PixlBit

D'oh!

*yawn* Nothing about this game appeals to me. LP2 was crap and Spark Unlimited doesn't exactly have the greatest track record. Guess we'll see what the end result is next year...

Yeah, I would agree. I think games that blend a controller and Kinect controls have potential (not like the voice commands in ME3).

Both DFHAT and DP are games you get if you have a Kinect, not games you get a Kinect for. In my opinion, there are no games right now you get a Kinect for.

Yeah, it's definitely not something you buy a Kinect for - I don't think such a game exists. Despite Child of Eden being alright with the Kinect, I prefer to play it with the controller.

This and Double Fine Happy Action Theater are my two favorites for the peripheral thus far. Diabolical Pitch is a great single player experience and DFHAT is the go-to multiplayer Kinect game.

The party controls is a mixed bag for me. Part of what I liked about this version of P3 was overcoming the occasional challenge posed by teammates behaving unexpectedly. You were able to give them general direction, which was typically good enough. I can't remember many instances where it got in the way and it did help progress battles a bit quicker as a result, which was appreciated.

P3P does offer something similar to the P3FES system, but it's optional and when you have full party control, you just don't ever wind up using it. There were some other subtle differences that made me appreciate FES more, like the ability to recharge all of your stats by hitting the ground floor during the nightmare hour.

They're both great games, and truthfully, The Answer is mostly a grindfest.

This is an amazingly good game. If you don't already have it, I suggesting buying - it's easily one of my favorite games of all time.

I'm not interested in debating everything in your reply, but I did want to comment on Dragon Quest V and its sales. See here for Square Enix's financial briefing on the title. It sold 1,176,000 copies in Japan, which contributed to a worldwide total of 1,350,000.

Some simple math reveals that the game didn't even pass 200k sales in regions outside of Japan. So back to my original point, Nintendo published VI and IX because Square Enix had no intention. Only recently did Dragon Quest V get a reprint and I only know because I hunted for months for a first print copy of the game before the reprint happened. After thorough investigation, I happened upon the information I shared in my previous comment.

Furthermore, as per the brief summary at the start of this article, we're talking solely about the perception of these games in America. Some perception is based in truth, some in fallacy. The truth of the matter is that most gamers in America don't care about JRPGs and have moved on to  WRPGs and other genres all together.

Spin it any way you like, but the genre is nowhere near the same popularity it once was. Sales are not a good indication of this either as game sales these days are much higher than they were in the heyday of the genre - there are are lots more people playing games these days in general.

During the PS1/PS2 era tons of JRPGs hit the market that would never come, or perhaps even be made, today. I know this because I own tons of them. I look at my collection for this generation and I just don't see the same thing on home consoles. Handhelds have always had a healthy offering of the genre, but that's where they primarily live these days.

Well first, we definitely cannot count the Operation Rainfall games in your argument. Their future in America pre-Rainfall was questionable at best, especially with Monado coming off the release lists and not even getting a mention at E3.

Also, we were never talking handheld. Obviously, these games are all console so the discussion was limited specifically to that. Nintendo began handheld RPG publication on the GBA, and in many cases (like Pokemon) even earlier than that. To say that Nintendo "loves RPGs" is disingenuous at best. They ride a few series generation after generation.

Whatever deal they struck with Square Enix for Dragon Quest is separate and apart. They merely published VI and IX to take the risk off of Square after the failure of IV and V. Nintendo clearly was playing ball with Square Enix to secure that series for their systems (and clearly that worked, see DQ X).

I find it hard to believe that there was any intention on NoA's part to publish these games and had NoE not footed the localization bill, they wouldn't have come. If Nintendo was so pro-RPG, why is XSEED publishing The Last Story? Nintendo clearly sees these games as a risk and has adequately protected themselves from failure. Fan response to Rainfall made these games come to America, not Nintendo (of America)'s own impetus.

I appreciate the comment, but what RPGs has Nintendo localized this generation? I'm really thinking hard and I can't identify a single one.

Traditionally, Nintendo has never been an RPG company. I'm sure part of the reason they own controlling stake in Monolith is for this reason exactly.

Ask and you shall receive.