SE's Odd Distribution Rights?

[Aymee]

...For some reason, signing up for the XIII trailer mailer got me on the SE EU/AU newsletter list (I'm NA). So, I find some very odd things in the releases announced for this month. These include a few 'duh' SE titles like Chrono Trigger DS... but it also has NIS' Disgaea3 and Atlus' Persona4. I wiki'd and googled SE and the other studios and dug through link after link like mad and couldn't find any relation whatsoever between any of the companies. At all.

In other words, I R confused. I'm going to take a stab in the dark and say that SE owns the distribution rights in those markets because they're smaller than JPN and NA and it gives them a nice big fuzzy blanket of marketing... but that there's no actual involved development. Moreover, I did find an article saying that SE will be exclusively releasing Ubisoft titles in Japan starting this year... so same sort of deal?

Anyway, it made my fuzzy eyes reach for my glasses seeing these other titles that already rest on my shelf... especially when I talk with others about those studios versus SE's characteristics... but it's actually SE panning a little cash off the top? Sneaky. If so, it would appear that the EU market is nearly a monopoly of RPG releases supervised by SE, lol. Nearly!


(I apologize if this has been covered before, but I couldn't find anything)

[Kohan]

N4G.com : Square Enix Publishing Persona 4 In Europe, Says "Merry Xmas" With My Pet Shop

Square Enix to publish Disgaea 3 in Europe - Joystiq [PlayStation]