo America's Perrin Kaplan was only speaking of first-party titles for the Wii, Nintendo UK was merely trying to counteract the misquotes her statement had been getting. We'll be watching this one develop, but for now we're hoping the language barrier will be the only thing keeping us from a flashy first-party Wii cooking title.UPDATE: Bad new, folks. Nintendo has finally clarified this whole rigmarole, and the Wii will indeed be region-locked for both first and third party titles and online content.[Thanks, Timerider]Read - IGN: Wii Titles Region-EncodedRead - IGN: Wii Region-Free Says Nintendo VPRead - GamesIndustry.biz: Wii is region-lockedRead - Joystiq: Wii is region-free / Wii is region-locked
