Game series with different numbering by region

[phart010 | 1,705]

Post about games that are part of a series that the publishers decided to change episode numbers around in different regions. 

For example, the most obvious one is Final Fantasy. 

In Japan they did 1,2,3 on Famicom then 4,5,6 on Super Famicom. In America, only 1 came out on NES, so they started with 2 on the SNES. On updated releases for later systems, they fixed the numbering but on NES and SNES in America it’s screwed up

Edited March 1, 2020 by phart010

[phart010 | 1,705]

Adventure Island Series on Gameboy:

In the US, we have Adventure Island 1 and Adventure Island 2. I always wanted to get Takahashi Meijin 3 on Gameboy because I thought it was a Japanese exclusive.

As it turns out, in Japan, Takahashi Meijin 2 is just Adventure Island 1 and Takahashi Meijin 3 is just Adventure Island 2.

There is no Takahashi Meijin 1 on Gameboy in Japan

Edited March 1, 2020 by phart010

[phart010 | 1,705]

Seiken Densetsu Series (Mana Series):

In Japan, Seiken Densetsu (meaning Legend of the Sacred Sword) was a Gameboy game.

In America, they wanted to capitalize on the popularity of the Final Fantasy Series, so they promoted it as Final Fantasy Adventure (probably thinking it would just be a single and not a series).

Well then in Japan they made Seiken Densetsu 2 on Super Famicom. Instead of calling it Final Fantasy Adventure 2, US called it Secret of Mana.

Japan made Seiken Densetsu 3 on Super Famicom. It never came to SNES so for the longest time it was called Secret of Mana 2. But finally in 2019 it was officially translated and put on the Mana Collection for Switch and officially it is now called Trials of Mana.

Even though the US screwed up the naming of the series, in the end I guess we won the naming dispute because Japan officially called the 4th installment of the series “Legend of Mana”

Edited March 1, 2020 by phart010

[phart010 | 1,705]

Power Blade series on NES:

In the US we have Power Blade is 1and Power Blade 2 on NES. In Japan, they were called Power Blazer and Captain Saver respectively and they were not actually part of the same game  series. America just localized the games to make them into a series.

Edited March 1, 2020 by phart010

[Tulpa | 3,488]

The Lolo games are different. I can't remember exactly, but I think our Lolo 2 is their Lolo 1, maybe? Something like that.

 

Not numbered, but Spy Hunter and Super Spy Hunter aren't the same series in Japan; Super Spy Hunter was an unrelated game called Battle Formula.

 

The Black Bass for NES is actually Black Bass 2 for Famicom. We never got Black Bass 1.

 

The Kemco Crazy Castle games are all screwed up.

In Japan, it was Roger Rabbit, five Mickey Mouse games, Kid Klown (reskinned into Bugs Bunny later), Bugs Bunny, and Woody Woodpecker.

Here, it went three Bugs Bunny games, Kid Klown (not the same as the Japanese one), Real Ghostbusters, Mickey Mouse, two more Bugs Bunny, and Woody Woodpecker.

Edit: And holy hell, in Europe it's different, too. Skips the first, Bugs Bunny, Hugo (a Danish troll character), skips the fourth, Garfield, Mickey Mouse, two Bugs Bunny, and Woody Woodpecker.

There was also a mobile game released in 2004.

 

Edited March 2, 2020 by Tulpa

[cj_robot | 540]

The US never got the first King's Field for the PS1, so Japan's 2&3 became our 1&2. Kings Field IV for the PS2 was called King's Field: The Ancient City here.

Another PS1 game we didn't get was the first Motor Toon Grand Prix from Polyphony Digital. So Motor Toon Grand Prix 2 came to the US without the '2'. Strangely, it was still titled 2 in Europe, even though they never got the first game either.

[phart010 | 1,705]

Joe and Mac SNES (AKA Caveman Ninja):

Joe and Mac was called Caveman Ninja in Japan.

Japan’s Caveman Ninja 2 is America’s Congo’s Caper.

Japan’s Caveman Ninja 3 is America’s Joe and Mac 2.

 

Edited March 1, 2020 by phart010

[cj_robot | 540]

This is a weird one:

Gunbird for the PS1 got localized by XS Games as Mobile Light Force. Then, when Gunbird 2 came over, it kept its name.

Castle Shikigami, another shmup from a completely different series, was also localized by XS Games, and this one became Mobile Light Force 2. Its two sequels were brought over by different publishers and both kept their original names, sort of: Castle Shikigami 2 and Castle of Shikigami III.

[phart010 | 1,705]

2 hours ago, cj_robot said:

This is a weird one:

Gunbird for the PS1 got localized by XS Games as Mobile Light Force. Then, when Gunbird 2 came over, it kept its name.

Castle Shikigami, another shmup from a completely different series, was also localized by XS Games, and this one became Mobile Light Force 2. Its two sequels were brought over by different publishers and both kept their original names, sort of: Castle Shikigami 2 and Castle of Shikigami III.

Awesome. This is the type of info I was hoping to find

[Red | 435]

7 hours ago, phart010 said:

In Japan, Seiken Densetsu (meaning Legend of the Sacred Sword) was a Gameboy game.

In America, they wanted to capitalize on the popularity of the Final Fantasy Series, so they promoted it as Final Fantasy Adventure (probably thinking it would just be a single and not a series).

Seiken Densetsu really is a Final Fantasy spin-off. They used the Final Fantasy name in Japan too.  It's full name is Final Fantasy Gaiden: Seiken Densetsu.  You might be thinking of the three SaGa Game Boy games.  They were released in the US as the Final Fantasy Legend series.

 

7 hours ago, phart010 said:

Even though the US screwed up the naming of the series, in the end I guess we won the naming dispute because Japan officially called the 4th installment of the series “Legend of Mana”

Although the fourth Seiken Densetsu game, Seiken Densetsu: Legend of Mana isn't part of the main series.  Seiken Densetsu 4 was released on PlayStation 2 and sold in the US as Dawn of Mana.

Edited March 2, 2020 by Red

[ifightdragons | 234]

Cool thread! Would the Super Mario 2/USA/Lost Levels shenanigans qualify?

[phart010 | 1,705]

4 hours ago, ifightdragons said:

Cool thread! Would the Super Mario 2/USA/Lost Levels shenanigans qualify?

I guess so. This isn’t super formal

[phart010 | 1,705]

8 hours ago, Red said:

Seiken Densetsu really is a Final Fantasy spin-off. They used the Final Fantasy name in Japan too.  It's full name is Final Fantasy Gaiden: Seiken Densetsu.  You might be thinking of the three SaGa Game Boy games.  They were released in the US as the Final Fantasy Legend series.

Are you sure about this? I don’t read Japanese, but I know how to use Google translate. All I see in the title is: 聖剣伝説

which translates to Legend of the Holy Sword. Where is the Final Fantasy reference in the title?

Edit: ok your right I found it on the Gameboy boxart.

Edited March 2, 2020 by phart010

[Sumez | 2,933]

13 hours ago, cj_robot said:

The US never got the first King's Field for the PS1, so Japan's 2&3 became our 1&2. Kings Field IV for the PS2 was called King's Field: The Ancient City here.

King's Field 4 was actually localized as 4 here, but KF2 and 3 were still 1 and 2.

In general, you're pretty safe talking about KF3 and 4, but if you say KF1 or 2, everyone will be confused XD. And it's and important distinction because KF2 (western KF1) is an amazing must-play game, while KF3 (western KF2) is pretty unimpressive  

[cj_robot | 540]

Konami's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series on the Famicom/NES:

So the US Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was titled 激亀忍者伝 (Gekikame Ninja-den) in Japan, which I guess translates to something sorta like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game was titled simply Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (in English text) in Japan.

Teenage Mutant NinjaTurtles III: The Manhatten Project was therefore Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Manhatten Project in Japan.

Our TMNT IV: Turtles in Time (SNES) left out the IV in the Japanese title.

[cj_robot | 540]

Also, Contra III: The Alien Wars was called Contra Spirits in Japan. None of the Japanese Contra game were numbered, as far as I know.

Interestingly, the GameBoy version of Contra III in Europe was called Probotector 2, as if a direct sequel to the other GameBoy Contra/Probotector game (Operation C in US)

Edited March 3, 2020 by cj_robot

[Nintegageo | 582]

Tombs & Treasures is the 2nd game in Japan

[Sumez | 2,933]

10 hours ago, cj_robot said:

Our TMNT IV: Turtles in Time (SNES) left out the IV in the Japanese title.

Make sense, given it's a port of the second arcade game, which didn't have IV in the title either (and TMNT "2" being a port of the first)