Our Nintendo loving brothers and sisters in the EU have been regularly seen delays with game releases in their territory. Occasionally they’ll get something that North America doesn’t (like Tingle’s RPG). One of those EU specific joys they currently get to experience are Virtual Console games for the Commodore 64.
The Commodore 64 (or C=64) was released in 1982, over a year before the Famicom made its debut in Japan. Throughout its twelve year run, this home computer sold over 30 million units, making it the best-selling personal computer of all time. Sure, there were business and productivity apps galore, but the majority of people I knew had a ton of games for the thing (myself included).
A scream of joy erupted on the Internet from classic gaming geeks earlier this year when it was announced that the Virtual Console on Wii would soon feature games from the C=64. The cheer quieted down and then became a distant echo from Europe and the UK when it was revealed that only their region would be playing their ancient favorites without waiting for their 1541 drive to load up.
Now, over six months later, there are a dozen Commodore 64 classics available for the VC and the releases don’t seem to be slowing down. Impossible Mission, International Karate, The Last Ninja, and Epyx’s Games series are all available at a measly 500 Wii Points. So why aren’t they being released in North America? If the games are being sold in the UK and EU, they’re obviously all in English. It’s not like the C=64 didn’t sell well in the US. And it’s not like I’m asking for a whole new system to be added to the Virtual Console line-up (like the Atari 2600). The work has already been done for Europe, so just drag and drop those games onto the North American servers, Nintendo!
Were you a fan of the Commodore 64 and would you buy any of its classic titles?
[Edit: I sort of put my money where my mouth is today .. I just bought Impossible Mission DS for $10. It’s got a classic C=64 mode and I couldn’t be happier with it!]