Topic: Sega Removing R-Type From Virtual Console

[the_dan_x]

The Master System version is getting the axe from the Wii VC.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/27947

Sega is removing the Sega Master System version of R-Type from the Wii Virtual Console on September 30.

While there are few details as to why the game is being removed, the writer of the of the blog entry on Sega.com went on to mention in the comment section that he believes it is due to “a licensing issue but can’t comment on anything beyond that.” He went one to say, “Unfortunately we are not always able to sell every game forever in every location.”

Irem, creators of R-Type removed their properties from the PlayStation Store and PlayStation Home earlier this month. No reason was given, but it does not bode well for Irem's other games on Virtual Console.

The Master System version of R-Type was originally released on the Wii in 2009 worldwide.

[leahsdad]

Licensing from what?

R-type isn't based on any existing property, is it?  I wonder if it's an issue of ownership, like maybe Sega doesn't actually own R-Type, but licenses it from someone else?

[Pale]

I don't really care about this game specifically, but this really burns me up.

I really really really want to see games stay up on services like the VC for the life of the VC, which is hopefully a really long time.

Part of me honestly wants to buy the game so I have it. But then a bigger part of me says screw it, the last thing I want these guys to get is a bump in sales for this... whoever "these guys" are in this case.

[Flames_of_chaos]

FYI, the licensing issue is that Irem is close to closing it's doors and I believe that they have sold some of their licenses including R-Type. I have heard that the R-Type games have been pulled from PSN already.


Also, I wouldn't want to buy the Sega Master System version of R-Type considering that the superior Turbo-Grafx 16 version is still currently available. If anyone is wondering, there are a total of 4 R-Type games available currently on the VC, which are: R-Type (TGFX-16), R-Type (SMS), Super R-Type (SNES), R-Type III: The Third Lightning (SNES).

[Pandareus]

I was gonna ask: nothing has been said about the TG-16 version? That's the one I got.

And does anyone know if people who have bought a game that's been pulled off the service can re-download it forever, even if it is no longer for sale? I think either Live or PSN do this.

[Luigi Dude]

Crap this is kind of scary.  I've been wanting to buy the R-Type games for a while now but have never gotten around to it.  I'm guessing if Sega just lost the rights, it's only a matter of time before Nintendo loses them and the SNES games go off the service and Konami loses them for the TG-16.

I need to remember to download these games next time I have access to the Virtual Console.

[KDR_11k]

To be fair the best version of the game is R-Type Dimensions on the 360 (and PS3?) which has the arcade versions of 1 and 2. Still, it's disheartening to hear that old, complete versions of the game have to be pulled just because Irem is dying. Who the hell is buying those rights, EA?

[Mop it up]

Is this the first time that a game has been removed from the Virtual Console?

[broodwars]

Is this the first time that a game has been removed from the Virtual Console?

I think so, though we have previously had WiiWare titles removed from the service.

As for the story, if you cared about this version of R-Type (which is apparently an inferior version), you already own it.  And if you already own it, you can still redownload it if you please.  I don't see anything major being lost here.

[MegaByte]

Though, if DSiWare is any indication, you won't be able to transfer it to Wii U if/when that ability becomes available.

[Morari]

And if you bought the game but have to redownload it at a later date? Oops, sorry! Welcome to the wonderful world of digital distribution, where you don't actually own anything. I'm shocked they aren't retroactively revoking copies from people that did purchase it. It's certainly not unheard of on similar setups, like the Kindle.

[NWR_insanolord]

Except that if past instances on other services are an indicator, you will still be able to redownload it if you already bought it. It's just that no new people will be able to buy it.

[broodwars]

And if you bought the game but have to redownload it at a later date? Oops, sorry! Welcome to the wonderful world of digital distribution, where you don't actually own anything.

There's a certain irony to this statement considering he's a big PC gamer and digital distribution (mainly Steam) is pretty much the only viable distribution method for PC games these days.

But as Insanolord said, I've yet to see a digital distribution service where you can't redownload a title once you've purchased it, even if it's taken off the main store.  I do think it's a valid concern whether this game will be transferable to whatever the next incarnation of the Wii Shop is, though.  On the upside, as games shift inevitably towards full digital distribution, I have no doubt that issues like these will...eventually...get ironed out to some sort of equilibrium when it comes to ownership.

[TJ Spyke]

Is this the first time that a game has been removed from the Virtual Console?

In North America, I think so. It's happened in Europe before though.

[GoldenPhoenix]

Is this the first time that a game has been removed from the Virtual Console?

Wasn't Ghosts N Goblins for NES removed? Not sure if it came back or not though.

[broodwars]

Is this the first time that a game has been removed from the Virtual Console?

Wasn't Ghosts N Goblins for NES removed? Not sure if it came back or not though.

Yeah, Google returned this Joystiq article on the game's removal.

[SilverQuilava]

well that's just lame.

[Morari]

There's a certain irony to this statement considering he's a big PC gamer and digital distribution (mainly Steam) is pretty much the only viable distribution method for PC games these days.

Nope, sorry. Unless it's an indie title, you generally still have boxed releases as an option. I don't much care for Steam precisely because of the potential for abuse. Sadly, it is completely unavoidable for a handful of titles.

But as Insanolord said, I've yet to see a digital distribution service where you can't redownload a title once you've purchased it, even if it's taken off the main store.

Perhaps not for games, but there are similar instances where content has been not only denied, but remotely deleted from devices. Amazon's Kindle has had a few notable instances of this, perhaps most ironically with George Orwell's 1984.

The general point being that digital distribution is just another narrow channel of control. It's a finite service and that kill switch is over looming over the consumer's head. Nintendo already loves to sell, sell, and resell their old games. All the better that they can build in planned obsolescence from system to system, format to format.

[TJ Spyke]

But in that case, it was because the person who uploaded the book to the Kindle store did not have the legal right to do so.

[NWR_insanolord]

Yeah, that is a bit of a different situation. If someone sells you something they don't own, you don't get to keep it.

[UncleBob]

For what it's worth, the Wii Shop channel has actually set precedent both ways - some titles that have been removed from the Wii Shop (say, Metroid Prime 3 Preview) can still be redownloaded while other titles (Pokémon Rumble Demo and the rest of the demos from that first run) cannot be redownloaded.

[NWR_insanolord]

I don't think either of those can be considered precedent in this case. It has to be something purchased to really count. Did the people who bought The Lost Levels when it was a limited time thing in Europe still have the ability to download it after that expired?