Six Japanese PSP games I wish had been brought to the States

Considering how poorly the PSP sold in the US, it's pretty amazing how many Japanese games have been localized and brought to our shores since it debuted in 2005. (In fact, they're still coming--as evidenced by the recent announcements concerning Class of Heroes 2 and Sweet Fuse: At Your Side.)

Still, a number of noteworthy PSP titles never earned an English release of any sort. Of those, the six mentioned below are the ones I most wish had made it to North America.

1. 7th Dragon 2020--Truth be told, I'd much rather be able to buy and play a localized copy of the original 7th Dragon (for the DS) than this "side story," but that doesn't mean I wouldn't pick up 2020 if given the chance--despite the fact that the crew at Hardcore Gaming 101 have described it as being "significantly dumbed down" compared to its predecessor.

2. Any of the Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA games--I'm a sucker for rhythm games, especially those that could be called "cute," so this Sega-made selection is a no-brainer. That said, I have a feeling this game would have been ruined had its developers attempted to replace its Japanese tunes with English ones, so maybe I should be happy it never left its home country.

3. Either of the MonHun Diary: Poka Poka Airu Village titles--This series (consisting of just two games, at the moment) often is described as being "Monster Hunter meets Animal Crossing," which of course means I've been curious about it since the first title was announced in 2009. Considering Sony seemed desperate for a while to expand western sales of the PSP (and Capcom similarly seemed desperate to expand western interested in the Monster Hunter series), I thought one or both of the MonHun Diary: Poka Poka Airu Village would be shoe-ins for a US release of some sort. Apparently I thought wrong.

Japanese PSP owners get Monster Hunter Diary G on August 10, while the rest of the world's PSP owners get ... absolutely nothing

Don't mind me, I'm just feeling bitter that the folks at Capcom have thus far failed to bring the original Monster Hunter Diary--released in Japan last August--to North America.

I know, this Animal Crossing-esque PSP title likely would have sold all of five copies (if the folks at Capcom were lucky) in the States, but one of them would have been sold to yours truly--which of course makes me believe its release would have been completely worthwhile.



Anyway, while a handful of North American gamers like me continue to wait in vain for Capcom to bring the game to our region, the Osaka-based company will be releasing its sequel--called Monster Hunter Diary G--in Japan on Aug. 10.

Who knows, maybe this one will be localized and released as a download-only title when the NGP--which will reportedly be called the PS Vita--launches later this year or early next?