belboz

Bloomberg article:

http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi...nxlxasTWljcm9z

Units shipped for launch: 250K
Units sold in first 3 days: 123K

IIRC, even Gamecube's really disappointing launch did better than that. And Nintendo only had 3 games at the time, though granted, they are on home turf there.

Even before the launch, MS had started to spin the launch, releasing statements about how it couldn't be compared to the US launch since it wasn't Xmas. Of course, it not being Xmas certainly didn't hurt Sony or Sega in their last Japanese launches.

GC's numbers in Japan are significantly higher nowadays due to SSBM. MS can only hope that one of the titles on its schedule will likewise become a system seller.

Unless the numbers perk up significantly, it looks like Japan will put MS sorely to the test on its promise to be in that market for the long haul.

Fortunately for them, the European launch should go better.

jeffdsmith

Well, it was no doubt to me that the xbox would not be selling well there at first. Despite what some fans wanted to believe.

It's no secret that Japan is weary of the xbox. The real test will be to see what happens with it over time. Gamers will be bringing it home with friends checking it out and that will be the point where MS is either "in" or "out" with the gamers.

Japan is much harder of a country to win over with just millions and millions in ads. Consumers there tend to not be so influenced. My friend told me, "Yeah, they are advertising like mad over here, it's really annoying." So you can kind of see the japanese point of view of MS right now.

Any japanese readers out there want to give what the vibe is over there?

Trigger

Well yeah, Japan is like a huge billboard of advertising... they're constantly pummelled over the head with it. Word of mouth there is what gets products moving. I mean you have to advertise there alot in order to have people know what you are among the sea of other similar products out there, but pretty much people will buy what everyone else buys it seems. I think the system isn't selling quite like it should, but that doesn't mean that it'll sink like a stone. I'm guessing that things will pick up there in the next few months, but it's possible that the console won't clear 500,000 units too. It's still up in the air. Given what the xbox has to offer, I think it has a solid shot in Japan. It just seems like people are hesitant to pick up the new kid on the block until they are sure it will really be there for the long haul. Give it time. I mean they sold almost half of what they shipped, while that's not groundbreaking - it's still not too shabby for a first-timer.

Deftones

you seriously think that by only selling 125,000 systems, the launch was a failure? I'd say that's probably more of a success than any of the next gen system launches in the U.S. market. The Japanese market is very fickle. You need to know that this is the first American made video game system to debut in Japan in a long time. I'd say a user base like that to begin with is pretty damn good start for Microsoft.

Spicollidriver1

Last I checked you are supposed to sell more in Japan then you do in US.

belboz

I don't think anyone here is calling the XBox launch in Japan a failure. The problem for MS is that Japan is an incredibly important market and a notoriously difficult one to crack for US electronics companies.

At this point, it appears that MS really will have to be in it for the long haul if they ever hope to see success in Japan. Typically in a launch anywhere, sales peak in the first few days and then drops off a cliff. They don't begin to ramp back up to the peak levels until many, many months down the line. And that's if things go well. It's possible that XBox will never be profitable in Japan. If that turns out to be the case, then MS can only hope that it's at least successful enough to be a springboard for them when XBox2 is ready to go.

jeffdsmith

Here's another kicker. The japanese enjoy several types of games that are never released here. These games are typically made by japanese companies. If the xbox fails to sell well, then it will never get these titles making it even more difficult to sell to japanese consumers.

This shouldn't have to much of an effect on the games that we will see for the xbox yet if at all. It is a question worth raising though; if the salessuck in japan then will japanese developers not develop for it?

It's a possiblilty, but if US sales warrent release of titles, the xbox is easy to port too, so we will likley see the titles as well. There would probally just be less exclusive content.

Time will tell all.

Centurion

Just interested in hearing, why you think this is so.

Grimfarrow

Ugh, the Sega Dreamcast sold out of its inital shipment in Japan. And it defuncted pretty quickly afterwards. What makes you believe that a system that sells less than 1/2 of its initial shipment has good chance of a long-term survival?

The biggest problem with the X-Box is that nearly *all* of its games are either US-made or ports of PS2 games. And, as it's proven, US-based games never sell in Japan - Crash Bandicoot being an exception.
The only truly AAA title the X-Box has in Japan is Shin Megami Tensei Nine. But that's only one game. Halo won't even sell 100,000 in Japan, because they just aren't interested in FPS.

I could see the X-Box surviving only if the Japanese PC developers comes out to support it with niche hentai games. Companies like NEC Interchannel, Elf, etc. would be able to easily port the games over. But with most big companies like Square and Enix passing over the system, and Konami and Capcom giving only minimal support, its long-term prospects in
Japan aren't good. Sega itself has already stated that it is focusing over 50% of its energy on PS2 titles. And while the X-Box has Shenmue, the game isn't a system seller - Sega's biggest title, Sakura Taisan, is going to the PS2.
Of course, just because the X-Box fails in Japan, we still shouldn't write it off. The European launch will be *very* important for Microsoft.

Spicollidriver1

The example I would give people when I worked a game store and they would get mad about Japan getting games first. The US sold 400,000 copies of FF 7 in 2 weeks and everyone was ecstatic over the huge sales. In Japan it sold 2 million copies in 3 days. There is considerably more money to be made in Japan then the US a system is not dead until japan says it's dead. Heck not counting the rare exceptions us gamers import japanese games, japanese gamers don't normally import us games like I said with a few exceptions. Hence most of the time games and systems come out there first as opposed to the US. Centurion I am not saying you are like this you are probably a smart gamer, but I love how disillusioned gamers, or americans in general think that they are the most important person at the party, and the rest of the countries tremble before us. Now before anyone gets mad this comment was aimed towards all the goons I had to deal with for years that didn't grasp the concept of other countries being important. I am all american, and know I am the most important person at the party

Thrillhouse

Yeah, but also take into consideration that not many consoles are manufactured in the US . Therefore, the US will most likely be the ones with the exclusive games this time around.

jeffdsmith

Doesn't help that most of the companies that that provide exclusives worth having are in japan...

That was the issue at first when the xbox was being planned, people were concerned that there would be no japanese support. MS worked hard on getting it. No one can say what will happen to it if it fails over there.

Anyway, we need to wait and see, things may pick up soon. 3 days don't mean that much. Besides, the numbers could be wrong. The numbers after the xbox and GC here were whacky for a while.

What happened to all that Amazon demand Flay? (Sorry, had to, im just messing with you.)

Gallant Pig

As long as Xbox has Sega developing for it, I couldn't care less how well it does in Japan.

Gallant Pig

Other than Sega, Square, and Nintendo, who are you talking about?

Josh H

Capcom and Konami are two more that I can think of off the top of my head. Their third party but usually have their biggest games as exclusives at least for a period of time. (Resident Evil, Metal Gear Solid, etc.)

Gallant Pig

Capcom and Konami are better than all US developers? That's what Jeff is saying.

jeffdsmith

Capcom, Konami, Enix, Square, Hudson, Sega, Namco, Techmo, etc.

Please note, I'm not implying that there are not other titles produced elsewhere in the world worth having. I merely meant that traditionally these titles (exclusives) have been from japan.

jeffdsmith

Again, that is not what i was saying at all. I said "Doesn't help that most of the companies that that provide exclusives worth having are in japan... "

: I was and am talking about exclusive games. What games that are exclusive to a particular console are extreamly awesome and must have that are produced in the states? (Halo withstanding)

My point is the majority of exlusive games worth having come from japan. I NEVER said japanese developers are superior to US developers bar none. I don't understand how you even pulled that out of there.

AgtFox

Let me play the Devil's Advocate for a bit here . You are correct that traditionally the exclusive titles have come from Japanese companies, but there is another point to this story. Let's take a few well-loved game series in the US and look at them: Metroid, Metal Gear Solid and Grand Theft Auto.

Metroid as a franchise is still going on only because of the US market. Metroid, Metroid II and Super Metroid all flopped in Japan but in the US it sold like wildfire. Now, once the creator died (he also created the GameBoy) Nintendo just could have let Metroid die a quiet death, but Shigeru Miyamoto deemed a new Metroid necessary and personally handed the development over to Retro Studios, a US company. Miyamoto still oversees the development of Metroid Prime, but this game is being made with the US in mind.

Now let's look at Metal Gear Solid. The original MGS didn't sell very well in Japan, but in the US and Europe it sold exceedingly well. Konami started development on MGS2 only because they knew it would sell exceedingly well in the US and Europe. MGS2 is one of a very few Japanese made games that have come out in the US before Japan (Ico is another one). MGS2 sold exceedingly well in the US and sold pretty well in Japan as well. However Konami and Kojima made this game with the US in mind...heck, they even hired a Hollywood composer to do the music and did extensive research in the United States for this game.

And finally Grand Theft Auto (you can also include Rare games in this as well). Where was Grand Theft Auto developed? In the United Kingdom (same as Rare). Is GTA3 not the best selling game of last year? Did it come from Japan? Funny...it didn't. Rare is a highly respected developer that is outside of Japan. They are exclusive to Nintendo.

And let's not forget the #1 video game seller in the world. Who is that you ask? Electronic Arts...based right here in the US. They may not make or produce many exclusive titles but they certainly have a presence both here and around the world.

This is just me playing Devil's Advocate. Truth is that both sides are right. But in analyzing current trends it is very apparent that Japanese developers are looking more toward what US gamers want than they ever did before. The industry is no longer necessarily decided on the Japanese side. Had Sega not felt so Japan-centric chances are the Dreamcast would still be around and games would still be made for it based on its US success.

Microsoft is going against the grain but they are also riding the wave of change. We'll just have to see how everything pans out.

And I am for all consoles, just playing Devil's Advocate here. If you want me to play DA for PS2 or GC let me know

Gallant Pig

OK let's boil this down further, what exclusives other than Resident Evil are we talking about from Japanese developers (Square, Sega, and Nintendo excluded).

AgtFox

Here, I'll play DA with my good bud Gallant Pig . Here's one: Tekken 4 (Namco)...PS2 only. Here's another: Xenosaga (also Namco)...PS2 only. If I wasn't so tired I'm sure I could think of others.

And for X-Box there is Project K-X (it has a new name now...too tired to look it up) by Dream Factory (I think they changed their name from this).

Gallant Pig

Right, but look, as Xbox owners we have been getting Japanese games before the Japanese. DOA3 anyone? Anyway, I say that there are as many good US/Europe exclusives as there are Japanese exclusives (outside of Nintendo, Square, and Sega).

Grimfarrow

And if that is what Jeff is saying, I'd agree.

US developers don't hold a candle to Japanese game designers, IMO. No, GTA3 doesn't change that fact, since the game is made by Brits.

And the last PC game I enjoyed, Wizardry 8, is made by Canadians.

Tuan Jim

You talking about PC Games or Consoles? Either way, I guess Bungie doesn't mean anything to you -- never a bad game from them (Marathon, Myth, Myth II, Halo, etc -- well maybe Oni fell a little short). How 'bout Black Isle Studios (best RPG's around)? Shiny entertainment (MDK 1, Earthworm Jim, etc), Bioware (MDK 2, etc), Valve, Bethesda, Blizzard, The Ion storm team (Deus Ex -- NOT Daikatana), Looking Glass Studios (Thief series, System Shock, etc.), etc?

Very sweeping generalization you made. Not cool.

Tuan Jim

jeffdsmith

Real quick here guys, I never said that japanese developers are 100% better. I want that cleared up right now. I don't believe that.

What I believe is that most games that are exclusive to one console tend to come from japanese developers. (The ones that are good anyway)

I was in no way trying to imply that the US and europeon markets don't influence developers decisions in making games. I don't believe that either.

I'd really appreciate if people would not put things in other people's mouths. And then to have people "quote" something I never said is very upsetting.

I don't have time to reply to comments I didn't make.