| mrstickball said: SO3 took 18 months after its Japanese release to get to America yet the hype didn't seem to die off for some reason Yes, but that was 4 years ago. We now live in a day and age that the internet is far more prevelant, and internet fanboys, and reviewers get copies of the JRPGs at the same time (or within a day) of where it's released. In Blue Dragon's case (far moreso than Lost Odyssey), hype was abated, and killed by the time it launched 8 months after Japan, and reception was abysmal (whereas when it launched in Japan, things were at a boiling point). So if a game really does end up being reviewed poorly, like Blue Dragon...There were WEEKS in between reviewers panning Blue Dragon, and it's release in the states...Which killed enthusiasm for the game. But when you have games that are a bit closer (such as LO)...Less time for hype to die down, and more interest. And when it's a genre thats as niche as JRPGs...Timing is key.
Just to review: Enchanted Arms: Jan 06 Release in Japan. August (or September?) US Launch. Bad game...Everyone knew it...Poor sales. Blue Dragon: December 06 Release in Japan. August 07 release in US. Great game...Bad publicity, poor sales. Eternal Sonata: June 07 Release in Japan. September 07 release in US. Good game...Hype died down by time it had US launch (and word got back that the story was poor, and too much linearity), mediocre sales. Lost Odyssey: December 07 Release in Japan. February launch in US. Best sales yet. Guess which one had the shortest to-east debut? Which one had the longest? Ultimately, global releases are helping games sell more...One only needs to look at what MGS4 is doing to see that it helps oh-so much, because good games tend to have their hype curbed less, and bad games are less of a well-known unless it takes forever to come across...Then everyone knows it sucks.
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Blue Dragon had very poor marketing when it got released here so that certainly didn't help. People have been saying it is because the 360 owners are not interested in JRPGs but now we know what causes a game to sell poorly(other than little to no marketing, anyway).
ie. People thought LO would bomb and that seemed true when it was released in Japan but it was a different story when it was released in America and Europe
