Japan gets Lost Odyssey demo, we get squat

by Richard Mitchell { Nov 2nd 2006 at 2:00PM }

Godfree over at Gamertag Radio sent us a note that a demo of Lost Odyssey was available in Japan. Eager to try it out, we went and fired up our Japanese Live account to download it. After minutes of frantic searching, we gave up; it wasn't there. That's about the time that we finished reading the note. It turns out that a Lost Odyssey demo disc is available in the latest Famitsu. It's not known whether or not an English demo is in the works. Still, the fact that it's far enough along to release a demo bodes well for an early 2007 release.

We don't really understand the aversion to putting big titles on Marketplace in Japan (they did the same thing with Ninety-Nine Nights). Does having it on a physical disc make it special somehow, like a collector's item? Would any of our readers in Japan care to comment?

Tags: akira toriyama, AkiraToriyama, hironobu sakaguchi, HironobuSakaguchi, lost odyssey, LostOdyssey, mistwalker, mistwalker studio, MistwalkerStudio

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

craptastic @ Nov 2nd 2006 2:07PM

im kinda getting sick of the whole demos for japs 1st then the US later......just so 360 fanboy OXM joystiq etc...can rub it in everyones faces and get the marketing out for the US and keep the demo hype up......japan hates the 360, they think none of the games apply to them( which they dont) but yet japan always getting the demos 1st.....that the weirdest way to keep demo hype up.

yeay

Tony @ Nov 2nd 2006 3:09PM

The game is Japanese, though. Much more work would be required to actually translate what's there for US use... and beyond that, it's obviously part of MS's push for people in Japan to be won over, along with Blue Dragon and a few other titles.

I don't honestly see how it's even a problem or unexpected.

Daryl @ Nov 2nd 2006 3:11PM

Japan has games coming that appeal to them. Lost Odyessy, Blue Dragon to name 2.

richard @ Nov 2nd 2006 3:27PM

has anyone confirmed if this japanese demo disk will or will not work in an american 360?

Richard Mitchell @ Nov 2nd 2006 3:31PM

"has anyone confirmed if this japanese demo disk will or will not work in an american 360?"

According to Godfree over at GTR, the game is region coded for Japan/Asia only.

John @ Nov 2nd 2006 3:33PM

the loyal United States Xbox buyers are getting the back burner again... We are the ones that are making you money...Microsoft.

Happy @ Nov 2nd 2006 7:28PM

I'm still suprised people want to play this boring turn based crap.

edhe @ Nov 2nd 2006 9:07PM

I still can't understand why Americans think that as soon as something's done in another country that they're being left out. Deal with the fact that you're not the be all and end all, and everything comes in time.

Johnny @ Nov 3rd 2006 1:22AM

theirs this thing called translation.
and even after the text as translated they still need to find some pretty key voice actors, do recording sessions, and get those in.

dont expect a demo in the US for a long time.

Rei @ Nov 3rd 2006 5:32AM

"6. the loyal United States Xbox buyers are getting the back burner again... We are the ones that are making you money...Microsoft."

And that is exactly why it is being released in Japan first. They already have a strong customer base in the US, and they need to build a stronger one in Japan - money. They already have yours, now they want ours.

Besides all this crap people are talking here, you should count yourselves lucky you have SO many games on offer, on the shelf or even for digital download in the US. In Japan we get slow imports, FEWER games for the 360, and have to pay MORE MONEY to buy the damn things here.

Count yourselves lucky you get WAY more love than we do in Japan.

Steviepunk @ Nov 3rd 2006 11:43AM

Makes me laugh to see all you yanks complaining about having to wait for demos/games... try living in Europe, we've been getting things long after everyone else since before most of you were born! ;)

Anyway, it's a Jap focused game, so marketing will be focused on the Jap market just now - they really need to build up a user base over the holiday period. and don't forget the translation issues that have already been mentioned.