Kotaku: Import

How to Play Your Xenoblade Import on a North American Wii

Mike Fahey — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 10:40:00 EDT

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Xenoblade Chronicles is out in English right now, but Nintendo of America doesn't seem keen to let North American's play it, so they can't. Not unless they import a copy from Europe and follow Joystiq's guide for soft modding Nintendo's Wii to play imports. More »

Space Invaders iPhone Case is "Bawlin" May Lead to Muggings

Brian Crecente — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:00:00 EDT

The folks behind Space Invaders have whipped up three slick new iPhone cases featuring the titular bad guys. More »

PlayStation Store Lets You Import PSP Shooters At Half The Price

Michael McWhertor — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:00:13 EDT

The recent release of Rei Cho Aniki—a remake of the original homoerotic side-scrolling shooter for the PSP—wasn't cheap. But thanks to the PlayStation Store, cash-strapped importers can have it for a song. More »

Taito Readies LittleBigPlanet SackBoy Plushies!

Mike Fahey — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:40:00 EDT

You know you want one. In-game models aren't enough, no matter how adorable they may be. Now video game importer National Console Support sends word that Taito is getting ready to give a little SackBoy loving to the world in the form of official LittleBigPlanet plush toys! Shipping later this year, the dolls come in two different sizes - 10 centimeter tall mascot figures, suitable for hanging from backpacks, belt loops, review mirrors and the like, and 25 centimeter plushies, which come in both normal and hook n' eye patch pirate flavors. They're both available for pre-order via NCS for $12.18 and $22.90 respectively, with the former including free shipping. More »

Star Ocean: Second Evolution Debut Trailer

Mike Fahey — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 21:00:21 EDT

The PSP has been very, very good to fans of Japanese RPGs new and old. At this point if you are a JRPG fan and don't own a PSP you are missing out on an amazing crop of games. This is the debut trailer for Star Ocean: Second Evolution, the PSP remake of Star Ocean: The Second Story for the PS1, due out April 2nd in Japan. It features tons of new voice work, artwork, and some lovely fully animated cutscenes, as you can plainly see here. I want, badly. I played enough of the original that an import might be in order. I'm sure Ashcraft won't mind me bugging him constantly for translation help. He lives for that sort of thing. More »

Final Fantasy's Chocobo Goes Rubbery, Ducky

Michael McWhertor — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 17:20:00 EST

Foremost Final Fantasy fowl the Chocobo has been many things, but I'm frankly surprised it's taken Square Enix this for it to be a suitable rubber ducky replacement, as is the Uki Uki Chocobo. The feathered friend flotation device measures 2.95" x 3.54" x 3.54", according to importer National Console Support, and ships in mid-April. Uki Uki Chocobo follows the precious design style of the Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon series for the low, low price of $13.50. More »

FF I & II PSP Dated For Europe

Mike Fahey — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 10:40:55 EST

If you really wanted them, you'd have already bought them. Square Enix has announced the European release date for the PSP remakes of the first two Final Fantasy games. Previous slated for a general Q1 2008 release, they've narrowed it down to the 24 hour period the calendar likes to call February 8th. The remake of the first game is probably the best time I've had playing it since the original on the NES, with the updated graphics and snazzy wide screen presentation adding a protective layer of freshness that keeps the antiquated gamelpay from going stale. As I mentioned previously, the beauty of the region-free PSP pretty much steals the wind from this announcement's sails. As I discovered when the Europe-only version of Tales of Eternia was released, importers are your friends, and I'm sure the English-speaking Europeans already jumped on these. Good news for those who don't read English perhaps, but then they wouldn't understand this post anyway. More »

Tingle RPG Prances To Europe September 13th

Michael McWhertor — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 21:20:02 EDT

If you don't have faith in Nintendo of America's ability to satisfy Western demand for traditional role-playing games starring effete middle-aged men in gut-hugging unitards, then you'll want to put your pre-order in for the Euro version of Freshly Picked: Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland now. More »

Gallery: Magkid for Nintendo DS

Kim Phu — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 10:40:00 EDT

Gallery: Go! Go!

Kim Phu — Fri, 25 May 2007 15:00:24 EDT

Gyakuten Saiban 3 Goes Bi-Lingual

Kim Phu — Fri, 25 May 2007 10:00:00 EDT

Come August, there will be another reason to go to Japantown other than to buy candy and stickers. More »

Gallery: Taiko Drum Master DS Screens

Kim Phu — Wed, 02 May 2007 15:40:00 EDT

It's more awesome than previously imagined! 60% of it is already finished and the Japanese will be able to get their hands on it this summer. Judging by the screens, the language barrier doesn't seem to be too much of an issue, so the rest of us can be one web-click and postage stamp from owning it ourselves the very next week/month depending on where you live. More »

Mizuiro Blood?!

Kim Phu — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 14:40:00 EDT

What's this? More »

Animal Crossing Mugs For Your Sipping Pleasure

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 19:40:41 EDT

Waiting for that Capcom news to hit? Why not take a coffee break? Oh, you say you don't have any mugs? At least, not any mugs nerdy enough within which to store your piping hot beverage? Well, this is your lucky day! More »

Hentai Dating Sims Now Available For English Speaking Pervs

Michael McWhertor — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 23:40:37 EDT

Japanese dating sims aren't exactly news, nor are translations of the "games" into English, nor are many of them "fun", but the availability of commercially released exxxtremely naughty dating sims for English speakers? News! More »

Panel De Pon DS Details Divulged

Michael McWhertor — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 22:20:15 EDT

Wow, where was I? I must have missed the inclusion of the awesome Panel de Pon as a DS release back in February when the preliminary Nintendo release schedule for 2007 hit. My eyes lit up when I saw that Impress Game Watch had new details and screen shots of Intelligent Systems' puzzle game due to hit April 20th in Japan. More »

Keep A Smoke-Free PS3

Mike Fahey — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 14:40:06 EDT

As a smoker, I often worry about how my appliances feel about my nasty habit. Nevermind that my cat gets the shakes when I'm out of town and one of the hamsters is in an iron lung, I didn't pay $600 for them. What can I do to protect my PS3 from the evil nicotine goblins? More »

Turn Your DS Into a Guitar

Brian Crecente — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 12:00:49 EST

Simon over on Game Set Watch points out that New York-based game importer NCSX is raving about DS guitar "game" Utaeru DS Guitar M-06 More »

Who's The New Lik-Sang? Not Me.

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 02 Nov 2006 07:22:51 EST

When Sony killed Hong Kong retailer Lik-Sang, not only were highly pregnant women forced out on the streets, but a void was created. Where would we find knocked up ladies to import PS3s? Play-Asia has already chickened out from shipping PLAYSTATION 3s to Europe (and rumor has it, that the company has only "slightly" pregnant employees). Game site Modojo has a nice piece up wondering who will step up and fill the void, and gives a nice run down of Play-Asia, YesAsia and National Console Support. Worth a look. Brian Ashcraft More »

Elite Beat Agents Coming Out November 8th

egauger — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 19:40:47 EDT

I've been hearing about Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! almost since the DS came out, and I've been meaning to pick it up for just as long. Procrastination is the name of the game, my simians. More »

Wired Gets Hands On With Tingle And His Jewels

Michael McWhertor — Sat, 02 Sep 2006 23:09:04 EDT

Not only is Chris Kohler—Wired blogger, published author of fine video game books, and sarcastic game opener—a fine example of game writing and message board posting, he's also really good at reading things in Japanese. More »

"Love Hamster" Must be Duct-Taped Beforehand

egauger — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 18:20:10 EDT

In a wild bid for "Worst Name for a Videogame Ever", Love Hamster is due on the Japanese DS scene on November 2nd. More »

Want to Import? Here's How

Brian Ashcraft — Tue, 01 Aug 2006 11:22:27 EDT

One of the cheap bastards at Cheap Ass Gamer has compiled an amazingly informative guide to importing. CAG forum member Chacranajxy originally wrote this how to for Gamespot, but has dumbed it down for all of us! He gives us the lowdown on how to mod consoles, a full list of import recommendations, which games are actually import friendly and how to buy them. Think of it as "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Importing (But Were Too Afraid to Ask)." Brian Ashcraft More »

Big Bits of Boundish

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 17 Jul 2006 06:22:32 EDT

Bit Generations is Nintendo's swan song to the GBA. The first batch beautiful, simple puzzle and music games have gone on sale, with Series II hitting later this month. The games retail for 2,000 yen (about US $16), and no American release has been announced. More »

Want to Save Money? Import Foreign Games

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 10:24:01 EDT

Like Xbox 360 games, but don't like Xbox 360 prices? It's no secret that software prices have been sliced in Japan, making the country 360 shopping heaven. CheapyD from game site Cheap Ass Gamer has compiled a list of US $40 Asian Xbox 360 games that ain't region protected and have full English support. Games include: Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII, Call of Duty 2, FarCry Instincts Predator, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter, Gun, Hitman: Blood Money, MotoGP '06, Quake 4, Tomb Raider: Legend and X-Men: The Official Game. These games are being imported via PlayAsia, patron saint of cheap bastards like CheapyD. Brian Ashcraft More »

Best New York (or Wherever!) Import Game Stores?

Joel — Sat, 27 May 2006 11:09:44 EDT

Let us wax Consumeristy for a moment as we pass on reader Jim D.'s question and self-follow up about locating the best retail import game stores in New York and New Jersey. We think you guys might be able to chime in with some good suggestions (and we'd love to hear about good import game stores in other cities, too; It'll give us something to track down when we go out of town besides the local beers.) More »

Import the Final Fantasy Potion Here

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 10:22:26 EST

Peter from J-list rang the red Kotaku phone, letting us know that he's banging the pavement and trying to round-up as many Final Fantasy Potion premium sets as possible. These special sets contain a collector's bottle and card. Needless to say, they are selling out pretty dang quick. Each set goes for $28.50, and stock probably won't last the weekend. Even if J-list sells out, Peter assured us that he'd keep looking high and low for the popular potion. More »

Final Fantasy Potion Taste Test

Brian Ashcraft — Tue, 07 Mar 2006 12:24:02 EST

Today, Osaka's Suntory Limited released the Final Fantasy XII potion. The convenience store near my house had already been ransacked when I stopped by. The premium boxes with the special bottles were sold out, leaving one sole six pack. Another store turned up plenty of bottles, but no premiums. Well, how did it taste? More »

Ouendan Headed to Europe (in English)

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 12:20:11 EST

Nintendo DS import favorite Ouendan [Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan] will be getting a Euro release. A Nintendo of Europe team member slipped word to game journos that the game will be heading to the UK sometime in the future. No word on a U.S. release, but it should be in the cards. More »

But Which DS Lite Color Should I Buy For You?

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 10 Feb 2006 12:22:20 EST

So Nintendo announced the DS Lite's going to come in three different colors. Looks like we've got some choices. Rather, you've got some choices. With our DS Lite Scavenger Hunt in full swing, we'd love to know which Dual Screen I should stand in line all friggin' night for. Before you decide, keep in mind there might be "Japan-only" colors. Heh. More »

The DS Lite Contest

Brian Crecente — Tue, 07 Feb 2006 12:09:52 EST

As promised here's your chance to win your very own DS Lite. Brian Ashcraft is standing by to go stand outside a store in Japan for you. More »

Arcade Guitar Freaks Controller Coming Home

Brian Crecente — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 11:10:26 EST

I still love Guitar Hero, but I have to admit that Konami's recent announcement about Guitar Freaks has me intrigued. Import store NCSX, by way of GameSetWatch, says that a new arcade-style controller for the game has been green-lighted by Konami. The guitar, which will be a close replication of the one used in the arcade, will cost a whopping $200 plus another $89 to import. Crap. I guess I'll stick with Guitar Hero. More »

Ten Best Games Released in Japan

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 22 Dec 2005 12:23:52 EST

From brain games to arty RPGs, 2005 saw a wide variety of interesting and engaging releases. Next Gen has a thoughtful look at the titles that kept Japan gaming. It's a solid list, and for those looking for titles to import, this is a good place to start. More »

Japanes Phoenix Wright to Have English Option

Brian Crecente — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 11:35:31 EDT

There are two ways to deal with importing and exporting games. You can take what I call the "Sony Approach" and sue the living crap out of anyone who tries to sell games, accessories or hardware to countries you're not prepared to deal with or you can embrace the grey market like Nintendo. More »

Play Asia Shuts Down European PSP Sales?

Brian Crecente — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 07:26:41 EDT

The Sony lawsuit against Lik-Sang may not stand a chance in court, but it is having a chilling effect on the European import market. More »