Putting a triple exclamation point next to the obvious, IGN has a look at the breakdown of console sales in Japan for fiscal 2005. You already know the DS pwned the PSP. But it ain’t pretty for the 360 either, folks. In fiscal 2005 (March 2005 - March 2006), the 360 sold just 120,000 units in four months, which the Gamecube beat by almost twice as much. Granted, the Gamecube was around year long, but that’s still a sad, sad number of consoles sold for the first next-gen system. Comparatively, the DS sold over 4 million units during the fiscal year… selling more units in one month than the 360 managed in four. Not that anyone’s surprised, but Microsoft really does need that relaunch and the support of some Japanese game makers if this is the way they are shooting out of the gate. Absolutely pitiful. Anyone who pays attention to the weekly Japanese game charts could've probably told you this, but Nintendo's Animal Crossing was the biggest game in Japan throughout the fiscal year 2005. Japanese game site Mainichi Interactive, passing along final figures for the year covering 3/28/2005 to 3/26/2006 from publisher and part-time retail tracker Enterbrain, reports that the DS game sold 2.34 million copies, placing it a few hundred thousand units over the second highest game, Final Fantasy XII (2.05 million units). The DS dominated the top 10 software chart. The third biggest game of the year was Nintendo's DS brain training game, Nou wo Kitaeru Otona no DS Training at 1.85 million units. That title's sequel, Motto Nou wo Kitaeru Otona no DS Training, following in fourth with 1.7 million. Mario Kart DS placed fifth at 1.21 million units. Nintendo's portable was tops in the hardware scene as well. The DS won the hardware sales race with 4.32 million units sold, destroying the PlayStation Portable, which took 2nd place at 2.07 million units. PS2 managed 1.77 million units, followed by Game Boy Advance SP (600,000), Game Boy Micro (460,000), the extremely sold-out DS Lite (380,000), GameCube (240,000) and Xbox 360 (120,000). In all, 2005 saw eight games reach million seller status -- higher than usual for the Japanese market. Overall software unit sales increased by 7.9%, but due to budget releases, overall sales stood at 3.09 billion yen, a 0.8% increase over the previous year. The hardware market saw a total of 10.02 million units, an increase of 23.2% over the last year. Overall revenues for hardware reached 1.635 trillion yen, 28.7% up from the previous year. Enterbrain predicts that the DS will top the 10 million mark this year, as promised by Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, and will go on to reach 14.5 million by the end of 2007. Source : http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/701/701046p1.html kotaku
This doesnt surprise me. If Im not mistaken the original Xbox didnt sell to well either. I dont think the Japanese are interested in American games, but I predict that if we give it more time, the slaes will pick up. Glad to hear the DS is doing so well, Im so glad I bought it. ^_^
I loved how M$ said at their conference last week that, "The 360 will succeed in Japan!". Yeah, right. And
Yeah, its looking bleak for Microsoft in Japan. If Ninety-Nine Nights, Chromehounds, Blue Dragon, Lost Planet, Lost Odyssey, Project Sylph, and the new Tri-Ace game don't at least push it up around 500,000, then MS might as well give up on Japan.
Personally id like to see an american game console do good over there. Im willing to bet the japanese are just waiting for a reason to (buy american). Its not japanese pride or anything like that they just plain ol dont care for it. If they have a reason to buy it they will just like the ipod. Also the news FPSs are starting to take hold is also cool. America makes some awsome FPSs but id like to see what japan would give us.
I wouldn't say that the Japanese hate American game consoles it's just that American game consoles have shit games that don't appeal to the Japanese. I'm not Japanese but not one single American console has ever interested me due to the wank software. Yeah, it may appeal to Americans but not to others. Jaguar, full of shit games with piss poor controls and graphics. Alien Vs Predator ??? Yeah, what ever ! The 3DO, more US based gaming which whiles not as bad as the Jag still didn't have anything to grip me apart from D and Need For Speed. XBOX, basically a more powerful 3DO to me. XBOX 360, looks pretty cool and does have some games that I'd like to own BUT these games won't last long leaving it with western only produced titles. You see, while these machines may be good it's the software that isn't or at least not for the Japanese market. I bet if the 360 was launched with a dating sim, strtergy war sim, arcade conversions, shooters, RPGs and so on then it may have had a better chance. It really is a shame. Yakumo
Yeah, right with Yakumo on this one. There is no quick fix, there is no one game or genre that the 360 needs. It is the variety and quantity of the the current PS2 that you need to compete in the current Japanese market. Dragon Quest would sell a bunch of consoles, but after everyone has that game they are probably not going to stick around without at least 1 game a week they want to play. I have a mate in Japan who got a PS2 just for FFXII - when he has completed that game, he will then sell the game and the console second hand. (I am trying to persuede him to stick around for other RPG but he only plays FF!) Anyhoo I doubt Japanese people hate the 360. They are just mostly impartial.
The irony in all of this, is that when Xbox was originally launched in Japan, it sold more in one week than Microsoft managed to sell in about 4 months with XBox 360. Xbox 360 might even do worse than Xbox this time, although I could be mistaken.
I m scared to imagine that games like Panzer Dragoon Orta on the first XBOX were not praised by the Japanese (I dont know any numbers about the sales, having said that). Looking at the XBOX's game library right now, although I never intended on getting an XBOX, as a long time nintendo-franchise-fan (Most of their games are appealing to me, even those like chibi robo, which i personally loved), I have to be honest and admit that there are some games that I'd want to own. Anyone seen the new Outrun? It looks as pretty as the arcade it came from. Does anyone know how chihiro-based arcade games are doing in japan? Because if the chihiro-based games are selling, the reason that the same games dont sell on the home console could clearly be attributed not to taste, but to dislike of the american product.
Last gen the Xbox was my favorite console.But as many would say it just didnt have that japanese support that would make it even better.I hope the 360 picks up steam and the japanese games get sent states side.it sad to own a console with nothing worth importing from japan but Shikagami no Shiro.
That's a good point to bring up. Anyone who has read any recent issue of Arcadia can tell you that Chihiro games are featured heavily in that mag. Sega Golf Tour, Ghost Recon, Quest of D, and that Sangoku war sim game are all Chihiro based titles that seem to get constant coverage (and revisions). Perhaps porting these titles to Xbox would be a good move. I mean, people must be playing them if they're getting annual updates, right?
The xbo 360 doesn't have enough games or games that japanese people want to play. Shit i am tired of shooters i want something more.
The Japanese don't hate the 360, they just walk into a shop with a million PS2 titles and 10 XBOX 360 titles and can't seem to find a reason to invest the money. I can't say that really blame them. I don't think I've ever met a anti-XBOX person here, most of them just don't seem to know much about it. Microsoft should have bought some Japanese gaming companies and had them put out Japan only software. Better graphics and gameplay are great, but for the same money as a 360 and some decent games they can buy 20-30 PS2 titles. Seems like a big risk to take, especially since there's not much to do if you end up not liking the 360 games.
Technically there are 3. (Perfect Dark Zero, Quake 4 and COD2) Though BF2 and FarCry just came out a few days ago, so that pushes the count up a bit. There's also Ghost Recon and the Outfit, but I don't really classify those as true FPS.
