is it wrong...(Owning games you can't read)

[Niku-Sama]

...to own almost a complete series of games and not be able to read them?

i was going through my imports i got last summer on my trip and i think i have almost the whole dragon quest series, 1-4 on famicom (some how i have 2 coppies of 2) and 5,6,1+2remake, i rember not getting 3+4 because it was alot and i had already racked up about $300 or more in games and hardware.

well any way i was just thinkin

[Sniderman]

Is it wrong...to steal bandwidth?
Is it wrong...to love unconditionally?
Is it wrong...to lie to a priest?
Is it wrong...to cheat on your taxes?
Is it wrong...to support a war if it's for a good cause?
Is it wrong...to shoot a man just for snoring too loud?

Anyway, please make your subject titles a little less general in the future. I added enough so readers would know what the thread is about now.

Carry on.

[Jimmy Yakapucci]

I am in kind of the same boat. I have about 50 Japanese Saturn games and I can't play the majority of them since I can't read Japanese. It mostly affects just the RPG games.

JY

[gepeto]

I bought a japanese version of metal gear and firepro for the saturn.. I can't read it but I like metal gear as for firepro. before the internet boon I went to kinkos the had online capabilities. Gamefaq had a translation.

I started to print and kinkos charge 1.00 a page. I stopped at page 31. I felt like I was ripped off but very few had online at the time.

[Bort]

As said the only problem is with text heavy games/rpg's. Most menu systems are easy to understand but it's usually easy to find a menu translation or someone to do it for you if you can't work it out.

I actually prefer imports (usually japanese). It adds that little extra spice of the unknown that I used to get with games when I was a wee one. Easy enough to work out the scenario the game is built around without being forcefed a crappy story.

[Lerxstnj]

yeah, that would be great if there was a site that had all the common menu items (start, continue, options, etc.) translated.

[Daria]

I am in kind of the same boat. I have about 50 Japanese Saturn games and I can't play the majority of them since I can't read Japanese. It mostly affects just the RPG games.

JY

Sounds like a good excuse for you to learn some Japanese.

As for the original poster... ummm... it's Dragon Warrior. Just play the english copies and keep the imports around to look pretty.

[Jimmy Yakapucci]

Sounds like a good excuse for you to learn some Japanese.

I was thinking about doing that, but who knows if I will ever get around to it. I would almost swear that I saw a web site that had a little translation page for the most common video game items. I'll have to look again.

JY

[Aussie2B]

Why would it be wrong? The only way I could possibly construe it being wrong is if you have no intention to play them, no particular attachment to them, and no reason for owning them except to hoard boatloads of them just for the sake of keeping them off the market and out of the hands of the people who do want to play them, at least until you find someone willing to pay through the teeth for them. Even that's iffy, though, because I love people who make imports available to Westerners; it's just a matter of if they're scummy and knowingly try to thoroughly rip off uninformed people, but that scenario can happen to someone dealing in literally any product.

Anyway, I play just about all the imports I get, regardless of how text-heavy they are, and the few I don't or can't really play are important to me for other reasons. I own a manufacturer's box of 10 copies of Wonder Project J2, and I only really need one but, as one of my favorite games, it's very special to me. Expanding beyond games, I have some products I can't get much out of but own for certain reasons. For example, I own a few Japanese game novels, which are books based on video games. They usually have little to no artwork and I don't know anywhere close to enough Japanese to read them, but due to the games that they're based on, I consider them essential to my collection. I do hope that one day I'll be able to read them, though.

[InsaneDavid]

I put myself in this boat about eight years ago when I realized a long time dream of finally having the disposable income to purchase a TurboDuo. Due to the Super System Card 3.0 being hardcoded the CD drive isn't region locked. Prices for Japanese PCEngine CD games were so much lower than the US games out there and there were so many more of them I went on a buying frenzy. I had taken Japanese in high school and knew basic things to push my way through but that was two years prior and I hadn't used the language at all since. In other words, I retained very little of if. (Strangely all the years of German I took remain dormant in me as when I begin to restudy it all comes back)

I would get the games, pop them in, struggle around for about two hours, put them back in the case and on the shelf to collect dust. It occured to me a few years later "I gotta quit buying these dating sims and digital manga games." Of the dating sims Doukyusei is the only one that I really took the time to go through until realizing there was a much better version on the Saturn (Doukyusei if) which I have yet to get. I sold off many of the text heavy games that I didn't have the patience for or that also had translated counterparts (Snatcher for instance). The Sailormoon games I kept as that's a sub collection of mine as well as the two GunBuster digital comics, simply because I love the series and the artwork of the games. But the Galaxy Fraulein Yuna games, Graduation II, Tanjo Debut, etc. I really have no use for and have been waiting to get an offer on that I'm okay with. ($10.00 range)

When I got into Sega Saturn modding I decided to take a different approach to Japanese games. I wouldn't just buy, buy, buy. Instead I bought titles that were different / better in Japan (Daytona USA Circuit Edition, Fighting Vipers, etc.), games that didn't have a USA release but were still playable (Gale Racer, Asuka 120% Burning Fest. Limited, etc.) and games that were dirt cheap - many of those I sold back off for small profits, we're talking like paying $1.00 - $3.00 for complete games. There are a few text heavy pachinko games I learned to work my way through that I enjoy, same thing with Densha de Go! and so forth. If I could figure out how to or already knew how to play the game then the language is no problem at all. Of course we all know the best shooters and fighting games on the Saturn were Japan only which is another reason to import on that console.

For other systems it's a few titles here and there. The only Japanese Mega Drive game I own is Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon (because of the sub collection) - did get me into Genesis modding though. For the PlayStation it's Tobal 2 (found real cheap) and a couple DDR games which are always better than any USA release could hope to be. Dreamcast is Pop'n Music 2, another rhythm game that doesn't really require you to know Japanese. A couple Super Famicom games (Macross, Parodius, Sailormoon games, etc.). A handful of Virtual Boy games which are almost 100% in English anyway. A couple WonderSwan titles that don't require Japanese (Gunpey and Final Lap 2000). Densha de Go! 2 for the NeoGeo Pocket Color. My handful of Famicom games were purchased pretty cheap from the forums to put out a pissing match about them all being bootlegs or not (none of them were except for one I had previously identified as such). You'll find many non-RPG and non-text adventure Famicom games can easily be played without knowledge of Japanese. I bought Lunar Legend for the GBA back when there was no talk of a translation and USA release - turns out there was, I got nowhere in the JPN version. I bought a 3DO specifically to play Pretty Soldier Sailormoon S, again easy to get through the language barrier as most Japanese fighting games are. It's also a great game.

Then there's my Sega Pico, I only have Japanese games for my Pico. Hell, the Pico itself is Japanese. I found the system and nine complete games at the local flea market for $10.00. Even though it's a Pico and the games are all in Japanese, it was fun to mess around with when I got it. I do play the Gabuccho Challenge Fishing game every now and then - it's like Sega Bass Fishing Jr. Complete with a little fishing controller. I won't get rid of any of my Pico stuff, I saw it as a good opportunity to collect for a system I otherwise wouldn't have taken a second look at. It's still leaps and bounds better than that VSmile and Leapster edutainment video game crap they sell for kids today.

Um, wrapup... Buy what you can play, if not try to get stuff cheap where it won't matter either way. Emulation is a good "try before you buy" service for importing games.

[isufje]

It's not wrong if it's an action based game or you're currently on a track to learn how to read the japanese language. But if it's an RPG and your not planning on learning how to read Japanese, then It's just wrong.

[Niku-Sama]

Um, wrapup... Buy what you can play, if not try to get stuff cheap where it won't matter either way. Emulation is a good "try before you buy" service for importing games.

wow thats alot to read.
well the thing was these games were cheap about $10 for super famicoms most expencive and about $5 for the most expencive famicom.

and yes i intend on learning, i know a little bit from high school but that was also about 5 years ago, but it havent been able to go back (college i graduated h.s.) weither it be jobs or money or family or what else