Have Microsoft ****ed up in Japan again?

[Mr Ono]

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=13504

Release titles not getting them excited. The Tokyo Game Show impressions hardly set pulses racing - Gears of Wars!

Machine pretty much the same size as the original it seems (even biger if you add the external PSU?).

Is this another failure?

[WazMeister]

Its hard to crack JAP launch as they love theuir colourful, dancing rabbit weirdo games.

If city frame killer is not getting them hyped or doa4.... or blue dragon then i don't know what will.

Maybe MS should save money and not release it there
lol

[sj33]

They were always going to have trouble convincing both developers and players to go their way - heck why would they deviate? I think that's the bottom line here, incentive to develop games on the 360 just isn't there like it is over here.

[MonkeyWrench]

I don't understand why it's such a big deal to crack Japan, it's not that important to a consoles success, or even getting Japanese developers on board as most now realise they can have successful games outside of their own territory (TECMO springs to mind). ****...even a Sega had a hard time in Japan with the Megadrive, but its global sales more than made up for it.

[Mr Ono]

It's important because Japan is the axis for the Far East in terms of video games (as well as being a country mad on games).

Personally I think Nintendo should give up on Europe. Seriously, I do.

[sj33]

Well just check out the 360 launch line-up in Japan... hardly full of killer games tailored for the Japanese market ready to pull players from the PS2, dispite Microsofts best efforts with Japanese developers to encourage them otherwise.

They tried. Even the mighty Dreamcast had the same problem, right until the curtains were coming down for the machine.

[Kongster]

Despite all the "doom and gloom" surrounding the 360's launch in japan, it's still early days...

[MonkeyWrench]

It's important because Japan is the axis for the Far East in terms of video games (as well as being a country mad on games).

Nah, that's not a good enough reason. Both Sony and Microsoft could cut the Asian market right out of the equation and still have a successful console on their hands.

[Mr Ono]

MS should really have gone full tilt and bought the Dragon Quest series for 360 or something and had it as a launch title.

[MonkeyWrench]

I'm not even sure Dragon Quest would have helped it...the japanese market is in a state at the moment and those games that people used to camp out for all week just don't have the same sort of pulling power anymore.

[mcarocks2003]

No they couldn't. The success of sales in Japan transfers over the amount of Japanese Publishers / games released.

One of the reasons Xbox lacked diversity in games was because it had hardly any Japanese Developers releasing titles on that console.

[SubparMario]

I always find this stuff about the consoles being rejected because of their size hilarious. What are we talking - a couple of centimetres extra in each dimension? Makes absolutely no difference. Surely they don't all live in capsule hotels?

[Darwock]

It's not the size though is it, it's the appearance.

I'm surprised at the prediction of 1 million 360s sold by next summer (or whatever).. have they even reached 1 million xboxes through it's whole lifespan?

[sj33]

It's not the size though is it, it's the appearance.

I'm surprised at the prediction of 1 million 360s sold by next summer (or whatever).. have they even reached 1 million xboxes through it's whole lifespan?

They're almost at 500,000 IIRC. Since what, early 2002?

[Team Andromeda]

The lack of DOA IV will hurt M$ more than anything. This is Japan people where users put up with consoles having 1 good game at launch.
Let face it , The Saturn, DC, PS, PS2 Japanese launches line up's with nothing to write home about with about one game worth getting for those consoles at launch.

In saying that this Market is SONY's anyway as long as they have Square Enix.