The Idolmaster 2/Headscratchers


 * Regarding the PlayStation 3 port, why is everyone rejoicing? Sure, you don't have to get a Japanese console to play it, but all of the text is still gonna be in Japanese, so unless you're fluent in the language, or the PlayStation 3 automatically translates the text, why bother with the game?
 * There ARE a few things to rejoice. Even if the text is still in japanese, the way the game is structured, you can, with a little help, still play it well enough to get the True Ends. You don't need to have a fluent japanese to be able to play. For another, since the PlayStation 3 version isn't region locked the cost-benefit isn't as steep as it would be with an japanese Xbox360.
 * Still doesn't make much sense to me. How would you know how to respond the correct way to whatever someone is saying if you can't understand Japanese. I just can't imagine that working no matter how the game is structured, unless it points at the correct response or you have a Game FA Qs translation on your computer the whole time, which sounds more like work than anything.
 * Think of it this way. To play Im@s before you needed an investment of around U$1200 (A japanese Xbox360 plus the game), wich, unless you intended to keep buying japanese Xbox games seems a little steep for the general fan. With an unlocked PlayStation 3 port, you can play it on the PlayStation 3 you already had. Alternativelly, if you need to buy one, it isn't going to be only for japanese games, like the Xbox one (like this troper has done and since hearding of the PlayStation 3 port been cursing Bandai-Namco).
 * Well, when you pit it like that, I can see it working from an economical standpoint, but my point is, if you're not versed in Japanese and you buy the game, you're pretty boned unless you're willing to either learn Japanese (in which case, more power to you) or look back at your computer screen every 20 or so seconds to read a translation someone posted online.
 * There's that, but some people simply don't care about the story itself (wich would beg the question as of to why play it at all) but play it for the gameplay itself (or the Moe Factor, but that's another story). Granted, the gameplay isn't that interesting without the story, but after a few playthroughs, you can pretty much play it all without knowing anything about japanese at all. The gameplay itself is pretty repetitive and with time you can recognize the answers and options to give without the help of a guide and/or knowing japanese at all. But getting back to the original bullet, I think that the economic factor is THE major part of the rejoicing for the fandom. It didn't avert the No Export for You part but it's still cheaper. Most people (outside Japan, obviously) wouldn't even think of buying it if a PlayStation 3 port didn't existed.