If you want to listen to the Xenoblade Chronicles X soundtrack it's not particularly difficult; it can be easily found around the web. Unfortunately, for some that are actually paying for the privilege, there can be surprising issues.
This relates to the gorgeous Special Edition of the game in North America, which includes a stylised metallic USB drive with 10 tracks of music on it. So far so good, but some that have used the drive have encountered some unexpected hindrances; we've summarised some of the quirks below (via Reddit):
- The USB drive has some DRM (digital rights management) that prevents you from easily removing the ten tracks from the stick. Those that want to move the files into something like iTunes are finding that they can't do so, though others are naturally finding ways to get around it.
- To do this the drive uses the 'Y' drive on the computer and effectively locks it for the purpose of playing the music on the stick. Though most PC users use letters such as C, D and E for their drives, some business use drive names like Y; in other words, don't try and use this if you already have and use a Y drive.
- As a result of the above and the way the stick plays the music some are unhappy that they won't be able to easily put the music on their phones, play in the car etc.
- The stick apparently doesn't support Mac, though this was made clear in small print on the packaging.
All of this seems rather unnecessary, of course, especially when numerous other special editions at least come with discs for music, rather than a USB that requires a Windows PC or laptop. It's also counterproductive, as crude DRM on 10 tracks of the soundtrack only serves to frustrate paying customers, doing nothing to stop the various rips of the full soundtrack that are on the web.
It's a pity to see issues like this, though at least the USB drive looks great, and the special edition has other lovely inclusions to ease the complaints.
Have you encountered these issues? Let us know in the comments.
Thanks to all that sent this in.
[source reddit.com]
Comments 78
Oh boy here we go again with the whole Nintendo is evil thing
Oh boy here we go again with the whole evil is Nintendo thing
Oh boy here we go again with the whole Nintendo is evil thing
I only just tried using the USB stick and found the whole thing to be rather odd. The stick looks fine and has nice, blue LED lights when connected to a PC. Getting the the connector inserted properly was trickier than it should be, though, and the whole software setup is rather bizarre. I would have much preferred an audio CD to this, which is literally 10 hard-to-access WAV files.
LOL. Nintendo, I've got news for you: DRM for music is soo 2009.
Step 1) Obtain the full OST
Step 2) Format the Limited Edition USB drive
Step 3) Copy the music to the drive
Step 4) Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not condone or promote illegal downloading of copyrighted material.
To everyone who has this usb drive: I would suggest to just format the thing to get rid of all DRM stuff and just buy the full OST.
I originally really wanted that USB drive, but now I'm glad I've got the European special edition instead. I love listening to video game music, so I'll just find the music online instead. If they sold the CD in my country or added the music to itunes, then I'd happily pay for it, but I'm not going to bother with the hassle of importing the cd for this game.
I want to pay reasonable prices for digital stuff but usually DRM just makes things messy and difficult.
Nintendo is evil! hahaha
but yeah totally sucks because the music is pretty awesome!
People actually opened the special edition? Damn
Makes me glad I bought the standard edition. Putting the tracks on a USB drive is a weird way to distribute music, anyway.
@TwilightAngel Made to be enjoyed, not sealed and put in a box for 20 years in the hopes it'll get you on Antiques Roadshow.
That's a shame, doesn't affect me tho.
Does anyone know what is included in the European limited edition one?
"The stick apparently doesn't support Mac, though this was made clear in small print on the packaging."
"this was made clear in small print"
"small print"
"small"
"BLOODY FRICKIN SMALL BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT TO ACTUALLY MAKE PEOPLE AWARE OF THE PRECAUTIONS"
@Fath Or it was to be sold at higher price to rip off people Or it was made to be a collectible and have it around your house. Or just to have it in front of you,so you can look it at. or it was made to be open. Your point?
If you're trying to export the soundtrack instead of playing the game, you're doing it wrong.
The Japanese version had 40+ songs with it instead of 10
Lol and I thought they would sell the game on that stick. Would've made a lot of sense.
A stick only for music? Totally useless if you ask me. They could've just let you download it.
Just got the box and opened it and that USB is really heavy but then I had to put it away to wrap it up for Christmas. Big outer box and book are nice. Not sure I would have spent the extra $25 normally but it does make a really nice Christmas gift.
I'll probably just play it once on my PC and then put it away.
OK, so I have the special edition here in America. I was really upset that this USB stick came with a really funky DRM loaded on it. I couldn't use my USB connections in my car to play it. So I loaded it to my computer and found this DRM software on it. Easy fix, use a software recovery tool to pull the tracks from the stick without the program. Done and fixed! Now I can enjoy the music that I payed for anywhere!
@TwilightAngel I've already made my point, but I'll accept your 180 to a live-and-let-live mantra as an ok compromise.
I bought the standard one, there is no way I am spending $100 plus for a game.
This is not unusual for gaming soundtracks to have DRM.
How dumb. Macs are very popular here.
@Miles_Edgeworth Steelbook, art book and a double sided map/poster. But no soundtrack...
Well the suggestion of getting the drive cloned and then drilling into it from there would get around the DRM. I am unsure why Nintendo gave us a Flimsy USB drive, and by flimsy I mean the connector. The actual drive feels solid.
@Zach
That maybe true.
Though Macs only have ~6% global market share.
There is new Windows only DRM that blocks you from playing certain USB and optical media on non Windows machines.
Many media companies have now starting using it.
Many gamers despise DLC, but the gaming acronym starting with D to be really disgusted of is DRM. (Dopey Rights Management is a clever pun, @ThomasBW84, but I prefer Digital Rights Mismanagement.) Nothing can turn a gamer away as fast as DRM does. Has anyone heard of a Ubisoft game being rated ZERO due to its use of the infamous StarForce system? Because that totally happened, too.
Yeah the USB stick is a let down. For one it's weird how you have to insert it into the usb port with the gold side up, essentially the underside of a normal usb stick, the DRM is bleh to work with, and it's a poultry 800mb. The ten tracks on there take up the entire device.
But the art book is Beautiful with a capital B! I've had several friends offered to buy it for $40 bucks.
I'm gonna quote something someone posted online:
"I find it sadly hilarious that those of us who paid nearly $90 USD for this special edition are put through this DRM nonsense, not even for the entire OST, while anyone could easily download the entire 4 disc OST for free from somewhere random on the Internet.
I'm not endorsing pirating, but considering that pirating is possible, shouldn't Nintendo be nice to those of us spending actual money on their expensive collector's edition? Smh. Mine is coming in the mail tomorrow, looks like this thumb drive will just be a decoration; will have to find the actual OST by other means..."
http://nintendoeverything.com/xenoblade-chronicles-x-special-editions-soundtrack-has-buggy-drm/#comment-2394754414
After seeing these articles, yeah I'd rather pirate the music then deal with this (and it's a good thing I don't care for the OST, or else I would've done it).
@Uzuki wav files are insane. FLAC or MP3 of the whole soundtrack would fit on it.
Who did the special edition stuff? The publisher or the developer? And who did they hire to do it? Who made this Dumb Rank Mistake?
I have that special edition and I am a mac user. I haven't even opened it yet because I'm playing through Chronicles again. I wasn't even going to even listen to it. I'm all about the art book.
I have that special edition and I am a mac user. I haven't even opened it yet because I'm playing through Chronicles again. I wasn't even going to even listen to it. I'm all about the art book.
Wow...
This is ridiculous. My opinion of NoA continues to shrink.
I don't know how to format computer stuff to save my life and I don't like the look of this thing now that I see it up close, so this heavy tiny thing is really useless. Such a let down.
Yeah, I noticed that right away. I knew there had to be a way around it.
@Uzuki It's chicken?
I believe you're looking for "paltry"
Actually, this might be Sony's doing based on their claims months ago. http://www.gonintendo.com/stories/233073-a-note-on-why-sony-is-claiming-xenoblade-chronicles-x-soundtrack
Funny how DRM is brought up in the same breath as iTunes, as if Apple isn't the biggest advocate for DRM. Try and play an iTunes movie through anything but iTunes. That's how Apple wants everything to be.
Funny how statues come out and people forget about them. How a bunch of limited edition crap gets left in the packaging to preserve it. And yet, this is so horrid. I get it, people paid 80$ for a USB drive worth 6$ and now realize it was a stupid decision. Advocating piracy just because someone else has already done is all these comments are doing. Make it easier, sure, but expecting that anti-piracy Nintendo suddenly change their tune on copy protection is idiotic. We all get it: Nintendo is old fashioned. And yet, when phones and consoles don't support a specific, common file type, no one bats an eye.
Haven't got the drive but I've bought the complete soundtrack on CD, even before playing the game. The soundtrack of the first game is one of the best things I bought.
I'm happy with mine the book and matted art print are nice maybe it's just me but I think I will listen to the soundtrack as it is intended to be listen to I will hear it as I'm playing this BEAUTIFUL MASTERPIECE, This game is AMAZING I STRESS AMAZING if you have a Wii U do yourself a favor and get this game .
I'm happy with mine the book and matted art print are nice maybe it's just me but I think I will listen to the soundtrack as it is intended to be listen to I will hear it as I'm playing this BEAUTIFUL MASTERPIECE, This game is AMAZING I STRESS AMAZING if you have a Wii U do yourself a favor and get this game .
@Xaessya I have never understood why Nintendo of America doesn't release the soundtracks on iTunes. But then, I am thankful that they don't because I think that would break my wallet more completely than Amiibo ever could.
DRM only punishes legit buyers
@Shirma_Akayaku
You're just finding excuses to pirate things which you already do.
@hypercoyote technically not illegal if you bought Xenoblade X
Finding out that the USB drive is metal was a pleasant surprise. Finding that playing music off it is a hassle was not.
I think this game is great, but for 90 dollars the game could have at least came in a metallic case with actual CD for album. I haven't been able play any songs from drive.
Also wish the artbook was a little better. Several of the "100" pages of art were just screenshots edited to look better in Photoshop. The book itself is closer in quality to a standalone softcover artbook, which I'm grateful for, but at the same time I would've liked it to be hardcover and have more concept art instead of screenshots considering I payed NINETY DOLLARS for this LE. My $58 Neptunia LEs tend to come with smaller, but hardcover artbooks. I assume the USB stick takes up the most cost since it's metal, but it actually looks and feels like it has a 3D printed metal casing rather than one made with traditional methods.
Well it's all not bad. The box is flimsy, but the overall LE is still nice even with the crazy high price tag. The game itself makes up for it.
Why is it just not a simple disc?
@Monado_III Well, that's not entirely accurate. Technically you still don't own the 'license' for the soundtrack. When you buy a CD, you technically are buying a license to own that music in that form. It's all a bunch of technical legal mess, but the short end is, owning the game doesn't give you the rights to own the music separately.
At least Nintendo chose the appropriate driver letter when they made this decision.
Hey, Nintendo, there's something called iTunes, use it! GameFreak has no problems doing this!
@TwilightAngel Not everyone keeps these things sealed all the time. I opened the Special Edition the second I got home. As much as I love Xenoblade and Monolith, I'm not buying the game twice so I can play it, and I want to look at the artbook. Not using the flash drive anymore, though.
A petty soundtrack selection is the whole musical range made available officially to the west for now, and even that small handful gets entangled in useless and pointless DRM - it's difficult for me to not think NoA receives their orders from the Infinite Monkey Theory in practice.
Either way, that's why I'm getting the actual soundtrack instead of this joke. No DRM, no playback issues, and no accidental erasing of all data. Plus a shiny package and a neat booklet.
@LztheQuack Would be weirdly amusing if that was Sony's doing. ^_^
Meh, I'll just format the drive and load the entire OST on there.
My qualm is not with this supposed DRM (seriously people it's nearly 2016- you can find a way to solve this problem, it's not hard). My issue is with just how UGLY the drive is when compared to what was shown in the LE pic. It's horrendous! Black piece of scrap metal spray painted one solid color...
Everything else is top notch though. LOVE the artbook, and the game? Oh man. It's fantastic.
@TwilightAngel yes, but only one copy.
meh, very easy to solve to get the soundtracks
How much storage does the drive have if you format it? I would have loved to get it, but due to Nintendo being stupid, I couldn't.
A nice gesture from Nintendo, for those who paid for the Special Edition. Instead of the whole OST on CDs, a DRM filled USB stick that you can't play on anything but a Windows PC and is a pain to rip, plus it hasn't got the whole soundtrack. Hope the art work is good.
Thought music DRM was a thing of the mid 00's. The sooner these idiot companies move away from DRM the better.
Funny how people just love to fixate on everything that goes wrong with Nintendo games and swag and blame it solely on Nintendo; As if Nintedo as a whole decides to deliberately inconvenience their fans.
News Flash: They're not the first company to do something like this, and just be glad that the DRM's on the flash drive rather than anything else. You people are whining so incessantly that I'd rather watch a Fox News Twitter feed thread develop than this...and THAT'S saying something.
In other news, has anyone managed to get their Skells yet? I haven't had much time to play XenoX, but by God it's beautiful.
I don't have a SE, but it would be interesting to see how the drive is encoded just to see if it can be easily broken without formatting. Is it FAT32? Is it encrypted? Does it have any hidden files? How do these tracks interact with software that doesn't utilize DRM, like VLC? Is the drive initially formatted to be treated like a disc, instead of as data storage? Can the drive be subjected to image mirroring?
So many questions, but I may not get the SE after all if the comments here about it's quality (or lack thereof) are accurate. Oh well...
I paid $80 for this freaking thing and it's not even compatible with my computer. All they had to do is put the soundtrack into a folder on the drive and let you copy paste it to your computer. Now I'm going to have to go to FFShrine and pirate the soundtrack I paid for. Utterly ridiculous!
@KingMike What's more, "Xenoblade Chronicles Y" confirmed!
Yeah the flash drive was a disaster with the DRM and the absolutely tiny size by every standard today.
Yo I have macbook pro, and I thought my usb was broken. So then I put it in my Wii U and it lights up, of course it wants to reformat it, so I have to take it out. Now I see this and can't even listen to it because I don't have a windows laptop. Ugh!!!
What size is the usb even? Looks cool but bulky, I'll stick with my standard edition copy I got off amazon for $15.86 for reasons I don't fully know or understand.
Speechless. So stupid.
I thought there were actual problems with the USB stick when I saw the article heading. The USB is awesome in itself.
I'm having problems running the stick itself. It won't run on my laptop. It's Windows... anyone else face this problem?
As long as I have that sexy art book, I'm fine
Art book complaint is just art that is in the fold.
USB stick, easy to take care of, use a recovery tool, grab the files, format stick, replace with non drm files.
@BinaryFragger Yeah I had a 30% off promo code with it so what was $19.71 became even cheaper, wondered how many people swept that deal.
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