region-locking
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Ask Massively: Vanguard's CE, Pandaria, and region-locked servers
It can be easy to forget how awesome MMO players are when we're knee-deep in troll-infested comment threads, but a note from a reader named Joshua this week served as the perfect perspective-reorientation: I was helping my brother demo and clean his father-in-law's home today and stumbled upon what appears to be a mint-condition Vanguard limited edition (collectors edition?). It looks to have all the goods, so I was wondering whether anyone at Massively would like to have it. Knowing how easy it is to get attached to these games, I figured someone would want it for sentimental reasons (I still have my DAOC boxes and books!). I don't know whether our staff will take you up on it, but just the fact that you thought of offering it to our bereaved fans instead of making a beeline for eBay warmed my heart.
Black Gold could possibly start beta in early 2014
Dying to get your hands on the scrumptious-looking Black Gold? If you've already registered for a beta key and need a little hope, here it is: Snail Games said the game could possibly start its closed beta in the first quarter of 2014. "The first closed beta is planned to launch at the earliest Q1 2014," the studio posted in a recent Ask the Devs segment. "We are ensuring quality when it's ready to meet the public eye. All players who have registered prior will have a high chance of receiving first round of beta codes via their email." Black Gold's beta and release is initially aimed at North America, although Snail Games said it is "not ruling out" the possibility of future releases elsewhere. There will also be no region block for the title. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!]
Nintendo maintains region-locking policy with Wii U
Nintendo today disclosed that the Wii U is region-locked. Speaking to CVG, the company confirmed the new console won't support games purchased outside of its region, meaning North American Wii U systems can only play games bought in North America. Nintendo then closed its arms and grumbled furiously under its breath, before finally blowing us an unnecessarily long raspberry (or so it seemed to us.)While Sony and Microsoft leave the decision to region-lock games with publishers, Nintendo typically takes matters into its own hands. The GameCube, Wii, and 3DS are all region-locked, although the DS isn't. We should know, we've played plenty of Ouendan on ours. Such good times (sigh.)
Shocker: Nintendo Wii U said to be region-locked
The forthcoming Wii U console from Nintendo will be region-locked, just like the original Wii and the 3DS, Nintendo UK told Eurogamer. That means you won't be able to play obscure (or early) Japanese imports on it, and customs officials won't get anything to break up the monotony of seized cigars and bushmeat.
Guild Wars 2 clarifies guesting, world transfers, and regions
The launch of Guild Wars 2 is drawing ever nearer, which means there's an ever-diminishing amount of time to disseminate information to the writhing hordes. A news post today shed light on some of ArenaNet's policies and technomagics that go into supporting the game's accessibility. To begin with, there are three main regions recognized by the game: North America, Europe, and Other. Digital versions of the game are automatically entered into the correct region based on the purchaser's location, while physical retailers give out a serial code to register in account creation. Players must register a code that matches their location (a customer in Europe has to register a European code), but after that one-time check, they can access the game from anywhere in the world. Home worlds are automatically displayed by region, but players can opt to join the servers of another region. Once a home world has been chosen, all characters on an account belong to that server, and a gem transaction has to be made to switch to a new home world. That won't be implemented at launch, however, in order to facilitate the spread of a stable and healthy population across all servers. At launch, transfers between worlds will be free. After the populations have settled, world transfers will be restricted to a once per week and cost gems. At the same time, the guesting feature that allows players to visit their friends' worlds will be implemented. Check out the news post for all the gory details, or hit up the Guild Wars 2 knowledge base if you've got some burning tangential questions.
Atlus explains Persona 4 Arena's region lock, expresses surprise at 'force' of community disapproval
The unprecedented decision to region-lock the PS3 release of Persona 4 Arena will not lead to a "slippery slope," Atlus PR and sales manager Aram Jabbari said in a statement (available in full after the break)."This is NOT the beginning of a new ATLUS policy, nor do we view it as a precedent or a slippery slope," Jabbari said. "If anything, your determination and dedication to what you believe in has certainly stood in the face of that. This is an isolated case, a situation precipitated by a number of factors, some of which are simply out of our North American hands." He admits that Atlus was "completely unprepared for the force with which the community communicated their disapproval."Jabbari explained that the North American release contains both Japanese and English audio tracks, and will be released very close to the Japanese version (August 7 in North America and July 26 in Japan). "The unforeseen consequence in all of this was that we had a version of our biggest game of the year releasing within a couple weeks in two territories, both identical in content, but at radically different price points."Because of the difference between the yen and the dollar's values right now, this situation could lead to mass importing, which would "cannibalize the performance of a title in one territory to the benefit of another." For reference, the Japanese retail price of Persona 4 Arena is ¥7,329, roughly $92, versus $59.99 in North America."The decision to region-lock P4 Arena was a business one, one that has very clearly affected how many perceive the project," Jabbari concluded, "but we ask you to please not overlook the exceptional efforts of the people behind the game and to work with us through constructive dialogue."
Persona 4 Arena will be region locked on PS3
The PlayStation 3 version of Persona 4 Arena carries with it an unusual distinction: The Arc System Works-developed fighter will be region locked, meaning that North and South American copies of the game won't function on Japanese PS3s, and vice-versa."Yes, the PS3 version game will be region-locked. I certainly can't offer details as to why, but there might be an official response at some point," said an Atlus employee on the company's official forums."To reiterate, our version of the game works for the North and South America regions. Also keep in mind that both the NA and JP versions have both English and Japanese text/voice options, making them nearly identical. I'm unsure of what the case will be for the EU version."While Blu-ray film playback has been subject to regional limitations since the get go, PS3 games have only been limited by the differences between PAL and NTSC -- standards which have waned in relevance since HD televisions became more prevalent.
Diablo III offers global play, provides a guide to the auction house
As Diablo III gets ever closer to release, you've probably moved on from the question of what you're going to play and on to the question of who you're going to play with. If your friends live across the planet, that's going to make things a little more difficult, but with the new Global Play feature, not impossible. Players will be able to play in any region, although the real-money auction house will only be accessible in your home region and your characters from the home region won't transfer to the global service. You hadn't forgotten the real-money auction house, had you? Just in case you had, a new official guide is available detailing how the service will work, what regions can use what money, and of course the actual mechanics of buying and selling. Players using the global play feature will not have access to the real money house of other regions, but will have access to the regular auction house, so even if you're planning on a global jaunt, it's worth examining the particulars.
SOE responds to ProSiebenSat.1 fiasco, says it's not a done deal
Sony Online Entertainment has finally responded to the ProSiebenSat.1 brouhaha. Director of Global Community Relations Linda "Brasse" Carlson gave frustrated fans a faint glimmer of hope with a forum post last night that basically said the controversial deal isn't quite a done deal. In a nutshell, SOE plans to divide its long-time gaming community by region, with European player accounts handed off to ProSiebenSat.1 and Alaplaya. The announcement sent shockwaves through the EverQuest II community, as many guilds and sub-communities feature players from both sides of the Atlantic. The forced transfer of player accounts and personal information from SOE to Alaplaya also raised eyebrows, as some in the player community voiced concerns over security and convenience since Alaplaya reserves the right to delete inactive accounts after 90 days and has been accused of publishing real names on past-due accounts (the company has denied the latter). SOE's forums have been on fire over the past two days, with dozens of bans handed down by moderators (including one to noted community leader Morgan Feldon of EQ2Wire). Feldon's fansite is the place to go for info about the ongoing drama; it provides a wealth of opinion on why the proposed deal sucks for players as well as a collection of community reactions. Aside from Brasse's post, SOE has been silent about the deal, which comes on the heels of the firm's generating quite a bit of fan goodwill by reversing its decision to shelve the Mac version of EverQuest.
New TERA IP blocking policy contradicts previous En Masse tweets [Updated]
Yesterday we reported on En Masse Entertainment's policy when it comes to IP blocking and region-locks for its upcoming TERA MMORPG. While the company's decision to keep users from Asia, Africa, Russia, and the Middle East off its American servers isn't particularly unusual, it is curious in the wake of several previous statements to the contrary. It turns out that En Masse said it wouldn't engage in foreign IP blocking four separate times via its TERA Twitter account before reversing course with its support post over the weekend. Is the new policy going to prevent you from playing TERA? Tell us what you think! [Thanks to Stilllove for the tip.] [Update: En Masse has responded with an official explanation of the changes. We've included the full statement behind the break.]
En Masse outlines policy for TERA IP blocking [Updated]
Lawsuits notwithstanding, TERA's North American debut is but a few short months away, and En Masse Entertainment probably has plenty of things on its pre-launch to-do list. One of those things is publicizing its policy on region-based IP blocking, and the firm did just that via a recent update to its support website. The firm will block IP addresses based on region, and Asia, Africa, Russia, and the Middle East are currently included on the company's block list. "While we appreciate that there are players in these regions who would enjoy playing on En Masse servers, it's unfortunate that the vast majority of internet traffic we see from these regions is from cyber-criminals relating to account theft, gold-farming and other hacking behavior," the company says. En Masse will not initially block proxies, but "a proxy or server host will be blocked if it becomes a popular tool for criminal behavior," according to the release. [Thanks to Stilllove for the tip!] [Update: En Masse has responded with an official explanation of the changes. We've included the full statement behind the break.]
Report: Vita limited to one PSN account per console
Say goodbye to your convenient Japanese PSN account. NeoGAFfer mehdi_san took part in a PlayStation Vita demo event in Osaka, and received a flyer with launch information. A note at the end, according to the user's transcription, reveals that only one user account can be used on a Vita system. "If you want to use a different account," the (translated) FAQ entry reads, "you need to format the system to factory settings." This leads not only to the inability to have separate user accounts for family members, but to de facto region locking for digital content. Taken with the limited UMD Passport launch lineup, the limited (to zero) PSOne Classics launch lineup, and those memory card prices, the Vita is starting to lose some of its luster, at least as a day-one purchase. But that screen!
The Daily Grind: Should games be region-locked?
A reader named Sam recently wrote in to Massively with a concern: He's a U.S. expat who moved to South Korea only to find he cannot log in to his North American Age of Conan account. The reason? Funcom employs region-blocking. Customers in Korea simply cannot connect to the U.S. game servers. Many games make it obnoxiously difficult for players in one country to play with friends in another. At the dawn of every World of Warcraft expansion, my own guild sees a flurry of Americans fussing with PayPal and buying boxes for our European members. But at least that's possible -- at least Blizzard isn't blocking their logins altogether. And upcoming MMOs, like Star Wars: The Old Republic, seem to be reversing this trend, forsaking region-locking altogether and letting folks play together and deal with the lag in their own way (although the company's not exactly making it easy on its customers Down Under). What's your stance on region-locking (and -blocking)? Do you think companies should insist on keeping players neatly corralled by country and language for the sake of server stability and customer support? Or do you think that such policies undermine one of the best qualities of MMOs -- the chance to play with people from around the globe? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Nintendo 3DS may have region-locked software, continue an unfortunate trend
Once upon a time, when handheld game systems were thicker and Nintendo was entirely without peer, the company deigned to allow us to import games without fear. On Game Boy of all shapes and sizes, as well as the Nintendo DS, a Japanese cartridge would let you experience portable wonders years before they hit Europe and the US. Starting in 2008, however, Nintendo made DSi-specific titles region-locked -- and that's the same fate that will likely befall games on Nintendo's new 3D handheld as well. "There is the possibility that Nintendo 3DS software sold in one region will not function properly when running on Nintendo 3DS hardware sold in another," a company statement reads, though it's important to note that region locks are typically a two-party affair -- if game publishers choose to make their stereoscopic software region-free, it might work on your handheld anyhow. So yes, you might still have a chance to get your date sim on.
Nintendo comments on 3DS region locking
Nintendo has offered vague confirmation to VG247 of last week's report that 3DS hardware and software would include regional lockout programming. "Nintendo 3DS hardware is available in three versions: Japanese, American and European/Australian," clarified a company statement, which added that "there is the possibility that Nintendo 3DS software sold in one region will not function properly when running on Nintendo 3DS hardware sold in another." Nintendo cited obvious language differences, as well as regional age ratings, parental controls and "local laws" as factors in the manufacturing of (subtly) different hardware models. Additionally, the variations of the handheld are designed to provide "network services" that are compatible with regional technology. Like the DSi Shop before it, the 3DS's digital distribution channel is likely to be only stocked with region-locked content. As for physical products, Nintendo assured that "guidance" would appear on all 3DS hardware and software packaging. (NTSC-coded Wii game boxes, for example, include the note: "For sale, rental and use only in the USA, Canada, Mexico and Latin America.") "If you are in doubt," the statement concluded, "Nintendo recommends that you only purchase Nintendo 3DS software in the region where [you] purchased your Nintendo 3DS system." Tomorrow, you'll find out how to purchase that system in your region of choice -- and for how much.
Report: 3DS will be region locked
Unlike the GameBoy, GameBoy Advance, and DS before it, Nintendo's next handheld may not play nice with games outside of its designated region. A report on Korean gaming site RuliWeb details an alleged interaction between Nintendo customer support in Japan and an individual inquiring about 3DS region locking. The supposed Nintendo Japan support officer specifically spells out, "There are no region codes in DS and DS Lite, but DSi, DSi [XL], and 3DS have region codes. The region codes are installed in each game and the 3DS itself ... you can't play if the region codes are different." As Tiny Cartridge points out, the DSi and DSi XL both include a form of region locking in that DSi systems can only access their own region's DSi Shop, and DSi-enhanced releases (read: games that use the camera, among other things) are locked to the region in which they're released. The 3DS's region locking sounds like it works the same way: the alleged Nintendo rep spells out, "For example, if you play a Korean 3DS game with a Japanese 3DS system (or vice versa), you won't be able to play at all." Nintendo had yet to respond to request for comment as of publishing.
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.
Dude, Where's My Country?
When we purchased WoW, we all made a (mostly) unconscious choice. Based on geographic location alone, we committed ourselves to life on a certain set of servers, walled off from other regions -- American, European or Korean, we're now stuck with the original decision we made months or years ago.There are various good reasons to think about switching, or going dual-region. It's possible to run two copies of WoW, or even just the one, as long as you're prepared to cough up the initial payment and monthly fee twice over. You might have friends abroad you wish to play with, or you may be away from your home country temporarily. You might be a night owl or early bird, more comfortable in a timezone several hours distant from your own. Perhaps there is a particular guild you wish to join, or news items you wish to keep up with; perhaps you would prefer to speak a certain language.There are also bad reasons -- if you're disillusioned with some less-than-savoury experiences on your home server, switching region isn't going to help any more than just switching server, as bad PuGs and antisocial players exist on all servers. Also, playing away from home for the purposes of selling gold or characters in a more lucrative market isn't going to win you many friends.
