Other thing I question is whether those are new users or not. Just like I’ll start questioning that with DS and Japan sales one of these days, platforms have a point of saturation and PS2 hit theirs long ago, not to mention they are prone to malfunctioning, and the Japanese have a extra PS2 redesign that we don’t have (more compact, without external power brick, something unlike the westerners I feel they really value).

Now, Wii usually sells more software on a weekly basis in Japan, while having the aforementioned lower userbase next to the “theoretical” total PS2 userbase; difference being that Wii is on it’s way in, and PS2 is on it’s way out. There’s not even a contest in that.

We could argue though, that PS2 is a better choice than any HD console when it comes to japan and that it still tops the HD platform sales often though, but I digress.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me, and after I did the wall of text above no less. I’m not saying a PS2 version shouldn’t exist and that they’re stupid to do it, I’m saying they should be smarter and start branching their development that and that their plan for the future, after PS2, is all over the place, unless they’re planning to focus on the DS.

This is not a quest to prove that this game shouldn’t come out on PS2, mind you and I won’t even speculate that it would sell more on the Wii at this time… but they would sell more on both platforms than just one (not to mention sales outside Japan, where they could build a name, with good timing/momentum).

Branching implies we’re talking about something really cheap to do, thus we’re saying that, by not doing it, they’re leaving money on the table and not maximizing their investment, that or preparing for a time were they’ll have to jump ship by building a userbase for that transition now. If it ever happens it’ll be abrupt and it really didn’t have to be so.

Current PS2 LTD in Japan: 21,340,000
Current Wii LTD in Japan: 7,000,000

Still looks like the userbase is growing to me. Flight Plan is playing it smart.

Also, I’m concerned that maybe I at least am being misunderstood with the term branching, by branching we mean, keep the PS2 version and do a Wii build at almost no cost, that’s the whole basis to the branching argument really. No one is saying “the PS2 version shouldn’t exist” or something, I aknowledge that there’s still a worthy market there, a shrinking one at that but worthy… but it won’t last forever and they have a platform here that can cope with such games and happens to be leading, so it’s really a win-win situation for them to create a extra income source here, otherwise it’s like they’re leaving money on the table.

As for PS2 userbase being 4 times the Wii one, well, going by that PS2 sold 140 million units worldwide, and there’s like 35 million Wii’s out there, and that’s also 4 times less “theoretical” userbase. Thing is that it really is theoretical and the number of people still buying games for it is shrinking and has been for quite some time. Worldwide I’d say the active Wii userbase is already higher than PS2, and while in Japan Wii sells more software on a weekly basis I aknowledge the potential public for PS2 is still higher on it for games such as this, but not 4 times higher. And PS2 is not selling much anymore in Japan too, it’s not really a growing userbase anymore, neither there is a hype machine over it’s software anymore, which means you have to have a real high quality product to actually sell, but that just backs up what was said, that we’re talking about a platform past it’s prime were it is consistently harder to sell new products.

Atlus understands this too, and their strategy selling shows this with games at 30/40 dollars and with collectors editions and pre-order bonuses serving as incentives, is a way to counter and damage control the fact that the platform really is dying, there’s no hype machine behind it anymore and that most people picking games are looking for “greatest hit” range of prices. They’re totally failing to start branching to where they can ask full price for their stuff while keeping their actual production pipeline though.

I’d agree with you if you had said Flight Plan has nothing to lose if they ended up developing Sacred Blaze for the Wii; but truth be told, the PS2’s install base in Japan is 4x as large as the Wii’s install base, so Flight Plan choosing the PS2 for Sacred Blaze makes sense from a business perspective because they are at least guaranteed sales. Nothing more, nothing less. Face it dudes. Unless PS2 magically stops selling in Japan and the Wii (or maybe the PS3 and Xbox 360) ends up doubling or tripling it’s sales in the coming years, Japanese developers who have not jumped on the HD train are going to flock to the platform with the largest install base.

Are they gonna stay on PS2 for how long now? That’s what we’re saying, these guys, Atlus, NIS and others, need to start planning their future and build up an userbase for their products, and since they’re not that big, Wii is the way to go, not only because Wii is leading too, but because it’s cheaper and still SD, so they can keep their production pipeline and start branching their titles to it now.

Or else… we’ll get screwed in the end, there’s gonna be a point when someone is gonna pull the plug after all, and when that happens how will we get x game? It happened every generation in the past, when SNES came out they didn’t localize FF3, and opted to not publish Mother 1 on the NES, on SNES some of the reasons they didn’t publish Tales of Phantasia and Star Ocean in English was that it was too late into the generation, it always happens, that and the titles appeal simply decreases, like with Vagrant Story, that because it came out towards the end of the PSone lifecycle was ignored by the masses, PS2 active userbase is likewise already shrinking, it’s already a niche market. All that is bound to be repeated here, and there’s no reason to do that, as there is no reason to letting it drag until they suddently have to jump ship instead of starting branching now. It’s a win-win situation for them and for us, really.

I’ll buy this, as I’ll buy every Atlus and NIS PS2 game, but really, their strategy is all over the place, they should have started branching like… a year ago, and they still didn’t, so it’s only natural that as time passes more people think the same, that they’re loosing the train (and really shouldn’t). It’s fan advice/feedback if you will, more than some egoistic way of thinking, quite the oposite, we’re rooting for their growth.

Regarding being gutted by the comment system, I always felt siliconera was closer to it’s posters opinions than most newsites/blogs, you’d loose that if you’d do that, and hey, it’s not like we’re doing some kind of war over here, we talk we disagree we agree to disagree (and that said I don’t even see anyone here disagreeing), and even then no one was ever disrespectful to me here, even if we disagreed. So really, I don’t think there’s anything wrong at all, specially compared to other places in the web.

It is a mystery why most upcoming PS2 games aren’t also on the Wii. Sting (Dokapon Kingdom) gets the idea, plus they were rumored to be making a new Evolution game exclusively for the Wii.

Other than that, what other small Japanese studio bothers top bring their PS2 games to the Wii?

NIS should be bringing their whole back catalog of PS2 RPGs on the Wii. How hard can it be?! Don’t ports take only a few months and wouldn’t a PS2 to Wii port be quite inexpensive?

Disagea PSP would be better to port to the Wii than the PS2 version. It’s got more content, and has 16:9 already added in.

Plus, most of NIS’ PS2/PSP games are 2D anyway, who’s going to complain about the graphics?

Who knows, maybe they will bring their PS2/PSP games to the Wii once the get rolling onto Wii development.

I try not to complain that much when it comes to these things.