Feature: Stranded! The Top 25 Games that Won't Come to America Subscribe to this RSS feed
The Final Five! Numbers 5-1!
5- Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Earth (N64)
If there was a game that was made for importers, it's Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Earth. It's an easily-accessible 3D rail-shooter (think Panzer Dragoon) with English voice acting! Unfortunately, this gorgeous, addictive shooter came out a bit too late in the N64's lifespan, so the game never got the international acclaim it was so worthy of.
4- Mother 3 (GBA)
The US can't seem to catch a break with the Earthbound series (called Mother in Japan). The first game was all but translated before Nintendo cancelled it, while the much-beloved sequel--the only one released in the US--suffered from disappointing sales numbers. The latest iteration in the series was beset with major delays before coming out exclusively in Japan on the GBA (also home to a Japan-only compilation cart of the first two games).
Between the fan translation projects, and the hard-work of Earthbound activists, Mother 3 is continually gaining a following and you better believe that Nintendo's paying attention. Word is that Earthbound's eventual Virtual Console debut will dictate whether Mother 3 gets a shot in the US. Get your wallets ready, gamers!
3-BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets (SNES)
This Zelda game takes place after A Link to the Past and was only released for the Super Famicom attachment called the Broadcast Satellaview, which allowed you to download games to your system via a satellite. Due to the unique technology, LoZ: AST featured a speaking narrator and NPC's, which we're still waiting for in current Zelda titles.
We understand that the unique nature of the Satellaview restricted the game's possibilty of a US port, but missing out on this game and getting crap like the CD-I titles puts the "BS" in BS The Legend of Zelda.
2- Tobal 2 (PS1)
Tobal No. 1 was a fine fighting game that proved Square was capable great games in genres other than adventure and RPG. While the game boasted smooth animation and a quest mode that still stands among the best in the genre, the low-detail character models looked atrocious in print. Nevertheless, gamers that did get to try the unique fighter (most disregarded it as "The free game that came with the Final Fantasy VII demo") got to play one the PlayStation's best fighting games.
The sequel remedied almost every single minute problem from the first by drastically improving the character models, deepening the quest mode to standalone quality, and growing the roster to epic proportions. For some reason, the game was deemed unworthy of a US release. Dream Factory, the game's developer, then went on to sully its reputation with a string of failed fighters including Ehrgeiz, The Bouncer, and UFC Tapout, culminating in a failed partnership with Microsoft to make Kakuto Chojin, an awful Xbox fighter that ended up being recalled over censorship issues.
1- Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
There's a reason this game sells for upwards of $150 on eBay. One of the greatest space shooters of all time, released only in Japan, Radiant Silvergun is a rare gem that never got a chance to shine stateside. With an amazing ammunition system that keeps you from scrambling for power ups, graphics that push the Saturn to its limits, and a superb musical score that puts other shooters to shame, Radiant Silvergun should have been a shoe-in for a US release.
Unfortunately, Radiant Silvergun came out in late 1998 as Sega was moving its attention away from the Saturn in favor of the then-upcoming Dreamcast, and the game is still an unknown entity among US gamers. Hopefully Treasure might see fit to capitalize on the cult following this game has accrued in the US and release it sometime.
