Japan’s Home Console Market » Xbox 360
The top five Xbox games at my local store, four J-RPGs, and Dynasty Warriors…
Microsoft’s first outing in Japan was no success. Despite pumping money into establishing a foothold Xbox sold less than five hundred thousand units. It faced many problems. It was released late in the generation and went up against PS2. Microsoft also failed to offer games Japanese players wanted, even when they bankrolled Japanese developers their games failed to appeal.
After a weak start the 360 is doing better than its predecessor. The system has finally built a selection of games that could appeal to Japanese gamers, yet sales remain mediocre.
Perhaps the disparity between regions is that Xbox Live doesn’t carry the same weight in Japan. Here online gaming is PC-centric and emphasizes co-operative play. Microsoft it seems knew this so did little to encourage Live offering fewer services and bundling systems with DVD remotes instead of headsets.
But maybe Microsoft have done all they can against Japanese brand loyalty.
