Topic: Importing consoles?

[supermario2k]

If there is already a thread for this I am sorry.
I am starting to considering getting into importing game consoles. Partly because I am now getting back into collecting and I am hearing that some games are cheaper/better in other regions so I want to be able to get the best.
My fear is that I will accidentally blow something up so I am hoping someone with real experience can walk me through this.
I want to know if I buy a console from Japan will it work with my US TV or do I also need to look for some sort of converter? I understand they are both NTSC/ATSC but I do know Japan had some form of HD before we did and I am just now finding the right information on Google.

TV or not, my second issue is power, I am under the impression that Japan uses a different voltage system than the US so I want to make sure I know exactly what I will need, for instance some websites claim I just need the US A/C for that console, so like a power cord from a US N64 supposedly would work with a Japanese console, is that true? If so is it true across the board? Or do I need special converters here also? If so is there a special like power strip that I can get or do I need to buy multiple converters?
Next up, controllers. I am not sure why there would be any reason one controller wouldn't work but just to be on the safe side, are the consoles from Japan compatible with US controllers or would I also need to look into buying controllers for my consoles?

I am trying to spend as little money as possible but I want to do things right without cutting any corners.
I guess my last question is, if I buy a Japanese console, set it up to work with my TV and power, get the controllers are there any other things I need to know about, like memory cards or expansion packs?
Google has not been helpful, no matter what search terms I try the only info that comes up is on Famicom, Super Famicom and MEga Drive, none of which are the consoles I am interested in currently.
I am not exactly looking for anything specific just in general, but I might have specific questions later.
I have been told that Japanese versions of Game Boy games should work in my US GBA console so if that is the case then all I need to do next is figure out where to buy Japanese games.

I am interested in both discovering Japanese exclusives that don't require too much knowledge of the language, I took a semester of it in college but that was so long ago most of its long forgotten by now. I think I can make out a couple of the Hiragana but the Kanji and Katakana have left my brain long ago.
If I buy a Japanese console, is there any way to change language settings to English? I know there are a lot of people in Japan that read English and a lot of games are nearly universal anyways like Mario, Sonic, games I am familiar with I am sure I can find my way around, but since I am mostly after games I am not familiar with, true imports or just seeking cheaper versions of games if that is the best route.

I have the same questions for PAL stuff but I already know I need adapters there, just not sure what consoles have exclusive games in PAL regions I would care about, not that into soccer or F1. Okay not meaning to generalize I just am not that familiar with PAL exclusive games, but I really don't care for sports games its nothing against soccer. Right now I guess I am more interested in importing consoles and games from Japan and maybe PAL games and consoles, or PAL versions of Game Boy games, if they are cheaper/better than the US versions.

[Dasmos]

Controllers should work on all consoles I'm fairly sure. I've got a few NA and Japanese Gamecube controllers that all work perfectly. Japan had a lot of neat colours too.

I guess the only real reason to import is to play different games, but I don't always think you need to worry about importing consoles. GB, GBC, GBA, DS and 3DS are all region-free, I'm pretty sure, so you won't have any issues there. Except for things like eShop and such. PS3 is region-free too from memory. I'm pretty sure with the Gamecube and PS2 you can use "Freeloader" discs and such, which is a much less expensive way to go about it. Or mods.

Some Japanese games have language options. Most don't. It's game-specific, I guess. There aren't too many noteworthy PAL specific games, mostly games just skip us (especially Australia) not the other way around. The Wii had Disaster: Day of Crisis, which was great. Also Another Code: R, which is the sequel to the DS game and another solid game. Otherwise most exclusive games are F1 or Cricket, Soccer or Rugby games. For a while it was a good time to be a PAL Wii gamer, with all those exclusive J-RPG's but then those pesky Operation Rainfall members got involved.

[supermario2k]

Well that didn't answer any of my questions. I know there are other options but I am still interested in importing the original consoles anyways. I mean I guess I will just check elsewhere thanks for the reply though.

[Dasmos]

Well that didn't answer any of my questions.

Next up, controllers. I am not sure why there would be any reason one controller wouldn't work but just to be on the safe side, are the consoles from Japan compatible with US controllers or would I also need to look into buying controllers for my consoles?

If I buy a Japanese console, is there any way to change language settings to English?

God, you're an asshat. It's also generally pretty hard to answer general questions about "consoles" without you mentioning which consoles you're referring to.

I hope you blow up your TV.

[Mop it up]

I don't know much about importing, but one thing I do know about the SNES and N64 is that they can still play Japanese cartridges no problem. The only thing stopping that from normally happening are a couple of plastic tabs in the cartridge slots that prevent the cartridges from physically fitting inside, so if you remove those tabs, the games will fit and play just fine.

[supermario2k]

Well I am sorry I wasn't trying to be a jerk. I missed that part, it sounded like all you were saying was don't import.

I get that in the past I pissed a lot of people off, so yeah sometimes I do take replies that dismiss me as well dismissive do you blame me? I said thank you for the reply though so you didn't need to overreact.
I have been trying to be nicer but its damn hard when people, not saying you but I tend to skim the usernames at this point as I've come to realize most just go out of their way to antagonize me anyways. I didn't mean to be rude but I was agreeing with you, I wasn't being specific enough and felt I would have better luck elsewhere. I thought I was being very polite.