Pandora's Tower

UPDATE: Pre-order from Amazon now! http://amzn.to/UEtDE7

Pandora’s Tower has always been considered the underdog of the Operation Rainfall campaign. Of the three games, it was the one considered least likely to arrive stateside. Even though our campaign has long since retired, and the Oprainfall Staff is in a completely different state of mind than we were around June 2011, I can guarantee you there is not one single person among us who is not completely overjoyed by this surprise twist from XSEED.

XSEED Teaser Image

We saw this image last night when it first appeared on their social media. Many of us were skeptical, despite the symbolism. A lot of people assumed it would be the next chapter in the Ys franchise, or something similar. But… it’s been confirmed, ladies and gentlemen.

Pitching Pandora's Tower

Pandora’s Tower will available on the Wii in North America by the Spring of this year.

“It’s fantastic to be bringing such a highly-anticipated title like Pandora’s Tower to such a vocal fan base,” said XSEED’s Shinichi Suzuki, President. “North American gamers have been very patient in waiting for this game to be released, and we’re confident they will be pleased when they get their hands on the title.”

I’m honestly at a loss for words. I think most of us are! How much did this announcement come out of left field for us, the XSEED faithful? How freaking excited are you all in North America to finally be able to experience this game? Be sure to let us know, in some way shape or form.

Rain is mostly a calming phenomenon in my eyes. But if I urge one thing from everyone reading this, as someone who has supported Operation Rainfall since the beginning—show XSEED a storm of support to the likes of which have never been seen! Let them know how much you appreciate their efforts.

We’ll offer more information as it comes.

SOURCE

Jonathan Higgins
[Former Staff] Jonathan parted ways with Operation Rainfall on June 15th, 2014. You can follow him on Twitter @radicaldefect.
http://www.twitter.com/radicaldefect

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94 thoughts on “XSEED Announces Pandora’s Tower for North America”

    1. It’s real, all right. I saw this news on Destructoid a few minutes ago. The timestamp said their site had posted it 3 minutes ago, and when I came here (and Facebook), it wasn’t even posted here yet.

      Woot!

  4. This was the first one I was interested in out of the original three. So I can say with one hundred percent certainty that I am squealing like a fangirl on the inside.

  6. I love Xseed.  They do an amazing job.  I imported this from the UK forever a go.  I really didn’t think this was going to come here.  It is a very touching game.  The controls aren’t perfect but the combat is generally pretty unique and fun.  Also, the boss fights are just insanely good.  It is a really unique game that is worth a play for anyone because there is nothing remotely like it.

    1.  Operation Rainfall had nothing to do with this.

      Just like The Last Story which XSeed themselves said Op Rainfall didn’t influence their decision at all. Good news the game is coming though.

    2. Riiiiight. Op.Rainfall headlined the big three for months.

      These companies never want to look wrong, and by admitting that fans convinced them to bring us something, they do just that.

    3.  In what way would they be wrong if they said Operation Rainfall influenced them?

      They’re a business, they don’t care as long as people buy their games. If it looked like only a handful of hardcore fans that post on Operation Rainfall were going to buy The Last Story and Pandoras Tower XSeed would never bring them over.

    4. (For some reason I can’t directly reply to you mmmpepsi)

      My point was that if they had admitted that was Op.Rainfall that helped bring it over, they’d look wrong(stupid as well, among other things)if the games didn’t sell well.

      You may think its only a few fans here that they’d be localizing it for but dude, you have to realize word of mouth is an incredibly uncredited and underestimated resource.  I’m 85% sure I wouldn’t have given The Last Story much thought if it hadn’t been in my face for 3 months.  It was mentioned in every 3rd article on IGN.com, kotaku.com and many others.

      This isn’t 2003 when an AOL forum fawns for something.  It’s 2013 – twitter and facebook alone make a lot of noise when it comes to fan support.

    5. You know, there’s a reason he said “vocal fanbase”.
      HMMMMM, NOW WHO OR WHAT DOES THAT REMIND YOU OF?

    8. It may not have influenced their decision per se, but the fact of the matter is that Operation Rainfall made these games more widely known than otherwise. Operation Rainfall was referenced in numerous gaming articles and forums for quite a while since its creation, so word of mouth spread like wildfire, thus increasing interest in the games.

      After announcing the localization of The Last Story, XSeed even said that they didn’t have any intentions of localizing Pandora’s Tower (likely due to its poorer sales compared to XC and TLS), but here we are with an expected release.

      OpRa may not have influenced them directly, but without it, the knowledge of these games’ existence could very well have been overlooked by countless potential buyers, leaving a localization publisher (like XSeed) to not bother with it due to an expected lack of profitability.

      Anyway, I can’t help but thank XSeed enough for all of the excellent localizations that they’ve done over the years. They are certainly one of my absolute favorite gaming companies!

  11. I never thought this game would be released in the states, seeing how the Wii U has kinda overshadowed the Wii at this point. Regardless, I will be pre-ordering it the minute it becomes available on Amazon, GameStop, wherever.

  12. Wow. Xseed rocks! First they give us the last story and now pandoras tower! They are such an awesome publisher! And now we can finally close this chapter in our history. We did make a difference after all. We supported the last story and made it Xseeds most successful game to date and we can do it again. Lets make Xseed a ton of money with pandoras tower!

  13.  Everyone start saving up your coin so you can spend all of it on flowers, plants, fabrics, bracelets, dresses and other things you have to keep handing Elena so she likes you instead of turning into a beast and eating you!

  15. Thank you to XSeed for publishing both The Last Story and now Pandora’s Tower. But also thank you Operation Rainfall for starting the campaign which I know helped bring these two games and Xenoblade over to NA. Own the first two, will be buying PT day 1 for sure.

  20. When I saw this earlier today I was really excited and very happy about it and this is the one that I have been most looking forward to. I knew this was coming out it was only a matter of time. 

  23. well, I think its safe to say, and it goes without saying, that Operation Rainfall was indeed a success. 🙂

  27. I am buying this game SO HARD that the freaking Game Stop is gonna need foundation repairs once I get through.

    And to the OG Operation Rainfall staff:  You deserve ALL of the beers!  I have and will purchase every single game that you guys made me aware of through the original campaign–And I have enjoyed the hell out of each.  I’m certain that when the last rooster finally comes home to roost, I will not be disappointed.

    From this Nintendo (Wii) fan (still my only console in this generation):  Thank you 🙂

  29. My God! XSEED is officially a miracle worker. These people are truly saints. What an amazing company! I could not be more thrilled right now, and I officially have nothing left to complain about! Thank you so much Operation Rainfall for reaching out to XSEED and all the hard work that you guys did to help make this possible!

  31. holy crap, that is great news now we must fight for all the unreleased tales games, starting with tales of innocence R and hearts R

  33. Pretty amazing stuff. i still remember that same time June 2011 when I admit I was extremely doubtful this would be successful.  The JRPG franchise was just another thing i loved and lost along in my childhood with no clear reason other than americans just liked shooting the hell out of each other with big guns instead of being moved by an amazing story. 
    I kept on this site daily (and still do), and I realized “holy hell, this may actually work”
    and would you look at this.
    it really did.
    Not only did it bring great games overseas, it rescued my favorite genre in all of my life. JRPGs now have a ray of hope thanks to this community’s great, appropriate, and loud voice, and this community in general.
    I just wanted to say thank you Operation Rainfall. your success has blown me away, and i’m now more hopeful than ever that our voice can be heard.

  36. I will give all my money to them this proves to me XSEED is now my favorite company

  37. Alright guys. I think we can all agree that XSeed is one of the greatest publishers of all time.

  41. The second I imported it… it gets localized… well good for all you people who didn’t import it. I’ll be staring at my shelf contemplating the $45 I spent for nothing.

  44. Why would they have kept up the front that they weren’t going to bring this over?  They should have just said ages ago that they were working on it (unless they weren’t and this is a relatively recent decision for them, which would be interesting).

  45. This is unexpected! I imported this one months ago because I was certain we wouldn’t see a release, but it looks like we were all surprised! One of the best games I’ve played in years! Reminds me of a blend of Neir, Shadow of the Colossus, and Castlevania SOTN, all of which have been excellent games that I found to be a blast to play. Even though I already own the import, I’ll be buying this to support Xseed for giving fans what they’ve been asking for.

    Don’t pay heed to only what the big review sites say. This is a fantastic game full of great writing and fun gameplay. Of the original three Operation Rainfall games, this one probably was the most influential for me in spite of the fact that it was probably the lowest budget of the three titles. It has such a sad and memorable plot that really pulls you in, much like the ill-fated Nier which was panned by professional critics. I have a hard time choosing between this and The Last Story as my Op Rainfall favorites, for different reasons. I wasn’t all that fond of Xenoblade in spite of investing 110 hours until it (I am a big fan of the director as well). But there are many people who loved it as well. It just goes to show you that there are varying opinions about this games. Each one will have its share of fans.

    Please give this great game a chance and you might enjoy it as much as I did. Support Xseed and support Ganbarion so that we see more great games from these small but talented companies.

  46. I got The Last Story a few weeks ago and I’m trying to find Xenoblade Chronicles (thanks douchebags on Amazon) and I’m excited that this game is coming to the states 🙂 now I just gotta get a Wii U cause my Wii is broken xD

  47. I really do hope they make a great special edition to purchase.  With artwork and maybe a figurine.

  48. DRAT! Even if this one was going to come out, I wasn’t going to buy it, but then… XSEED. (sigh)
    XSEED has terrific public relations. I emailed them twice, without really expecting a response, and within twenty four hours, they’d gotten back to me with a reply. I decided that whenever XSEED did something I approved of, (like release Last Story at retail, Unchained Blades on eShop) I would support them at launch. And, whether they say so or not, Oprainfall certainly played a part in their decision. Since they’ve published an Oprainfall game, I feel obligated to support them.
    I do hope this does well, though. I can see Pandora’s Tower becoming Nintendo’s answer to God of War.

  49. Does this make Operation Rainfall the most successful localization fan campaign in history?  3 out of 3.

  50. It’s been two hours since I heard the news. I feel like I’m in a dream, expecting to wake up at any moment….

  51. Wow. This is seriously amazing. Thanks XSEED, thanks Nintendo, and thanks Operation Rainfall! I don’t think we’ll ever know how much influence Operation Rainfall had on bringing Xenoblade, The Last Story, and Pandora’s tower over here. But all the campaigning no doubt created a whole bunch of publicity for the games and really showed that there was demand for the games here in North America. And for that, I thank you Operation Rainfall! Hope everyone has fun with Pandora’s Tower!

    Also, semi-unrelated and possibly stupid question incoming: Is themightyme still among the current oprainfall staff? Just want to know for curiosity’s sake.

    1. haven’t seen him post for months around here, but it looks like he hangs around the IGN boards pretty regularly

    2. He wrote a series of articles about ways Pandora’s Tower might be localized (XSEED was among them!) about 7 or 8 months ago. I don’t think I’ve seen him do anything since (and I think I’ve read pretty much everything here over that time).

      I know he sort of founded it all that time ago, but I think he pretty much gave over control of to Ryan Tyner, Richard Ross, and Steven Boaz, who have been running it for over a year now.

  52. Yeah, I saw him post a few things today on the original campaign board on IGN. Just some stuff about how Pandora’s Tower is coming to North America.

  53. Congratulations!!!. I couldn’t be any happier for you guys. 

    I can only imagine the sheer happiness Jon is bursting through right now. 

  54. Congrats OpRainfall staff. Total victory at last. =)

    I’ll probably pick this one up just to show my support, but I’m really hoping for a Wii U downloadable version sometime in the future. Off-TV gameplay has been a revelation for me.

  55. Score! Enjoy the game my fellow Americans! The power of the gaming media is impressive! The more attention it is given the better!

  57. Edit: Oh yeah, I forgot, all of you in the US, buy this game, write to XSEED and Nintendo and thank them for releasing the game!

  59. I am drooling!!!!!!!!! Wait, please hope that they will have a steelbook edition like in Europe. If not oh well but lets hope so! Anyways I am so gonna preorder when it is available!

  60. Wow this was unexpected, what with the Wii U out and everything. Still I’m clad for American. And maybe this means there is still hope Kirby’s Dream Collection to come to Europe.

  61. Holy ****, I cannot believe it!  The game that I thought was never going to make it to America finally is!

    XSeed, you are my heroes.  Major kudos to you!

  68. AWESOME GUYS I KNEW ONE DAY THIS GAME WOULD COME TO THE USA

    but unfortinatly it pains me to say this i’ll worry about this game later because right now i have made a huge mistake i was raging at ninja gaiden 3 razor’s edge and i ended up punching my wii u gamepad’s screen i feel so ashamed of my self

  70. I don’t really care for Pandora’s Tower. I’d love to get Fatal Frame 2 Wii Edition and Fatal Frame 4, though. How ’bout those being published in the Americas?

  71. Ever since I read the article about this game in Nintendo Power (God rest its soul) I have been so hyped about it, but when I found oh it wasn’t gonna come to the US I was so disappointed, but now it’s all bettr CUZ IT’S FINALLY COMING HERE. It was because of this game that I found out about operation rainfall in the first place. I need to start getting some cash together for this game. EEEEEEEEEEE (little girl squeal)

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