UK importers warned about R/S :: News

Reported by Psythor on Mon 28 Apr 2003 18:10:13 UTC
Last updated by Psythor on Mon 28 Apr 2003 18:10:13 UTC
Section: Ruby, Sapphire & Emerald

Nintendo are worried that if a lot more UK games importers import R/S, they might not make enough dosh on the official release.

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Nintendo has issued a warning to retailers importing copies of Pokemon Sapphire and Ruby for the GBA, indicating that the company will take legal action if importing becomes widespread.

The GBA cartridges carry no region protection, and with the UK launch of the eagerly awaited launch of both titles still two months away, many gamers and retailers are turning to the US version of the games - which was released several weeks ago.

Some importers are even selling the US edition of the games for a lower price than the titles will launch at in the UK when they finally arrive on July 25th.

Nintendo UK's general manager Andy Williams said, "Nintendo is monitoring the situation closely and is prepared to take legal action against importers and retailers should the number become significant. The games currently on sale are not intended for sale within the EEA."

Williams does not believe that the game is being imported in significant enough numbers to cause serious damage to the UK launch. Some say rather than cracking down on its UK fans, Nintendo could always do itself a favour and make some attempt at sorting out the state of its European release schedule, which currently sees major titles being released in Europe several months after their US debut.