Video games were an odd business in the 80s and 90s. Because of the crash involving Atari, the world was still hesitant about the medium. This could be one reason why so many games were trapped in Japan or were retooled as something completely different in the West.
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For example,Super Mario Bros. 2was a re-skinned version of a game calledDoki Doki Panic. There are tons of examples like this, but then there are video game series that are released out of order. Re-skinning games and order revisions are two things that probably aren’t going to happen anymore, thankfully. It can be fun to remember though, so here are some big examples worth mentioning.
6Culdcept
TheCuldceptseries has a dedicated group of fans, but it is a niche bunch of individuals. It all began in 1991 in Japan on the Sega Saturn. TheCuldceptgamesare tactical RPGscrossed with a monster summoning game via cards crossed with a board game likeMonopoly. It is a hodgepodge of ideas which makes it a genre all its own.
The second game,Culdcept Second, was the first one to release outside of Japan. The West missed the initial Dreamcast launch in 2001, but it did get the PS2 port in 2003. The next game,Culdcept Saga, was released without a hitch on the Xbox 360 in 2008. This was two years after Japan which was a big gap admittedly. The next two games on the DS and 3DS were skipped but the sixth and final game as of now,Culdcept Revolt, did get a release on the 3DS in 2017 in North America.
5EarthBound
EarthBoundwas the second game in the series which was released in 1995 on the SNES in North America. This was a year after the Japanese launch which referred to it asMother 2. The first game,Mother, was released on the NES in Japan in 1989. Funnily enough, an English version was completed but it was shelved just before it went into full production for market.
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Later this prototype wound up online, which is how a lot ofEarthBoundfans played it for the first time via emulation. Years later, Mother was renamedEarthBound Beginningsand was released digitally in 2015 on the Wii U’s eShop in North America. There is one other game in the series,Mother 3on GBA, which fans have been dying to play officially since it was released in 2006.
4Final Fantasy
Final Fantasyhas one of the wildest release stories in all of gaming. The series began in Japan in 1987 on the NES. In 1990, it finally hit the West. Instead of releasing the second or third games next, Square Enix, Squaresoft at the time, decided to rebrand the upcoming fourth game asFinal Fantasy 2. That was released on the SNES in 1991 followed by another skipping of sequels asFinal Fantasy 6becameFinal Fantasy 3.
WhenFinal Fantasy 7launched on the PS1 in 1997, it kept its original name. From then on all games that were released in the West kept their original names. It took a while but eventually, the previous missing titles from the NES and SNES generations made it here too which is a whole other story.
3Fire Emblem
It took a very long time for this series to hit the Western market. The series began in 1990 on the NES viaFire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light. The first game to hit North America was on the GBA in 2003. It was just calledFire Embleminstead ofFire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. After that, the West received every mainline game going forward and in order.
Some spinoffs did not come over though likeFire Emblem: New Mystery of the Emblem. Also, only two titles before 2003 were released in the West.Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Lightgot a digital port in 2020 via the Switch andFire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentiawas a 3DS remake in 2017. The original game, Fire Emblem Gaiden, was a 1992 NES game. Will the SNES generation of games ever make it over here officially?
2Growlanser
Growlanseris anobscure tactical RPGseries that even hardcore fans may not be aware of. The series began in Japan on the PS1 in 1999. The first game to ever hit the West was in 2004 viaGrowlanser Generations. This was a PS2 collection of the second and third games. Then, in 2007,Growlanser: Heritage of Warwas released on the PS2.
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This was the fifth game in the series though. Eventually, the fourth title did get a release too but not until 2012 as a PSP port known asGrowlanser: Wayfarer of Time. As of right now the first game and the sixth game, which is also the final game, are missing in action.
1Shin Megami Tensei
The first game the West got in this series wasShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne. The main games were released normally after this. Rewinding back a bit, this series started in 1987 withDigital Devil Story: Megami Tensei. There were two games under that name untilShin Megami Tenseiwas released in 1992 on the SNES.
The only version released officially in English was in 2014 for mobile devices.Shin Megami Tensei 2,Digital Devil Story: Megami Tenseiand a plethora of spinoffs remain trapped in Japan. Mega fans of the franchise can look for English fan translations online though.
