THE iDOLM@STER > THE iDOLM@STER 2
Vic Ireland on translating im@s
Daverost:
--- Quote from: SakuraMaxX on April 06, 2012, 09:59:10 pm ---Sony Computer Entertainment of America does not allow a game to have a retail copy if it does not get an English dub (if Japanese voices were present), forcing PS3iM@S 2 to be sold only on the PSN/SEN Marketplace if it were to ever receive a translated version.
--- End quote ---
I'd be okay with this. It cuts printing and distribution costs while providing a universally available distribution, which in all honesty makes the idea a lot more attractive to potential publishers and cuts down on the price for consumers.
I wouldn't mind seeing iM@S2 and Umineko get this kind of treatment because I really don't care if either has a dub in the first place.
Setsuna:
--- Quote from: Daverost on April 07, 2012, 05:37:37 pm ---I'd be okay with this. It cuts printing and distribution costs while providing a universally available distribution, which in all honesty makes the idea a lot more attractive to potential publishers and cuts down on the price for consumers.
I wouldn't mind seeing iM@S2 and Umineko get this kind of treatment because I really don't care if either has a dub in the first place.
--- End quote ---
Except by doing so, it damages the business case, and in turn means there's less projected (and actual) sales to make.
Like it or not, most people actually like listening to people speak in their own language, and the lack of that option can cripple its audience in the US. (Europe not so much, but that's because the European market is made of a lot of languages, and well, they're sort of accepting when a game isn't in a slavic language, for instance.)
But for most part (as I said, I linked an analysis) the problem is that licensing is what costs you an arm and a leg. (song licenses, which are sold on a song by song basis. This is why you don't see the songs in the Asian PSN). You can't get around those, and this drives the cost of it up.
It's ironic, but dubbing it is actually relatively cheap. In fact, it can be quite a bit cheaper to dub it yourself than to license another languages' sound track.
Elixir:
--- Quote ---"The move back toward boy and girl bands it on the upswing again with groups like 1 Direction"
So, Vic, have you played through iDOLM@STER, 2, or the PSP games?
It's a time management, competitive rhythm game. The premise of the game is broken down into categories: lessons (mini-games), auditions and festivals. That aside, there's also the communication segments "visual novel" I guess, which raise "memories" that can be used in the auditions and festivals (as an advantage). All of this consumes time, but is unique, and the series is really a wonderful concept. Nothing like it has been seen in the west, although it does have some similarities to Atelier and Persona in the time management and social link regard.
I've been a member of project-imas.com for a long time, I improted a Japanese 360 just for this series, and I've pretty much played them to death and back. The western fanbase is not big, but apparent, and if it were to be localized, it would need the original Japanese songs, voice actors, and basically everything left in Japanese barring the text.
That's right, this means you'll have to go through and acquire the rights to Asami Imai, Rie Kugimiya, and other voice actors, as well as most of the songs, although practically all of them are developed in-house at Namco Bandai Japan. Though, if it were to be localized, wouldn't it be done by Namco of America?
I actually recall one article (sorry, I don't have it off hand), where the producer of iDOLM@STER considered a western release, but the target demographic is so vastly different that it simply wouldn't be worth the time and resources. A similar situation is happening here, with this dream. There was even someone on Youtube (Japanese user "sugio0089") who attempted to subtitle the mass majority of the communication events in iDOLM@STER into English. I would recommend checking out his work - he hasn't done anything in over 2 years, but the videos he's uploaded is basically what the English-speaking fanbase would want in a localization.
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I already wrote this as a comment on the site, I'm too lazy to add anything more.
Additionally, Class of Heroes is terrible.
furix:
Honestly, the more I think about it, the more ok I am with idolm@ster staying in Japanese only, even with my limited knowledge on the language.
Also, yes, Class of Heroes is awful.
animagic4u:
Not related to Vic Ireland, but...
http://gamasutra.com/view/news/169048/Namco_Bandai_aims_to_replicate_Japanese_success_by_merging_Western_teams.php
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