How the West was Won: Localization Changes on the NES
Nintendo appears to have used the Atari VCS’s spectacular flareout as an object lesson for how not to run a console business. But the lessons Atari inadvertently provided went much deeper than that; Nintendo also looked to its failed predecessor for how not to handle a console in a foreign market. The VCS has made its way to Japan as the Atari 2800, but you’d never know it—the system failed to catch on in any meaningful way, and Japan lacks America’s Atari nostalgia. Perhaps mindful of the 2800’s failure, Nintendo shaped its own efforts abroad, carefully working to ensure its efforts in the U.S. were carefully tailored to the needs of the overseas market. This began with the company’s brash attempt to obscure the fact that the NES was designed for playing videogames, but in fact it went far deeper than that.
Re: How the West was Won: Localization Changes on the NES
Interesting read. I saw the differences in Contra because when I was younger I had a friend who had a Famicon and Contra and other games I had never seen.
I remember wondering at the time why the trees were swaying, and why the cut scenes. I didn't find out much later about the custom chips.
Linear Mode
