No Export for You



""Somebody made a good Back to The Future game, and it was only in Japan? What the fuck is wrong with this fucking world?!!""

- The Nerd, The Angry Video Game Nerd

Some franchises seem to churn out tons upon tons of merchandise, goodies, and special content. The majority of this stuff sees limited international release, if any. There are a few reasons why this may occur (see Analysis).

To be worth mentioning here, an example must not have been released in a country even though there were good reasons to export it there. It has to meet at least one of the following conditions:


 * It is part of a franchise which has previously proven successful in other regions (e.g. Sailor Moon).
 * It was made with the specific intention of being sold overseas (e.g. Sin and Punishment).
 * Its genre and/or sensibilities make it the sort of thing that would be exported in the absence of foreign fans clamouring for it.

The following are not valid examples:


 * Television series (including anime) -- by nature, most television is made explicitly for domestic consumption with little intention of exporting it. The only exception would be if it has already been released in some markets and proven successful.
 * Works which are released only in very similar markets. Because Canadian and US markets share so much in common, success in both means little to success in different markets.
 * Video game examples can be included only if at least one instalment of a franchise has been released in a different region. Hundreds of games never get released outside of their home market for the same reasons as television shows.

This is about media that's not exported for no obvious reason. If there's little likelihood of a strong market demand, it is fair for a company not to export media to a foreign region. Movies made in Europe from the 1920s-'50s usually weren't released in the U.S. unless the starring actor/actress was a really big, recognizable name - Sophia Loren, say. Otherwise the commercial release of said movie there wouldn't have been financially viable.

Because of the Internet, people are far more aware of media they were never really intended to be aware of in the first place. Just because a Vocal Minority believes a market is viable doesn't mean the market is viable.

Trope may overlap with Region Coding, especially where DVDs, Blu-Rays, gaming media and web media is involved. May also invoke Screwed by the Network if it's only later seasons of a show that is not being exported and the show has been taken off the air, which may result in a case of Keep Circulating the Tapes.

Nothing sucks more than a certain series you want to see translated and in some cases can't, since the company may throw a Fanwork Ban at you which stonewalls any translation attempt.

Can lead to Sequel First or Marth Debuted in Smash Bros. Contrast Short Run in Peru. See Bad Export for You for a less extreme, yet more insulting version. Compare to Offer Void in Nebraska. See also Import Gaming for a way around this.