Google+

Wii U will be region locked

Par for the course, but still annoying

Words: on September 24, 2012
Email
Email this Article

The Wii U will be region locked. Nintendo confirmed the restriction to Eurogamer today after the initial revelation in Japanese game magazine Famitsu.

Region locking means that any given Wii U console will only be able to run games from its own intended geographical area; no playing Japanese or European Wii U games in North American consoles and vice versa (at least without modifications to the system).

The limitation is par for the course for Nintendo, which put the same restrictions on the Wii and GameCube. Both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 allow publishers to decide whether to lock certain games to any regions or not.

Related

Platforms:

Wii U

Topics:

region lock, region restricted, Wii U

27 comments

  • TheMariner - September 24, 2012 7:21 p.m.

    Somewhat disappointed by this news. But then again, what isn't region locked nowadays? Hell, even Steam is region locked to some extent...

  • laurenhiya21 - September 24, 2012 6:26 p.m.

    Oh come on... Really?? .__. One of my favorite things about the DS was it's un-region lockedness, so I was pretty ticked when I found out that the 3DS was region locked. And now the WiiU too?? >:l (mind you, I haven't imported anything yet due to my lack of money, but once I get a job...) I don't know if they do this because they are all family orientated and feel that most people won't care, or they want to be super cautious, but either way... grrr It's not like it helps against piracy or anything, if that's what they're thinking .__. (I would think that it might encourage it instead) Either way, I'm certainly not getting a WiiU anytime soon >:l

  • ZenRobot - September 24, 2012 6:03 p.m.

    In other news, the WiiU will be jailbroken within 18 months, continuing the company's tradition of being USB loader heaven.

  • oryanbelt - September 25, 2012 4:29 p.m.

    ^ this

  • Smash_Bro - September 24, 2012 5:42 p.m.

    Do many gamers actually buy games outside their region? I never have, and I don't really see much point other than paying Japanese games that I wouldn't understand in the first place.

  • laurenhiya21 - September 24, 2012 6:23 p.m.

    People also import games from Europe, or Europeans might import from NA. There have already been a few games on the Wii and PS2 that I would of imported if the systems weren't region locked .__. And I know that there are plenty of games that don't go over to Europe ._. (also it may or may not be cheaper for Australians to import... I know the games themselves are way cheaper over here, but I'm just not sure how much shipping costs for them )

  • Tranquilbez34 - September 24, 2012 4:48 p.m.

    Wait so what about Australians? I'm assuming by region locked they mean that PAL games can't work on an NSTC sytem and vice versa

  • dcobs123 - September 24, 2012 2:26 p.m.

    So much for Earthbound 3.

  • zombi3grim - September 24, 2012 2:25 p.m.

    Ultimatly, I dont care about this. I dont play imports. For the simple reason most of the translations are shoddy and if its not meant to be released in the US, then its probably poo.

  • awesomesauce - September 24, 2012 1:33 p.m.

    Are there any postitve reasons to region lock a console?

  • zombi3grim - September 24, 2012 2:24 p.m.

    It thwarts piracy. Which means game developers and publishers save money to make more games for you to buy.

  • awesomesauce - September 25, 2012 6:32 p.m.

    thanks, I thought it just made it easier to translate but your reason makes much more sense and makes them sound less lazy

  • Shinn - September 26, 2012 5:55 a.m.

    It has nothing to do with piracy. A pirate can play any game from any country of origin without hassle.

  • zombi3grim - September 26, 2012 6:04 a.m.

    It has alot to do with piracy. It makes it alot harder to hack. Also, it has to do with licensing issues. But mostly piracy.

  • Shinn - September 28, 2012 4:29 a.m.

    Doesn't make a difference to someone messing with an executable. The code is almost completely identical. A pirate can play a pirated version of any game anywhere in the world, the entire point is to remove the drm.

  • zombi3grim - September 28, 2012 5:19 a.m.

    No. The quantum reflectecator inside the hard casing protects against pirating. You cant remove the drm without breaking the fky. The code in the drive is identical to the circuit drive in the core.

  • Shinn - September 28, 2012 6:03 a.m.

    I'm not quite sure whether you're being sarcastic or not. I sincerely hope you aren't trying to convince me that you're right by making up words.

  • zombi3grim - September 28, 2012 7:47 a.m.

    No, Im not being sarcastic. I know Im right. The quadlateral processor everyone knows cant be fucked with by pirates. When you plug it into the executor and take out the limitor core, its impervious to hacking. DUH!

  • Shinn - September 30, 2012 5:15 p.m.

    Oh yes, of course. You are a genius.

  • zombi3grim - September 30, 2012 6:16 p.m.

    Its not my fault you cant understand simple console lingo. Quadlateral processors, conondrum engines and drmx-jy's are all integral to the anti piracy. Everyone knows this.

Showing 1-20 of 27 comments

Join the Discussion
Add a comment
(HTML tags are not allowed.)
Characters remaining: 5000

Connect with GamesRadar


Featured Guides

Connect with Facebook

Log in using Facebook to share comments, games, status update and other activity easily with your Facebook feed.