The Coolest Games Most Americans (and Europeans) Don't Know About

Tek7

Tek7

CGA President, Tribe of Judah Founder & President
Staff member
I don't know if there are any other import nerds in the community, but I wanted to share a few titles that I had the opportunity to play and thoroughly enjoyed.

  • Taiko no Tatsujin DS (Nintendo DS) - Two styli: one red, one blue. Taiko drums. Super Mario Bros. music. What else do you need to make a great game?
  • Money Idol Exchanger (Neo Geo, Playstation) - This is the only puzzle game to ever cramp my hand. Its furious pace make for great puzzle action. I keep hoping this will show up on the DS, but, alas, no port has been released yet. The Playstation version is insanely rare, but I'm keeping an eye out.
  • Samurai Shodown 6 (Playstation 2) - A game featuring every character from every 2D Samurai Shodown game. 'nuff said.
  • Puyo Puyo! 15th Anniversary (Nintendo DS, Playstation 2) - Puyo Pop Fever DS did NOT feature have online play. Puyo Puyo 15th Anniversary for the DS does. That alone is proof that Sega hasn't forgiven America for the state-side failure of the Dreamcast. Fortunately, the DS isn't region-locked and the menus aren't too difficult to navigate for those who don't speak Japanese.
  • Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan (Nintendo DS) - It's Elite Beat Agents without that incredibly annoying song by Avril Lavigne. Or Kelly Clarkson. Or Blink 182, or whoever. DS Rhythm Game - poser punk = win.
  • Super Puzzle Fighter II X (Dreamcast) - Sure, the US and Europe have seen other versions of Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, but the Dreamcast version (which, for some inane reason, was only released in Japan) features online play and two additional game modes not seen in any other iteration. This is easily the best version of one of the best puzzle games ever.
Know of any other great import games? Post about 'em here!

EDIT: Oh my, how could I forget Puyo Puyo Box?

It might seem silly to post about two Puyo Puyo games in the same list, but Puyo Puyo Box is the only game (to my knowledge) that features a game mode where 2 players scramble to clear a field of puyos and open the treasure box at the bottom. (IGN has a tiny screenshot of the game mode here. Trust me when I say it's way more fun than it looks.)

The first player to open the treasure box wins. My wife and I have played literally hundreds of rounds of "treasure box Puyo," waiting for the day someone will bring the game type to a US release.

EDIT: You can read more about Puyo Puyo Box here.
 
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Samurai Shodown is the bomb...where might I obtain another installment of one of the best VS. fighting games ever...?
 
XionTawa said:
Samurai Shodown is the bomb...where might I obtain another installment of one of the best VS. fighting games ever...?
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Wherever fine import games are sold.

Oh, but you'll need a Japanese PS2 to play it.
 
only a matter of opinion, but I vote for any RTK (Romance of the Three Kindoms) series, or Nobunaga's Ambition. Though RTK II i've never played as it was only released in Jap. and I don't speak it nor read it :( I did just read that Romance of the Three kindoms XI was released for the wii in the east, I just need to find a way to get it.
 
Whon said:
I did just read that Romance of the Three kindoms XI was released for the wii in the east, I just need to find a way to get it.
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Unfortunately, the only way to play NTSC-J games on a NTSC-U console is to install a modchip, which will void your warranty.

Without turning this into a discussion on modchips, region locking, and piracy, I will say that I think region locking is a terrible idea.

I would seriously consider buying Taiko no Tatsujin DS, its sequel (when released), and Puyo Puyo 15th Anniversary for the DS if I could find them at a reasonable price. Why? Because they're awesome games, they won't see a state-side release, and I can play them on my DS without modifying the hardware and voiding the warranty.

Back on topic, I discovered something amazing recently: Puyo Puyo 15th Anniversary does feature the Treasure Box game mode from Puyo Puyo Box my wife and I love so well. Sure, the treasure box is replaced by a star, but the game mechanics are the same and the game is a blast.

Now if Sega would gets its act together, release an updated Puyo Puyo compilation for the DS that lets players play the Treasure Box mode online (the Treasure Box mode is only available via local multiplayer), I'd have to pre-order that title.
 
Disgaea. It used to be import-only for the PS2, but you can get it in Canada/the U.S.A. latent for DS.

The game features horrible voice acting and terribly un-funny storylines, but once you get to a certain point you can play in the "Item world," a great set of randomly created dungeons where you can win either by normal Turn-Based Strategy prowess, or by putting on your thinking cap and doing a challenging puzzle that is built into every level.
 
The only one that really stands out to me is the Earthbound/Mother series. Mother 3 never got released here but just recently a fan translation came out over here. This game is amazing, great characters and story that is both sad and heartwarming. Its a game boy advanced game but I felt more attached to the characters then a lot of games on these fancy next gen systems.
 
How on earth did I not post Soma Bringer to this thread yet? Well, now I have.

For those who've missed my earlier posts in other threads: Soma Bringer is an excellent action RPG for the Nintendo DS. It was only released in Japan, but there's an English fan translation available elsewhere. Unfortunately, playing the game in English requires a flashcart and a dumped copy of the game to patch.
 
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/bump

Because the PSOne Imports release of Money Idol Exchanger reminded me this thread exists.
 
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