So let me start off with some text I captured from the Playstation store website
Valkyria Chronicles™
Sega of America Inc.
Disc Only
I won't even get into how stupid the listing is, okay maybe a tick " Why list something you can not buy if you wanted to! " It however does not stop there do the same search but for Heavenly Sword, Different developer but will get the same result, DISK ONLY. You can rent the movie, or buy it even off the store, hell you can watch it on Netflix, god help ya actually want the game though. I own the game but it is simply to make a point, Developers and Publishers alike often complain how hard it is to make money nowadays, I say we need to save them from themselves.
A bit of backstory I feel is in order here, if you will indulge me for a little bit, I promise it has a point to it. I had for the longest time considered using emulators, downloading ROMS/ISO's etc akin to theft or piracy. It just for whatever reason never set well with me, and was never at ease with those who did it. So what made me change my mind, you maybe surprised it started with a Picture posted in a Final Fantasy community on Google+. I was browsing the posts that happened overnight and there was a picture of one of my favorite characters, over coffee FRAN from FF XII appeared on my screen. I remembered buying Final Fantasy XII back in the day and thinking damn I really should play that game again!
I was fully prepared to do just that till I remembered my PS2 was broken and I had never gotten around to fixing it, also that I had lost/lent or sold the original disk. Needless to say I was ticked off, but thought I will just buy it again from the Playstation store, I have a PS3. That was wishful thinking if you browsed the store it is like the game never existed, Steam maybe has it, good luck.
I searched Greenmangaming, GOG, Humble Bundle, even the Square Enix store nope. The game vanished as far as all of them were concerned into the Ether, I could not buy it legally. You can buy damn near every other Final Fantasy game on Steam or Playstation store, etc but not XII
This brings me to the second reason I changed my mind, I posted how I was pissed I could not buy a copy from anywhere, someone said " Just emulate it, get the iso and emulator and play it on your PC "
I replied I don't feel like that is right it was akin to theft, they said in what way? well i can buy it from Ebay or craigslist, flea market, etc, the reply back was and how does that benefit Sony or Square in anyway? The only person making money is the seller, the people who made the game see not a cent
Square or Sony only made money off the initial sale. Needless to say I had no smart response back and in that moment my thoughts on it did a complete 180.
Could I go buy a replacement PS2 and a copy of the game, sure I could but not everybody can. Perhaps they do not have the disposable cash, or are like me no room too. Not to mention the cost of some of these original game disks/cartridges and systems.
I did download a emulator and did go to a site they mentioned and downloaded the ISO, and felt none the worse for it. I had spent hours trying to find a way to buy the game so it benefited those who created/published the game and could not, I was left with no other option.
So Developers, Publishers, IP/Platformer owners you have only yourself to blame for my change of heart on the issue, why is FF XII not at least in PS2 classics on the store. I played the game emulated though using a 360 controller was weird, and I was in heaven once again. All the magic returned the first time I laid eyes on that magical world and Fran and I enjoyed it to death. I have since deleted the ISO from my HD but do have it saved in the cloud should I wish to revisit that magical world/story.
I have a better idea though make it so I can buy the game legally digitally at the very least, so those who created it benefit, not some kid on ebay. I not only would buy it but would do a live twitch and YouTube stream showing me deleting the ISO from my cloud and the emulator I used. I understand making a physical re-release would be risky as heck, but digital cost you nothing but disk-space and listing fee should you do it. Be it a PC port onto steam or on the Playstation Store as a PS2 classic playable on the PS3 I would perhaps buy both even. The main thing is I WOULD at least buy one of them and in a sense the game again all these years later.
I could easily mention other devs, platforms, etc but you get the point, just look at what Microsoft and rare did with Rare Replay earlier this year. it is one of their best selling games of the year, so much so they had to do second printings. You know why because a lot of people do not own their original xboxes, or where not born when the games game out. Their parents remember though, and have shared their love of games with their children, and now they get to experience that same joy.
Conclusion
Build it and they will come, they will buy your games legally but you have to make them available first, Nintendo knows this they make a lot of classics available. Not every game but atleast they realise people do want to be able to play older games on their current devices, and the rest of the industry needs to follow what they started.
In a lot of ways it is not the Consumer/Gamer that is the problem it is the Rights holders themselves that are there own worst enemies. Stop shooting yourself in the foot and complaining we are the problem, let us buy it and we will come. Will some people still pirate games of course they will, piracy has been around for decades, and will never go away. But that does not mean you should not celebrate your old IP's and capitalize on that library. Ohh and a little side note if your sitting on a IP and have no interest in ever revisiting it, then sell the rights to it for heaven's sake. Let someone else who does care do something with it, maybe just ask for a small royalty on the sales, but stop hoarding.
I will leave you as always
Play nice with each other
David
D
