During our latest Vice Weekly Podcast we covered a segment about how 360 gamers spoke up and voiced their displeasure of getting an earlier version of Tales of Vesperia after seeing that the PS3 version is sporting a vastly superior upgrade to the 360 version (check the 99 minute mark on Vice Weekly). At a glance, I would say they have a right to be angered but after looking further into the scenario, I’d say the difference sounds about right.
Tales of Vesperia released on the 360 in August 2008, so the PS3 version will have released over a year after it came out on the 360 which makes complete sense for them to include additional content. What I don’t understand is why there is additional content for one version of the game over the other, but this has been very popular this generation.
In case you are unaware of what has been included in the PS3 version of Tales of Vesperia exclusively, allow me to fill you in.
- Full voice acting.
- Flynn as a playable character.
- Tie-ins with Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike. (Movie)
- New playable character, a pirate girl called Patty Fleur.
- New Cutscenes.
- New Subplots.
- New Costumes.
- New Bosses. (Including the Sword Dancer)
- New Dungeons.
- New Towns.
- New Hi Ougi. (Including a combo Mystic Arte with Yuri and Flynn)
- New Skits.
- New Sidequests.
- New Songs.
- New Artes.
- Repede and Flynn as selectable on-screen avatars.
- Tag Arena in Nordopolica Coliseum.
- New Quests.
- Remodeled Towns.
- Connectivity with Tales of VS. (PSP)
- Pre-order Bonus (Abyss costumes for Yuri, Flynn and Estelle)
That’s just a bit more than an upgrade, we’re talking about a whole new experience! Not to mention that we don’t have to deal with the horrible voice acting featured in the English audio version, we’ll be able to listen in Japanese and read in English text. The same can also be said for the upcoming Star Ocean 4 International release which sports Japanese audio with English subtitles as well.
Games like Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 and GTA4 and Batman: Arkham Asylum among other games have received this treatment this generation in one form or another and it seems as if Sony is giving Microsoft a taste of their own medicine. The only problem here is that gamers are getting hit with the mud in the crossfire that is being slung back and forth in this “console war” and this is where nobody wins.
The best thing that could have been done in this situation is that there would be DLC for the 360 version of Tales of Vesperia that would make that version have all the features that the new one has. The same thing goes for GTA4 as the 360 version received The Lost and the Damned while the PS3 version had no update at all.
The one thing I will say is, that being a PS3 owner I would rather have had Ninja Gaiden 2 and Tales of Vesperia when they first came out rather than wait a year or two to get an improved version of the game. Regardless of the additional content or visual upgrades as seen in Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2, at the end of the day I just want to play the game.
Then you have a game like Batman: Arkham Asylum where the PS3 gets a playable version of the Joker – exclusively to that console. While this might not be a scenario where gamers of a specific console get “beta tested”, they just flat out get the shaft and there is no two ways about it.
On another note, people are projecting downloads to be the future of gaming, but if developers keep this shady path of DLC and favoring one specific console or another. Or even worse, being lulled into a false sense of security that you can only play a certain game on said console.
Then you find out later that you played an inferior version of the game and feel like you’re being used as you want to spend your money on the best gaming experience you can afford. Or you can be on the other end of the table that is under the assumption that they will never be able to play “said game” unless they purchase the other console – only to find out you’ll be able to play that game afterall.
So at first glance, I can see why the 360 fanbase have started a petition, but in that respect, the PS3 fanbase should have started a petitional long ago and didn’t. Sometimes you have to take your lumps and keep moving, or don’t buy the game to voice your displeasure, because at the end of the day we have the power over these companies, and not the other way around.
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The Don has spokeneth, it's a celebration bitches! 
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Screw developers who take out content only to make us all pay for it.