Xbox: A Solid Release Date Revealed at EBgames.com

[sonicblue]

http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/categories/products/product.asp?pf_id=232746

EBgames says 2/25/03, but Gamestop.com disagrees.

http://www.gamestop.com/product.asp?product%5Fid=210292

They say 5/2/2003. They do however agree that the game will supposedly cost $39.99 and not the usual $49.99. Why is this? Do they plan on charging us extra?

[WraithAkaMrak]

I dunno. I'm scared. (heh.)
Perhaps it could be a $10 gift because we've waited so long? hahah. Oh, that was a good one.
But seriously, I hope it's not going to mean that there will be a Hunter's License fee on Xbox or anything. (Though it never was confirmed that there would or wouldn't be one.) Just speculation.
I would like to know why they're selling it at $40. And of course which of those dates (if either) is correct. (Please be February...)

[Lord_Data]

i wouldn't doubt its because they expect you to pay for PSO...i can say one thing...i know a lot of xbox gamers that won't pick it up because of this...it was originally stated by M$ that with xbox live you only pay the 50 bucks for the first year and none of the games would charge any extra cash to play them...but now there is of course discussion of games charging us, as well as who is gonna be the first to charge for their downloadable content...personally i think this is lame and am seriously debating not renewing my xbox live...though PSO would be the one title worth paying for;)

[WraithAkaMrak]

Double paying just scares me away from it... Even if the fee is less than the GC's $9/mo. If XBL goes with a $10/mo price after the first 12 months (or something similar), and then you pay for PSO on TOP of that, it's cheaper for me, someone who isn't playing much else on XBL besides PSO, to go with the GC version. And it's tempting, seeing as the game is actually OUT.

[googles]

xbox is an american system. st hates america..you will pay 10+ a month. : st is a bunch of racists! And i bet they slack of with quests too...
http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_frown.gif


<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: googles on 2002-12-25 10:51 ]</font>

[Castoth]

If the earliest the game could be out is mid-February (with possible May even), then my patience can't last that long and I'll go with GC PSO after all, even with everything going wrong with it currently.

[jimmer_jammer]

I already posted this same thing like 2 days ago....

[Kalbelgarion]

Methinks that the $39.99 price tag is a simple mistake. This has happened many a times, where a price is listed incorrectly ($39.99 is often mistakenly listed instead of $49.99).

I wholeheartedly recommend anyone who is leaning towards buying this game to pre-order it now and save $10.

[Streen]

Is this even still coming out for the Xbox. I haven't heard anything about it in ages and niether sega of america or microsoft have it on their american sites. I have seen where the japanese version is coming out in January on xbox.jp but nothing about an american version. If it is still coming out I would lean toward the february date being as the japanese date is in january. If anyone can confirm a definate release please do so.

[Synaesthesia]

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Synaesthesia on 2003-07-13 10:44 ]</font>

[SailorDaravon]

Just a note, I wouldn't call EBgames and Gamestop posting release dates "solid." I used to work for EB, and they have placeholder dates just to start collecting pre-orders on large titles. For example, both Final Fantasy's XI and XII were originally listed in our computers for Novemember 1, 2001. Then they got pushed back to January 1. And so on. I'm not saying they're necessarily wrong, they've been right sometimes in the past, but I wouldn't start looking forward to a February release just yet.

[hollowtip]

On 2002-12-25 12:17, Streen wrote:
Is this even still coming out for the Xbox. I haven't heard anything about it in ages and niether sega of america or microsoft have it on their american sites. I have seen where the japanese version is coming out in January on xbox.jp but nothing about an american version. If it is still coming out I would lean toward the february date being as the japanese date is in january. If anyone can confirm a definate release please do so.



The game was supposedly completely finished a couple of months ago, and could be released at anytime, I'm just guessing MS is preparing their servers for online play, optimizing voice quality, and working out a system where we may or may not have to pay an extra monthly fee. What baffles me the most is why the news is so scarce.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: hollowtip on 2002-12-25 21:29 ]</font>

[Tavia]

On 2002-12-25 10:48, googles wrote:
xbox is an american system. st hates america..you will pay 10+ a month. : st is a bunch of racists!

If you wrote that with a straight face and serious intent, I feel sorry for you. Did SonicTeam have to program various languages into PSO from the start, instead of letting overseas translators handle it? Did you know that most of SonicTeam temporarily relocated to America during the creation of "Sonic Adventure 2" to give it as "American" of a feeling and look as possible? Do you think that Sonic the Hedgehog's own characteristic arrogance is a Japanese trait?

Please actually take a better look at the history and practices of SonicTeam before you make such a poor statement.

[EsperFlame]

The Earlier about EB Games Release date is correct. They technically don't know the release date's of anything except for what the Manufacturer tells them. And the Manufacturer can always change it's mind and delay things for minor changes that pop up(Remember Star Fox Adventures?) So don't count any date as solid date. Or you'll let yourself down and getupset over what you already knew could happen.

[WraithAkaMrak]

On 2002-12-25 21:27, hollowtip wrote:
What baffles me the most is why the news is so scarce.

No kidding. I don't know WHY they won't tell us the current status of the game... As to 'when will it be released' and 'will there be a HL fee' (which they STILL haven't given us a real answer to in North America).

Even if MS gave us a release date and then pushed the game back, it would still be better than having no release date whatsoever.

[Nidarrock]

Well I hope it's before April, becuase after that I'm not going to have time for PSO. Like mentioned many times before, some info would be be better then none. But now we at least have some sort of time frame.

[PlatinumGame]

All versions of PSO will have HL's and their fees. Thinking they won't is just stupid. No console or version should get special treatment. The servers are still being maintained by Sonic Team.Microsoft are just hosting them. If I knew MS were doing both jobs, I wouldn't consider XB PSO at all.

[Spy]

On 2002-12-25 21:57, Tavia wrote:
Do you think that Sonic the Hedgehog's own characteristic arrogance is a Japanese trait?



Yes.

[Tavia]

On 2002-12-26 10:34, Spy wrote:


On 2002-12-25 21:57, Tavia wrote:
Do you think that Sonic the Hedgehog's own characteristic arrogance is a Japanese trait?

Yes.

Then let me enlighten you as to the past of the modeling of Sonic the Hedgehog.

Sonic has largely been developed as a character which will appeal to a wide amount of audiences, and the United States is an incredibly important region to videogame programmers, manufacturers and distributors. While many games naturally get their start in Japan, they normally do not -- and in most cases cannot -- sell in the numbers they do in the United States, mostly because of the difference in the size of the populations.

The large amount of English present in the Sonic universe is not entirely there to capitalize upon a trend. SonicTeam has specifically stated in the past that their games are geared toward the audiences of other countries, hence Sonic's popularity in places other than Japan. The majority of characters in Japanese starring roles are not so arrogant and competitive. Sonic is not even that honorable, according to some SonicTeam-endorsed accounts.

Do I think Japan is a mass of walking ninjas? Of course not. They're a society that's more so driven by pop culture and a set standard than America itself, because there is really only one style that everyone abides by. (The only variation is that every age group tends to have its own culture, but that's the extent of it, and since most marketing is aimed at youth, almost one exclusive style is all you really see.) You need family connections to proceed in the world, and you better follow your parents' recommendations (or manage to pleasantly surprise them when you take your own path in life); manners are essentially mandatory, as even people who are cutting someone off on the highway tend to wave after doing so; individuality makes you less desirable and generally disposable, although you may be interesting to hang out with.

That's pretty much what it is for Sonic. He doesn't exactly fit in to standard Japanese culture, and if he were a person, would not be considered the most worthwhile candidate for employment or really anything other than friendship. So that's what he is: something that's cool in a videogame, that gives the Japanese a glimpse of something they don't see every day, and which also is acceptable to generally less open-minded cultures of other countries, such as America.

If Sonic were designed as a traditional Japanese hero, he would not be nearly as palatable elsewhere as he is today.

Did you expect me to take that response seriously? Probably not. But there you go.

[Phobos-X]

I dunno about EBgames.com, but the Feb '03 issue or Official Xbox Magazine claims that it is coming out in March with supposedly "updated graphics"

check it out its on page 20 at the bottom of the page

[hollowtip]

On 2002-12-26 10:05, PlatinumGame wrote:
All versions of PSO will have HL's and their fees. Thinking they won't is just stupid. No console or version should get special treatment. The servers are still being maintained by Sonic Team.Microsoft are just hosting them. If I knew MS were doing both jobs, I wouldn't consider XB PSO at all.





Why is that so stupid to think? I think it's rather ignorant to arrive at your conclusion on the subject without any real solid evidence.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: hollowtip on 2002-12-26 14:21 ]</font>

[PlatinumGame]

On 2002-12-26 14:21, hollowtip wrote:


On 2002-12-26 10:05, PlatinumGame wrote:
All versions of PSO will have HL's and their fees. Thinking they won't is just stupid. No console or version should get special treatment. The servers are still being maintained by Sonic Team.Microsoft are just hosting them. If I knew MS were doing both jobs, I wouldn't consider XB PSO at all.





Why is that so stupid to think? I think it's rather ignorant to arrive at your conclusion on the subject without any real solid evidence.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: hollowtip on 2002-12-26 14:21 ]</font>


Who said I didn't have evidence? The clearly stated HL cost on the JP XB PSO page is good enough for me. If they will be charged, there is no reason why anyone should think the US won't.

[WraithAkaMrak]

Geez. This argument again?

[DjDragoon]

I've been able to get some news but not too much. My sources have been pulling out their hair trying to get some info. Here's all I have for today, this was taken from a French Xbox site. Here's the translation:
Sega on Xbox the last number of the Japanese monthly magazine Dorimaga conceals good information definitely. Initially, Phantasy Star Online E 1 and 2 was noted 8.5 (8/8/8/10), the journalists appreciated the play but regretted the too strong similarity with version PC. Communicator brings however a better comfort all platforms confused according to testers'. Moreover, Sega will reveal new Sonic at the time of next E3, and according to Yuji Naka its creator, it will not be a continuation of Sonic Adventure 2.

You can view the french site here: http://www.xboxplorer.com

And Tavia, as a lifetime sonic fan, I do agree with you with Sonic Team not hating Americans. Maybe their just mad at us for stealing those PSO trading card game prototypes?



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: DjDragoon on 2002-12-26 21:24 ]</font>

[Synaesthesia]

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Synaesthesia on 2003-07-13 10:46 ]</font>

[PlatinumGame]

On 2002-12-26 21:14, Synaesthesia wrote:


On 2002-12-26 18:34, PlatinumGame wrote:
The clearly stated HL cost on the JP XB PSO page is good enough for me. If they will be charged, there is no reason why anyone should think the US won't.


Except that the game itself will be free in Japan as a pack-in with Xbox Live, while we will be purchasing it separately here in the US.



That doesn't matter at all. Like Microsoft and Sonic Team, of all companies, wouldn't charge fee's just because you had to buy the game. Gimme a break. (-_-)

[Tavia]

On 2002-12-26 21:03, DjDragoon wrote:
And Tavia, as a lifetime sonic fan, I do agree with you with Sonic Team not hating Americans. Maybe their just mad at us for stealing those PSO trading card game prototypes?

That does suck. I cannot believe someone did that. Well, I'm not that naive; I can believe it, but I wish it didn't happen. It's doubtful that SonicTeam will ever have any cool little items out on display again at any future exposition.