Ghost in the Shell 2 Innocence (US release from Bandai) is a BD-25 with Dolby Digital

[Afrobean]

Originally Posted by GGX

This isn't a matter of me not liking niche releases. The problem is Bandai (a major studio) taking short cuts. As evident by the Japanese release of Innocence.

Bandai's not a "major studio". Major studio would be Disney, Paramount, Fox, etc.

They might be big in Japan where anime has a major market, but in America, I'd guess that they're more known as a toy company that has some anime distribution-- some people familiar with the brand might not even be aware they have anime at all. In the US, the "biggest" anime company is Funimation, and even they're not a "major studio".

And again, the reason they can have a release with additional work in Japan (that was quoted as having been done by Disney anyway) is because they can have confidence that it will sell well over there. The US is a whole different story for anime consumption. America is not worth risking a large investment in anime on a new format. I think it's hilarious that you'd rather limit availability of this title to DVD only than live with a less-than-perfect BD release.