Why do you buy Atlus' games?

[mailman187666]

just what the title says, what makes you buy games with Atlus' name on it?

[Sudo]

Same reason I buy other games: Fun.

[erehwon]

I get them for the collector value and the gaming experience. The DDS games were some of my favorite on the PS2 and I still need to play my copies SMT: Nocturn and Persona 3.

[Aussie2B]

I'd like to believe that everybody buys them with some intent to play them. It's not like EVERY Atlus game becomes valuable either. There are plenty of cheap ones out there that never managed to get much of a fan base. Anyway, I only really care about playing them, but due the frequency that their games become valuable and in high demand, I think that pushes me to pick up some of their titles sooner rather than later in fear of having to pay big bucks much later on. Granted, I still pretty much never get their games at launch (same goes for all games in general), but I try to get them when they're marked down if they're still around at that point. At the very least, I don't like to wait many years to the point that eBay is practically the only option for picking up a given game.

[MrRoboto19XX]

I'd like to believe that everybody buys them with some intent to play them. It's not like EVERY Atlus game becomes valuable either. There are plenty of cheap ones out there that never managed to get much of a fan base. Anyway, I only really care about playing them, but due the frequency that their games become valuable and in high demand, I think that pushes me to pick up some of their titles sooner rather than later in fear of having to pay big bucks much later on. Granted, I still pretty much never get their games at launch (same goes for all games in general), but I try to get them when they're marked down if they're still around at that point. At the very least, I don't like to wait many years to the point that eBay is practically the only option for picking up a given game.

Yep, couldn't have said it better myself.

Also, if I see a cheap "older" game (PSX and previous) by Atlus, I'm more likely to take a chance on it for the above reasons.

[RadiantSvgun]

Shin Megami Tensei.

Thats reason enough.

[Fuyukaze]

They make great games that break the mold when it comes to RPGs. I could give a rats ass if they were oh so valuable years down the road.

[TonyTheTiger]

It depends on the game. I'm usually not a publisher chaser. Just because I love Castlevania doesn't mean I'll like any other random Konami game, for instance. But, yeah, a decent number of Atlus games interest me but pretty much solely for the game experience.

I think a lot of the people who see Atlus as a collector's dream are a little late to the party. The publisher has experienced what's more or less a boom in it's U.S. presence (thanks in no small part to Disgaea) and coming with that is an increase in print runs. And with Game Quest Direct running around that only gets compounded. Finding a copy of Persona 3 isn't going to be like walking into a copy of Tactics Ogre. Hell, with the release of FES, I wouldn't be surprised to see Persona 3's price drop by 40% or more.

Atlus isn't quite mainstream yet but it's getting there. It's certainly beyond the point of niche. Hell, even NIS is striving to move beyond that point now. And with so many people buying these quirky Japanesey games with reselling in mind, that's only going to cause the prices to stay relatively low. The only thing that an Atlus published game might do is cause me to buy it earlier because there's a higher risk I won't be able to find it easily later. But besides that, I don't expect Arcana Heart to fetch $100 on Ebay two years from now.

[Snapple]

It has absolutely nothing to do with collector's value. I pursue interesting games for my own enjoyment, and if Atlus makes games like that, then I buy them.

[otaku]

I buy em if they're fun the collectibility is just a bonus

[josekortez]

I get them because they're the alternative to the usual stuff the other companies release. I like oddball fighting games and RPGs, no matter where they come from.

I will admit I've never finished one of the Atlus games, but I do enjoy the Shin Megami Tensei series and a few of their other PS2 games like Metal Saga and Steambot Chronicles.

I've got Persona 3 for playing and I've even kept myself from buying sealed duplicate copies when I've seen them for sale because I don't often purchase games based on pure speculation.

[PapaStu]

Because the publisher says Atlus... The same thing happens for me in regards to buying Natsume (doesn't matter what kind of game it is, it says Natsume, it comes home) AgeTec, Koei and depending on my mood Namco and SquareEnix. I used to do that with Sega and few others, but getting bitten by lots of crap lead me to pulling back on that.

Their stuff tends to be hard to get later on and its easier/cheaper for me to have it now and not worry about it down the line so that factor comes into play as well.

[Gabriel]

I buy Atlus games because they tend to publish stuff I'm interested in.

[Hwj_Chim]

I like their games so I buy them. It is that simple

[ScourDX]

Atlus is one of few company that doesn't go for popular trend. They release a lot of unique niche game that I enjoy a lot.

[Putney]

I couldn't really think of a specific answer for the poll. I tend to usually wait and buy most non-"gotta have it ASAP" games once they've had a few price drops or are used, but in the case of Atlus I end up buying most of their games on the release date. Mostly because they can be tough to find in the future, and in some cases nearly impossible to get in good condition (with bonus art books, soundtracks, etc). Unfortunately my RPG backlog is HUGE so a few of the pickups are still sealed for that reason, but I know they'll be good whenever I finally get to playing them.

[Buyatari]

Atlus makes some great games. One the rare cases where I wish a game was worth less than is it. Fun to play.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Atlus either releases games I couldn't go without (best example: Etrian Odyssey and soon 2) or they release games I couldn't care less for. There is no mid-ground. If it has Atlus on it I'm 99% sure that I'll love it or hate it. This creates some interesting situations when I find an Atlus title that I haven't played yet. Most cases though, it's a safe buy because even if I hate it there is someone out there looking for it and I can either sell/trade it to them for something else I need. I took a few hits, like with Trap Gunner for PS1. Bought it, hated it and couldn't find anyone that wanted it. That scenario hasn't happened more than a few times thankfully.

[Dire 51]

Because they released Run Saber here.

Come to think of it, that's the only Atlus game I own...

[namzep]

Ever since I played Disgaea I've been hooked on their games. I really like the off-beat RPGs (and occasionally other games like Go! Go! Hypergrind) that they put out.

[Leo_A]

I don't like their games so I don't buy them.

[exit]

If I see a game of interest and it has the Atlus logo on the case, it helps the game score some points. I like Atlus games because they usually guarantee a unique gaming experience, so if anything I'll have something interesting in my collection.

[OdinDragoon]

The first Atlus-distributed game I've played was Tactics Ogre: LUCT for PSX and let me tell you, that game is awesome as hell. Plus their games get valuable.

[G-Boobie]

A list of my favorite 'last-gen' games is going to have quite a few Atlus published titles in there, and a few Atlus developed titles too (Megaten!).

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, Persona 3, Nocturne, Odin Sphere, Steambot Chronicles, Metal Saga... Great games. Value is not really a concern.

[mailman187666]

I think a lot of what Atlus does is cater to RPG fans'. When a new game by them comes around, I make sure to look into it to see if its something i like. Almost every time they make something, I give it a shot and end up liking it. So far everything I've tried by them, I've liked. The collector's value is an added bonus to me, but I have to admit that sometimes it will drive me to make the purchase over other games I have interest in.

[Roufuss]

I buy them because I love them, but now I have to buy the ones I am interested in ASAP because people who will buy them simply because they say Atlus and want to resell them will buy all the copies.

Case in point, I'm playing Etrian Odyssey right now, and probably want to take a break from that genre by the time EO 2 comes out. However, I have to buy EO 2 right away because who knows what could happen if I don't - I couldn't find EO new or used in any store here when I decided to grab it, and had to resort to Ebay.

Likewise, I wanted to wait a bit on Arcana Heart, but the ratio of people who are buying in hopes it's going to be the next $100 Atlus title, vs people who are actually going to play it, make me scrounge up the money to grab it early next week.