Mobiusclimber’s How-To Guide To Importing Lesson One: Figuring Out If You Really Want To
It takes a special hybrid to actually get into importing games, a cross between a rabid collector and a hardcore gamer. Of course, either one could get their toe wet, so to speak: the collector might pick up the Square Millennium Collection games because of all the extras that come packaged with them; the hardcore gamer might realize that they just can’t live their whole life without playing Akumajou Dracula X: Chi no Rondo on the actual system it was designed for.
While this is certainly true, neither camp would venture very far into import gaming. The collector likely wouldn’t even play any of the games purchased for their collection, while the hardcore gaming crowd might want to play a few things that were never released in North America, they probably wouldn’t go out of their way to experience anything more than the one or two games that initially got them interested in the first place. This is why the first lesson on importing games is probably the most important. I’m going to give you a cheap and easy way of figuring out if getting into the import “scene” is really for you. Hit the jump to find out how.
Importing can be prohibitively costly, so it’s not a good idea to jump in with both feet, no matter how “sure” you are that it’s what you want to do. (Obviously, if you are part of the “hardcore” bunch and only want to play the one game, and you have the expendable budget, then go for it. This lesson isn’t for you.) The problem is twofold: 1) Many of the better import titles are expensive to begin with and the cost of shipping from Japan added on top of that makes it a difficult proposition; 2) Most systems have some sort of region lockout, so you either need to purchase a Japanese system or find some way around the lockout. This is why, for a novice import gamer, the Super Nintendo is your best friend.
Unlike many systems where there is two forms of region lockout (different shaped cartridges as well as an actual signal on the chip), the Super Nintendo only had one. Look inside the cartridge slot of your SNES and you might notice two small ridges of plastic, one on each side of the pin connectors. Those two small pieces of plastic are the only things holding you back from playing Super Famicom (the Japanese equivalent) games on your SNES. If you look at the back of an SNES cartridge, you’ll see two “valleys” cut out of the plastic. This is what those ridges fit into. Looking on the back of an SFC cartridge, they don’t have the open spaces for the ridges. So if you just tried to pop the cartridge into your SNES, it wouldn’t fit. Of course there’s a very easy solution to this problem: with a pair of pliers (or some other suitable implement of destruction), reach into the cartridge slot and break off those two pieces of plastic. I used a knife when I performed the surgery, but I wouldn’t recommend that. Pliers work best because you want to make sure you get the whole piece off and not leave any behind. Take a look at these pics to see what an SNES will look like before and after the surgery:
And in case you were wondering, no (smartass) removing those two tabs doesn’t change your SNES Mini into a dirty, regular SNES. I just took pics of the two SNES consoles that I had. I didn’t mod the Mini and just happened to have a beat up regular SNES so I modded that. Anyway, once you’ve modded your system, you’re ready to get into importing some games! But… what to get? What won’t have too much Japanese for a non-speaker? Most importantly, what will be cheap, yet good?
This is also where the SNES really shines. A lot of games were released in North America for the Super Nintendo, but I’d wager that twice as many (or more) never made it over here. The SNES was a hugely popular and successful system, so the good games were, mostly, mass-produced in droves. This means that a lot of great games can be picked up for cheap. Here’s a list of somes Super Famicom titles that you should be able to buy, cart-only, for $5-10, along with their genre in parenthesis and a brief description:
Lady Stalker (Action-RPG) – If you’ve played Land Stalker on the Sega Genesis, this is the sequel. Doesn’t really play exactly the same, but it’s a fun title nonetheless. Doesn’t really take much Japanese to play it, and best of all, it’s cheap. There’s a complete in box copy on … some evil auction site… for $14 shipped. You can luck out and get this for less than $10 shipped if you are good at sniping.
Feda: The Emblem of Justice (Strategy-RPG) – Once you know what all the menu items do, this game isn’t too hard to play, and it’s actually very similar to the Shining Force series. Best of all, there are a lot of BINs (Buy-It-Now auctions) of this game for $5 shipped.
Magical Taruruuto Kun (Action/Platformer) – If you hunt around a bit, you can find this game for around $10 shipped, and it’s well worth it. Not an amazing game, but definitely a fun, solid title with some cool visuals and great controls.
Psycho Dream (Action) – This is a side-scrolling beat-em-up that eventually plays like a shooter. You can collect power ups to create stronger weapons. Get enough and your weapon will start shooting energy all over the screen. A fun time-waster, can be had for $5, not worth more.
Aretha 2 (RPG) – I bought this for $5 out of a store. Might be tough to play with no knowledge of Japanese, but I was able to bluff my way pretty far into it.
Romancing SaGa series (RPG) – I’ve never liked the SaGa series from Squaresoft, but if you’re a fan, then you owe it to yourself to pick up the SFC ones. They are better than the later iterations and can be had for $5 apiece. I can’t say how well you’d do playing them without knowing Japanese as I only own one and haven’t gotten around to trying it yet, but for the price it almost doesn’t matter.
Dezaemon Kaite Tsukutte Asoberu (Shooter-SHMUP) – This is usually just referred to as Dezaemon on auction sites. Just make sure you get the SFC and not Famicom version. Cart only shipped is less than $10 usually. This is a great game that not only is a SHMUP, but lets you design your own SHMUPS as well. (A SHMUP is a vertical or horizontal shooter, like Gradius… but you know that, right?)
Tengai Makyo Zero (Far East of Eden Zero) (RPG) – Tough to really recommend to a beginner as you definitely do need to either have some Japanese knowledge or be well-versed in bluffing your way through, this is still a very solid title and can be had for a song.
Mystic Ark (RPG) – If you liked 7th Saga, this game improves upon that one in every way. Very fun and very cheap, but also very challenging, even moreso than 7th Saga.
Cu-On-Pa (Puzzle) – This game is excellent! If you like puzzle games at all, you’ll love it. And at $14 for a complete in box copy, it’s cheap too!
If you want to splurge though (since you did save money on not having to buy a console), check out Do-Re-Mi Fantasy or Violinist of Hamelin, they’re both excellent action-platformer titles that should run you around $30 or so shipped (cartridge only). Both are worth the cash, definitely.
The last thing that I’ll say on this topic is that it does pay to look around at other places besides the big evil auction site that shall remain nameless. Places like Gamegavel, Chase the Chuckwagon and Risingstuff tend to have cheaper/better deals on import games. If you really want to save on shipping, look for a store around you. In many major cities there are non-chain gaming stores (and sometimes record shops, import shops, movie stores) that will carry import games. I’ve even gotten a couple import titles from Half Price Books! Don’t just rely on one place; keep your eyes open and look all around you. Craigslist is another excellent resource, as are yardsales and swapmeets. Granted those last two are a lot of work for low rewards (at least when it comes to imports), but it’s entirely possible to find great deals. I actually got a Mega Drive and about ten games FOR FREE at a yard sale. Look everywhere, you’re bound to find some decent import titles. Next time… The Best Japanese System To Import.
Related posts:
Great post. To many people are scared away by the overwhelming task of getting into import gaming, but the Super Famicom is a great place to start.