Ask anyone who missed an Atlus title's launch and attempted to pick it up later how hard finding their games can be. The only thing worse than being the gamer who tries to find the recommended Atlus title "too late" is being the "responsible" game buyer that let a good one slip through the cracks. After being both several times, I started wondering why their games are so damned hard to find.
Luckily, MTV Multiplayer is on the case. They spoke with Atlus public relations lead Aram Jabbari about demand problems, and it turns out that some of the problem lies with the company's size. The small publisher releases only niche Japanese titles, and this forces them to be very conservative with release numbers. “There’s no malice in it,” says Jabbari. “I wish we could produce to demand.”
“It’s a lot better to come up five percent short of total sales, as opposed to having 25 percent excess product. With that [extra] 25 percent, you’re going to have markdowns,” said Jabbari.
Sometimes, things are completely out of their hands. Last year's PS2 title Odin's Sphere was produced to the normal conservative estimates, but when the reviews and word of mouth hit, there were only so many copies to go around, and demand went through the roof. And it seems like the launch of the DS Lite managed to boost demand of Trauma Center: Under The Knife. The game was already about a year old by then.
It doesn't sound like Atlus intends to increase production numbers anytime soon. But, gamers that play these types of games have known that for awhile. I recently had problems finding a copy of Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness for the PSP. I lost my original PS1 copy of Persona, and I'm still desperately looking for a good quality copy. Arcana Heart is already reserved, so I don't have to mess with hunting it down. I pray that Persona 3: FES makes it to my house safely.
My first instinct is to blame Atlus for creating a kind of false demand. But, the more I think about it, the more I realize that their typical release is not even close to a mainstream game, and that they're really taking big risks with every release. And, in the long run, if their conservative releases help them to continue releasing quirky JRPGs and the like, I guess I can continue to preorder and hunt these titles down.
Contest:
10:48 PM on 03.27.2008
| 
And how damn coincidental, I just bought cubivore used from gs not even 1 week ago.
Still, I've come to love Atlus games. I really enjoyed Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis for the GBA back in the day, and I have other Atlus games I'm pretty fond of too.
PS, was it persona or persona 2 that was reprinted by gamequestdirect?
xoxo
Since then, I've only purchased a few Atlus games because many are just way too hardcore for my tastes (Izuna and Etrian Oddesy). I did however buy both Trauma Centers for the Wii and enjoyed the hell out of 'em.
Oh, and Contact! I fucking loved that game! Did anyone else here play Contact?
Reply to my damned emails, you corporate whore.
Thank God for companies like Atlus. If not for them and Konami, I wouldn't bother with video games to the extent that I do now.
Just got Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha versus the Soulless Army free from a Hollywood Video that was closing down paired with my copy of La Pucelle Tactics...I think I got a good haul for only $3
Also STEAMBOT CHRONICLES.
And yeah, as pointed out, Afternoon of Darkness is handled by NIS America now.
Aaaaand I have FES pre-ordered to come in the mail with the Disgaea 2 Art Book.
I'm amazed Odin Sphere was in such high demand considering how terrible it was, where people so desperate for 2D visuals?
Some collectors hate this practice because it devalues a previously rare game (I know I'd be pissed if they started reprinting Valkyrie Profile on PS1, since they have reprinted games as old as that), but overall, it's a positive process because the new games are indistinguishable from the first run and still of the same quality and legality, meaning more gamers get to experience these games.
The only series Atlus (parent Japanese company) generally makes is Shin Megami Tensei series...
Sorry, you're right. They published Contact and they'll publish Drone Tactics. I took a browse through their website though, and I wish R-type command was coming to DS as well as PSP. :(
Still though, they publish some pretty good games.
But Atlus is my AntiSquenix, I've learned to love them for all the shortcomings of my former love:
Hey, hey Square-Enix? Remember back when I was a kid, and you cockblocked ALL those cool RPG titles from the Super Nintendo because we weren't Japanese? Yeah... Atlus is giving me the satisfaction that I need, that you were rarely ever able to provide. Also, you have a 1 inch peenor.
Once they break even on their fixed costs then the whole $30-$50 for the is pure profit for them. So in theory they have nothing to lose by releasing more copies. They would still make money even if they sold the game for $20.
However, if they didn't do such limited releases then people may not be as willing to pick them up immediately, which could affect sales.
I think
And Atlus is just not giving themselves enough credit.
I'm getting Odins Sphere and some others now, though, so I can have them to play rather than never having them at a later time.
Another downside to these, they will never hit the Greatest Hits list because of their low production quantities. IMHO, that's something every game should try to get on, rather than stay under.