| 1 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 2 | |
| 3 | Franchises with their own pages: |
| 4 | * ''AmericansHateTingle/{{Pokemon}}'' |
| 5 | |
| 6 | [[folder:Trope Namer]] |
| 7 | * Tingle is a short, chubby ManChild from ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' series. He's obsessed with hunting for fairies and rupees, dances a lot, flies around using balloons tied to his butt, is incredibly eccentric, and his face is... odd, to say the least (it is believed to be based on Creator/KojiKondo). In Japan, people think of him as a hilarious character and a nice FandomNod to {{Otaku}}s. In the North America, his design and mannerisms make people think he's an annoying MemeticMolester due to ValuesDissonance. |
| 8 | ** He's popular enough in Japan and parts of Europe to get [[VideoGame/FreshlyPickedTinglesRosyRupeeland his own games]], but loathed enough in the Americas for those games to [[NoExportForYou never reach their shores]] and to have only four other roles in main games following his first appearance in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures Four Swords Adventures]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap The Minish Cap]]''... which still gives him way more appearances than nearly anyone not named Link, Zelda, Ganon, or Impa. |
| 9 | ** [[DemotedToExtra Tingle's role in the main series has been largely reduced]]; he doesn't appear in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'' (Purlo's appearance was based on him, but they have vastly different personalities, and there are portraits of him in Snowpeak Ruins; they're blurry, but just try and say they're not him) and gets only non-speaking cameos in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' (on a WantedPoster, a statue/portrait, and a doll respectively). |
| 10 | ** He is at his weirdest in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'', wherein he refers to Link, a [[FlipFlopOfGod nine/twelve]]-year-old child, as "Mr. Fairy", and forces his brothers--and one random guy who's in debt slavery to him--to dress exactly like him and perform slave labor. He also forces the player to pay him ridiculous sums of money in exchange for information on where to find eight {{MacGuffin}}s. With all of his annoying traits, it's no wonder that fans [[MemeticMolester joke about him being a sex offender]] when they're breaking him out of prison as part of the plot of the game (his canon crime was just petty theft). In addition, people have taken the skulls in the room where he hid the Pictograph (through the small tunnel at the back of his prison cell) to mean that he's not only a sex offender, but also a [[RonTheDeathEater kidnapper and serial killer]]. |
| 11 | ** To give another idea of just how reviled he is by the US Zelda fanbase, NOA actually considered localizing ''VideoGame/FreshlyPickedTinglesRosyRupeeland'', one of Tingle's SpinOff games, and held an online poll asking fans if they wanted it imported or not. The votes to cancel its release won by a ''landslide'', and the import was cancelled. Yes, Americans hate him ''that much'' that, in a day and age where any game [[NoExportForYou failing to leave its home country]] is a cause for major controversy, they specifically asked Nintendo ''not'' to bring a game with him in it over. |
| 12 | ** The ''Too Much Tingle Pack'' is such an appropriately named piece of software one wonders if [[SelfDeprecatingHumor it was intentional]]: effectively being just a novelty with features like a calculator, fortune teller, and timer, it's not available in the west because ''any'' amount of Tingle is simply too much for an American audience. |
| 13 | ** In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures Four Swords Adventures]]'', where whenever there are force gems around, if you fail to collect them in time, he'll swoop in and steal them all. |
| 14 | ** Joking aside, the main reason why Tingle is hated so much is that he is a ManChild, a character archetype that Western audiences have little sympathy for. In Japan, he's seen as a symbol of whimsy. To most Western audiences, however, his behavior and appearance just comes off as annoying at best and creepy at worst (especially the speedo). Interestingly, most find him tolerable in ''Majora's Mask'' because his maps were reasonably priced, it was completely optional to talk to him, and [[WeirdnessCoupon he managed to fit in]] [[SurrealHorror the general tone of that game]]. In ''The Wind Waker'', though, he gains a lot more spotlight, is considered far more obnoxious (he was never this rupee-grubbing before now) and you cannot complete the game without him. Even WordOfGod is aware of this as shown in [[https://web.archive.org/web/20130623030516/https://www.zeldadungeon.net/2013/06/kensuke-tanabe-wants-to-make-tingle-popular-in-the-west/ this article.]] He [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap hopes to make Tingle popular one day]]. One of the bigger changes for the HD edition of the game was that they got rid of five Triforce charts, meaning that you only need to visit Tingle three times in the game to get them translated, as opposed to eight times. To a lesser extent, the Tingle Tuner was replaced with the Tingle Bottle, which also makes him less prominent than in the [[Platform/NintendoGameCube GameCube]] version. |
| 15 | ** Amusingly, Ricky the kangaroo from the ''Oracle'' games is shown to not be too fond of him upon encountering him in ''Oracle of Ages''. |
| 16 | ** A set of Tingle equipment was added as DLC to ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]''. It has horrible defense, and wearing the entire set increases walking speed at night (which isn't a set bonus exclusive to this equipment) and also causes [=NPCs=] to react in horror if Link gets too close to them. |
| 17 | ** And then he was made a playable fighter via DLC in ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'', beating out Skull Kid and any number of other potential ''Majora's Mask'' characters. American fans were not amused. True to form, this was entirely because he was the top-voted character that the Japanese audience wanted to see added in. Ironically, this version of Tingle actually did get a little respect, as he's a FightingClown whose schtick includes a lot of AmusingInjuries as side-effects of his attacks. His features have been redesigned to be far less hideously {{gonk}}y, and his generally negative reception in the West is given playful lampshading, making him the least annoying or creepy Tingle yet. It helps that ''Legends'' finally added Skull Kid to the playable roster. |
| 18 | [[/folder]] |
| 19 | |
| 20 | [[folder:Final Fantasy]] |
| 21 | * ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'': Krile is quite liked in Japan, where cute princesses with pure hearts and amazing potential are an archetype enjoyed by everyone ([[{{Moe}} including young men]]), but in the West, where her archetype is considered grating and exclusively for preteen girls, she's resented for [[CastSpeciation upstaging Lenna and Faris]] and being a ReplacementScrappy for the (at least in the West's eyes) ''much'' more likeable Galuf. |
| 22 | * ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'': |
| 23 | ** Cait Sith was never the most popular character, in no small part due to his {{Jerkass}}ery in the beginning of the game, and the fact that his LimitBreak [[ScrappyMechanic relies]] on [[RandomNumberGod pure dumb luck]]. And ''then'' he started speaking in ''[[Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren Advent Children]]'', [[BrokenBase itself a divisive movie]], with a [[OohMeAccentsSlipping very poor Scottish accent]]. Many fans from Scotland, and Britain in general were not amused.[[note]]Ironically, the voice actor is British himself.[[/note]] |
| 24 | ** In a ''Famitsu'' poll for best video game characters held in 2010, the characters from ''Final Fantasy VII'' that made the cut were Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, Sephiroth, Zack, and ''Yuffie'', who, while [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap not nearly as disliked as she used to be]], is still something of a BaseBreakingCharacter in North America. |
| 25 | * ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'': |
| 26 | ** Rinoa is a very popular character and a pop culture icon in Japan. In the West, she's something of a BaseBreakingCharacter. This is at least partly due to the translation, as most of her dialog (that was intended to be cute and childlike, highlighting her innocence compared to the military-trained [=SeeDs=]), got replaced with lines that just made her sound like an immature SpoiledBrat. The fact that she [[DamselScrappy has to be rescued quite often]] only adds fuel to the hate. |
| 27 | ** Squall, while less hated than Rinoa, also suffers from this. The English version gave him "Whatever" as a catchphrase, with all its connotations of an insufferable '90s teen, and phrased his dialogue to emphasise his most adolescent and {{Jerkass}} qualities. In the Japanese version his speaking pattern comes across as more socially awkward than mean, and his catchphrase is "''...warukatta''" ("...my bad"). |
| 28 | * ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII''[='=]s Vaan is widely hated in the West, and Creator/SquareEnix's ExecutiveMeddling to make him the protagonist is criticized since Vaan gets sidelined in main story and is the typical pretty boy character avatar for the player. In Japan, he has enough of a fanbase to get him big roles in two spin-offs ''and'' added into ''[[VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy]]''. He was RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTacticsA2'', with him much more mature and edgier. |
| 29 | * ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' itself, as well as Lightning, are this in the West. A Japanese publication wanted to give the game a 120 out of 100, while Western reviewers tended to blast the game for its linearity, among other issues. The company even came out and said that the game was reviewed poorly in the West because of different cultural expectations of [=RPGs=]. Lightning herself is a symbol of the game, and also some of its flaws, such as her unintentional SupportingProtagonist status. What makes this worse is how sequels, references to Lightning, and cameos keep popping up, making it impossible for those who disliked the game to avoid it. |
| 30 | * Minfilia in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' is widely hated by Western players. Her role is essentially MissionControl and she herself is a noncombatant, while the other Scions are badass field agents, so she ends up being resented for giving orders to the Player Character and not being able to defend herself when the base gets invaded. [[spoiler:Her supposed sacrifice for Hydaelyn in 3.2 had her haters celebrating with much rejoice no matter how much the story tried to play up her sacrifice as a sad moment that affected all of the Scions]]. In Japan, she is popular enough that she was considered for the representative of ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy2015'', and the decision to go with Y'shtola instead was primarily based on her consistent popularity between Japan and the West (and between the 1.0 and ''Realm Reborn'' playerbases). |
| 31 | * ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'': |
| 32 | ** Ignis in Japanese was gentle and familiar with Noct, although he did use more sophisticated language than the others. The English localisation went a BritishStuffiness route, resulting in him having a much colder and more closed-off feel to his character that made many players wonder if he even liked the Prince. Shipping Ignis with Noctis is a lot more popular in Japan than in the West as a result. In addition, his English accent is exaggerated to WhatTheHellIsThatAccent levels, which many English players found difficult to listen to. It should be noted that both Ignis himself, and shipping Ignis with Noctis, became a lot more popular when Episode Ignis was released, followed not long after by additional Ignis material in ''Royal Edition'', in which Ignis's love of the Prince is made completely explicit and in which his voice actor's performance [[VocalEvolution tones down the accent to a realistic RP, as well as playing him in a more developed way]]. |
| 33 | ** There's no shortage of players who find the Japanese-voiced Prompto very cute and appealing, and the American-voiced Prompto irritating. His American voice performance emphasises Prompto's StepfordSmiler [[{{Keet}} enthusiasm]] in a way that some find charming and others find reminiscent of a hollering bro; his Japanese voice performance is more mellow and brooding. |
| 34 | * Many characters/character portrayals in the first ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'' are criticised in the West, but were well-received in Japan. This is because the entire cast suffered from poor English dubs due to the severe directing and editing issues the dub had; even many reliable veteran voice actors were stuck. Cloud, in particular, suffers, communicating entirely in [[DullSurprise flat-affected]] paused interruptions that made him come across as [[TooBleakStoppedCaring anhedonic and without will]] as a result of [[WhoWantsToLiveForever what he was going through]]; his Japanese voice actor, faced with better conditions in the recording studio, produced a more ironic, emotive performance that gave more of an impression that Cloud was trying to fight off his depression with [[DeadpanSnarker snark]], but was powerless to do so, a portrayal that was more appealing. |
| 35 | [[/folder]] |
| 36 | |
| 37 | [[folder:Street Fighter]] |
| 38 | * ''Franchise/StreetFighter'': |
| 39 | ** Mexicans really hate T. Hawk, perhaps because he's supposed to be Mexican but obviously isn't. El Fuerte has gathered better reception from them. Even then, he's received some pushback from being a LethalChef JokeCharacter when so many other characters got (at least by Street Fighter standards) dramatic storylines. |
| 40 | ** The Jamaican kickboxer Dee Jay, who was added to the ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' roster under the suggestion of American playtester James Goddard, is beloved by the North American fanbase and in his home country. In Japan, he rarely appears, and when he does, he doesn't do much of anything. |
| 41 | *** Humorously enough, Dee Jay and T. Hawk both happen to be the only new characters from ''Super Street Fighter II'' left out from the console versions of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'' (which included [[MsFanservice Cammy]] and [[BruceLeeClone Fei Long]]); however, both ended up returning in ''[[MissionPackSequel Super Street Fighter IV]]''. Surprisingly, Dee Jay is also one of the ''Super Street Fighter II'' newcomers returning as part of the base roster of ''VideoGame/StreetFighter6'' along with Cammy, while T. Hawk gets a successor in form of Lily (while Fei Long is not seen anywhere). |
| 42 | ** [[CanonForeigner Ingrid]], whose only appearance so far was in ''Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX'', a non-canon, portable UpdatedRerelease of the [=PlayStation=] classic. She's a popularity chart-topper in Japan, but everywhere else, she's one of the most universally reviled characters in the series. She's a PhysicalGoddess who looks like a schoolgirl, would canonically be the most powerful character (if she were canon), fixed Ryu's SuperPoweredEvilSide just by beating him in battle, and claims that [[BigBad M. Bison]] copied her Psycho Power. Oh, and she throws [[EverythingsBetterWithSparkles sparkles]] everywhere. |
| 43 | [[/folder]] |
| 44 | |
| 45 | [[folder:Tales Of Series]] |
| 46 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny'': |
| 47 | ** Bruiser Khang is very popular among Japanese fans, especially after his personality got expanded in the game's remake, where he becomes something of a JerkWithAHeartOfGold. But since many of these ''Tales'' remakes and spin-offs [[NoExportForYou never leave Japan]], North American audiences, meanwhile, get stuck with the {{Jerkass}} Khang seen in the Platform/PlayStation version, and don't understand why he's appeared in so many spin-offs. |
| 48 | ** Reala, from [[VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny2 the sequel]], does not have many western fans. As well as her [[RealWomenDontWearDresses ridiculously girly appearance]] (which is so unrealistically thin that it seems inhuman), there's the fact that her story is unpopular with many Western players: She's a one-woman SpotlightStealingSquad [[spoiler:who also happens to be the daughter of a goddess]], on a mission to find a "[[TheChosenOne hero]]", [[spoiler:who is doomed to be erased from time if she kills her mother, but comes BackFromTheDead anyway just so she can be with [[TheHero Kyle]]]]. Japan is far more tolerant of her or simply liked her for those traits in the first place. |
| 49 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfLegendia'': Shirley Fennes is a BaseBreakingCharacter in Japan, but in the West she's seen as an annoying {{Yandere}} DamselScrappy, and her LoveMartyr tendencies are viewed as an extreme overreaction to Senel rejecting her AnguishedDeclarationOfLove. The game also puts a lot of the blame for Shirley's FaceHeelTurn squarely on Senel's shoulders. While Senel isn't entirely blameless - it was shown that had Senel just opened his mouth about his DarkSecret, things might have gone a lot smoother - Western fans viewed it as the game trying to absolve Shirley of any wrongdoing. Gameplay-wise, she only has one spell that is unique just to her, and it isn't acquired until [[EleventhHourSuperpower very late in the game]], meaning she doesn't stand out much in combat, either. A few fan portrayals of Shirley [[RonTheDeathEater play up her bad qualities]] in order to [[ShipToShipCombat ship Senel with Chloe instead]]. |
| 50 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'': While Anise showed up in Japanese character popularity polls, she's often disliked in the Western fandom for being a huge hypocrite for hating Luke for stupid actions [[spoiler: while she is actively doing much of the same behaviour, betraying the party and not trusting them enough to tell them her parents are being held hostage by the villains.]] She is also seen as being to blame for [[spoiler: Arietta's death]] because she refuses to [[spoiler: give [[TheWoobie Arietta]] a proper explanation as to why she was replaced as Ion's guard,]] which among other things makes [[spoiler: Arietta]] attack the party. Unlike Luke, who goes through a TraumaCongaLine, Anise is never so much as reprimanded for her actions, which doesn't help. |
| 51 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphoniaDawnOfTheNewWorld'': In the fifth Tales of Character Popularity Poll in Japan, Emil Castagnier came in 12th out of every character in every ''Tales'' game. The majority of overseas fans hate him for being whiny, cowardly, and annoying. It certainly doesn't help that up until a certain point, in every fight he has to rely on his SuperpoweredEvilSide to fight for him, or that he [[ReplacementScrappy takes over for Lloyd]], who was, by contrast, brave and optimistic and ''immensely'' popular. ''That said'', there are some American fans who want to give Emil a hug. |
| 52 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfGraces'': Cheria is very popular in Japan, but a lot of American fans dislike her for her DamselInDistress behaviour (even though she only gets officially kidnapped once) and the perception that her only important characteristic is her [[StrangledByTheRedString awkwardly executed crush on Asbel]], who she constantly mistreats to the point where even ''Asbel'' calls her out in it. Still, as with Emil, she has a few passionate defenders. |
| 53 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfXillia'': Many Western fans see Milla as having had way too much [[CharacterShilling undeserved shilling]], or simply dislike her because of [[DullSurprise poor quality voice acting]]. Jude often gets placed in the same position in the West vs the East because he is one of the worst shills for Milla, as well as being a medical genius in university at the age of 15, widely believed to be highly unrealistic. |
| 54 | * ''VideoGame/TalesOfZestiria'': Alisha Diphda is a very loved character in Japan but she is more of a BaseBreakingCharacter in the west as the number of Western fans that feel either indifferent or outright hate her for causing a HypeBacklash in Japan or having a bad DLC story is about equal to the people that love her. Any hate for her among western fans increased as the anime made her a more prominent character but at the same time [[SpotlightStealingSquad contributed nothing to the story and took away vital development for everyone else, especially the main character Sorey]] along with throwing off the pacing of the anime. |
| 55 | [[/folder]] |
| 56 | |
| 57 | [[folder:Super Smash Bros.]] |
| 58 | * Dark Pit from ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'', when he was revealed for ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'', was widely loathed by the western fanbase. Reasons for this included him being an "edgy PaletteSwap OC" and a MovesetClone of Pit, him "stealing a slot" from a more unique character, and accusations of [[SpotlightStealingCrossover "Sakurai bias",]] as Creator/MasahiroSakurai was the director of both games. However, not only do Japanese fans love Dark Pit, but he's widely loved by players of ''Uprising'' around the world, making this a case of "''Smash'' Fans Hate Dark Pit" as well. By contrast, Lucina and Dr. Mario, despite being {{Moveset Clone}}s from equally-prominent franchises, are [[EnsembleDarkhorse quite popular]] both in Japan and overseas. Dark Pit being reclassified as an Echo Fighter of Pit in ''Ultimate'' cooled the waters, given that this more clearly indicates his niche, and other well-loved characters like Daisy, Dark Samus, and the aforementioned Lucina are also echoes. |
| 59 | * An older example today seems to be [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade Roy]]. While he [[EarlyBirdCameo made his physical debut]] in ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosMelee Melee]]'' specifically because the western playtesters thought he was cool, he became a popular target for mockery with western fans during his absence between ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosBrawl Brawl]]'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU''. Often-cited reasons are that he's an overrated, [[LowTierLetdown low-tier]] Marth clone, who isn't a particularly strong character in the ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' series either (not helped by his own game never officially being exported). Roy does have fans in the Western ''Fire Emblem'' fanbase -- in Japan, however, he was among the top requests for DLC, and is regarded with great deal of respect and open love in both fanbases, being portrayed as a more down-to-earth character as opposed to the MemeticLoser persona popularized in the west by ''Webcomic/AwkwardZombie''. |
| 60 | * While even Sakurai was concerned that the ''Fire Emblem'' series was starting to become a case of SpotlightStealingCrossover, his team managed to convince him that [[VideoGame/FireEmblemFates Corrin]] was a unique character and pointed out that the series has had a history of promoting ''Fire Emblem'' since ''Melee'', hence why Corrin became a new first-party DLC character for ''[=3DS/Wii U=]'' when it came time to find a character to promote a recent release. The character ended up being very divisive in the West, even among fans of the ''Fire Emblem'' series, both for the perceived spotlight issue (expounded by how Corrin was revealed ''before'' the release of ''Fates'' outside of Japan due to differing release dates) and because ''Fates'' itself proved to be a divisive entry in part due to Corrin's characterization. |
| 61 | * When [[Franchise/DragonQuest the Hero]] was revealed as DLC for ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', the Japanese fanbase, predictably, exploded with joy. The Western fanbase's reaction? Unless they were also a fan of ''Dragon Quest'', it was mostly "meh." ''Dragon Quest'' as a whole has suffered from this trope in the West for a long time, despite efforts to make it more popular in the region. Combined with the game already featuring a surplus of ''Fire Emblem'' characters, there was quite a lot of bile toward the Hero over what some players saw as "yet another generic anime swordsman". Ironically, the reverse was ''not'' true for the more Western-favored [[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie Banjo and Kazooie]], who are [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff just as beloved in Japan]]. |
| 62 | * [[VideoGame/FatalFury Terry Bogard]] was well received in Japan, as well as in [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff regions where his games are popular]], but in North America, and especially the US, he had a mixed reception, between not recognizing him at all or [[MexicansLoveSpeedyGonzales adoring him for being a greatly positive American stereotype]]. This was due to ''Fatal Fury'', ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'', and by extension, Creator/{{SNK}} not being well known names in the American videogame culture, being MainstreamObscurity at best. And unless they were someone with knowledge about older traditional fighting games, he would come out as an extremely obscure choice for ''Smash''. It didn't help that on the same Direct that he was revealed, a Mii costume based on the much more popular and much more demanded Sans from ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' was revealed, which massively overshadowed Terry's reveal, turning Terry into a MemeticLoser in the ''Smash'' community for a brief period of time. |
| 63 | * The reveal of Min Min from ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'' was highly well-received in Japan, but receptions overseas were more mixed, as Spring Man and Twintelle are more popular, and were expected to be the frontrunners. This was even acknowledged in the trailer (Sakurai's personal favorite was revealed to be Ninjara). When she was released, however, the tables turned; the Japanese tournament scene ''hated'' Min Min for her effective keep-away tools against the cast, while Min Min received something of a PopularityPolynomial overseas, and she's generally seen as a solid, if not stand-out, fighter. |
| 64 | * Sakurai himself has openly acknowledged the American fanbase's hatred for Tingle as a reason why he won't be a playable character. |
| 65 | * Starting with the release of ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'', international players tend to prefer the competitive aspects of ''Super Smash Bros.'', and ignore or outright dislike the elements aimed at casual players, such as items or elaborate stage gimmicks. It's more common in Japan to see casual ''Smash'' players use the default score-based rules with items and stage hazards on, while international players often use the competitive "no items, flat stage, timed stock battle" rules even when playing for fun. This can be attributed to competitive ''Smash'' receiving a bump in western popularity around the time ''3DS'' and ''Wii U'' were revealed (thanks to the development of ''VideoGame/ProjectM'', the release of ''The Smash Brothers'', and ''Melee'' appearing at EVO 2013), and that most of ''3DS'' and ''Wii U''[='s=] new gimmicks are seen as annoying and intrusive to competitive play. |
| 66 | ** By extension, while Japan considers [[AssistCharacter Assist Trophies]] and Mii costumes based on popular requests more of an acceptable compromise for characters can't be playable characters, Westerners see it as a mockery, even saying they "[[SecondPlaceIsForLosers didn't make it in]]" despite both Assist Trophies and costumes meaning they technically have presence in the game. This is because, in practice, they'll never see them (as Assist Trophies are items and thus usually disabled, while Mii costumes are seen as a feature aimed toward casual players). |
| 67 | [[/folder]] |
| 68 | |
| 69 | [[folder:Game Platforms]] |
| 70 | * The Platform/{{Xbox}} brand [[http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/04/01/why-did-xbox-360-fail-in-japan performed dismally in Japan]] for years. While the Platform/Xbox360 enjoyed a brief period of moderate popularity and some exclusive titles (because for a while the Platform/PlayStation3 architecture was hard to program and the Platform/{{Wii}} targeted different demographics), the Platform/XboxOne had the worst launch sales figures of any console, with almost empty queue lines and only beating the ''Platform/NeoGeoPocket'', and its average monthly sales were around [[http://kotaku.com/last-week-microsoft-reportedly-sold-99-xbox-ones-in-ja-1754211746 three figures]] if they're lucky. Microsoft had frequently fought to turn this around by obtaining exclusive titles that appeal to Japanese audiences; outside of a few brief sales spikes connected to the release of certain games (like ''VideoGame/TheIdolmaster''), it eventually faltered. Keiji Inafune has suggested that [[MadeInCountryX consumer nationalism]] played a role in Japan's rejection of the Xbox brand[[note]]Its rivals, the [=PS3=] and the Wii, were both made by domestic companies, Creator/{{Sony}} and Creator/{{Nintendo}}, respectively. A rather strange argument on Inafune's part, as the Platform/{{MSX}} computer (made by Microsoft) [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff was successful over there]].[[/note]], while Creator/BobChipman pointed out that the systems are considered (on both sides of the Pacific) to be delivery platforms for FPS games. Meanwhile, [[https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-12-13-why-xbox-failed-in-japan this Eurogamer article]] suggests that Microsoft didn't do enough market research and, as a result, completely started off with the wrong foot with the original Xbox's marketing. While many foreign brands do find success in Japan, they often do so by specifically tailoring their products and marketing to appeal to Japanese tastes. However, Microsoft's ad campaign for the Xbox leaned heavily into the fact that it was an American console, an approach best exemplified by a billboard featuring a close up of Bill Gates holding the redesigned Japanese controller in one hand, and ''a hamburger'' in the other. It took until the Platform/XboxSeriesXAndS for the brand to enjoy any real popularity in Japan, due to its compact design and competitive pricing. |
| 71 | * After the brief boost enjoyed by the Platform/Xbox360 (due to the Wii being less preferred by those countries with typically smaller and denser homes and populace), the Xbox brand sells far less in other countries outside of the USA as well. This affected the global sales of the Xbox One due to its initially higher price and smaller game library compared to its direct competitors, to the point that as of 2018 Microsoft gave up on exclusivity for their products and have made their games also available on PC, often through Steam and subject to regional pricing. As with the Japanese example above, the XBOX Series starts getting noticeable amount of sales and fanbase thanks to the Gamepass. |
| 72 | * Outside of Japan, traditional gaming consoles were initially BannedInChina (outside of Hong Kong and Macau) until 2013 and are generally unaffordable in Korea, and in both countries Nintendo and Sony run into nationalism-related issues and anti-Japanese sentiment and were also banned due to a law against Japanese cultural imports that was in place until 2004. In the 1980s-1990s in Korea, Sega's and Nintendo's consoles were distributed by local companies, Samsung and Hynix respectvely, due to said law. Nintendo consoles (with the exception of the Switch) sold poorly in South Korea compared to their competitors. |
| 73 | * Over in Western countries, the Platform/SegaSaturn used to be considered one of the worst video game consoles ever released due to its poor line of games[[note]]Brought on by {{Executive Veto}}s from Sega of America; many of its best games didn't get released internationally [[AnimationAgeGhetto because they were 2D]][[/note]], its lack of a mainline ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' game[[note]]''Sonic'' was the KillerApp for all other Sega consoles; the franchise's absence on Saturn was due to the TroubledProduction and ultimate [[{{Vaporware}} cancellation]] of ''VideoGame/SonicXtreme''.[[/note]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99iiUtPR-fM horrible]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Lqhu1wCpPk advertising]], its botched North American launch,[[note]]Its planned and heavily-advertised "Saturnday" launch in September 1995 was scrapped in favor of launching it ''as their E3 keynote started'' in an ill-thought-out attempt to give it the edge over the upcoming [=PlayStation=], which left it with no games (much less any that were good) since developers had been preparing their launch titles with the original date in mind, several angry big-name retailers that were left out of the loop like Walmart (many of who retaliated by actively refusing to stock the Saturn or its games), ''and'' the promise that those who were willing to wait for the [=PlayStation=] would be able to get it for a hundred dollars cheaper than the Saturn[[/note]] and its infamously convoluted hardware, which made it harder to develop for than the Platform/{{Nintendo 64}} and especially the Platform/{{PlayStation}}. Even with it being VindicatedByHistory, there is still some lingering resentment for the system from some fans due to it being a CreatorKiller for Sega. By contrast, in Japan, it's often listed as one of the more remembered consoles and generally was a lot better received, even outselling the Nintendo 64 in its home market. Not only was its 1994 holiday release much smoother and list of games more diverse, it also had a really effective advertising campaign in the form of Advertising/SegataSanshiro. |
| 74 | * While the Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem was ''the'' icon of MediaNotes/The8bitEraOfConsoleVideoGames in North America, it was rejected in the UK, where the technically inferior but much cheaper home computers already dominated the market by the time the console was distributed in 1987. Creator/{{Rare}}, despite being based in the UK, had to produce its early NES games mainly for the North American market. This had a knock-on effect, as several internationally popular franchises that thrived on the NES received a much colder reception in the UK -- ''Franchise/MegaMan'' being the most apparent. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJaCmHVkezw This video]] further elaborates on why the NES wasn't successful in this region. |
| 75 | * Nintendo consoles in general are not exactly popular in Russia. The NES was represented by the Platform/{{Dendy}}, an unlicensed hardware clone. Attempts to introduce the SNES were made by Steepler (who owned the Dendy brand), but it was too expensive for the economical hellhole that was post-Soviet-collapse Russia in the '90s. The Platform/PlayStationPortable also topped Nintendo's handhelds in numbers of units sold (the Platform/GameBoyAdvance being the sole exception), mostly due to horrible marketing. As for the Nintendo 64 or Platform/NintendoGameCube -- if you find a Russian who owned one or even knew that they existed before the Internet became widespread, you'd be ridiculously lucky. |
| 76 | * The Platform/Nintendo3DS initially [[http://www.siliconera.com/2012/10/24/nintendo-cut-profit-forecast-owing-to-weaker-nintendo-3ds-sales/ struggled outside Japan]], but in time, it turned out to be a subversion and became a smash hit worldwide. The [[VideoGame/StreetPassMiiPlaza StreetPass feature of the 3DS]], however, perpetually struggled to get any use outside of Japan. The feature was designed with a highly urban, densely populated nation like Japan in mind, which makes things harder in places where suburban or rural regions are more common, like most of North America. Nintendo later made changes to their Nintendo Zone hotspots to have them serve as a relay, by holding each tag to be shared with the next 3DS to encounter it, but even hotspots were difficult to come by outside of big cities. It eventually came to be that the highest densities of [=StreetPasses=] in North America were at {{fan convention}}s and not in daily life. |
| 77 | * In any place where Nintendo online and official sales support is not supported (outside North America, Japan, Australia, and parts of Europe), Nintendo consoles are niche or have a cult following at best, especially during the eighth generation of video games when online support became almost mandatory. In general, Nintendo is less successful in Europe than the other two regions followed by most (North America and Japan), which is considered part of the reason Sony is able to often outsell Nintendo products (as Sony does particularly well in the same region). However, since the release of the Switch, Nintendo has been taking strides in opening more markets of its store and generally making it easier for people from different regions to play, including the complete removal of region locking; time will tell if this results in higher sales than previous systems in other markets, but general analysis seem to suggest so. |
| 78 | * The [[Platform/PlayStationPortable Sony PSP]] is an odd example. The PSP itself sold amazingly in Japan, but it was niche elsewhere compared to the Platform/NintendoDS and iOS devices. American-made games for the PSP sold well in the United States, but with the exception of certain games like ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'', ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'', and ''VideoGame/Persona3 Portable'', the [=JRPGs=] did not sell nearly as well. Perhaps as a result, it was considered a dying market in North America at a time when new games of all kinds were still being produced in Japan. The PSP was incredibly popular in Russia, but that is more due to PeripheryDemographic (the PSP was considered somewhat of a status indicator) and the main competitor, Nintendo's handhelds, were not marketed very well (though the Game Boy Advance had a cult following). |
| 79 | ** The Platform/PlaystationVita was successful in Japan and [[http://kotaku.com/japan-where-the-ps-vita-wont-die-1755647191 nowhere else]]. Handheld consoles like the Vita fit into the Japanese lifestyle (typically only one TV in a house, far more reliance on mass transit) far better than they do the American one, meaning that Japanese Vita games could top the charts for ''all'' consoles in Japan and go entirely ignored in the US. Furthermore, Sony of America [[http://kotaku.com/mobile-gaming-didnt-kill-the-vita-sony-did-1733350950 dropped the ball]] when it came to marketing the Vita in the US, focusing on how it could connect to a Platform/PlayStation4 and be used to play [=PS4=] games remotely (a function that's only really useful around the house, where somebody would have a [=PS4=] and the TV it's connected to right there, defeating the purpose) and how it could provide a 'console-quality' gaming experience on the go (even though the [=PS3=] far exceeded its capabilities, to say nothing of the [=PS4=]). The fact that the system only officially supported an expensive proprietary memory card format (its predecessor supported memory sticks which, while still a Sony-created format, was also manufactured by other companies and could easily be read by computers), while the 3DS, its recently price-dropped competitor, supported cheaper SD cards didn't help. Retailers also seemed to have somewhat of a disdain for it - apart from Best Buy, Toys'R'Us, or the ''occasional'' UsefulNotes/{{Walmart}} that might have splurged for an interactive display unit. The Vita was normally shoved to the back of its gaming section, not helped by its amount of download-only games (during the early [[TheNew10s 2010s]], many people in North America lacked decent internet and digital distribution was still in its relative infancy, so it was not expected for anything such as a ''handheld'' to have such a wide download-only market. The expensive proprietary memory cards also made the issue worse, as downloadable games required a lot of storage capacity.). Sony quickly abandoned any attempts to salvage the system outside of Japan, instead porting its most popular games to the [=PS4=] and leaving the Vita lineup with [[QuirkyWork quirky Japanese games]] and Western {{indie game}}s, such that its main Western niche is among OccidentalOtaku or homebrew players wanting an all-in-one UsefulNotes/{{emulation}} machine (the emulation part is already superseded by Android mobile devices as of 2020 due to sheer hardware specifications). |
| 80 | * The Platform/WiiU system is often considered a colossal failure in Nintendo's gaming history, second only to the Platform/VirtualBoy in terms of poor sales. However, despite under-performing in the Americas and most of Europe due to terrible marketing and weak third-party support, the traditionally Nintendo-loving countries of Japan and France saw the system have a decent amount of success. France in particular saw the Wii U stay ahead of the Platform/XboxOne for most of its lifespan. |
| 81 | * This seems to have been zigzagged several times in Denmark. The Sony Platform/PlayStation was a bigger console hit than the Nintendo 64. The Platform/PlayStation2 was more frequent in Danish homes than the Xbox or [=GameCube=][[labelnote:Although...]]The [=PS2=] outsold both consoles by a long-shot almost everywhere[[/labelnote]]. Even during the 7th generation of consoles, the [=PS3=] was a highly sold console in Denmark, even after the Xbox 360 have had a longer and cheaper run. Still, Denmark seems to be favoring the American consoles over the Japanese longrunner after the Xbox 360's larger library of 7th generation titles. As for the 8th generation, it's rather unclear since the Xbox One is delayed in Denmark[[labelnote:*]]Danish [=GameStop=] stores are importing the UK Xbox One to aid its run in Denmark, since the Xbox have been [=GameStop=]'s most sold gaming console.[[/labelnote]] and multiple European countries until October, but Sony has recognized their European fans, releasing their [=PS4=] internationally in most, if not all, European countries. |
| 82 | * Playing video games on the Platform/AppleMacintosh is admittedly already a niche in the West but in Japan there are like only 20 Macintosh games released there. This even worries the rival company Microsoft, [[http://archive.wired.com/gadgets/mac/news/2004/09/65027 to the point that Microsoft released a collection of their games]] (appropriately called ''Microsoft Mac Games Collection'') on the Japanese version of the Mac. Much like the Western market however this is not a huge deal in Japan as most people who buy a Mac (if at all, since the entire Macintosh platform as a whole is unpopular and expensive in Japan (most Japanese Mac customers are anime and manga studios), as detailed in the Technology folder on main page) do not buy it because of its games. |
| 83 | * This is one reason why Creator/{{Nintendo}} made the Platform/NintendoSwitch; the Japanese prefer playing on portable consoles due to limited space for regular ones, whereas Westerners prefer playing on home consoles or PC. This lead Nintendo to TakeAThirdOption to try and appease both sides of the Pacific in regards to game development by making a console that could easily switch between being played at home or on the go. It worked phenomenally well. |
| 84 | * The educational [[Platform/OtherSegaSystems Sega Pico]] console was so popular in Japan that games were produced from its release in 1993 up until 2005, when it was replaced by its successor, the Advanced Pico Beena. Several clones were made, including one by Yamaha. Outside of Japan, however, between Sega's horrible mismarketing, the preferences of Western gamers, conservative parents' groups at the time seeing no educational value in video game consoles in general, and the fact that there already existed a competitive market of {{edutainment game}}s in the West, the console died in 1998, only four years after its Western release. Majesco attempted to rerelease the console in the US the following year at a lower price, but saw no more success than Sega did. |
| 85 | * Atari released a modified version of the Platform/{{Atari 2600}} in Japan dubbed the Atari 2800. It was no match for the juggernaut that was the [[Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem Famicom]]. It was also released in the U.S. as the Sears Tele-games Video Arcade II. The case design was then reused for the Platform/{{Atari 7800}}, where it was once again no match against the NES. |
| 86 | * While the Platform/{{Wii}} was very successful in the main gaming markets (Japan, Europe, and North America), it was a total disaster in Brazil, being crushed by the Xbox 360 and defeated by the [=PS3=]. This is more evident knowing the last three top-selling consoles in the country ([=PS1=], [=PS2=], and [=360=]) had a "useful jailbreak" to run pirated games. Despite the Wii being another console with easy access to piracy, the lack of popular titles like ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'', and the motion controls unsuitable for smaller and denser areas, made most of the gamers in the country give up on Nintendo. And at the time, Brazil was promoting its domestically made console tailored for casual and low-budget gamers, called the Zeebo, which has its own version of famous games such as ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'' and the port of the PSP version of ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeed Carbon''. It only lasted for three years though before the company went belly up. |
| 87 | * As a whole, console gaming became increasingly niche in Southeast Asia onwards since 2014, due to mandatory online content (granted, the third to sixth generation of videogaming had a lot of console gaming fanbase due to piracy making games available in a low-to-almost-none cost, particularly the [=PlayStation=], however since [=PS4=], online access is increasingly mandatory as well as online is refused for modded consoles) as well as the relatively high price tags of consoles and console games relative to the average person's income as well as the mandatory online subscription requirements. Generally speaking, Southeast Asians are more interested in PC and [[MobilePhoneGame Mobile]] gaming due to: |
| 88 | ** The proliferation of "free-to-play" games, and the free online play on PC and mobile games not requiring expensive subscriptions, |
| 89 | ** Low-cost UsefulNotes/DigitalDistribution games, helped by stores such as Steam allowing local non-credit card payment, |
| 90 | ** And PC cafes allowing one to rent a gaming-class PC without having to buy one. Gaming consoles since then were not exactly hated (with the exception of online subscription, which is widely reviled there), but overall they became 'luxury items' for lower-income gamers (which form the majority) unlike before and were generally looked down by mainstream and PC gamers as elitists and isolationists who tie themselves to subscription ecosystems (with the VocalMinority parts of console gamers looking down on the mainstream in response, causing a largely one-sided FandomRivalry). Not helping matters is that Nintendo, the most beloved Japanese console game making company in the eyes of the West, had no actual service in Southeast Asia--a Nintendo Online account required a Western or Japanese address and cards, adding an extra complication on top of the high price tag. |
| 91 | * Kinda same situation used to be in Russia, since in the 90s and beginning of 00s many people couldn't afford console, so they played on cheap [=PCs=] instead. Some console were famous though, like "Dendy" (a famiclone), GBA and PSP (listed below), however others often weren't so known. Plus, many people prefer [=PCs=] because of mods, customisation and... easiness to get games illegally. |
| 92 | * Arcade gaming also followed suit come 2020. While they initially have updated lineup with online and account features, as well as crowded arcade gatherings despite the increased cost, during the latter half of [[UsefulNotes/TheNew10s 2010s]] arcade places are steadily decreasing, with the arcade centers on 21, the largest Indonesian cinema theatre chain, being removed, as well as fewer arcade center besides Timezone and Fun World features updated arcade lineup. By the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, it's all but dead, if not dormant. |
| 93 | * {{Mobile Phone Game}}s and platforms (Android and [=iOS=]) are accepted within the Asian (especially Chinese) markets, but very reviled within the Western markets. So much that the FandomRivalry can get really ugly. For an explanation on how each regions end up forming their opinions as is, see [[Analysis/AmericansHateTingle here.]] |
| 94 | * The exA-Arcadia game platform, by the company of the same name. Its mission statement is that unlike other modern Japanese UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame distribution models (such as Sega's All-Net and Taito's [=NESiCAxLive=]), which see the arcade renting the games rather than actually owning them and paying a cut of the revenue earned from these games to the platform and have always-online UsefulNotes/{{DRM}} to enforce this, exA's games do not require an internet connection and do not operate on a revenue-share model; the operator does not have to pay any cut of the revenue earned to exA. This works well in Japan, and while exA sells theirs to the global market, they are far less successful in Western markets. The problem with exA games is that they are priced higher than games on its competitors' platforms, which might be seen as a fair tradeoff by Japanese operators because in time they'll make back the money and then some, but in non-Japanese countries, where the demand for the sort of games that appear on the exA platform is much lower, most arcades are content to get other, cheaper games instead. In the West in particular, arcade operators (mainly those of bar-arcade hybrids and multi-entertainment centers) can't be bothered to spend thousands of dollars on the hardware and each individual game when they can get Western-made games with a better ROI as well as refurbished cabinets of classic arcade games, since most games offered on exA are niche Japanese-made games (most notably ShootEmUp games) that aren't exactly high demand in the West, so for many Western arcade, exA is largely AwesomeButImpractical. As a result, the only places you'll see an exA cabinet in public Western are a small handful of Round 1 locations in the United States and an even smaller handful of independent arcades that specifically cater to fans of Japanese games. And if you ''do'' see an exA in a Round 1, it'll most likely be carrying exclusively {{Fighting Game}}s and not other genres of games. The reception from ''players'' is even more black-and-white, to the point where any time exA announces a new [[NoPortForYou "exAclusive"]] release for their platform on their Website/TwitterX account, Japanese players will respond with hype and anticipation due to the low input lag of these releases and the VersionExclusiveContent, while Western players will respond with outright '''''hatred''''' for the company due to the geographical and economic inaccessibility of these releases. |
| 95 | [[/folder]] |
| 96 | |
| 97 | [[folder:Miscellaneous]] |
| 98 | * 2D games are appreciated in Japan about as much as high-quality 3D games, and hand-drawn sprites are common. However, outside of Japan and some other countries, around the late 90s, they began being seen as [[AnimationAgeGhetto kiddy]] and "primitive", with "SNES Sprites" throw around as mocking. With the rise of digital distribution and the {{Retraux}} wave in the 2010s, this sentiment has diminished, but 2D games (and even TwoAndAHalfD games) are still seen as solely the realm of smaller scale games and indie projects, with {{Fighting Game}}s being the only ones that can get away presenting themselves as big, AAA releases. This conflict began in the early part of MediaNotes/TheFifthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames when 3D games started hitting the scene. Western audiences, critics and consumers alike, saw these more 3D, realistic-looking games as an evolution of the medium that completely invalidated sprite-based games, which were now seen as being objectively low-tech and primitive. If it wasn't a handheld game, magazines would instantly take off points just for a game being in 2D. This phenomenon can be best be seen with the Platform/SegaSaturn era, during which Sega of America outright refused to even localize any 2D games -- which had the side effect of leaving the console with a very sparse library in the West. |
| 99 | * Relating to ''Pokémon'', but also other games with this mechanic: OneGameForThePriceOfTwo is widely considered a ScrappyMechanic in the West, while Japan loves it and considers it a SocializationBonus. This comes down mostly to handheld gaming in general being much more popular in Japan, combined with greater population density and higher use of public transport equating to easier access to others with the game. Since the games with this trait tend to be developed in Japan, a lot of them feature mechanics like this, and even before [=StreetPass=] was introduced, [[{{Expy}} Expies]] of it showed up in games like ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' and ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIX''. Furthermore, Japanese games often have ''achievements'' that involve trading with people X amount of times, or passing people X times, which nearly ''always'' become ThatOneAchievement in the West. The hate is even evident ''in the trope title itself'', which shows that, while Japan considers it an [[SocializationBonus encouragement to socialize]], westerners see it as an encouragement to buy both games and two consoles. It also doesn't help that, unlike Japan, most Western cities are spread out and are rarely condensed, which makes it harder for people to find other people in public that have the same game they do so that they can exchange characters or items.[[note]] This problem partially has its roots in Cold War era urban planning, where spread-out development was encouraged in order to minimize the damage in the event of a [[AtomicHate Nuclear Attack]].[[/note]] And, unlike in Japan[[note]] Where crime rates are existent but incredibly low due to cultural differences and upbringing[[/note]], the notion of people using common sense by keeping their handheld consoles out of view in public is the norm, as unsuspecting criminals and thieves take it as the opportunity to steal, or at worse, mug, the owner before cashing in online or at the local pawn shop. |
| 100 | * UsefulNotes/DigitalDistribution and download-only games are very common worldwide thanks to how the lack of physical item dramatically cut down shipping costs, allowing cheaper games to be sold. In Japan, however, it's used to be pretty marginal, as most would stick to buying a game in retail whenever available as Japanese pride involves showing off physical material. However with the increasing price of living and smaller property space for new generation of citizens or those who sold their larger properties to make a living, such pride is brushed off in favor of practicality. The ever-popular MobilePhoneGame also rarely has physical copies. |
| 101 | * Head-to-head play in the PuzzleGame genre is incredibly rare in the Western world, a core part of both the SEGA interpretation of ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' and the ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' series. Western players would much rather play by themselves, either to beat the clock or go for high scores, a cultural trait cemented by the aforementioned Game Boy version of ''Tetris'' and seen in [[VideoGame/{{Meteos}} other]] [[VideoGame/DrMario popular]] [[VideoGame/{{Bejeweled}} puzzle]] [[VideoGame/CandyCrushSaga titles]]. Multiplayer is instead viewed as either a novelty or a bonus mode, rather than one of the central aspects of a puzzle game. Hence, even people who could look past the GirlShowGhetto look of the ''Puyo Puyo'' games are still likely to be turned off in how even its single-player modes will provide AI opponents most of the time. Other multiplayer-oriented puzzle games like SEGA ''Tetris'', ''VideoGame/PanelDePon'', and ''VideoGame/MagicalDrop'' are also niche at best. |
| 102 | * Many RatedMForMoney games, like the ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' series, sell horribly in Japan. While ''VideoGame/GodOfWarIII'' was a massive hit in America, where it sold over two-and-a-half million copies, it barely made it past 100,000 copies in Japan. This is all despite the existence of Japanese "guro" genre, though it isn't mainstream and fans and artists of it are often caught in a backlash. Likewise, Kratos is popular for his manliness and excessive {{Gorn}}, two things that wouldn't click very much for Japanese players as much as for Americans. |
| 103 | * The {{Mon}} genre has historically had a lot of difficulty establishing itself in the west and is still often seen as kind of a niche genre, mainly for the same reason MagicalGirl anime and {{Toku}} series are subjected to this trope; America was first exposed to it through one of its biggest success stories, ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'', causing mainstream audiences to mistakenly presume that other Mon franchises imported later, like ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Medabots}}'', or ''VideoGame/YokaiWatch'', were [[FollowTheLeader cheap knockoffs made to cash in on the craze]], rather than merely different series in a thriving genre. Many Mon series have established cult followings in the USA, but none have managed to rival ''Pokémon'' in terms of popularity and recognition, nor have they ever fully escaped its shadow. |
| 104 | * One Brazilian Youtuber [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DlYYCB9Ssg made a video of games hated in the country]]. The straight cases were ''Videogame/DeathStranding'' (for being just a "postman game" with incessant walking), and futuristic shooters (with some exception to CyberPunk-influenced ones; {{Energy Weapon}}s seem to be a particular sore point for the gamers). But there were "popular but not that much" cases in ''Videogame/GarenaFreeFire'' (a LoveItOrHateIt affair), and ''VideoGame/FIFASoccer'' (even fans have issues with how EA treats the series, specially in making little effort to improve between installments). |
| 105 | * For non-Japanese FightingGame fans, netcode (without getting too technical, how the game handles lag in online matches) is ''very'' SeriousBusiness, with rollback-based netcode being practically considered ''mandatory'' for a game to be good, especially when the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic made it necessary for tournaments to be played online instead of locally. Since Japan is a small country, netcode has less of an impact on the quality of matches, so Japanese game developers are less pressured to add rollback to their games, although this has started to change following the release of ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear STRIVE'' and Creator/ArcSystemWorks adding rollback to some of their older games. |
| 106 | * In the Japanese arcade game community, rapid-fire features that are not part of the original game are widely accepted by players; many ShootEmUp cabs in Japan have rapid-fire functions modded into them (often with multiple options for rapid-fire frequencies), and high score record magazines and online leaderboards for modern ports of arcade games accept scores with them enabled. However, it is a BrokenBase topic in the Western arcade game community, with a common argument against it being "it makes the game easier, therefore it's cheating, being able to rapidly tap the fire button is an integral part of player skill," to the point where Western high score organizations like Twin Galaxies mandate that rapid-fire features not present in the game itself be not used. In fact, some modern dedicated arcades in the US even outright disable autofire on their cabs and refuse to enable it if it's a non-default feature. |
| 107 | * Hunting simulation games have a small but acknowledgeable fan community in the United States; however, in some other countries like France, they are niche at best. This is explained by the fact that, even in real life, hunting is already an unpopular sport in these countries, compared to english-speaking North America, due to the local hunting populations being really small and controversies linked to environmental and ethical issues there. This is why games, like VideoGame/TheHunterCallOfTheWild, are among the few to have made it into some of these countries, whereas, for example, for the video game series VideoGame/DeerHunter, only three games of this series have been translated from english. |
| 108 | * {{Rhythm Game}}s on [[MobilePhoneGame mobile devices]] (both smartphones and smart-tablets) are disliked in American rhythm game communities because, in addition to all the grievances that Americans have with mobile games as a whole (see [[Analysis/AmericansHateTingle the Analysis page on this trope]] for details), American rhythm game players don't like touchscreen rhythm games due to lacking tactile controls (such as the recessed panels on a ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' arcade stage) and tactile feedback (such as pressing physical buttons), which they consider essential to a good gameplay experience. Many of these mobile rhythm games are best played on a tablet as opposed to a mobile phone, another turn-off for many Americans who would rather play games on PC or consoles than invest a few hundred dollars in a smart-tablet just for these games ''and'' find a good surface to put them down on ''and'' use grippy mats to prevent their device from slipping around. As a result, Asian rhythm game players may be surprised to learn that games like ''VideoGame/{{Arcaea}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Phigros}}'', and ''VideoGame/{{Cytus}}'', despite being veritable hits in rhythm game circles on their side of the Pacific, are glossed over amongst fellow rhythm game players in the U.S. In addition, many mobile rhythm games are made by indie Asia-based developers, and as such mainly feature music by small-name Asian musicians (mostly ones who produce music for BMS contests) that may not be as familiar to Americans and therefore don't give the game as much appeal as compared to American musicians, making these games impermeable to those who aren't already familiar with the rhythm game music scene; American gamers generally expect rhythm games to carry familiar songs (due to the success of games like ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' and ''VideoGame/JustDance'', both of which use soundtracks with big-name licenses), and if a particular game doesn't, they will just ignore it. \ |
| 109 | \ |
| 110 | Several mobile rhythm games have gotten ports on Platform/NintendoSwitch, a dedicated console that, among other things, features a capacitive multi-touch screen, which allows these sort of games to be played on what Americans deem to be a "real" video game platform. Despite this, however, those games aren't exactly hot sellers in America, and in fact, the backlash against the Switch port of ''VideoGame/{{VOEZ}}'', which initially was only playable in undocked modes, caused Nintendo to mandate that all Switch games must be playable in both docked and undocked modes, which in turn means that games designed around touchscreen must also have alternate, traditional-controller controls for them to be certified for publishing on the platform. In short, touchscreen rhythm games will likely never be accepted by American players. |
| 111 | [[/folder]] |
| 112 | |
| 113 | ---- |
| 114 | !!Other Video Games: |
| 115 | [[folder:A-C]] |
| 116 | * When Huang Di was first revealed to be one of the minor gods in ''[[VideoGame/AgeOfMythology Age of Mythology: Tale of the Dragon]]'', some Chinese players disliked the [[http://www.forgottenempires.net/age-of-mythology-tale-of-the-dragon/gods/huangdi unflattering depiction]] of the mythological progenitor of the Chinese civilization and people. |
| 117 | * The Nintendo Switch port of ''VideoGame/{{Arcaea}}'', while otherwise an [[PolishedPort admirable port]] with both traditional touchscreen controls and version-exclusive Joy-Con controls, gathered a lot of controversy from the moment it was announced amongst the game's pre-existing plurality [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff foreign userbase]] in Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, etc.), where Nintendo platforms are typically unpopular due to being outside the average person's price range and the widely-reviled online services. This harkens back to [[Analysis/AmericansHateTingle the PC/console vs Mobile conflict, where Asians love the mobile format and practices, while Westerners hate it with a passion]]. This resulted in ''Arcaea'', which wasn't a smash hit in the West in the first place, actually having a warmer reception in the West (not exactly a smash hit, but at least it isn't met with outright scorn). |
| 118 | * {{Shoot Em Up}}s with turn-and-thrust controls, such as ''VideoGame/{{Asteroids}}'', [[http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/spacewar/spacewar8.htm never caught on in Japan.]] |
| 119 | * VideoGame/{{BEMANI}}: |
| 120 | ** Although ''VideoGame/ReflecBeat'' has somewhat of a fanbase in its native territory of Japan, Western ''VideoGame/{{BEMANI}}'' fans have a very low opinion of it, citing the randomized and chaotic-looking way the notes fall. Amongst a certain section of the fanbase that likes to crack ''BEMANI'' arcade software, ''Reflec Beat'' gets the least development of any active ''BEMANI'' series (although this could have more to do with there being an [[UsefulNotes/IOSGames iOS port]] that's very close to the original sans screen size). However, this has changed in 2014, as the crack of ''Reflec Beat colette'' was released to very popular reception, encouraging many fans to buy multi-touch screens to play the game. |
| 121 | ** Although ''[[VideoGame/DanceMasters Dance Evolution]]'' was big enough of a hit in its native country of Japan to have an arcade version that continously gets updates, the same cannot be said in North America (where the game is known as ''[=DanceMasters=]''), where the arcade version [[NoExportForYou does not exist]] and the Xbox 360 version flopped due to having to compete with fellow Kinect {{Rhythm Game}}s ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' and ''VideoGame/JustDance'', which easily smoked ''Dance Masters'' in sales and popularity. |
| 122 | ** The ''VideoGame/{{Beatmania}}'' franchise never cracked the United States, compared to its legendary status in Japan, where it was a progenitor of the rhythm genre as a whole and found enduring success after the SpinOff ''beatmania IIDX'' perfected its formula. While ''beatmania'' machines were relatively visible in stateside arcades after the success of ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'', the series flopped miserably when it was finally ported to the American [=PS2=] in 2006, nearly a decade since its debut and ''after'' the release of ''VideoGame/GuitarHero''. Compared to the [[FollowTheLeader stiff competition it had inspired]], ''beatmania'' alienated Americans with its difficult learning curve and unintuitive design, which had not been streamlined from the original games released in the '90s. Ultimately, audiences in the United States latched onto its eventual counterpart ''VideoGame/DJHero'', leaving ''beatmania'' and ''IIDX'' in complete obscurity outside of the Bemani community. |
| 123 | ** [[Music/{{BEMANI}} DJ YOSHITAKA]], while popular in Japan, is reviled by many Western players who see his songs as tiresome and too similar to each other. It's not helped by his position as the director of several BEMANI series (''VideoGame/SoundVoltex'', ''VideoGame/PopnMusic'', ''VideoGame/{{beatmania}} IIDX'', ''Reflec Beat''), which has been met with negative reception by the same demographic. |
| 124 | ** The various {{announcer|chatter}}s of ''VideoGame/{{DanceDanceRevolution}}'' are seen as iconic staples by Japanese players, but Western players see them as annoying nuisances more than anything else and long for the option to turn them off in arcade versions. |
| 125 | ** This hit ''VideoGame/{{GITADORA}}'' in the West after ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' was released; ''Guitar Hero'' was created specifically to [[FollowTheLeader capitalize on the Japanese success]] of ''GITADORA'', which had flopped in the US, by tweaking its gameplay to be more appealing to international players. This then affected later attempts to bring the series outside of Japan. Detractors dislike the reduced number of fret buttons (alhtough ''XG'' addresses this), the differences in guitar chart design, the lack of Western songs (then again, when the series is primarily [[NoExportForYou Asia-only]], this is inevitable), and songs being cut down to 2 1/4 minutes or less (due to the game offering 3-5 stages per credit). In turn, ''Guitar Hero'' never really caught on in Japan, lacking the arcade-like appeal that made ''GITADORA'' so successful. |
| 126 | ** For that matter, Asian-developed arcade music games in general took a dive in what little international popularity they had when ''Guitar Hero'' and ''Rock Band'' came along, due to the aforementioned song lengths and lack of recognizable songs. The [[NoExportForYou lack of exports]] and various rhythm game developers' decisions to move to subscription-based arcade cabinet leasing models exclusive to Asia certainly don't help. Today, ''BEMANI'' games are {{Cult Classic}}s at best outside of Asia; it's not hard to find longtime Creator/{{Konami}} fans in the West who have never heard of games like ''VideoGame/{{jubeat}}'' or ''VideoGame/SoundVoltex''. |
| 127 | * ''Franchise/BlazBlue'': |
| 128 | ** The series provide an absolutely excellent demonstration of [[AmericanKirbyIsHardcore Western attitudes towards "manliness" and "badassery" and Japanese attitudes towards "cuteness."]] [[HotBlooded Bang]] [[note]]HotBlooded BadassNormal ninja who was so popular in the first game that he was SavedByTheFans[[/note]] and [[{{Cyborg}} Iron Tager]] [[note]]hulking demon/nuclear-powered cyborg[[/note]]are of middling popularity in Japan, but are absolutely well-loved in America. Meanwhile, [[TheHeroine Noel]][[note]] pistol-toting, socially awkward [[TheCutie cutie]][[/note]] and [[BrattyHalfPint Platinum]][[note]] obnoxious MagicalGirl[[/note]] consistently win popularity polls over in Japan, but Americans find them loathsome. In a similar vein to Noel, the Japanese can't get enough of Celica A. Mercury, but the majority of American players [[TheScrappy want nothing more than for her to jump up her own ass and die]].[[note]]This applies more so to the Celica seen in ''[[VideoGame/BlazBlueChronophantasma Chronophantasma]]'' than the Celica in the backstory who ran the orphanage Ragna, Jin, and Saya grew up in, which is a long story in and of itself.[[/note]] |
| 129 | ** In Japan, while she always scored low in popularity polls, Litchi Faye-Ling is still a respected character, considered to have an admirable goal and a sympathetic backstory. In the West, she's more a BaseBreakingCharacter; while some respect and sympathize with her, others lambaste her for being an unlikable idiot LoveMartyr who doesn't listen to good advice and keeps making things worse. This is most likely due to ValuesDissonance. |
| 130 | * ''VideoGame/{{Bombergirl}}'' is a MOBA-styled arcade spin-off of the ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'' franchise. While the game in Japan has a cult following, with many being able to look past the overt HotterAndSexier tone and appreciate the gameplay on its own merits, most of the western fanbase for the series views ''Bombergirl''[='s=] moe, fanservicey art style as tacky FetishRetardant if not an outright insult to the franchise's legacy (not unlike ''VideoGame/BombermanActZero'' with its DarkerAndEdgier artstyle, which came out 13 years earlier). It is also strongly associated with Creator/{{Konami}}'s toxic reputation post-2015, with ''Bombergirl'' drawing some comparisons to the ''[[{{VideoGame/Castlevania}} Castlevania: Erotic Violence]]'' pachinko machine put out shortly after the ''Metal Gear Solid V'' debacle. |
| 131 | * ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfare2019'' was acclaimed by Western gamers and critics alike as [[WinBackTheCrowd a return to form]] for a series once thought to have [[AudienceAlienatingEra lost its way]], with the single-player campaign in particular acclaimed as one of the best in the series. Where there was controversy, it concerned questions about whether or not it went too far in its depiction of [[WarIsHell the horrors of war]], which was hardly a new complaint about the ''Call of Duty'' series even in its better installments. Russian gamers, on the other hand, absolutely despised the single-player campaign for its portrayal of the Russian military as thuggish and brutal villains with shades of various real-life conflicts from recent Russian history (including the UsefulNotes/SovietInvasionOfAfghanistan, UsefulNotes/TheChechnyaWars, and the Syrian Civil War), to the point where they called it "American propaganda" and [[https://www.polygon.com/2019/10/28/20936496/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-review-bombing-russian-military-highway-of-death drove its Metacritic user score into the gutter]] in response. Sony's Russian division even [[https://www.dexerto.com/call-of-duty/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-banned-russian-playstation-store-1171401 refused to sell the game]] on the Russian [=PlayStation=] Store as a result. One particular sticking point involved a reference to a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highway_of_Death "highway of death"]] caused in the game by the Russians, even though the real incident it was based on was the work of the American-led coalition during the UsefulNotes/GulfWar. |
| 132 | * According to the Creator/SegaTechnicalInstitute, the management at Sega of Japan absolutely loathed ''VideoGame/ComixZone'' and said that "it embodied everything wrong with American culture". The STI took these words as praise. |
| 133 | * While ''VideoGame/CompanyOfHeroes 2'' was well-received in the West, gamers in Russia and other Eastern European countries hated it so much that it was [[http://www.destructoid.com/company-of-heroes-2-removed-from-sale-in-russia-259439.phtml pulled from sale.]] Most of this has to do with a perceived [[BlackAndGrayMorality negative portrayal]] of the [[UsefulNotes/RedsWithRockets Red Army]] and the Eastern Front of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, especially compared to the first game's lionization of the Western Allies. Even the Nazis got a more sympathetic portrayal in their campaigns in the first game than the Red Army got in the second. Elaborated [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2m4SCUaBHS8 here]]. |
| 134 | * ''[=CrossFire=]'' is an extremely popular South Korea-made free-to-play first-person shooter franchise in East and South East Asia, but it's virtually unheard of in the West. How popular is it? By player count, it's ''the most popular game of all time'' with over ''one billion'' players, and has grossed over twelve billion dollars, spawning a movie and a popular live-action television show in China, which has been watched nearly two billion times. The games have no real audience in the West since they're just less polished ''VideoGame/CounterStrike'' [[FollowTheLeader knockoffs]] and [[BribingYourWayToVictory riddled with]] {{microtransactions}}, with little to offer versus other [=FPS=] games like ''Battlefield'', ''Rainbow Six'', ''Call of Duty'', or, as aforementioned, ''Counter-Strike''. It's speculated that its lack of polish may help its regional popularity, since it can run well even on low-end [=PCs=]. That being said, ''Creator/XBOXGameStudios'' help fund the developers for an all-new XBOX exclusive sequel called ''Crossfire X''... which was widely derided for its ClicheStorm story mode and cookie-cutter multiplayer mode, and permanently shut down after only fifteen months. |
| 135 | [[/folder]] |
| 136 | |
| 137 | [[folder:D]] |
| 138 | * The original ''VideoGame/{{Darius}}'' was a big success in Japan and is still very much beloved (a 2019 poll had it [[https://rancolle.com/ranking.php?id=uid49_1560676507 voted as the favorite installment]], with nearly half of the votes) but among western fans, it's usually dismissed as a lackluster shooter only notable for its odd theme and [[DancingBear gimmicky cabinet]]. Because of the large and expensive cabinet, the game didn't get as much circulation in western arcades and [[NoExportForYou none of its home console ports were released outside Japan]], meaning most western's players exposure to it would be years after the fact through emulation, without the benefits of the flashy cabinet and with the stuff that made the game so impressive and groundbreaking in 1987 taken for granted. Even for the [[ChallengeGamer demographic]] that wouldn't necessarily reject ''Darius'' [[ContinuingIsPainful old-school take on checkpointing and punishment for death]], a lack of western awareness of the game's "New" and "Extra" revisions (which do many subtle tweaks to improve the difficult curve) meant many players gave up trying to learn the game as the original release is seriously unbalanced difficulty-wise. Its reputation is improving with the release of the ''[[CompilationRerelease Darius Cozmic Collection]]'' (which includes said balancing patches), although you'll still be hard-pressed to find any western fans call the original ''Darius'' their favorite. |
| 139 | * ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive'': In this fighting game series where the {{Action Girl}}s are the stars of the show, [[ElegantGothicLolita Marie Rose]] stands heads above the rest among Japanese audiences. However the fact [[OlderThanTheyLook she not only looks fourteen (she's 18)]] but also ''acts'' like a small girl and caused some western players to regard her as sexualised and earned some dislike. |
| 140 | * While ''VideoGame/DeathSmiles'' is seen as yet another CAVE game in Japan and amongst the more hardcore parts of the shmup fanbase, when it was introduced in America it was NOT well-received due to the "loli" art and the tagline on the back of the box ("Death smiles at us all – Lolis smile back!"). |
| 141 | * Downplayed in the ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'' fandom on various occasions. Plenair, Raspberyl, and Champloo while not hated are significantly less popular in America than in Japan[[note]]Which is especially strange in Champloo's case; you'd think that being manly and a LargeHam over [[MundaneMadeAwesome home economics]] would make him more popular in the States.[[/note]]. |
| 142 | * ''VideoGame/DonkeyKonga'', made by the team most known for ''VideoGame/TaikoNoTatsujin'', was popular enough in Japan to make it up to a third installment, but in the West, only two of the games were released, and the games were widely considered a part of ''Franchise/DonkeyKong'''s AudienceAlienatingEra. The main problem was the track selection. While the Japanese tracks were a mix of Nintendo tunes, anime openings, tunes from TheAnimeOfTheGame for Nintendo's respective franchises, and other popular Japanese songs (typical of a ''Taiko no Tatsujin'' game), the Western releases had track lists that were mostly pop hits in their countries, with only the occasional Nintendo songs (the NA release of ''Donkey Konga 2'' was particularly bad about this, because it had no Nintendo or game music other than the game's own opening theme). The result was that the series came off as InNameOnly, and it didn't help that ''Taiko no Tatsujin'' was not widely known outside of Japan. A 2022 interview revealed that even Nintendo of America head honcho Reggie Fils-Aimé [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2zvvuiFM5Q&t=4034s shared this view]], stating that he hated it and thought it could negatively impact the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise. |
| 143 | * ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'': |
| 144 | ** The series is by far the #1 CashCowFranchise in Japan, where it's revered [[UrExample as]] [[TropeMakers the]] [[TropeCodifier trailblazer]] for the EasternRPG genre. It took ''far'' longer to catch on in North America, and even then, sales are nowhere near as mighty as in Japan. Some critics pin this on the [[AnimationAgeGhetto colorful, cartoony graphics and generally lighthearted fantasy tone leading to the franchise being perceived as "kiddy"]], but more critical to its relative failure is timing. Despite being groundbreaking upon its 1986 Japanese release, it didn't make it across the Pacific Ocean until 1989, by which point there were pretty mature [=CRPGs=] such as ''VideoGame/{{Wasteland}}'' already on the market, not to mention the aesthetically similar ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI'' had been on American shelves for two years and set a completely different standard for the RPG genre in the west.[[note]]In Japan, ''Zelda'' only predated ''Dragon Quest'' by a few months and came out on the ill-fated Famicom Disk System[[/note]] By 1989, when the series debuted in America, it came across as a tedious, indistinguishable fantasy game in a sea of more fleshed-out alternatives. Even after turn-based [=RPGs=] such as ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' and ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' became hits in North America, ''Dragon Quest'' has still struggled to find a footing in the US, largely due to incredibly uninspired marketing. Case in point, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrjU4WZeaSk a commercial]] for ''Dragon Quest IX''. While they did get Creator/SethGreen to promote it, the commercial makes the game look like an incredibly generic sword and sorcery RPG, saying nothing unique or interesting at all about it. Europe does, however, seem to go for a middle ground, perhaps because of the game's medieval European setting and their general love for Creator/AkiraToriyama. |
| 145 | ** This is also why the inclusion of the series' main characters (who are all collectively referred to as 'The Hero') in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' were met with polarizing reactions by Western fans, whereas the Japanese trailer is ''the most viewed Smash DLC trailer of all time''. With that said, the inclusion of Hero was largely meant to help the ''Dragon Quest'' series do better in Western countries by being featured in a game that ''was'' popular in the West. ''VideoGame/DragonQuestXI'' (whose Platform/NintendoSwitch version released a few months after the ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' DLC) did end up becoming the best-selling game in the series in the West -- though still not to the same extent as its popularity in Japan. |
| 146 | ** Within the ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' series, Maribel from ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVII'' is fairly popular. Out of all the characters from the game, she's appeared in the most spinoffs. In the western fanbase, she was fairly unpopular for being [[{{Tsundere}} kinda rude]] and spoiled, pre CharacterDevelopment, and because she leaves the party at one point. [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap This changes in the 3DS version]], wherein the localisation team make her more amusing ''and'' gameplay buffs make her a pretty good party member. |
| 147 | * The ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' series of games are huge sellers in Japan. The UK is more forgiving, but in America it's considered a cult series at best, with common complaints referring to its repetitiveness. It's more or less the Asian equivalent of ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' -- down to the fact that many people hate it on-sight, criticizing it without even bothering to play it. |
| 148 | ** The games tend to assume the player is already familiar with [[Literature/RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms the original story]]. It's a reasonable assumption in Eastern nations -- [[ContinuityLockout not so much in the West]]. |
| 149 | ** Character-wise, the Two Qiaos. The complaints are majorly because they're not contributing to anything in the story, only existing as "Sun Ce and Zhou Yu's wife." The Japanese have no problem with that. Their young looks fit well to their fandom of {{Joshikousei}} and TokenMiniMoe sorts. In the western areas? They, especially Xiao Qiao, are accused of being bratty-annoying little girls that have no place in the battlefield and due to ValuesDissonance, western fans are creeped out with their presence because it's making Sun Ce and Zhou Yu look like pedophiles, for them anyway. |
| 150 | ** Also character-wise, you have Naotora Ii (spelt ii) from the spin-off/sister series ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors''. She is a [[ShrinkingViolet Shy]] with {{Moe}} tendencies [[ApologisesALot that keeps apologizing ]] [[ApologeticAttacker during her attacks]], [[InnocentFanserviceGirl All while having a skimpy wardrobe in the middle of a battlefield.]] These traits make her endearing to the Japanese audience, which resulted in her appearing on 9th place on Samurai Warriors 4's character poll, a "deified" form on [[VideoGame/WarriorsOrochi Warriors Orochi 4]], being the sole female representative of her series in ''VideoGame/WarriorsAllStars'' and a playable appearance in the PC version of ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive5''. In the US, her traits, like many other characters that share her personality are received with annoyance than endearment. |
| 151 | *** It's worth noting that despite the series ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' being less popular in the west given the series's stance being ''NoExportForYou'' for the Western audiences, Samurai Warriors fans are quick to notice that that series's representation on the same historical character is a more fierce and formidable warrior and leader, thus ending up [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff seen as a more positive representation in the west.]] |
| 152 | ** The company behind these games, Koei Tecmo, put up a survey/poll for their Japanese audience in October of 2015, asking which franchises that they would like to see crossed over with their popular ''Warriors'' series. Seeing as how Koei Tecmo is no foreigner to crossover video games, and that they have quite a positive track record of them, fans were eager to have their voices be heard in hopes of seeing their favorite anime or video game franchise be given the Warriors treatment. Unsurprisingly, western fans of both anime and Koei Tecmo alike caught whiff of the existence of such a survey, and effectively hijacked it from the Japanese netizens, hoping to drown out their voices with their own choices of which series they would like to see. Since tastes in media on both sides of the ocean differ greatly, this lead to a flame war on the survey page, with the Japanese fans responding with both confusion and anger, and western fans responding in earnest. When the results of the poll were finally compiled and tallied, western fans were not happy with the results, especially in regards to the [[Anime/PrettyCure unexpected franchise that took the #1 spot]], making this a classic example. |
| 153 | [[/folder]] |
| 154 | |
| 155 | [[folder:F-L]] |
| 156 | * ''Franchise/FireEmblem'': |
| 157 | ** While the games where Marth is the protagonist (''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragonAndTheBladeOfLight Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemMysteryOfTheEmblem Mystery of the Emblem]]'') are loved in Japan, with ''Mystery of the Emblem'' being the highest selling game in the franchise for decades and held as the point when the series officially solidified itself as a mainstay, the rest of the world sees them as some of the weakest or least played parts in the series. One of the reasons for this is that [[NoExportForYou the series was mostly unknown outside of Japan for over ten years]], until MarthDebutedInSmashBros, and the games set in Marth's world are often given NostalgiaFilter treatment or "I liked this world the best." The non-Japanese fanbase started out with the adventures of [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade Eliwood, Lyn, and Hector]], with a later NewbieBoom bringing in a lot of fans who journeyed with [[VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening Chrom]]. Even among fans who go out of their way to seek out the franchise's untranslated past, you're more likely to find fans of the more complex and experimental [[VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar Jugdral]] [[VideoGame/FireEmblemThracia776 games]], or [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade the one with Roy]]. As a result, Marth's games are seen as merely outdated. A major reason for this is that the series tends to recycle and toy with story elements a lot, which means every character and plot point from Marth's games feels, at best, rather familiar, and usually lack the clever twists that later incarnations would put on their template: Camus's whole NobleTopEnforcer persona is harder to get into when nearly ''every'' game has featured a similar character, many of whom had more buildup or character development. |
| 158 | ** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade'': Raigh is a pretty popular character in Japan, in part thanks to his sympathetic backstory and unique status as [[CastingAShadow a child dark mage]], to the point where he was among the first units introduced in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemHeroes''. Western fans however show apathy at best, and hatred at worst, mainly thanks to his game [[NoExportForYou not leaving Japan thus fans not having the same amount of attachment to him]], his mother Nino [[EnsembleDarkhorse becoming surprisingly popular]] thus making Raigh [[UnintentionallyUnsympathetic less justified in his resentment of her]], and his only official Western appearances being in ''Awakening's'' Einherjar where he is fought in the Rogues & Redeemers pack (placed with other notable villains thus making him look like one without prior knowledge) and ''Heroes'' (where the powercreep turned him from somewhat useful to near-useless and along with controversial art and {{Flanderization}} made him one of the most hated units in-game). |
| 159 | ** From ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'' (but also ''Fates'') is Tharja, Gaius, and Cordelia. These three characters appear in ''Fates'' as [[{{expy}} expies]] (implied to be reincarnations) in the second generation thanks to their popularity in Japan (which is also why Owain, Inigo, and Severa appear as well). While Gaius is well liked in the west, Cordelia is seen as more annoying and often UnintentionallyUnsympathetic, while Tharja is base-breaking and [[StalkerWithACrush seen as creepy thanks to her obsession for Robin]] (which itself is [[DoubleStandard pretty rare for female characters]]). The fact that the poll was only in Japan was also a bit of an annoyance. |
| 160 | ** Also from ''Awakening'' we have Nowi, who while not as popular as the above three, is respected enough in Japan thanks to her innocent personality and tragic HiddenDepths, allowing her to be among the first dragon units in ''Heroes'' and to have gotten both a Seasonal Alt and a Resplendent Outfit. To say she's controversial on the other side of the Pacific however would be an understatement, as a good majority of Western fans are creeped out by [[AgeInappropriateDress her outfit]] and personality not meshing well with each other, with many baffled as to why of all the things censored for the Western release, she wasn't one of them. |
| 161 | * Aside from the obvious ban in Korea, ''VideoGame/{{Homefront}}'' is ''horribly'' unpopular in East Asia, and it's not too hard to see why. |
| 162 | * ''Videogame/{{Halo}}'', despite the ''Master Chief Collection'' being released in a heavily reduced price in Steam, is played by only few peoples outside the US, due to the heavy focus on movement, instant kill deathtraps such as the Covenant sticky grenades and death by being rammed, and higher time-to-kill in average. It got to the point that in October 2023, due to the few number of players (especially how most of the multiplayer scene worldwide has moved on to ''Videogame/HaloInfinite'', which was offered for free apart from in app purchases and campaign), XBOX Game Studios ramp up the price of the Steam version of the collection into an AAA level pricing (in average equivalent to $60, when it used to be equivalent to $15, or $5 in price cut events) |
| 163 | * ''VideoGame/{{Hydlide}}'' and its sequels are well-loved in Japan, but in America it's seen as a piece of crap. This was all based on a matter of timing; ''Hydlide'' debuted on the Japanese PC-6001 and PC-8801 microcomputers in 1984, making the UrExample of a WideOpenSandbox ActionRPG with some pretty ambitious gameplay mechanics that inspired many like it, including 1986's ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI'' on the Famicom/NES. However, this was not the west's first exposure to the franchise -- [[BadExportForYou the North American console ports didn't appear until 1989]], and said NES title was a messy PortingDisaster that made many wrongfully assume ''Hydlide'' to be a low-grade ''Zelda'' ripoff [[OlderThanTheyThink despite technically predating it by a few years]]. ''Super Hydlide'' was acclaimed for its impressive mechanics upon being released in Japan in 1987, but by the time it arrived to America in 1990, it was already seen as outdone by its contemporaries. |
| 164 | * ''VideoGame/InTheGroove'', a clone of ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' meant to provide a fresh experience for players tired of ''[=DanceDanceRevolution=] EXTREME'' (following ''EXTREME'', there were no more new arcade ''DDR'' games until ''[=SuperNOVA=]'' four years later). Part of ''ITG''[='s=] infamy in its home territory is the absurd difficulty of charts; ''ITG'' charts rated 12 and 13 were extremely hard for their time, putting ''DDR'' boss songs to shame.[[note]] At least, until the advent of ''DDR'' bosses such as "Valkyrie Dimension", "PARANOIA Revolution", and "Elemental Creation" in TheNew10s.[[/note]] While it proved very popular amongst arcade RhythmGame enthusiasts in its native territory of North America, it failed to find an audience in Japan, where ''DDR'' originated from; Japanese players cite the differing songlist and philosophy in step chart design as turn-offs to ''ITG''. This may have backfired when Konami started pumping out arcade ''DDR'' games again, as top American ''ITG'' players were able to easily clean out the new boss songs while Japanese players had to play catchup. When ''DDR A'' got an official North American release, with network support and all, American players ''officially'' become some of the best players in the world, with several of them becoming regulars at the Konami Arcade Championship in Japan and one of them becoming ''champion'' twice. |
| 165 | ** At the height of ''In the Groove'''s popularity, the American audiences for ''DDR'' and ''ITG'' were almost mutually exclusive – for many of the same reasons that the series flopped in Japan. Those who preferred ''ITG'' saw ''DDR'' as a stagnant franchise with boring charts aimed at the lowest common denominator, lauding ''ITG'' as the more advanced and sophisticated experience. Americans who still held true to ''DDR'' typically derided ''ITG'' as a soulless ripoff of ''DDR'' with charts that were difficult for the sake of difficulty, while lacking the flavor and polish that they felt characterized ''DDR''. |
| 166 | * ''VideoGame/JakIIRenegade''[='=]s ToneShift to a DarkerAndEdgier epic as opposed to [[VideoGame/JakAndDaxterThePrecursorLegacy the first game's]] generally up-beat CollectAThonPlatformer was met with a bit of whiplash from the American and European communities, but is still considered one of the [=PlayStation=] 2's best games and a worthy follow-up to ''The Precursor Legacy''. Japan, who loved the first game along with Naughty Dog's ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot'' trilogy, absolutely ''hated'' this direction, with the Japanese version having the least amount of sales and Naughty Dog themselves recognizing that they've completely alienated their Japanese userbase with this decision. It's telling that neither ''VideoGame/Jak3'' or ''VideoGame/JakX'' got proper Japanese releases until the [=PS4=] remasters (and even then [[NoDubForYou they were entirely untranslated]]), with ''VideoGame/JakAndDaxterTheLostFrontier'' being the only other ''Jak and Daxter'' game to fill that gap in the meantime. |
| 167 | * ''VideoGame/KanColle'' is hugely popular in Japan, but not so much in places like Hawaii (and ''especially'' WWII veterans or families of WWII veterans who fought in the Pacific front), since nearly all the protagonists are personified [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun Japanese warships from World War II]]; while the antagonists are demonic in nature, and though not outright said to be American military, are strongly implied to be. Also, this game isn't well liked in Korea since it's been accused of "glorifying Japanese imperialism" and shifting the political spectrum of young people to the far right. This stance [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap started changing]] with reveal of Iowa, the first American ship to be implemented with the Platform/PlayStationVita version of the game, which also debunks the implication of the Abyssals being the Allies. Unsurprisingly, she's a [[EnsembleDarkhorse huge hit]] with the American Kancolle community. Despite this, the high concentration of [[{{moe}} very young-looking cute girls]] keeps it a niche-within-a-niche in America, where most people consider interest in that sort of thing creepy. (Iowa is popular overseas partly because she's mature-looking and well-endowed. |
| 168 | * ''VideoGame/KartRider'' is a huge deal in Korea, but is obscure in other countries. This got worse, from mere obscurity to full on hatred with the game's mobile iteration, ''[=KartRider Rush+=]'', due to the [[BribingYourWayToVictory aggressive monetization practices requiring players to constantly invest in the newest, fastest Karts to remain competitive]], something that is frowned upon outside of Asia, as well as the Western and South-East Asian versions [[LateExportForYou only receiving updates a whole year after they came out on the Korean and Chinese versions]]. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcO0v91wLdw This video goes into more detail]]. |
| 169 | * ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'' |
| 170 | ** Third protagonist and first sidekick Ash Crimson and Benimaru Nikaido are off-putting to some Western audiences, both due to their mannerisms (Benimaru evokes imagery of [[CampStraight stereotypical gay men]] and Ash has some very effeminate quirks). Likely this is caused by the opinion that a fighting game character should look like they could actually hold their own in a fight, of which both characters do not exude. However, Benimaru has garnered much less hatred than Ash due to his more masculine appearance, more genial personality, [[FirstInstallmentWins being around since the very first game]], increasing muscularity in recent games, and being a confirmed heterosexual. Ash himself would eventually be RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap in ''XIII'' due to [[spoiler: revelations regarding his [[GoodAllAlong true]] [[GuileHero character]] and his [[HeroicSacrifice ultimate]] [[RetGone fate]]]]. |
| 171 | ** K9999 ended up falling victim to a variation of this. Eastern audiences did take kindly to his [[CaptainErsatz heavy resemblance]] to ''Manga/{{AKIRA}}'''s Tetsuo Shima (down to having [[Creator/NozomuSasaki his VA]]) and saw it as a well-intentioned ShoutOut. In the West, though? He ended up so utterly despised for those very same qualities, which they viewed as outright UsefulNotes/{{plagiarism}}, that SNK [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome refused to even acknowledge him]] for two decades up until ''XV'', and even then not without a heavy redesign. [[TrollingCreator Or at least that's the story SNK decided to roll with when they reintroduced him]], they pretended that K9999 was giving them so much problems that they had to retcon him altogether, but in truth, they just couldn't fit him in the story until ''XV''. When K9999, as Krohnen, returned, even the Westerners welcomed him due to having his own CharacterDevelopment and being made to be less of a plagiarized character, and they end up being [[ActuallyPrettyFunny amused at the prank]] SNK played against them for years. |
| 172 | ** Sylvie Paula Paula, a walking homage to pop idol Music/KyaryPamyuPamyu, proved to be one of the most popular newcomers from ''KOF XIV'' in Japan and other Asian regions. The west, however, sees Sylvie as SNK unapologetically attempting to make their own counterpart to [[VideoGame/{{Tekken}} Lucky Chloe]], and she is hated by them just the same as Chloe is. |
| 173 | * ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' does poorly in Europe. It's very noticeable due to the huge gap in sales between Europe, compared to Japan and North America. It's bizarre, as Disney-licensed games are usually very big in Europe, to the point that Sega used the Mickey Mouse license to create ''Mickey's Castle of Illusion'' to make sure that the Mega Drive had a good European launch, and [=JRPGs=] tend to be enormous hits, as with ''Dragon Quest'', ''Secret of Mana'' and ''Terranigma''. Disney has a "family friendly" image and a near monopoly on animation, so it's likely ''Kingdom Hearts'' suffers from what issues plagued Euro Disneyland, and especially for gamers who probably don't like the idea of Disney encroaching on other creators' video games. This is also likely why non-English European dubs of the games were discontinued from ''Re: Chain of Memories'' onwards (even for the HD re-releases of older games). |
| 174 | * ''VideoGame/TheLastOfUsPartII'' is a ContestedSequel in the West due to some contentious plot choices (namely [[spoiler:killing off Joel from the first game and then having you play as his killer, while the game attempts to make you sympathize with her]]), but it managed to be critically acclaimed (though subject to extreme CriticalDissonance). Gamers elsewhere, however--especially in East Asian countries like Japan and South Korea--almost universally ''loathed'' the game, to the point that stores had to deny refunds for the game completely because so many customers were returning it. Critical reviews were slightly less harsh, but they tended to be lower on average than the overwhelmingly positive critical reviews in the West. Several streamers even went as far as to destroy the game's Blu-Ray disc on-stream to express their disgust, the most famous example being [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypiKYeIlE5g a Korean streamer who destroyed his copy with a pair of scissors.]] |
| 175 | * ''VideoGame/LikeADragon'': Daigo Dojima gets this a lot. In Asia, Daigo is generally in the top ten most popular characters in the franchise, and is seen as a dutiful man trying to build on his father's legacy as a pillar of the Tojo Clan, in spite of nearly insurmountable challenges he faces from both inside and outside his organization. However, he is nearly universally disliked in the West, where he's seen as an incompetent leader who can't keep his subordinates in line and as an overly prideful man who clings to a leadership position he is unqualified for and gained through his father's reputation and Kiryu's favoritism, refusing to hand over the reins to any of his vastly more competent and charismatic subordinates. |
| 176 | * In ''VideoGame/LiveALive'', Streibough is adored in Japan for his design and his friendship with Oersted [[spoiler:pre-betrayal]], and generally the whole events are accepted as a tragedy on both sides. Everywhere else, he's despised for [[spoiler:said betrayal and his life-ruining jealousy, and the tragedy is more focused on poor Oersted being the victim of misfortune; the sense of tragedy is not shared for Streibough, who's considered more [[EvilIsPetty petty]] and unworthy of being considered tragic]]. |
| 177 | * ''VideoGame/LivePowerfulProBaseball'' is a Konami sports franchise with no Western presence outside of two out of four spinoffs based on the MLB. A 1997 [[https://web.archive.org/web/20041212213728/http://www.gamespot.com/n64/sports/powerfulprobaseball4/review.html Gamespot review]] of ''Pawapuro 4'' considers it "inconsequential", slow-paced and is put off by the cartoony aesthetic. In Japan, it was advertised as "THE BASEBALL GAME" and enjoyed such success that the sequel spawned a side-series that lasted until 2012. This is no different with said series, ''Power Pro-kun Pocket''. A [[https://www.gamespot.com/articles/tgs-06-power-pro-kun-pocket-9-hands-on/1100-6158558/ 2006 preview]] also from Gamespot spends over a paragraph complaining about getting lost on what's the actual main draw of the series -- the DatingSim scenario that awards ballplayers for successful runs (which happens [[BadExportForYou to be something butchered out]] on the only time a DS ''Power Pros'' game was released overseas). Namco's ''Famista'', the older major Japanese baseball franchise, is so seen in the same light that the ''VideoGame/RBIBaseball'' localization of the NES installment developed [[DivorcedInstallment into its own thing]] with a more realistic design direction. After Konami's reputation plummetted, they somehow still managed to give utmost care to ''Power Pros'' games and not letting them leave Japan any further, resulting the franchise to be one of its main moneymaker in Japan with the Westerners forgetting that it even existed (thus fueling the condemning meme of "Konami doesn't make games anymore."). |
| 178 | [[/folder]] |
| 179 | |
| 180 | [[folder:M]] |
| 181 | * ''VideoGame/{{maimai}}'' is stupendously popular in Japan and has a decent following in other countries in Eastern and Southeastern Asia. However, interest for the US location test is low if not outright ''nonexistent'' and most people in Western rhythm game communities don't really care much for it, [[FandomRivalry instead favoring]] more NintendoHard games using falling or upward-scrolling notes (rather than ''maimai''[='=]s radial-scrolling notes) such as ''VideoGame/{{DanceDanceRevolution}}'', ''VideoGame/SoundVoltex'', and especially ''VideoGame/{{beatmania}} IIDX'', and would much prefer to get ''VideoGame/{{CHUNITHM}}'', SEGA's other major arcade rhythm game property that suffers even more of NoExportForYou than ''maimai''. (Though the circumstances of the loctest -- no All.net, [[ExecutiveMeddling expensive pricing that was requested by SEGA]], and [[BadExportForYou a lot of missing songs]] -- are also to blame for the location test being poorly-received.) |
| 182 | * ''VideoGame/MarioKart'': |
| 183 | ** Most Americans see Metal Mario's addition in ''VideoGame/MarioKart7'' as a worthless and unoriginal Mario clone, while Japanese players and ''Smash Bros.'' fans love giving him AlternativeCharacterInterpretation, playing as him and treating him as TheRival to Mario. This was amplified in ''Mario Kart 8'' with Pink Gold Peach (a completely new addition that left a lot of American and European players dumbfounded, but Japanese players tolerated). |
| 184 | ** Likewise, the baby characters have a pretty big fanbase in Japan due to their [[UsefulNotes/{{Kawaisa}} cuteness]], while overseas, they're by and large seen as uninspired clones that steal slots from more deserving characters. |
| 185 | * ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'': Although the [=MvC=] series is popular on the other side of the pond (as noted by [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff/VideoGames this trope's polar opposite]]), Japanese reaction to the series as a whole is, at best, a resounding "meh" (even when taking ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom'' into account), at worst, a series of legendary ''kusoge'' ("shitty game"). Fighting game website shoryuken.com goes into detail on just how bad ''[=MvC2=]'' and ''[=UMvC3=]'''s reputations are in Japan in [[https://web.archive.org/web/20201114050436/https://shoryuken.com/2012/03/06/kusoru-ultimate-marvel-vs-capcom-3-and-the-mentality-of-kusoge-players-in-japan/ this article]]. |
| 186 | * The ''Franchise/MassEffect'' games, while extremely popular in the West, were pretty obscure in Japan due to minimal effort of promotion despite featuring VisualNovel esque multiple choices and gameplay tailored to casual audiences. This is because said multiple choices are ''morality'' choices, and Japanese players are used to morality choices in video games having "right" and "wrong" answers, with wrong answers leading to a NonstandardGameOver, the [=NPCs=] not trusting the choice, or the choice being presented again. Mass Effect, on the other hand, has branching story paths, which confuses Japanese players on which one they felt is "right." The series does, however, [[CriticalDissonance rank up high scores]] at ''Famitsu''. |
| 187 | * ''[[VideoGame/MechWarrior MechWarrior Living Legends]]''' variety of {{Space Plane}}s and {{Future Copter}}s are popular with the game's native Western audience, but unpopular with Eastern European players, many Eastern clans prefer sniping and kiting, which the aircraft directly counter, while Western units often prefer close-in brutal combat. The majority of Russian-made [[LevelEditor custom maps]] do not feature aircraft factories, or limit it to the weak ([[GoddamnBats but more annoying]]) VTOL aircraft. |
| 188 | * The ''Franchise/MegaMan'' series is well-respected in Japan and North America and considered an icon not just of the NES era, but video games in general. In Europe, however, things were a different story. The NES and SNES didn't catch on in most of Europe for several reasons, and by the time ''Mega Man'' games started coming out on consoles Europeans actually owned, their [[ItsShortSoItSucks short length]], [[AnimationAgeGhetto colorful, generally 2D graphics]], and frequent release schedule caused the majority of players and magazines to dismiss them as UsefulNotes/{{shovelware}}. (Both of these aspects were criticized in North American mags as well, but not nearly as viciously.) Though the series was eventually VindicatedByHistory, European sales lag behind Japanese and American numbers to this day. |
| 189 | * ''VideoGame/MetalGear'': |
| 190 | ** Raiden wasn't as hated in Japan as much as he was in America and Europe when ''VideoGame/{{Metal Gear Solid 2|SonsOfLiberty}}'' first came out. Most of the complaints players had in Japan wasn't with Raiden himself ''per se'', but from [[ReplacementScrappy not being able to play as Solid Snake]]. This is probably because being {{Bishonen}}, as Raiden is, isn't a big deal to Japanese gamers, whereas in the West, such characters are seen as overly effeminate, especially in an action game. It helps that Creator/KenyuHoriuchi, Raiden's Japanese voice actor, actually made him sound like a real adult, giving him a voice almost as deep as Creator/AkioOtsuka's performance as Solid Snake, as opposed to the higher-pitched approach that Creator/QuintonFlynn went with. The hatred around him eventually died down, partly because Raiden's portrayal in ''VideoGame/{{Metal Gear Solid 4|GunsOfThePatriots}}'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'' was ''much'' more well-received, partly because most people in the West really think that he is meant to be a critique for players who look at ''Solid Snake'' for power fantasy. People would rather look at the game's writing, which has been subjected to ValuesResonance. |
| 191 | ** Japanese fans were extremely critical of the fact that the opening cutscene of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty'' shows Solid Snake casually tossing a cigarette butt off a bridge. In a culture where schools are cleaned by their own students, the [[JapanesePoliteness consideration of others' needs is paramount]], and with a semi-religious faith in the idea of items having a proper resting place, littering is considered revolting, pointless {{Jerkass}} behaviour that is genuinely upsetting to see done by a [[EscapistCharacter cool and likeable hero]]. Later games made a point of showing Snake (and his father) dispose properly of everything they smoke, with the opening cutscene of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' giving the fate of the thrown-away cigar special attention. In the West, littering isn't particularly liked, but it's a petty enough crime that it's extremely unlikely that any Western fans even ''noticed'' that Snake was littering in that scene. |
| 192 | * ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'' games are generally average sellers in Japan, while being much more popular in America, to the point where [[VideoGame/MetroidIIReturnOfSamus the second game]] was advertised to Japanese audiences as being the "hit video game in America." There's a variety of debate as to why that is, with Nintendo themselves placing the dissonance on the fact that the [[{{Metroidvania}} two]] [[FirstPersonShooter genres]] most of the series titles are in aren't the most popular in the region. ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' attempted to address this by being a more actionized third-person affair, but sales remained the same and [[http://legendsoflocalization.com/what-does-japan-think-of-metroid-other-m/ what Japan fans there were]] ended up being mildly disappointed (while Western fans came to loathe it due to its increased linearity). |
| 193 | * ''VideoGame/MilonsSecretCastle'' was a really popular game in Japan, but when it came to the USA, Americans found the game [[NintendoHard frustratingly difficult]] due to [[FakeDifficulty lack of mercy invincibility and quickly respawning enemies]], lack of direction and secretive gameplay that [[GuideDangIt practically necessitated a walkthrough]], CheckpointStarvation (unless you knew a cheat code), and an underwhelming protagonist who appeared to wear pajamas and shot bubbles at foes. |
| 194 | * ''VideoGame/MobileLegendsBangBang'' is a mobile MOBA game, made in China and somehow made it big in the Asian region, [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff especially the Southeast Asian ones.]] In the West, however, the game is generally reviled and ridiculed as a 'cheap mobile ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' knockoff', not helped with how some heroes were 'inspired' by ''League'' champions to the point of almost copycatting and that ''MLBB'' simplified the mechanics of a MOBA genre (in which ''League of Legends'' has already been considered 'simplified' compared to [[VideoGame/{{Dota 2}} its main competitor]]) to cater with the mobile controls, and yet grew popular enough to warrant its high-grossing championship mostly in Southeast Asia, so that gave more fuels for the Western MOBA fanbase to claim that it's even more braindead. The Westerners are very baffled when they hear someone praise ''MLBB'' or think of it as their preferred MOBA and were pissed that it's still ahead in popularity compared to ''League of Legends: Wild Rift'', the mobile version of ''League'', for them, ''MLBB'' will forever be considered a 'cheap Chinese bootleg copycat undeserving of their fandom'. (It also doesn't help that their developer, Moonton, was caught in a long-since settled legal copyright battle against Riot Games due to design similarities, it's still often used by the Westerners as a weapon to talk smack on ''MLBB'') |
| 195 | * VideoGame/TheCurseOfMonkeyIsland has an in-universe example, as Guybrush reads a book about the history of the Goodsoup family, finding out their chain of restaurants never became popular in the South Pacific. |
| 196 | * ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'': |
| 197 | ** The series in general, despite being one of the most popular gaming franchises of all time in Japan, has only established a small, dedicated following in North America, particularly Mexico and the U.S. Some Western gamers dislike the games because of the heavy grinding needed to [[ItemCrafting craft]] items and armor, lack of enemy targeting, and lack of visible {{Life Meter}}s for boss monsters. This sadly means if you live outside of Japan, portable games up until ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter4'' become exercises in patience and loneliness due to the lack of an online mode. This seems to be changing with ''4 Ultimate'', which sold a good 290,000 copies in North America in its first month, but it's still far from the household name that it is in Japan. Then there are Western fans who would enjoy ''[=MonHun=]'' more if the last three games (''4'', ''4G''/''4 Ultimate'', and ''X''/''Generations'') had console releases, despite the series being a CashCowFranchise in Japan ''because'' it's primarily on handheld platforms. ''VideoGame/MonsterHunterWorld'' in particular is an effort to address Western criticisms, by being on consoles rather than handhelds and having a lot of quality-of-life improvements to address mechanics that are seen as staples by hardcore fans but turn-offs by prospective players. |
| 198 | ** In ''World'', the Handler is a popular and cute sidekick character in Japan, but Americans tend to see her as an AnnoyingVideoGameHelper who contributes nothing to hunts yet takes joint credit for your accomplishments. She's also seen as an idiot in the story, getting into danger from an Odogaron and a ''Deviljho'' and needing to be rescued by the player. For the PC release of ''World'', one of the single most popular mods is one that prevents her from ever speaking outside of story dialogue. |
| 199 | * ''Franchise/MortalKombat'': In Japan, the franchise is at best CultClassic, at worst forgotten. However, it did see a decent scene up until ''VideoGame/MortalKombat3'' until several factors out of Midway's control forced them to pull back, leaving the franchise in the dust for Japan: |
| 200 | ** While up until ''VideoGame/MortalKombat3'' the franchise was received pretty well, Japan already has a well-established scene of fighting games dominated by ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' and several of its competitors, especially by Creator/{{SNK}}. The ''Mortal Kombat'' cabinets were also different compared to the standard fighting game cabinets in Japan, so it was more considered a 'rare foreigner game' by Japan. While the console ports hit the home consoles such as Super Famicom or Sega Genesis, Midway often half-assed in the localization, never giving Japanese subtitles for local Japanese players to read. And finally, the franchise's signature early installment PerfectPlayAI proved to be a road-block of difficulty for Japanese players more familiar with their local fighting games. |
| 201 | ** While Midway still strived to give Japan attention, it ended up being more or less sparse, as even they managed to include decent censorship to make them pass Japan's policies. However, that changed with the introduction of CERO rating system, which completely forbade display of human dismemberment (thanks to an incident involving decapitation and dismemberment shaking Japan and changing their view about violence in video games). At that point, Midway decided that localizing to Japan would be a lost cause if they were not allowed to import ''Mortal Kombat''[='=]s signature heavy focus on gory violence, in which dismembering humans is par on the course. And thus, the franchise completely stayed away from Japan (with the planned ''VideoGame/MortalKombatDeadlyAlliance'' localization cancelled), and only remembered by completely hardcore 90's gamers of Japan. |
| 202 | * In Russia, ''Mortal Kombat'' is synonymous with the fighting game genre. But Russian gamers don't seem to like Japanese fighters, like ''Street Fighter'' and ''Tekken'', mainly due to the cartoony graphics of the first one and [[ItsHardSoItSucks complex battle systems of both]]. However, it's not without a small following. |
| 203 | * The Polish UsefulNotes/WorldWarII[=/=]TimeTravel [[FirstPersonShooter FPS]] ''VideoGame/{{Mortyr}} 2093-1944'' spoiled the Polish press in its day, while it was regarded as a laughingstock abroad, especially in comparison to contemporary FPS games like ''VideoGame/HalfLife''. ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' notably took a jab at the game in [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/1999/07/28/ this strip.]] In contrast, however, its sequel got some flak from ''the Polish press'' that time around (didn't help that, by that time, the Polish game industry was wowing the world with ''VideoGame/{{Painkiller}}''), while some foreign reviewers regarded it as [[SoOkayItsAverage passable at best]]. |
| 204 | [[/folder]] |
| 205 | |
| 206 | [[folder:N-P]] |
| 207 | * While selling well in Japan, ''Natsuiro High School'' is greatly disliked by some in the West mostly due to its AudienceAlienatingPremise of the protagonist being made to take {{panty shot}}s of the female characters. |
| 208 | * ''VideoGame/{{Neptunia}}'': |
| 209 | ** This was the [[VindicatedByHistory initial]] reception of [[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia the first game]]. Critics trashed the game for its clunky and broken gameplay that looks like it was an ObviousBeta (e.g. enemies appearing out of nowhere, having to pay money in order to buy some items and DLC characters, etc.) and how overtly sexual the female playable characters (particularly [[MsFanservice Vert and Purple Heart]]) looked, with even fans of the series consider it the weakest of the series, namely its gameplay. In Japan, it was very well-received, to the point that the [[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 next game]] ended up being a ContinuityReboot after the first game [[GoldenEnding ended]] [[spoiler:with the main [=CPUs=] giving up their powers and living their normal lives up until their deaths]]. Since then, however, many have considered it [[FirstInstallmentWins the best game of the franchise]] (at least in terms of story). |
| 210 | ** Out of the 4 [=CPUs=], Vert is a far more [[BaseBreakingCharacter controversial]] character in the anglosphere. While she isn't as popular in Japan (not helped by the [[Platform/{{Xbox}} system she represents]] selling poorly there), she still has a fanbase. In the West, she is disliked by some fans for her tendency to pursue the other Candidates (especially Nepgear) without their consent, and sometimes goes to far with it (such as showing Ram and Rom "raunchy" pictures and dressing them up in revealing clothing, all while thinking to herself of seeing "those immature, soft bodies wrapped in those naughty, adult costumes", in ''VII''), boasting about her [[BigBreastPride well-endowed figure]] in front of and mocking the [[ACupAngst self-conscious Blanc]] just to get a [[BerserkButton rage reaction]] out of her, and prioritizing her CPU duties in favor of [[GamerChick playing her games]]. |
| 211 | * ''VideoGame/{{NieR}}'': while the ''Replicant'' version of Nier ("Brother" Nier) is not hated, his popularity is far eclipsed by his older and more grizzled ''Gestalt'' counterpart ("Father" Nier) outside of Japan. This comes as little surprise, since the developers made "Father" Nier to [[PanderingToTheBase pander specifically to western gamers]], and succeeded on that front, such that many fans were disappointed that ''[=NieR=] Gestalt'' didn't receive a next-gen port like ''[=NieR=] Replicant'' did. |
| 212 | * ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'': Tracer is pretty popular, except in her native UK, where her extremely exaggerated Cockney accent makes her a lot less sexy/endearing and a lot more annoying. |
| 213 | * The ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' franchise is [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff usually far more popular overseas]], but ''[[VideoGame/PaperMarioStickerStar Sticker Star]]'' is actually the best-selling ''Paper Mario'' title in Japan, whereas it was the worst-selling ''Paper Mario'' in North America since [[VideoGame/PaperMario64 the first]]. This might simply be because it was released on a handheld, because Japanese fans had similar complaints about the sudden shift in gameplay and tone, and ''VideoGame/PaperMarioColorSplash'' performed dismally in both regions -- even so, it seems to indicate that the shift in the series' tone isn't as much of a hot-button issue in Japan as it is overseas. |
| 214 | * ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'': |
| 215 | ** You'd think the proclaimed mascot of ''VideoGame/Persona4'', [[{{Mascot}} Teddie]], would be loved. He is critically acclaimed... in Japan. In America, fans see him as nothing more than a childish, annoying nuisance that [[CovertPervert can't seem to keep his hands off of any girl.]] |
| 216 | ** Marie is controversial in the American fandom, often compared to Poochie from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', due to her {{tsundere}} personality and somewhat aggressive inclusion in the remake and spinoffs (to the point that ''Anime/Persona4TheGoldenAnimation'' is largely focused on her). However, perhaps because of [[Creator/KanaHanazawa her voice actress']] popularity, she is much more popular in her native Japan, thus only fuels the hatedom due to the Content Creator Bias. |
| 217 | ** Yosuke Hanamura ranks very high in Japanese popularity polls for being a relatable [[TheEveryman Everyman]], but he's a major BaseBreakingCharacter in the west, mostly due to being the center of the game's very divisive comedy scenes. These scenes come in two flavours: either he's treating the girls and Kanji in a way that comes off as sexist or homophobic, or he's being an excessively abused CosmicPlaything that many fans find goes too far to be funny. |
| 218 | ** In Japan, Yukiko is fairly liked due to being a YamatoNadeshiko done right (inner steel and all that) with her only major flaws being her tendency to laugh heavily about anything and like with nearly all girls in the series being a LethalChef. Hence while not exactly hated in the West, like most {{Yamato Nadeshiko}}s she is still considered a bit of a FlatCharacter. |
| 219 | ** ''VideoGame/Persona5'' has Goro Akechi. He's extremely popular in Japan, to the point of being the highest-ranked member of the Phantom Thieves in an official popularity poll covering every game in the ''Persona'' series from ''VideoGame/Persona3'' onwards, and regularly topping other official popularity polls. However, due to ValuesDissonance between Japan and the West concerning how society views illegitimate children and how children who are wards of the state are treated and cared for, in the West he's [[BaseBreakingCharacter extremely divisive]] and his problems frequently end up coming off as {{Wangst}} to Western fans. He has been RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap to many players with ''Royal'' due to reworking his Confidant to be one you have to actively pursue rather than one that automatically goes up as you progress through the story, and the new scenes create more of a genuine bond between Joker and him. And then [[spoiler:during the new semester, he gained a lot of fans for being a largely unrepentant psychopathic TokenEvilTeammate. And his brief period as the navigator is hilarious.]] |
| 220 | ** As a franchise-wide example, the HotSpringsEpisode RunningGag, while popular in Japanese comedies and thus a staple of the games and many anime, has (especially in recent years) been loathed by Western fans, mainly for [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale painting the girls in a negative light]] and making them out of character. ''3'' at least got away with it by virtue of the punishment being optional and the guys (sort of) deserving it, but ''4'' made the abuse on the guys mandatory. Western fans rejoiced when ''5'' didn't have one, only to groan when ''VideoGame/Persona5Strikers'' ended up having one and it ended up not changing much compared to previous instances. |
| 221 | * ''VideoGame/{{Phigros}}'', a RhythmGame for iOS and Android, has over 30 million downloads across both platforms and a considerable following in Asia, including its home country of China, due to being one of the more accessible rhythm games due to its {{freeware|game}} nature[[note]]Notably, it is ''not'' a simlator or [[LevelEditor custom-level]] game and it does have proper licensing for all of its songs.[[/note]] and creative chart designs that make use of the game's unique judgement line gimmick. It is less-known in Western countries other than Australia and New Zealand (such as the United States), where the people who have heard the game really don't like it very much. The note presentation lacks the straightforwardness of games that the Western European and American rhythm game communities are more acquainted with (like in ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'', ''VideoGame/PumpItUp'', and ''VideoGame/{{beatmania}} IIDX'')[[note]]Granted, ''VideoGame/InTheGroove'' is well-known for courses that throw a potpurri of InterfaceScrew modifiers at the player, and there are ''VideoGame/StepMania'' custom charts that throw on a variety of unique screws at the player. However, these are generally seen as ''optional'' challenges, while ''Phigros'' makes such gimmicks the standard.[[/note]], the game being exclusive to mobile platforms is an instant turn-off to those particular demographics (as mobile games aren't considered "real games" versus games on console, PC, or -- mainly amongst rhythm game players -- arcade), and "completely free game" often has connotations of "cheaply made game", i.e. "I don't need crappy free games when I can afford to pay for games with much better production values." The game being developed by a team from China also makes Westerners ambivalent at best, due to the widespread idea that "Chinese-made game = ShoddyKnockoffProduct that is not as good as Japanese-, Korean-, or Western-made games." |
| 222 | * ''VisualNovel/{{Policenauts}}'' is beloved by Creator/HideoKojima's fanbase in Japan, but in the West it's viewed Kojima's weakest game and generally disliked. Part of this is due to the FanserviceExtra mechanic in the game that allows the player to grope every single female character and provides them with an endless supply of receptionists to try it out on, something that is considered weird and creepy in the West but was so beloved in Japan that a load more of these sequences got added in each time the game got ported. Another part of this is that the Anglosphere only got the game fan translated in the early 2010s, after the release of the [[ContestedSequel divisive]] ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'', which led to many gamers being less tolerant of it than they would have been if they'd been exposed to it before Kojima had dinged his, until then, unsullied reputation. It also didn't help that gaming fandom - at least, the parts of it that would drop everything to play a Hideo Kojima visual novel from the 90s - had become more critical and discerning in the years since ''Policenauts'''s original release, so a game remembered in the Japan of the early 90s for its groundbreaking script and animation sequences (which were genuinely impressive at the time) was criticised in the West of the early 10s for being [[{{Expodump}} overwritten]] and with a bigoted, reactionary tone. Fans also objected to the game's blatant {{Expy}} characters (poached from ''Film/LethalWeapon'') and settings (poached from ''Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey''), viewing it as tacky plagiarism, which in gaming culture at the time of the game's original release, was a plus point ("''Lethal Weapon'' but a video game [[JustForFun/RecycledInSpace and in space]]!!"). The tone-deaf recreation of the racial politics of ''Lethal Weapon'' also did not endear the game to Americans who had to endure that racial setting in real life, and the CreatorProvincialism and racism was not recognised as the satire of racist 80s/90s JapanTakesOverTheWorld films that the game's Japanese audience read it as, instead coming off as weird BoomerangBigot recreation of an outdated form of racism. |
| 223 | * The ''VideoGame/ProfessorLayton'' series of video games, whilst not that successful in America, is at least successful inside Japan and Europe, with perhaps the exception of one country, Belgium. This has mainly to do with the fact that Dutch people in general like the series so much that Level 5 decided to give the series Dutch dubs to boost the sales in the Netherlands. Something Belgian people absolutely hated. In fact, the Belgian people that get interested in the series still don't want to buy it because that's how much they hate the work put into the Dutch dubbing. |
| 224 | * ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' is such a popular video game franchise in Japan that is the TropeCodifier for competitive FallingBlocks games, spawned [[FollowTheLeader a lot of imitators]] during the 90s, and is a rare example of a long running SEGA franchise at 25 years and counting. Outside of Japan though, the series is very obscure for various reasons: AdaptationDisplacement caused by [[DolledUpInstallment the games being presented as spin-offs of other franchises]], such as ''[[VideoGame/DrRobotniksMeanBeanMachine Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' or ''[[VideoGame/KirbysAvalanche Kirby]]'', the few games that didn't suffer from being reskinned not getting any advertisement and being released on obscure consoles like the Neo Geo Pocket and the N-Gage, cameos and crossovers with Puyo Puyo being rare, and the franchise in general being a notable case of NoExportForYou. The reason may be because of GirlShowGhetto, due the heavy emphasis on cute colorful characters with light-hearted comical stories that rarely take themselves seriously, invoking ValuesDissonance outside of Japan. With the western releases of ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyoTetris'' and ''Champions'' however, this might be changing. |
| 225 | [[/folder]] |
| 226 | |
| 227 | [[folder:R-S]] |
| 228 | * ''Radarscope'' was a massive flop in the U.S., to the point where its unused cabinets were retooled into ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'', which ended up being ''far'' more successful and spawned two of Nintendo's biggest franchises. |
| 229 | * ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'': Leon S. Kennedy has generally been the more popular of the series' two male protagonists on both sides of the pond, but Chris Redfield's hulking up by ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil5'' and his [[HoYay relationship and working with]] his partner Piers Nivans in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil6'', along with the story during his scenario and some CharacterDevelopment, has boosted Chris' popularity in Japan (in regards to Piers, the seemingly {{Bara|Genre}} overtones may have something to do with it). Like Rebecca, he's divisive still in the West. |
| 230 | * The ''VideoGame/{{SaGa|RPG}}'' series has been praised in Japan and almost every installment has sold over the million mark over there. Other than the first three games (which were all given a ''Franchise/FinalFantasy Legend'' moniker [[MarketBasedTitle to boost sales]]), ''[=SaGa=]'' has been hated in the west. While ''VideoGame/SaGaFrontier'' sold well in the states, critic and fan reviews are very split (and both a [[BlindIdiotTranslation weird translation]] and its confusing stories don't help), and reactions to ''VideoGame/UnlimitedSaga'' in particular were polar opposites to one another (good reviews in Japan, reviled in the West). |
| 231 | * ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' is one of the most popular franchises in the PC gaming industry in America. European critics, on the other hand, tend to have a strong dislike for the series. For example, while Season 1 of the Telltale reboot was critically acclaimed in America, it was widely panned in Europe. Just to make the critical reception even more confused, all three seasons of the reboot were generally well reviewed in the UK, with critics responding well to the additional sarcasm and cynicism Telltale had given the characters since their previous incarnations. The casual and needless violence, usually an instant game-breaker for UK adventure titles, was considered so comically excessive (and [[BloodlessCarnage bloodless]]) that it was viewed mostly as a parody of violent American media. |
| 232 | * In the ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' universe, the Japanese fans certainly love [[DarkIsNotEvil Oichi]] and she is ''the'' EnsembleDarkhorse of a series seemingly tailored for {{Yaoi Fangirl}}s. In America? She's considered a useless whiny emo girl, made even worse by the fact that the only "English" ''SB'' franchise that features her and can be reached by western audiences is the anime, which downplays her powers severely. |
| 233 | -->'''Oichi''': "[[ApologisesALot This is Ichi's fault...]]"\ |
| 234 | '''Fans''': "[[DemotedToExtra Yes, we know Ichi... and we're sorr]]-- Wait, what the hell!? It's not your fault, so stop crying and do something, damn it!" |
| 235 | * ''VideoGame/{{Shadowgate}}'', its NES port especially, is viewed as a classic in much of the Western world, praised for its eerie atmosphere among other things. In Japan, about the exact opposite is true, with the NES game frequently showing up on "worst of all time" lists. This is primarily due to a poor localization that kills the game's atmosphere in favor of {{Narm}}, as [[https://legendsoflocalization.com/a-very-quick-look-at-japanese-shadowgate this]] ''Website/LegendsOfLocalization'' article argues. [[invoked]] |
| 236 | * ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' games outside the ''Persona'' sub-series generally do not tend to catch on well on the other side of the Pacific; at best they just slide under the radar and at worst they're disliked by those who know the series better through ''Persona''. This led to a particularly infamous case with ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIV'', which was released on the heels of ''Persona 3'' and ''4'' hitting CashCowFranchise status; Western fans compared it unfavorably to ''Persona'', citing the lack of Social Links and the [[ItsHardSoItSucks steep difficulty]], not helped by [[EarlyGameHell most of the difficulty being at the beginning of the game]]. This is despite ''IV'' being the easiest game in the mainline series, but few know this as ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiI'' and ''[[VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIIINocturne III]]'' are cult classics at best and ''II'' [[NoExportForYou has never been released outside of Japan]]. |
| 237 | ** Fear of this trope in general was one of the reasons early ''SMT'' games weren't released outside Japan as gameplay aside, the players killed figures from all mythologies, including Hindu and Abrahamic. |
| 238 | ** The HD Remaster UpdatedRerelease of ''Nocturne'' managed to give the game a second wind in the West with marketing aiming to avoid this trope, with Atlus revealing it at the publicized Nintendo Online Direct and playing up things about the game that were memetic in the West such as Dante from ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' being featured. As Western Gamers were still more mixed on the game's outdated features, the earlier games have still not been rereleased for modern consoles like the Switch unlike in Japan. |
| 239 | ** ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse'' was loathed by Hindu Indians due to its antagonistic depiction of Krishna. |
| 240 | ** ''VideoGame/RaidouKuzunohaVsTheSoullessArmy'' is less well received in the rest of Asia compared to Japan and the West as despite the game being set in a timeline where Taisho democracy was extended, and villains are themed after fascist Japan, Raidou's clothes and settings are still from the Imperial Japanese era which bring bad memories to Japan's World War II victims. Raidou was even removed in certain releases of ''Nocturne HD'' for this reason, and the DLC costumes were omitted from the ports of ''VideoGame/Persona5 Royal'', which have all the rest of the DLC. |
| 241 | * ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'': The series is known for [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff being more popular in the West than at home]]. However: |
| 242 | ** Big the Cat, the large fishing-focused character from ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'', is much more liked in Japan than in the West, where he's seen as TheScrappy and his minigames are seen as pointless. Part of this can be attributed to DubPersonalityChange; in Japan, Big has a mellow voice and a simple-minded but down-to-earth nature, so his ditziness is [[KindheartedSimpleton endearing]] rather than annoying. Meanwhile, the English dub cranked up his SimpletonVoice, to the point where even [[Creator/JonStJohn his voice actor]] hated it, and made him significantly less down-to-earth and more whimsical, which resulted in him being less appealing to western fans. |
| 243 | ** Cream the Rabbit is a popular enough character in Japan that she's become a mainstay in the series, whereas she is much more divisive in the West. A likely reason is because Cream is [[FormalCharactersUseKeigo ultra-polite]], [[YamatoNadeshiko submissive]], and [[ShrinkingViolet somewhat withdrawn]], putting her firmly in the {{Moe}} category. Also, she has a really high-pitched voice. These same traits make her irritating to many Western gamers. Case in point is the fact that Cream has been on the opening roster in every Japanese-made Sonic racing game since her debut but none of the western-made Sonic racing games, not even ''VideoGame/TeamSonicRacing''. |
| 244 | * ''Franchise/{{Splatoon}}'': |
| 245 | ** Subverted with the Squid Sisters. When originally revealed before [[VideoGame/Splatoon1 the first game]]'s release, their reception was rocky with otherwise interested Westerners. With their existence as {{idol singer}}s (which is something Japan loves, but many other countries find weird), many fans worried that they'd be little more than {{moe}} fanservice. When the game actually came out, Callie and Marie quickly became popular due to their colorful personalities and cute designs, becoming seen as {{Series Mascot}}s alongside the playable Inklings and having holographic concerts in Japan that fans elsewhere also love watching online. Now Western and Eastern fans alike get excited for the reveal of each game's new idol characters, who also go on to have their own concerts. |
| 246 | ** Played straight with the stage "Moray Towers". Among Western players, it is one of most hated maps in the game due to its high verticality making it a paradise for snipers and hell for everyone else. However, it ranks as one of the most popular stages among the game's native Japanese fanbase, hence its return in the sequel and it being the representative stage for the franchise in the ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series. |
| 247 | * ''Franchise/SpyroTheDragon'' is considered a classic in America, but largely disliked and forgotten in Japan, to the point that the third game in the original trilogy, ''VideoGame/SpyroYearOfTheDragon'', didn't got a release there due to how poorly the first two games sold, and would not see a release in Japan until ''VideoGame/SpyroReignitedTrilogy'', several years later, Spyro thus having a long history of NoExportForYou in the region.[[note]] Other than the first two games and ''Reignated Trilogy'', ''VideoGame/SpyroSeasonOfIce'', ''VideoGame/SpyroOrangeTheCortexConspiracy'' and the first '' VideoGame/{{Skylanders}}'' game are the only ''Spyro'' games that got a Japanese release[[/note]] The conversions for the first two games, which altered the camera to be spaced far above Spyro (but was nearly uncontrollable), significantly slowing down Spyro's movements, and signs (which allow you to read them when you attack them, but are sometimes placed ''near enemies'') are largely blamed for the tepid reception, with the differences ironically meant to offset complaints about motion sickness during the demo period. |
| 248 | * ''Franchise/StarFox'': Slippy Toad is actually pretty popular in Japan. It's the North American fans that despise him, mostly for being a cross between a AnnoyingVideoGameHelper and TheLoad. His whiny, irritating voice doesn't exactly help, especially thanks to his frequent tendency to shout "Fox, get this guy off me! Thanks, Fox!... Fox, get this guy off me!" This stems almost entirely from ''VideoGame/StarFox64''; in the original [[VideoGame/StarFox1 SNES game]], Slippy was no more or less liked than the other wingmen. Even when later games tried to give Slippy a more likeable and masculine-sounding voice actor, and removed him from the role of active pilot altogether, the fans largely rejected him. However, some games like ''VideoGame/StarFox64 3D'', ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'', and ''VideoGame/StarFoxZero'' deliberately got the original ''Star Fox 64'' voice actress back because, in some kind of bizarre LoveToHate scenario, fans seem to actively prefer this version of Slippy despite their complaints. By contrast, Peppy is [[EnsembleDarkhorse extremely popular]] thanks to his catchphrase [[MemeticMutation "Do a Barrel Roll!"]] and the information he gives to Fox generally being more helpful, and Falco is on par in popularity with Fox and Wolf worldwide. |
| 249 | * ''Videogame/StreetsOfRage3'' is a very divisive entry in only the West due to [[BadExportForYou the changes that were made during its localization]]. |
| 250 | [[/folder]] |
| 251 | |
| 252 | [[folder:T-Y]] |
| 253 | * Since the Super Famicom era, ''Videogame/TacticsOgre'' has been regarded as one of the cornerstone turn-based strategy games in Japan, alongside ''VideoGame/FireEmblem''. In the West, however, it was largely overshadowed by ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'' due to being localized a bit late and not having the powerful brand name of ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'', causing many to consider it just a 'copycat' of ''Final Fantasy Tactics''; in truth, it was actually inspired by ''Tactics Ogre'' in the first place. [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff Inversely]], ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' performed in a less stellar manner in Japan because the Japanese were accustomed to ''Tactics Ogre'' series, while the brand recognition of ''Final Fantasy'', despite being big in Japan as well, did little to upset the status quo. |
| 254 | * ''[[VideoGame/{{Tekken}} Tekken 7]]'''s newcomer, Lucky Chloe, is designed to be heavily based on {{Moe}} Japanese idols. While the Japanese fanbase had no problem with her concept and largely accepted her, many Western fans, on the other hand, despise Lucky Chloe and demanded that she shouldn't be in the game at all, to the point that Katsuhiro Harada tweeted about replacing her with "muscular bald man" [[ValuesDissonance in the Western version]]. However, it turned out to be a case of TrollingCreator, and many Western fans shared a collective groan over having to suffer her all the same. It's such a big and persistent case of dislike that when her official profile was released, it showed that [[AscendedMeme Harada ascended this hatred]] by saying in the ''Tekken''-verse, Lucky Chloe is a international music star who's popular in many countries... except in the U.S., where Americans rejected her. The same Americans still prefer her over the reporter that narrates the Story Mode, because at least she has a personality and backstory, unlike the reporter who's a FlatCharacter and doesn't even have a name. |
| 255 | * Creator/{{Sega}}'s arcade take on ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' was incredibly popular in Japan, becoming the top-selling arcade game of 1989 and a perennial arcade fixture. It never caught on in the West, where people were already hooked on other versions, such as Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s iconic Game Boy version. The prevalence of options in the US (such as the Atari versions, which were never exported elsewhere) combined with the decline of arcades in the region meant that there was little room for Sega's version of ''Tetris'' to thrive. This also led to competitive ''Tetris'' taking diverging paths in the different regions. Japanese players prefer the Sega ruleset, which became the basis of many subsequent titles like the ''VideoGame/TetrisTheGrandMaster'' series, while the hardcore US fans of ''Tetris'' prefer to spend their valuable time and resources to seek out the NES Tengen version instead. |
| 256 | * ''VideoGame/TheTowerOfDruaga'' is very popular in Japan and considered as iconic as ''VideoGame/{{Galaga}}'' and ''VideoGame/DigDug'' there, spawning numerous sequels, spin-offs, [[Anime/TheTowerOfDruaga an anime]], and an amusement park attraction. Westerners who have played this game view it as a sluggish and obtuse [[NintendoHard exercise in frustration]] due to its heavy reliance on TrialAndErrorGameplay. In Japan, where arcades have always been seen as social environments, players would congregate and share tips to help each other progress; overseas, where arcades are traditionally more isolated, test audiences [[ValuesDissonance didn't understand this concept]] and instead [[GuideDangIt got frustrated that they couldn't figure it out on their own.]] As a result, the arcade version was never exported, and none of the console versions were released outside of Japan until the CompilationRerelease ''Namco Museum Vol. 3'' twelve years later. Said release included a full walkthrough in the manual, yet still received negative reviews from players outside of Japan. The game continues to appear in Namco compilations due to its enduring Japanese popularity, usually to the confusion of international audiences. |
| 257 | * ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' has central protagonist Reimu Hakurei, who frequently tops "favorite ''Touhou'' character" polls in Japan, but in the West, her being a [[GoodIsNotNice good but hostile]] character makes her a BaseBreakingCharacter at best and there are many memes about how much of a [[JerkAss bitch]] she is. |
| 258 | * ''VideoGame/TwistedMetal'' is extremely popular in America but poorly received everywhere else, where it is considered to be brainless and requiring no strategy. A good example of this is when the Platform/PlayStation3 sequel closed Sony's E3 2010 conference, where it was considered a crowd pleaser by American gamers and bad everywhere else, especially France (because ''[=TM2=]'' lets you [[MonumentalDamage blow up the Eiffel Tower]]). |
| 259 | %% * Westerners regard ''VideoGame/UrbanChampion'' as one of the worst NES games of all time. |
| 260 | * ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles'' has Edy and Susie, who are popular enough in Japan to get their own DLC alongside other {{Ensemble Darkhorse}}s as the Edy Detachment and make numerous cameos in sequels. Overseas, Susie is one of the most hated units in the game due to having one of the worst personal potentials in the game: [[{{Pacifist}} Humanitarian]], which can cause her to refuse to attack an enemy. Her hatred is enough that she's a frequent pick to be sacrificed for the [[MedalOfDishonor Splintered Horn medal]] alongside [[TheSlacker Herbert]] and [[ItsAllAboutMe Cezary]]. Edy, while not as loathed, is more of a BaseBreakingCharacter due to her having ''two'' personal potentials that decrease attack power (one of the most important qualities of a Shocktrooper,) one of which requires her to be kept away from Rosie (who's guaranteed to be in every mission due to her very presence providing an extra Command Point.) |
| 261 | * ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'' has been hit with this starting around the time Sega left the console market. Despite being considered as the most balanced and deepest fighting game series, in America it lags behind other popular fighters like ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'', ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive'', and ''[[VideoGame/SoulSeries Soulcalibur]]''. While it isn't ''hated'' in America per se, American gamers are ''widely'' apathetic towards the franchise compared to others, and it's joked that no one plays it. The series has had trouble attracting casual players, due to a number of factors: |
| 262 | ** Since the series was created by Sega in the early '90s, it received a number of questionable ports to underperforming consoles.[[note]]''VF 2'' for the Mega Drive was not bad, but going 2D took away much of the game's appeal. ''VF'' for the Saturn was a rushed launch title full of graphical glitches; the ''VF Remix'' update and ''VF 2'' were far better, but the Saturn did not fare too well in America. ''VF'' for the 32X was excellent, but that system was a massive flop. ''VF 3tb'' for the Dreamcast was also a good port, but again, the system sold poorly. On a side note, ''VF Remix'' and ''VF 2'' had Windows ports, but PC gaming was still a niche market.[[/note]] This, along with other 3D fighting games entering the scene, caused the series to fade away from the players' minds. It was not until ''[=VF4=]'' that the series was ported to non-Sega consoles. This gave the ''VF'' series a bit of a resurgence after years of no new entries, and ''4'' did very well in terms of sales and reception, but now it had to contend with ''Tekken'', which was ''the'' big fighting game for the [=PlayStation=] consoles. |
| 263 | ** ''Virtua Fighter'' games have always focused on the arcade version first, with the console ports being just that, ports. This works fine in Japan and Europe where arcades are still alive and easy to find, but not in America where arcades are almost extinct. In a couple of cases, new editions of ''4'' and ''5'' never made it to consoles. |
| 264 | ** ''Ultimate Showdown'' was a [=PS4=] exclusive at a time when PC gaming was becoming increasingly popular for playing fighters at home, and featured delay-based netcode when other Japanese fighters were starting to adopt rollback netcode which Westerners believe is much better. |
| 265 | ** Lastly, and probably the most important reasons, ''Virtua Fighter'' lacks both the flashiness and the (relatively) strong emphasis on story and lore found in every other fighting game. While ''many'' fighting games have SuperNaturalMartialArts where the cast can shoot fireballs and throw flaming punches, and each character has a story told through cutscenes in arcade mode, not only is ''VF'' far more grounded, but due to its arcade nature, it even lacks cutscenes in nearly all of its entries, aside from a few general intro movies. Only one character in ''VF'', the boss Dural, is fantastic in nature, while every other character is a relative BadassNormal who fights with a mostly accurate representation of his or her assigned fighting style. This is in direct contrast to fighting games whose playable characters include any number of ninja, robots, demons, and animals whose moves constantly defy physics. ''VF''[='=]s characters are accused of being bland in comparison, and without cutscenes to flesh them out, they can be seen as one-dimensional, even taking into consideration [[AllThereInTheManual their bios found in the game manuals]]. While the gameplay is good, this winds up making the games look boring, and the lack of on-screen CharacterDevelopment and world-building keeps players from becoming invested in the universe. |
| 266 | ** Much of the material that ''did'' flesh out the characters and universe came from other media released [[NoExportForYou only in Japan]], such as [[ImageSong image albums]] and manga. An anime series was dubbed into English, but its second season was not due to poor sales of the first season. |
| 267 | ** All of these things wind up making the series very unfriendly to casual players, and with its reputation as being a very difficult game to learn and be good at, it tends to only attract competitive fighting gamers who play at tournaments. Even then, the ''VF'' series is rarely seen at EVO despite its pedigree, in favor of more spectacle-filled games such as ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'', ''Franchise/MortalKombat'', and the even more niche ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'', ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'', and ''VideoGame/{{Skullgirls}}'', instead having smaller separate tournaments organized specifically for ''Virtua Fighter''. In Japan, though, the series is still popular and has several more tournaments, even for some of the older games. Sega may be trying to change this, as members of the ''Virtua Fighter'' cast have been popping up as guest fighters and in crossover games. |
| 268 | * ''VideoGame/YoKaiWatch'' fell victim to this in North America. After becoming a CashCowFranchise in Japan, Level-5 brought the original game to the United States two years later. While gained a small fanbase, mainstream audiences weren't interested, with following reception in Europe being little better. Some suggest the reason for this was ValuesDissonance by way of yokai being a concept engrained in Japanese culture while being obscure in the West (outside those highlighted in more globally recognized Japanese folktales), while others believe that the media's positioning of the series as a "''Pokémon killer''" brought too much comparison between the Mon series, resulting in consumers viewing it as a cheap copy or overall having skewed expectations about the series. |
| 269 | [[/folder]] |
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