Japanese 360?

[KNekoSpy]

I want to get a Japanese 360 to play Dodonpachi, but I have no idea where I'd get my hands on one.

The only alternative is to mod my current one in such a way that requires too much technical skill and equipment that I don't have...and probably screws me out of Xbox Live.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

If your serious enough to drop the major cash for one plus the shipping, I can get in touch with a friend there and ask him if he'd be willing to help you out. pm me if you are interested.

[Nico87]

It's not worth it unless you don't have a 360 already. Stick with the region-free games!

[98PaceCar]

It's not worth it unless you don't have a 360 already. Stick with the region-free games!

It's absolutely worth having a J360 if you are into shmups. There's no other current gen console that even begins to come close to the library on the 360. Especially considering neither release of Dodonpachi is region free and the OP specifically named those games as ones he wants to play.

I bought mine through Play-Asia a couple of years back. The shipping was a bit high, but it got here quickly and safely. I'd check with either them or ncsx.com and see what they can do for you.

One thing to note is that it can be a bit tricky to get MS points for the DLC. I usually end up buying them from ebayers in Japan and having the code emailed. There's not a ton of DLC for the shmup library, but some of it is well worth getting. Everything else will work fine with just a silver account on XBL Japan.

[Nico87]

It's absolutely worth having a J360 if you are into shmups. There's no other current gen console that even begins to come close to the library on the 360. Especially considering neither release of Dodonpachi is region free and the OP specifically named those games as ones he wants to play.

I bought mine through Play-Asia a couple of years back. The shipping was a bit high, but it got here quickly and safely. I'd check with either them or ncsx.com and see what they can do for you.

One thing to note is that it can be a bit tricky to get MS points for the DLC. I usually end up buying them from ebayers in Japan and having the code emailed. There's not a ton of DLC for the shmup library, but some of it is well worth getting. Everything else will work fine with just a silver account on XBL Japan.

Well, of course it _could_ be worth it. I have one myself. With that being said, DDPDOJ is not a very good port (menus/loading times aside), though it's far from the worst. DFK isn't very good itself, so I'd suggest going for the cheaper DFK BL retail release if you do end up buying a J360. I just meant that it's not worth it for DOJ/DFK/Ketsui alone, though I really liked the Akai Katana demo, which will be region-locked.

That being said (again), Cave has basically announced that none of their future releases will be region-free, but then again you already have US releases of Death Smiles, Death Smiles 2X, Raiden IV and Otomedius Excellent (coming soon) and Guwange, Ikaruga, Radiant Silvergun (coming soon), Trigger Heart Exelica and Strania for XBLA. You also have region-free games such as Mushihimesama Futari, Eschatos, Bullet Soul (though I can't recommend it), Espgaluda II (normal edition only) and Muchi Muchi Pork & Pink Sweets.

Finally, basically all the Cave games have been emulated, though the people who did it won't release the ROMs to the public yet as they don't want to f*ck Cave over, but they will eventually.

All I really meant is that it's not worth buying a J360 for two or three games alone (it would never be, regardless of system). If you don't have a 360 already, by all means get a J360. 95% of all 360 games are region-free anyway.

[KNekoSpy]

Well, of course it _could_ be worth it. I have one myself. With that being said, DDPDOJ is not a very good port (menus/loading times aside), though it's far from the worst. DFK isn't very good itself, so I'd suggest going for the cheaper DFK BL retail release if you do end up buying a J360. I just meant that it's not worth it for DOJ/DFK/Ketsui alone, though I really liked the Akai Katana demo, which will be region-locked.

That being said (again), Cave has basically announced that none of their future releases will be region-free, but then again you already have US releases of Death Smiles, Death Smiles 2X, Raiden IV and Otomedius Excellent (coming soon) and Guwange, Ikaruga, Radiant Silvergun (coming soon), Trigger Heart Exelica and Strania for XBLA. You also have region-free games such as Mushihimesama Futari, Eschatos, Bullet Soul (though I can't recommend it), Espgaluda II (normal edition only) and Muchi Muchi Pork & Pink Sweets.

Finally, basically all the Cave games have been emulated, though the people who did it won't release the ROMs to the public yet as they don't want to f*ck Cave over, but they will eventually.

All I really meant is that it's not worth buying a J360 for two or three games alone (it would never be, regardless of system). If you don't have a 360 already, by all means get a J360. 95% of all 360 games are region-free anyway.

So you don't think DDP DFK will get a region free release?

[98PaceCar]

Well, of course it _could_ be worth it. I have one myself. With that being said, DDPDOJ is not a very good port (menus/loading times aside), though it's far from the worst. DFK isn't very good itself, so I'd suggest going for the cheaper DFK BL retail release if you do end up buying a J360. I just meant that it's not worth it for DOJ/DFK/Ketsui alone, though I really liked the Akai Katana demo, which will be region-locked.

That being said (again), Cave has basically announced that none of their future releases will be region-free, but then again you already have US releases of Death Smiles, Death Smiles 2X, Raiden IV and Otomedius Excellent (coming soon) and Guwange, Ikaruga, Radiant Silvergun (coming soon), Trigger Heart Exelica and Strania for XBLA. You also have region-free games such as Mushihimesama Futari, Eschatos, Bullet Soul (though I can't recommend it), Espgaluda II (normal edition only) and Muchi Muchi Pork & Pink Sweets.

Finally, basically all the Cave games have been emulated, though the people who did it won't release the ROMs to the public yet as they don't want to f*ck Cave over, but they will eventually.

All I really meant is that it's not worth buying a J360 for two or three games alone (it would never be, regardless of system). If you don't have a 360 already, by all means get a J360. 95% of all 360 games are region-free anyway.

Is the port of DDPDOJ really that bad? I'm in no way a good player of that one, but I never really had any issues with it when I've messed with it. Also, I thought they finally released the patch that was supposed to help with the menus and load times.

Don't forget that Raiden Fighters Aces got an NA release. Not a huge fan of the series, but it's good for completeness sake and usually pretty cheap when it turns up. What about Bullet Soul didn't you like? I'm loving having a big screen version of Judgement Silversword to play instead of the WS version. Much easier to see what's going on.

One thing about collecting shmups, it's not for the weak of wallet. I've managed to keep up with every X360 release to date, but it's been a struggle lately. But for a fan, it's a great system with a lot of solid titles. Though I disagree that it's not worth buying a console for just a couple of games, it's really up to the individual (my launch PS3 is nothing more than a blu ray player at this point, but I still love it). I wouldn't give up either my NA or JPN X360 and find that they complement each other nicely.

[Nz17]

Just a suggestion, but if it is cheaper you might consider finding a trustworthy modder to modify your North American XBOX 360. That way you can save space, money, and hassle by having just one 360. Find someone who guarantees his work and will give you a reimbursement/replacement console if any physical damage/loss occurs. I'm sure the DP boards have someone or people who know someone like this.

[KNekoSpy]

Just a suggestion, but if it is cheaper you might consider finding a trustworthy modder to modify your North American XBOX 360. That way you can save space, money, and hassle by having just one 360. Find someone who guarantees his work and will give you a reimbursement/replacement console if any physical damage/loss occurs. I'm sure the DP boards have someone or people who know someone like this.

Won't I get banned off Xbox Live if I do that? I admit, I'm interested though, if the person I look for is truly trustworthy and won't burn me.