30th April 2008, 4:31 PM
But they did release the original Eathbound game here. I mean I have it. It's translated. It works, it's done. Putting it up on the VC would be as simple as uploading the file to their server (with the typical "embed it in the emulator" method they use) and adding it to their listing of games for sale. It's also their own property, and there should be no copyright issues. It's all in their hands.
There is... one interesting bit of info. Those "classic trials" in SSBB? Japan had two more games. One was an unreleased-in-USA Fire Emblem game (since it wasn't translated, it is totally understandable that they would have no US version to put in our SSBB), and the other was Mother 2, aka, Earthbound. This is according to the Smash Bros. Wiki. I'm not sure why they wouldn't put that in, unless it was for the sake of symmetry. That said, who cares about those "play for 4 minute" time limited ROMs anyway? I played them, I played them all, and to be honest I can't see anyone wanting to buy based on such a limited experience. Super Metroid is time limited to the point where you basically are only able to fight Ridley and escape the space station, and that gives no impression of just how great that game actually is.
Anyway, this is a different issue. This time, they have the numbers. They have the translated game. They have potential profit, and all they have to do is put it up there.
Super Mario RPG is a somewhat different story. I'm not sure what the legal situation is with that game. To the best of my knowledge, Square owns more of the rights to that game then I think they should. Apparently they had to actually contact Square for permission to use Geno in Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga? (In my opinion, Nintendo should have made the same deal with Square that they made with Rare, which as far as I can tell was "any properties you create for the purpose of the DK franchise will be owned by Nintendo", hence Diddy Kong and King K. Rool are Nintendo owned, not Rare owned.) At any rate, Square has been making games for Nintendo for a long time. It's clear Square could never release SMRPG on their own for, say, the PSP. I'm not sure why Nintendo doesn't just get the needed permission to stick that game up there.
Well, here's the motivation they need. All of those games are one they have been unwilling to stick up there. Two of them are completely Nintendo owned and already have full translations. Two of them would require working with Square, but Nintendo sure has a lot of stake in SMRPG (Chrono Trigger is a little more difficult, as Square has seemed reluctant to put ANY of their big name RPGs from the SNES era up there, just small stuff so far, and they clearly are milking their old Final Fantasy games for all the remakes they can get out of them (and yes, I will be buying the remake of FFIV), and Chrono Trigger might be getting a planned remake at some point as well). One of them is a "sure thing" because it's an already translated Zelda game.
There is... one interesting bit of info. Those "classic trials" in SSBB? Japan had two more games. One was an unreleased-in-USA Fire Emblem game (since it wasn't translated, it is totally understandable that they would have no US version to put in our SSBB), and the other was Mother 2, aka, Earthbound. This is according to the Smash Bros. Wiki. I'm not sure why they wouldn't put that in, unless it was for the sake of symmetry. That said, who cares about those "play for 4 minute" time limited ROMs anyway? I played them, I played them all, and to be honest I can't see anyone wanting to buy based on such a limited experience. Super Metroid is time limited to the point where you basically are only able to fight Ridley and escape the space station, and that gives no impression of just how great that game actually is.
Anyway, this is a different issue. This time, they have the numbers. They have the translated game. They have potential profit, and all they have to do is put it up there.
Super Mario RPG is a somewhat different story. I'm not sure what the legal situation is with that game. To the best of my knowledge, Square owns more of the rights to that game then I think they should. Apparently they had to actually contact Square for permission to use Geno in Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga? (In my opinion, Nintendo should have made the same deal with Square that they made with Rare, which as far as I can tell was "any properties you create for the purpose of the DK franchise will be owned by Nintendo", hence Diddy Kong and King K. Rool are Nintendo owned, not Rare owned.) At any rate, Square has been making games for Nintendo for a long time. It's clear Square could never release SMRPG on their own for, say, the PSP. I'm not sure why Nintendo doesn't just get the needed permission to stick that game up there.
Well, here's the motivation they need. All of those games are one they have been unwilling to stick up there. Two of them are completely Nintendo owned and already have full translations. Two of them would require working with Square, but Nintendo sure has a lot of stake in SMRPG (Chrono Trigger is a little more difficult, as Square has seemed reluctant to put ANY of their big name RPGs from the SNES era up there, just small stuff so far, and they clearly are milking their old Final Fantasy games for all the remakes they can get out of them (and yes, I will be buying the remake of FFIV), and Chrono Trigger might be getting a planned remake at some point as well). One of them is a "sure thing" because it's an already translated Zelda game.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)