Blazblue Central Fiction's US release

[coates32]

Recently I've found out that Blazblue Central Fiction, the fourth main game in the Blazblue series, will be the first to not get an English dub. See here for details. [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2016-09-01/blazblue-centralfiction-game-will-not-have-english-dub/.105970]

So fellow Escapists, what are your thoughts on the matter and will this change your plans on rather or not you'll be getting this game?

As for me, I've been a long time fan of the who was really into it for the story, and the lack of a dub just kills any interest I had in buying it.

 

[go-10]

given how convoluted and engrossing the story can be I do prefer sitting back and listening rather than reading so this is a major blow for me. But still I 'll probably get it since from what I understand this is the end of the story and I want to see how it ends

 

[coates32]

given how convoluted and engrossing the story can be I do prefer sitting back and listening rather than reading so this is a major blow for me. But still I 'll probably get it since from what I understand this is the end of the story and I want to see how it ends

Same here, man. The worst part about it is that it's only not getting a dub because they want to release it sooner instead of delaying it's release by a good 6-8 months.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

I only care for the original voices in all media so the dub is a nonissue.

I have been playing BB since CT back in 2009 and let me tell ya, I am absolutely hype about this game, been watching arcade footage for a year and recebtly I started replaying Xblaze lost memories because Es plyable is confirmed. I have preordered the Japanese limited edition that with shipping adds up to like $190 XD.



As for the reason for the lack of the dub, it hardly fits the term "only" and I'll explain why. Back when BBCP came out there was half a year of delay between Japan and the west so what eveyone who is anyone did was import the Japanese version because we are competitive and/or fans of the veteran Japanese voice actors and story. The issue is that imports count towards Japanese sales, so the USA version of cp did very very badly. The cut of the delay is in an effort to stop people from importing and show they have a reason to bother localzing this series, since apparently the dub fanbase segment was not big enough to support a physical release without the help of fans of the original and competitive tournament goers.


It definitely sucks for dub fans, of course, but from a community life standpoint and from a Japanee story/voice fan standpoint it rules. I mean, think about it, how wouod any beginner stand a chance when the game has been out for half a year or more and everyone imported hence has half a year worth of a head start learning the game. Delay would doom the west to getting demolished online and ruin the potential the game has for a vibrant scene.

 

[Maximum Bert]

I mean, think about it, how wouod any beginner stand a chance when the game has been out for half a year or more and everyone imported hence has half a year worth of a head start learning the game. Delay would doom the west to getting demolished online and ruin the potential the game has for a vibrant scene.

To be honest at this point in the series life I dont think that particular problem is going to go away by releasing the game sooner or be massively amplified by releasing later. People who want to learn will always find a way to do so its just most dont put dedicating time to a game to get good to be anywhere near a top priority (even if they would like to) and I can understand that.

As for the lack of dub well ill be honest I have really enjoyed the dub in Blazblue usually I am subs all the way but I think they did a good job with the translated voice cast and am sad to see it go but not enough to really care. Honestly I would rather have the game earlier than wait months for a dub. I am not hugely invested in the BB story but I am interested enough to want to see how it ends.

Really though the game has Makoto Nanaya and Nine in so thats my reason to buy it despite me being terrible at them and lacking the time and drive to improve much I always enjoy playing around as Makoto. I just hope she isnt quite so bad this time I mean I am bad enough as it is lol.

As for me, I've been a long time fan of the who was really into it for the story, and the lack of a dub just kills any interest I had in buying it.

Just out of interest why does lack of dub destroy your interest in the story? I mean its still there you just have to read it instead of listen. For me personally I always read the text as well even when it was dubbed. Would you not continue with a series if say one book was not in audio form and you had to read it yourself? I would understand if you were only semi interested in the story i.e liked it but wouldnt go out of your way to see it through but not if you were/are really into it.

I mean I dont mind what you choose to do but just seems a strange reason if you are anything other than just casually invested in it.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Went from a buy to never, so yeah, GG Aksys. Sure hope the FGC makes up for the differen- oh wait, they went back to playing SFV after 3 days. Never mind. It happened to GG, it is happening to KOF, BB has no chance.

You're talking about the people who were never gonna main an arcsys game to begin with. The capcom scene. The anime fgc has been playing these games for years and doesn't care for sf. I know from first hand experience. Don't base your judgement on what a few popular people who never really play anything outside of capcom games seriously do. They're just the capcom side of the fgc.

I mean, think about it, how wouod any beginner stand a chance when the game has been out for half a year or more and everyone imported hence has half a year worth of a head start learning the game. Delay would doom the west to getting demolished online and ruin the potential the game has for a vibrant scene.

To be honest at this point in the series life I dont think that particular problem is going to go away by releasing the game sooner or be massively amplified by releasing later. People who want to learn will always find a way to do so its just most dont put dedicating time to a game to get good to be anywhere near a top priority (even if they would like to) and I can understand that.

As for the lack of dub well ill be honest I have really enjoyed the dub in Blazblue usually I am subs all the way but I think they did a good job with the translated voice cast and am sad to see it go but not enough to really care. Honestly I would rather have the game earlier than wait months for a dub. I am not hugely invested in the BB story but I am interested enough to want to see how it ends.

Really though the game has Makoto Nanaya and Nine in so thats my reason to buy it despite me being terrible at them and lacking the time and drive to improve much I always enjoy playing around as Makoto. I just hope she isnt quite so bad this time I mean I am bad enough as it is lol.

It makes the difference when it comes down to a more or less active scene. Being double perfected for a day and quitting vs losing but feeling as though you stand a chance and can learn can help retain more people.


And yeah Makoto is solid A tier and Nine is S so you are in luck this time around.

 

[Harlemura]

I probably wasn't going to get it anyway because I went off Blazblue after not taking to Chrono Phantasma, but I'm pretty disappointed that no dub is becoming standard practice. I really liked the English dub for Guilty Gear Xrd Sign, so it was a downer to find out Revelator only had the original Japanese audio.
I main May and find her Japanese voice pretty annoying so I don't like being forced to use it, the story was less engaging because I had to read it all instead of just being able to listen, but possibly the biggest reason I don't like the lack of dub is missing out on in-game dialogue that doesn't get subtitles. The comedy gold Faust says during a fight, Leo claiming he was tying his shoe when he loses a round, and I-No flinging curses at me that I can actually understand are nice touches that I really miss. I also feel I'm missing out on the full experience of the new characters. Like, I don't have any idea what anyone who wasn't in Sign was saying, which sucks because judging from how her lines are delivered Jack-o' sounds like a right hoot.

I understand getting the game out for the competitive scene, that makes a lot of sense given how important competition is to a fighting game, but not getting a dub in the future as DLC is the part I'm not happy about. I know a lot of people took issue with Street Fighter V's launch, but I personally felt it was a good way of going about it. Get the parts of the game necessary for the competitive scene out there ASAP, then add in the additional content that may appeal to more casual players later on down the line.

 

[Maximum Bert]

It makes the difference when it comes down to a more or less active scene. Being double perfected for a day and quitting vs losing but feeling as though you stand a chance and can learn can help retain more people.


And yeah Makoto is solid A tier and Nine is S so you are in luck this time around.

I get what you are saying and I agree but point I was making is that a lot of people are not starting from zero this time so even day one there will be a lot of killers online who already have a firm grip on their characters from past iterations so beginners are going to have a hard time anyway but yeah if it matches appropriately and their is a bigger pool of beginners I can see it being good for the active player base as they can rank up together easier.

I knew Nine was good wasnt sure how good but glad Makoto is good this time. Wont stop me being bodied but hopefully some things wont seem so hopeless this time around then. I am actually really looking forward to CF not sure how much I will play but I gotta get it and try it again since Makoto is one of my favourite fighting game characters ever. Bit off topic but am really enjoying KOFXIV atm loving some of the character designs and the way it plays. So many good fighters out there atm although with quality releases like Revelator and KOFXIV I would hope it would put bigger name fighters to shame and get them to up their game a bit but it doesnt seem to be happening. Guess thats the power of strong branding.

 

[coates32]

As for me, I've been a long time fan of the who was really into it for the story, and the lack of a dub just kills any interest I had in buying it.

Just out of interest why does lack of dub destroy your interest in the story? I mean its still there you just have to read it instead of listen. For me personally I always read the text as well even when it was dubbed. Would you not continue with a series if say one book was not in audio form and you had to read it yourself? I would understand if you were only semi interested in the story i.e liked it but wouldnt go out of your way to see it through but not if you were/are really into it.

I mean I dont mind what you choose to do but just seems a strange reason if you are anything other than just casually invested in it.

Well there are a couple of reasons for that. First, I'm used to and strongly prefer the dub actors over the Japanese voices, and second when there's no (good) dub option, it much harder for me to get invested in the characters. It got particularly bad for me for most of the DOA franchise.

To answer your question about the audio book, even though I'm not that into novels, I would rather just read the novel than listen to an audio book.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Went from a buy to never, so yeah, GG Aksys. Sure hope the FGC makes up for the differen- oh wait, they went back to playing SFV after 3 days. Never mind. It happened to GG, it is happening to KOF, BB has no chance.

You're talking about the people who were never gonna main an arcsys game to begin with. The capcom scene. The anime fgc has been playing these games for years and doesn't care for sf. I know from first hand experience. Don't base your judgement on what a few popular people who never really play anything outside of capcom games seriously do. They're just the capcom side of the fgc.

That's the thing though, the Capcom portion is so big, that the minority of players there that buy these games just try them out is bigger than the straight Arcsys/anime fighter buying portion anyway. This is the reason why you have a lot of people in the FGC playing these games for a week and then going back to SF, you cannot believe how many times I read "yeah, Xrd plays awesome, it is the best looking fighter out right now, and I only played it for a weekend and went back to playing Street Fighter". And Guilty Gear is the anime fighter that seems to respected more and is the more popular one in the FGC. (Blazblue does sell better overall all though I recall.) BB seems to be looked down on somewhat, mostly complemented on mechanics.

I think you're relating them too much. Yeah, arcsys games are niche, nobody denies that. This doesn't actually undo anything. It'd be like saying that because all the call of duty only people didn't play Okami for more than a week that it somehow is an issue with Okami. No, the issue is with those specific people. Call of Duty fans are equally as much not the actual fanbase of Okami, even if they do buy it at some point. Similarly, capcom fans are not the intended audience of arcsys games. The size of each fanbase being completely irrelevant. One wouldn't nornally deem a game a failure for failing to retain call of duty fans when the game isn't call of duty, same reasoning applies here.


Blazblue has recieved rave revies and is awesome, some of the community don't comprehend the systems enough or have a bias against modern style Japanese themes but that goes for a lot of games. Guitly Gear is so alike it that any variance in treatment between the two games is sheer idiocy, as BB was the spiritual succesor for the time they didn't have the rights for GG.


Ultimately, SF people don't get to define a game they don't play out of sheer number. Hell, even they talk down on SFV and the extra 8 frames of lag it has, they play it in hopes of being better after enough dlc is out lol. Blazblue is fine with a smaller but more skilled on averge and devoted community.

 

[PurplePonyArcade]

Recently I've found out that Blazblue Central Fiction, the fourth main game in the Blazblue series, will be the first to not get an English dub. See here for details. [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2016-09-01/blazblue-centralfiction-game-will-not-have-english-dub/.105970]

So fellow Escapists, what are your thoughts on the matter and will this change your plans on rather or not you'll be getting this game?

As for me, I've been a long time fan of the who was really into it for the story, and the lack of a dub just kills any interest I had in buying it.

Thank you for asking. I do not mind at all. I for one do not like the dub. That said it is no excuse for not having one. It does not bother me at all, but it is a shame for the people who do like it. I myself just can't be bothered by it.
For one I am apart of the competitive community and while I can wait most can't and don't. They want to be ahead in the game so they import the games as soon as possible to get the upper hand while they can so a dub is not even a thing to them even while I think the Japanese console version of ChronoPhantasma had the english dub on it. A mix of not caring for the dub and the fact that even if I don't important there is a chance I will play the important version first anyway through a tournament scene just kind of makes it impossible for me to care on a lack of dub. I've been into the story to, but after blazing through Chronophantasma's story all the way through and finding out its not the end to the series it should have been I am totally done with anything but practice/competitive fun even while still appreciating the lore.

 

[PurplePonyArcade]

Went from a buy to never, so yeah, GG Aksys. Sure hope the FGC makes up for the differen- oh wait, they went back to playing SFV after 3 days. Never mind. It happened to GG, it is happening to KOF, BB has no chance.

You're talking about the people who were never gonna main an arcsys game to begin with. The capcom scene. The anime fgc has been playing these games for years and doesn't care for sf. I know from first hand experience. Don't base your judgement on what a few popular people who never really play anything outside of capcom games seriously do. They're just the capcom side of the fgc.

That's the thing though, the Capcom portion is so big, that the minority of players there that buy these games just try them out is bigger than the straight Arcsys/anime fighter buying portion anyway. This is the reason why you have a lot of people in the FGC playing these games for a week and then going back to SF, you cannot believe how many times I read "yeah, Xrd plays awesome, it is the best looking fighter out right now, and I only played it for a weekend and went back to playing Street Fighter". And Guilty Gear is the anime fighter that seems to respected more and is the more popular one in the FGC. (Blazblue does sell better overall all though I recall.) BB seems to be looked down on somewhat, mostly complemented on mechanics.

I think you're relating them too much. Yeah, arcsys games are niche, nobody denies that. This doesn't actually undo anything. It'd be like saying that because all the call of duty only people didn't play Okami for more than a week that it somehow is an issue with Okami. No, the issue is with those specific people. Call of Duty fans are equally as much not the actual fanbase of Okami, even if they do buy it at some point. Similarly, capcom fans are not the intended audience of arcsys games. The size of each fanbase being completely irrelevant. One wouldn't nornally deem a game a failure for failing to retain call of duty fans when the game isn't call of duty, same reasoning applies here.


Blazblue has recieved rave revies and is awesome, some of the community don't comprehend the systems enough or have a bias against modern style Japanese themes but that goes for a lot of games. Guitly Gear is so alike it that any variance in treatment between the two games is sheer idiocy, as BB was the spiritual succesor for the time they didn't have the rights for GG.


Ultimately, SF people don't get to define a game they don't play out of sheer number. Hell, even they talk down on SFV and the extra 8 frames of lag it has, they play it in hopes of being better after enough dlc is out lol. Blazblue is fine with a smaller but more skilled on averge and devoted community.

Dreiko! I totally legit did not expect you here! I can't fully agree with you on a skill gap of communities partially because different games in each series have different levels of difficulty and also because of the preferences of different people.
That and even easier games being the best is hard, maybe harder to some because of how many more people can play them but that is all in theory. One I can't agree or disagree with because getting good at harder games is obviously pretty hard to.
I will agree that Blazblue is a harder, or if you prefer, more skill heavy game than Street Fighter V.
IDK, as I have said before I like Street Fighter, Blazblue and a holy mother load of other fighting games because I am just an enthusiast for the genre in general.

That said I want to be respectful to OP and go back to the topic. Again I do not care about the loss of a dub and again I still feel those who want it should get it since we already have established voices all of which I believe are still alive.
However as you said it is unfortunately niche appeal and for that reason I do not see a loss of dub being a huge loss of sales and for all we know could be a way of cutting corners. Even then Arc System Works have money to play around with. They'd have even more if they had a nicer released schedule and I think paying the voice actors to keep the fewer fans who like them evens things out pretty fairly.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Its less the game being harder and more the fact thst a whole hella lot more casuals play the less niche games so by definition skill average will take a nosedive. Though I do have a habit to swim in the sharkiest of shark pools so it may color my view a bit lol.

 

[coates32]

Snip of OP

Thank you for asking. I do not mind at all. I for one do not like the dub. That said it is no excuse for not having one. It does not bother me at all, but it is a shame for the people who do like it. I myself just can't be bothered by it.
For one I am apart of the competitive community and while I can wait most can't and don't. They want to be ahead in the game so they import the games as soon as possible to get the upper hand while they can so a dub is not even a thing to them even while I think the Japanese console version of ChronoPhantasma had the english dub on it. A mix of not caring for the dub and the fact that even if I don't important there is a chance I will play the important version first anyway through a tournament scene just kind of makes it impossible for me to care on a lack of dub. I've been into the story to, but after blazing through Chronophantasma's story all the way through and finding out its not the end to the series it should have been I am totally done with anything but practice/competitive fun even while still appreciating the lore.

I think that is a perfectly reasonable point of view for you to have on this issue, given that you don't much interest in this franchise's dub, and that's fine. Also, thank you for replying to my question.

 

[PurplePonyArcade]

Snip of OP

Thank you for asking. I do not mind at all. I for one do not like the dub. That said it is no excuse for not having one. It does not bother me at all, but it is a shame for the people who do like it. I myself just can't be bothered by it.
For one I am apart of the competitive community and while I can wait most can't and don't. They want to be ahead in the game so they import the games as soon as possible to get the upper hand while they can so a dub is not even a thing to them even while I think the Japanese console version of ChronoPhantasma had the english dub on it. A mix of not caring for the dub and the fact that even if I don't important there is a chance I will play the important version first anyway through a tournament scene just kind of makes it impossible for me to care on a lack of dub. I've been into the story to, but after blazing through Chronophantasma's story all the way through and finding out its not the end to the series it should have been I am totally done with anything but practice/competitive fun even while still appreciating the lore.

I think that is a perfectly reasonable point of view for you to have on this issue, given that you don't much interest in this franchise's dub, and that's fine. Also, thank you for replying to my question.

Of course. Its a shame a fan like yourself was left disappointed though.

 

[coates32]

Might as well link this here:
https://www.change.org/p/aksys-games-support-the-dub-for-blazblue-central-fiction

Sign if you want to show interest. Surprisingly, there are 3000 signatures already, which considering this wasn't on any major gaming site, is pretty good.

In the places I looked most people seem to be disappointed. It's easy to forget because they're very, and at times obnoxiously, vocal, but sub preference describes a small minority of people. Because they tend to be enthusiast by nature, they represent themselves in a higher amount in these enthusiast circles.

Bit of trivia. Companies like Xseed have gone on record saying that games with dubs sell better and recieve better placement in stores compared to sub only games. They've also said that dub only actually sells better than sub only.

Sorry about the late reply, but I'm glad you provided the link to the petition. Even though I'm a dub-only person, I still find it a bit amazing that there more dub fans than sub fans for these type of games.

Also, for those wondering games with dubs selling better, here's the article that a former Xseed employee said about that here.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Might as well link this here:
https://www.change.org/p/aksys-games-support-the-dub-for-blazblue-central-fiction

Sign if you want to show interest. Surprisingly, there are 3000 signatures already, which considering this wasn't on any major gaming site, is pretty good.

In the places I looked most people seem to be disappointed. It's easy to forget because they're very, and at times obnoxiously, vocal, but sub preference describes a small minority of people. Because they tend to be enthusiast by nature, they represent themselves in a higher amount in these enthusiast circles.

Bit of trivia. Companies like Xseed have gone on record saying that games with dubs sell better and recieve better placement in stores compared to sub only games. They've also said that dub only actually sells better than sub only.

Sorry about the late reply, but I'm glad you provided the link to the petition. Even though I'm a dub-only person, I still find it a bit amazing that there more dub fans than sub fans for these type of games.

Also, for those wondering games with dubs selling better, here's the article that a former Xseed employee said about that here.

I think it's obvious games sell better when in the language of the place they're being sold because people tend to have an innate bias towards their native tongue and not everyone is an art connosseur that cares about things such as original intent and keeping cultural content distinct. Especially when the alternative doesn't require you to learn new things about other cultures to fully get everything. Same reason why ramen is more popular than curry rice in the states.

What sheer numbers fail to indicate is the level of knowledge and more importantly devotion to the series each fan has, hence why they cut the dub which would seem counter intuitive based on these data points. To those who didn't play Xblaze in any case lol.


Alas, havin to learng English to play games from a very young age (there were no SUBS, never mind dubs, in the language I grew up speaking lol) and knowing Japanese, I see no reason to boher with dubs any more.