History Main / BadExportForYou

** The SovietUnion took this trope to extreme lengths during the ColdWar. Soviet production standards were subpar to begin with. For example [[ForbiddenZone Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant]]. For a military example, while any T-72 tank would be theoretically the same as any other, in reality, front-line units stationed in Germany would get the best-built tanks, while other Soviet and WarsawPact units would get lesser ones. Soviet third-world allies and clients like Syria or Angola? They'd get the "Monkey models," versions equipped with lower-grade fire control systems, armor, ammunition, etc. This had the dual virtue (from the Soviet perspective) of arming the "brothers and friends of the USSR" on the cheap, while also serving a disinformation purpose (for instance, Western intelligence officers analyzing a captured Syrian tank might draw incorrect conclusions about Soviet capabilities.)

** The SovietUnion took this trope to extreme lengths during the ColdWar. Soviet production standards were subpar to begin with. For example, while any T-72 tank would be theoretically the same as any other, in reality, front-line units stationed in Germany would get the best-built tanks, while other Soviet and WarsawPact units would get lesser ones. Soviet third-world allies and clients like Syria or Angola? They'd get the "Monkey models," versions equipped with lower-grade fire control systems, armor, ammunition, etc. This had the dual virtue (from the Soviet perspective) of arming the "brothers and friends of the USSR" on the cheap, while also serving a disinformation purpose (for instance, Western intelligence officers analyzing a captured Syrian tank might draw incorrect conclusions about Soviet capabilities.)

* NightOnTheGalacticRailroad was released in the West on DVD only once, in 2001. Uncut, properly subtitled, great sound, but bad picture (the source was the laserdisk release). And it's now out of print, with only a few copies available online. The japanese got a MUCH better DVD only a year after.

* The Funimation dub of ''KeroroGunsou'' only liscenced the first 51 episodes and no further, and thus the anime doesn't seem like it'll continue past 51 for the US.

** Speaking of the music issue, the American release of ''ZetaGundam'' replaces the openings with a BGM track; however, this is because the rights to the openings currently reside with the writer's family, and thus any game that features this series isn't allowed to use the openings in ANY form, instrumental or otherwise. Doesn't exactly explain how Ritchie Kotzen got the rights to do a cover of "Zeta ~Transcending Time~".
*** Legally, you can release a cover of any damn song you want so long as you explicitly give credit to the writer of the original version.
**** And pay the royalties. But yeah, the relevant term is "compulsory licensing."

* ''FireEmblem: The Blazing Blade'' (The one released first outside Japan) had a scene a the end of the game (unlockable on Japan, no need to in America) that was a SequelHook to ''Sword Of Seals'' (Or rather a PrequelHook, since it was released before ''The Blazing Blade''. But ''The Blazing Blade'' is a prequel... Bah, whatever). The European versions cut it out entirely. Apparently, an eight-month wait and [[BlindIdiotTranslation meh-ish]] translations weren't bad enough it seems. It was probably cut because when the game came on America they thought of maybe releasing ''Sword of Seals'' and changed their mind by the time it came on Europe... but it still hurts.
* ''Enduro Racer'', a motocross game for the Master System had ''half of it's levels'' removed for the ocidental release.
* US fans discovered that the NintendoDS remake of ''DragonQuestIV'' had a 49% complete translation hidden in the Japanese ROM, easily available to anyone with an action replay device. It wasn't quite playable -- the special codes such as "pause the text here" or "put the character's gender here" weren't working, but it was there. The only things outright missing were the prologue text (1%) and the [[CharacterDevelopment party banter text]] (50% of the game's script). When the US translation was finally released months later... ''SquareEnix DummiedOut the party banter system.'' In other words, they ''hid over half the game's text'' rather than bother translating it. (Fortunately, the DS remake of ''DragonQuestV'', which was RemadeForTheExport, was localized with the party banter system intact.)
* ''FinalFantasyIV'' is legendary for this trope -- the US version, titled ''FinalFantasy II'', was slashed to pieces for it's US release. It took nearly a decade for the GBA rerelease to undo the edits. Amusingly, they re-imported ''FinalFantasy II'' US in Japan as ''[[ViewersAreMorons FinalFantasy IV Easy Type]]''
** Later games in the series did something similar -- From Final Fantasy 10 onward, there has been a re-release in Japan of the somewhat improved US versions of the games with added {{Bonus Boss}}es and other such content, called ''Final Fantasy ([[FinalFantasyX X]] / [[FinalFantasyX2 X-2]] / [[FinalFantasyXII XII]] / etc International.'' Of course, [[NoExportForYou the US never sees these]], even though they have fully accessible English translations and ''include the English voice tracks.'' Fortunately for those of us with [[DigitalPiracyIsEvil questionable ethics]], tech savvy fans have easily re-inserted and re-packaged these games as fully English [=ISOs=] available for anyone who cares to use Google and an emulator/modchip/HD Loader/etc.
* The US got a buggy [[ObviousBeta beta version]] of ''SuperDoubleDragon'' (impossible to catch boomerangs, can't switch weapons, half of the final mission is missing), while the Japanese got a far more complete build of the game.
* The localization of Konami's ''Thundercross'' was horribly butchered, with all the special weapons removed except for the measly Vulcan Cannon, the {{attack drone}}s made non-adjustable, and the order of the stages changed.

* US fans discovered ''DragonQuestIV'' had a 49% complete translation hidden in the Japanese ROM, easily available to anyone with an action replay device. It wasn't quite playable -- the special codes such as "pause the text here" or "put the character's gender here" weren't working, but it was there. The only things outright missing were the prologue text (1%) and the [[CharacterDevelopment party banter text]] (50% of the game's script). When the US translation was finally released months later... ''SquareEnix DummiedOut the party banter system.'' In other words, they ''hid over half the game's text'' rather than bother translating it. (Fortunately, the DS remake of ''DragonQuestV'', which was RemadeForTheExport, was localized with the party banter system intact.)

* US fans discovered ''DragonQuestIV'' had a 49% complete translation hidden in the Japanese ROM, easily available to anyone with an action replay device. It wasn't quite playable -- the special codes such as "pause the text here" or "put the character's gender here" weren't working, but it was there. The only things outright missing were the prologue text (1%) and the [[CharacterDevelopment party banter text]] (50% of the game's script). When the US translation was finally released months later... ''SquareEnix DummiedOut the party banter system.'' In other words, they ''hid over half the game's text'' rather than bother translating it.

* The localization of Konami's ''Thundercross'' was horribly butchered, with all the special weapons removed except for the measly Vulcan Cannon, the {{attack drone}}s made non-adjustable, and the order of the stages changed.

* The American version of ''PokemonColosseum'' allowed players to get [[OlympusMons Jirachi]]. The European one didn't for no apparent reason, though Europeans could still get Jirachi...! ...Buying the inferior ''PokemonChannel'', that is. European fans weren't pleased.
** And the Japan to America occurrence also counts, as it gave Celibi, the hardest pokemon to obtain ever. The only ways to get it is the Jappanesse Colosseum bonus disk previously mentioned and the GS Ball, which is also Japan-only. It has never been obtainable outside Japan.

** Later games in the series did something similar -- From Final Fantasy 10 onward, there has been a re-release in Japan of the somewhat improved US versions of the games with added {{Bonus Boss}}es and other such content, called ''Final Fantasy ([[FinalFantasyX X]] / [[FinalFantasyX2 X-2]] / [[FinalFantasyXII XII]] / etc International.'' Of course, [[NoExportForYou the US never sees these]], even though they have fully accessible English translations and ''include the English voice tracks.'' Fortunately for those of us with [[DigitalPiracyIsEvil questionable ethics]], tech savvy fans have easily re-inserted and re-packaged these games as fully English [=ISOs=] available for anyone who cares to use Google and an emulator/modchip/HD Loader/etc.

** This is actually the inverse of the overpriced-export situation -- Japanese anime DVDs are ''outrageously'' expensive in Japan, and while still quite expensive in the US (a DVD with 6 episodes costs as much as a DVD set of an entire season of a US show) they're nowhere near as bad as Japanese DVDs.

** Later games in the series did something similar -- From Final Fantasy 10 onward, there has been a re-release in Japan of the somewhat improved US versions of the games with added {{Bonus Boss}}es and other such content, called ''Final Fantasy ([[FinalFantasyX X]] / [[FinalFantasyX2 X-2]] / FinalFantasyXII XII]] / etc International.'' Of course, [[NoExportForYou the US never sees these]], even though they have fully accessible English translations and ''include the English voice tracks.'' Fortunately for those of us with questionable ethics, tech savvy fans have easily re-inserted and re-packaged these games as fully English ISOs available for anyone who cares to use Google and an emulator/modchip/HD Loader/etc.

** And While we're still on the subject of Studio Gibli, Naussica, The Valley Of The Wind was Cut down, The Environmental Subplots Removed, The Script Americanised, The Ohmu Changed into Vicious Foes, And The Title Changed Into "Warriors Of The Wind", Just so the film would Appeal to an American Audience. [[CaptainObvious Obviously, The Film was a Critical and Commercial Failure.]] Just take one look at the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wotwuscover.jpg hideous Boxart]] featured on the case, Which includes Characters Never seen in the movie, and You can see everything that is wrong with this Americanised Movie. Fans, Studio Gibli and Miyazaki Himself have all Put this film into FanDiscontinuity. So Bad was this Monstrosity, That soon after, Miyazaki Himself instituted a Strict "No Cuts" Policy, Even going as far as to send Harvey Weinstein (The man Responsible for the western Release of Studio Gibli Anime at the time) [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome An Authentic Japanese Katana with a simple note attached to the handle: "No Cuts"]]

** And While we're still on the subject of Studio Gibli, Naussica, The Valley Of The Wind was Cut down, The Environmental Subplots Removed, The Script Americanised, The Ohmu Changed into Vicious Foes, And The Title Changed Into "Warriors Of The Wind", Just so the film would Appeal to an American Audience. [[CaptainObvious Obviously, The Film was a Critical and Commercial Failure.]] Fans, Studio Gibli and Miyazaki Himself have all Put this film into FanDiscontinuity. So Bad was this Monstrosity, That soon after, Miyazaki Himself instituted a Strict "No Cuts" Policy, Even going as far as to send Harvey Weinstein (The man Responsible for the western Release of Studio Gibli Anime at the time) [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome An Authentic Japanese Katana with a simple note attached to the handle: "No Cuts"]]

* ''Enduro Racer'', a motocross game for the Master System had ''half of it's levels'' removed for the ocidental release.

* ''FireEmblem: The Blazing Blade'' (The one released first outside Japan) had a scene a the end of the game (unlockable on Japan, no need to in America) that was a SequelHook to ''Sword Of Seals'' (Or rather a PrequelHook, since it was released before ''The Blazing Blade''. But ''The Blazing Blade'' is a prequel... Bah, whatever). The European versions cut it out entirely. Apparently, an eight-month wait and [[BlindIdiotTranslation meh-ish]] translations weren't bad enough it seems. It was probably cut because when the game came on America they thought of maybe releasing ''Sword of Seals'' and changed their mind by the time it came on Europe... but it still hurts.

* ''FireEmblem: The Blazing Blade'' (The one released first outside Japan) had a scene a the end of the game (unlockable on Japan, no need to in America) that was a SequelHook to ''Sword Of Seals'' (Or rather a PrequelHook, since it was released before ''The Blazing Blade''. But ''The Blazing Blade is a prequel... Bah, whatever). The European versions cut it out entirely. Apparently, an eight-month wait and [[BlindIdiotTranslation meh-ish]] translations weren't bad enough it seems. It was probably cut because when the game came on America they thought of maybe releasing ''Sword of Seals'' and changed their mind by the time it came on Europe... but it still hurts.

* The American version of ''PokemonColosseum'' allowed players to get [[OlympusMons Jirachi]]. The European one didn't for no apparent reason, though Europeans could still get Jirachi...! ...Buying the inferior ''PokemonChannel'', that is. European fans weren't pleased.

* The English DVD release of ''MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'' has the original TV animation, rather than the [[BetterOnDVD remastered DVD version]]. The one where they [[GratuitousEnglish grammar-checked the on-screen English.]] Whether this is the reason why it unclear.

* Bandai America apparently lost, can't or doesn't care to purchase, the rights to the original soundtracks for the game adaptations of various ''{{Gundam}}'' anime. Beginning with ''GundamSeed: Never-Ending Tomorrow'', the games feature the same generic game-exclusive tracks made for ''Encounters in Space''. Rather egregiously, this means that ''DynastyWarriorsGundam 2'' can't even use familiar theme songs like "[[GundamWing Rhythm Emotion]]".
* Speaking of Bandai, viewing [[http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm10278982 videos at Niconico Douga]] will teach you that for the U.S. version of the DigimonCardBattle game, music from the Japanese Anime were removed, at least [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome Butterfly, Braveheart, Target and Break Up]]. On top of that, the Japanese version is also compatible with the Pocketstation although what it does exactly add to the gameplay is not known yet.
** Similarly, ''Digimon Tamers Battle Evolution'' for Playstation got released overseas as Digimon Rumble Arena with all the anime songs removed and replaced with [[TheJimmyHartVersion Jimmy Hart Versions]].
*** Heck, we could even say that all videogames based on anime have their anime songs removed overseas. DragonBall, CrayonShinChan, you name them.
* Averted in ''{{RayCrisis}}''. The [=PS1=] port of the game has a minigame called ''Pocket Ray'' that can be downloaded to and played on a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocketstation PocketStation]] memory card. The [=PocketStation=] [[NoExportForYou wasn't released in the U.S.]], so you'd think ''Pocket Ray'' would be excluded from the U.S. release, right? Wrong. The U.S. localization team, WorkingDesigns, ''lobbied'' to keep the feature in the localization, on the off-chance that an American gamer with a [=PocketStation=] were to buy it.
** This is also the case with many PS1 games that support the [=PocketStation=], most famously including ''FinalFantasyVIII'' -- though in most cases, it was more to do with the developers not knowing that Sony was going to cancel the [=PocketStation=]'s global release at the time.
** The instruction manual for the PAL version of Ridge Racer Type 4 has the disclaimer that the [=PocketStation=] "may not be available at the time of your purchase [of the game]". The manual for PAL Final Fantasy VIII (released about two months later, in late October '99) is a bit more pessimistic, saying it "...may not be available outside of Japan".
* In the Japanese and American versions of Armored Core Another Age you can load in a pilot from Armored Core 2.If you own the PAL version however you cannot (that and some of the parts are different/worse than they are in the American/Japanese versions.) I haven't got round to checking whether it's the same with Silent Line and AC3 yet.
* A great many of the more awesome or challenging songs from the Japanese ''DanceDanceRevolution'' games have yet to make their way onto an American version, e.g. "Max.(period)", "Flash in the Night", "Fantasy"(Melissa), "Baby Love Me", the original "Gradiusic Cyber"(the Another version was in ''DDR Ultramix'', and the AMD G5 mix was in ''DDR MAX US''), etc.

* In the Japanese and American versions of Armored Core Another Age you can load in a pilot from Armored Core 2.If you own the PAL version however you cannot (that and some of the parts are different/worse than they are in the American/Japanese versions.) I haven't got round to checking whether it's the same with Silent Line and AC3 yet.