Ridiculous Region Locking (Solved)

[Roundlay]

So it appears that Bethesda (Valve?) is agressively restricting Wolfenstein based on region.

I'm unable to launch the game (recieved vmtr page file error) without setting the Steam client language to match my region language (I live in Tokyo but use the Steam client in English) and then redownloading the game. Of course, this removes all English text and audio and the ability to toggle between languages in the process...

Really!?

I've contacted Steam support regarding a refund as store page states that the title includes multiple languages, but given Valve's reputation for being staunchly against refunding games, I'm not hopeful.

So, heads up to anybody living in Japan: it is no longer possible to retrieve non-Japanese language files by verifying the game cache and downloading the game from a non-Japanese Steam client introduces a crash-on-boot fatal error.

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Update 3/7/2014

Bethesda have pushed out an update which resolves the issues detailed in this discussion.

Whilst the issue itself and the solution involved might've turned out to be pretty trivial, I figured I should put into words how impressed I am with Bethesda's customer support, and in particular how sympathetic and eager they were to help, because positive feedback so often takes a backseat to dumping on things.

Thanks for being awesome, Bethesda!

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Update 2/7/2014

Developers are actively investigating the issue.

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Update 1/7/2014

The "workaround" below allows you to start the game from a non-Japanese Steam client, in addition to updating the in-game menus with non-Japanese text, however all dialogue audio is stripped from the game in the process.

Here's a workaround that has worked for some people as detailed by Bethesda support:

Trying to play the game in English in Japan does result in the error that you're describing; this is the result of conflicting files with the different languages in Steam. Thankfully, there is a workaround available! Please follow the below steps exactly (it is imperative that each step is taken to get the game to run in English in that region):

1. Install the game in Japanese (Steam language/region set to Japan).
2. Go to your Wolfenstein.The.New.Order folder in the Steam folder and select the "virtualtextures" folder.
3. Copy/Move the folder to a different location on the same drive.
4. Delete the whole game from Steam (but not the copied folder).
5. Switch Steam back to English and reinstall the game.
This will install the game with the black/white screen issue that makes it crash.
6. Verify the integrity of the game from the Steam menu (https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=2037-QEUH-3335).
7. Copy back the "virtualtextures" folder contents to the Wolfenstein.The.New.Order Steam folder, selecting not to overwrite the already existing files. This will put back in the required files and resolve the conflicting language files.
8. Run the game, it should be in English.[/strike]

[Roundlay]

Messaggio originale di Armandeus:

Where did you get that information? I never heard of the swastika being censored or illegal in Japan. When I played the game in Japanese for 15 minutes or so there were swastikas visible.

Can confirm. Have seen people walking around Tokyo in full Nazi uniform, because Japan is crazy.

If this is, in fact, to do with specific localisation requirements though, I have little hope for a fix here.

[CaptBasil]

Messaggio originale di Armandeus:

Paul31286 wrote:
"The problem with this game is that it was originally supposed to be censored in Japan, Switzerland, Austria and Israel... and both Israel and Japan were supposed to get special versions with the Swastika removed."

Where did you get that information? I never heard of the swastika being censored or illegal in Japan. When I played the game in Japanese for 15 minutes or so there were swastikas visible.

Yeah, like I said, it was originally supposed to be censored in Japan, but just like Austria, Switzerland and Israel, the game was released uncensored in the end. Bethesda's reasoning for censoring the game in Japan was that since Japan was one of the Axis powers, the game might touch upon sensitive topics, so they were planning to remove the Swastikas. I agree, it doesn't really make sense, and that's probably why they released the game uncensored in the end.

I read all of that on German gaming websites. I'm originally from Germany, and this game's censorship was a major news story over there.

[TR]

Messaggio originale di Paul31286:

Messaggio originale di Armandeus:

Paul31286 wrote:
"The problem with this game is that it was originally supposed to be censored in Japan, Switzerland, Austria and Israel... and both Israel and Japan were supposed to get special versions with the Swastika removed."

Where did you get that information? I never heard of the swastika being censored or illegal in Japan. When I played the game in Japanese for 15 minutes or so there were swastikas visible.

Yeah, like I said, it was originally supposed to be censored in Japan, but just like Austria, Switzerland and Israel, the game was released uncensored in the end. Bethesda's reasoning for censoring the game in Japan was that since Japan was one of the Axis powers, the game might touch upon sensitive topics, so they were planning to remove the Swastikas. I agree, it doesn't really make sense, and that's probably why they released the game uncensored in the end.

I read all of that on German gaming websites. I'm originally from Germany, and this game's censorship was a major news story over there.

Just to be clear, apparently some cutscenes ARE censored in the Japanese version, including sex scenes, nudity, and 'extremely' violent contents. The gameplay seems to be intact, though. Only cutscenes.

Here's an example: English version (Jump to 22:24)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-RziJLHhWw&t=22m24s

Japanese version (Around 37:17)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hkb5fMVDZoY&t=37m17s

[CaptBasil]

Oh, I see. I only know that the Swastikas were supposed to be removed in the Japanese version, but then Bethesda changed their minds and released the game with Swastikas intact. That's what I meant by "uncensored".

[GrumbleMutt]

I had a friend send me a directory listing and MD5 hash of his RoW installation.

1. The one key file that's missing from all of this is called english.streamed in the \base\ directory. In our version, japanese.streamed is included for the Steam Client UI = Japanese installation. This file contains the dialogue and cut-scene audio.

2. The cut-scene videos in \base\bink\ are all suffixed with _jp whereas the RoW version is _hg. There's no audio baked into these files, that comes from the .streamed asset. Subtitles are also absent from the .bik file as that information comes from the chunk*.resources files. The bik files are not internally similar between their _hg and _jp counterparts. I don't know if that means that the actual video itself is different (censored or otherwise trimmed) or if these videos were just rendered with some different visual settings for the JP release.

At any rate, it's still very clear that there are missing files from the Steam Client UI = English installation.

Something else I found really amusing from the SteamDB page[steamdb.info] is this chunk of history:

• 2 Months Ago: Changed name Wolfenstein: The New Order JP Release › Wolfenstein: The New Order JP DON'T USE CURRENTLY
  
  
• 1 Month Ago: Changed name Wolfenstein: The New Order JP DON'T USE CURRENTLY › Wolfenstein: The New Order JP Steam

The only additional depots were the JP specific ones, while some of the base depots were still missing.

[Bigalonthemic]

I also wrote a ticket to Bethesda regarding this issue, which seems non-sensical and easily fixed. Hope to hear from them soon.

"I am a long time steam and Bethesda customer and have purchased games through Steam from multiples locations without issues. Currently I live in Japan, and I recently purchased Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC) through Steam after it was released in my region. As a native English speaker running Steam in English I expected to play the game in English (as advertised).

I installed the game but it refused to load, crashing with a black screen and an error message: Couldn't open vmtr page file 'C:\New folder\Steam\steamapps\common\Wolfenstein.The.New.Order/virtual textures/vmtr.pages'

After some research online I discovered that many users were having the same problem and had been given an untrustworthy workaround solution which did not even work. Switching my Steam client to Japanese and re-installing the game I found the game launched without issue..... in Japanese.

Changing the Steam client back to English the game became unplayable again.

The "supported languages" list shown to me on the Steam store page for this game shows both English and Japanese (among other languages) as available.

I was not warned in any way that the game would aggressively lock me out of playing in English before or after making my purchase.

I did not buy this game to play it in Japanese and would not have purchased the game if I had been made aware of this limitation.

It would seem feasible that there is a simple solution to this issue as obviously I do want to play the game. However if you cannot provide a real permanent solution then I would request a full refund of the purchase.

Thank you and regards"

[Roundlay]

Just recieved a very positive response from Bethesda customer support detailing that "developers are actively investigating this issue."

As a slighty off-topic aside, it's worth noting how incredibly helpful and timely Bethesda support has been in this instance. Valve could certainly learn a thing or two here.

[Armandeus]

Good to hear!

[76561198061753808]

We've seen a number of requests roll in, so we're looking into now. Stay tuned.

[Buddy]

@Armandeus @gstaffBethesda
Bathesda sent me a nice personal response to my ticket. They thought I was Armandeus, but it was still nice to get a personal response..... even if they got the wrong person.

[Roundlay]

Messaggio originale di Buddy:

@Armandeus @gstaffBethesda
Bathesda sent me a nice personal response to my ticket. They thought I was Armandeus, but it was still nice to get a personal response..... even if they got the wrong person.

Oh boy... :|

[COBRA BOY]

Living in Tokyo as well, but sadly I did not discover this thread before buying the game. Now I sit here and can't play that stupid ♥♥♥♥.
And then publishers wonder why people switch to pirating games....

[GrumbleMutt]

Textures must have been modified for the JP version as well because I'm getting some very interesting texture mismatches. Subtitles might spoil a small piece of the plot, so don't read the subtitle. http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=279774421

[Roundlay]

Messaggio originale di GrumbleMutt:

Textures must have been modified for the JP version as well because I'm getting some very interesting texture mismatches. Subtitles might spoil a small piece of the plot, so don't read the subtitle. http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=279774421

Wow... I hope this isn't a widespread issue...

Am I going to have to wait a while before I can enjoy a spotless version of the game?

[Hokusai]

Like many other users here, I am currently living in Japan, using my Steam in English and got the same error message when trying to start Wolfenstein.
On the advise of some users in this community to just write a ticket to Bethesda (maybe they recognize the situation and provide a feasible solution!?) I gave it a shot. After a couple of hours I got following response from them:

"[...]
Firstly, I sincerely apologize for the trouble that you've experienced with the game thus far. We indeed have received several customer contacts regarding this particular issue; this is a new development for us, as there was an existing workaround that allowed the game to be played in English in that region (as intended). However, a recent patch broke that functionality which results in the problem you are describing.

Please rest assured that we have already put the gears in motion to help resolve this issue. Our developers are aware of it, and are currently investigating the issue.
[...]"

Hopefully there will be a solution soon.