The Xbox 360 flopped in Japan, failing to sell as many as the original Xbox, which also flopped in Japan. So Microsoft is planning what amounts to a relaunch, under new management, with a bunch of new games. As Yuri Kageyama reports from Tokyo for AP
The new head of Microsoft's Japanese video-game business expressed determination Thursday to make the Xbox 360 a success in Japan, where the console has struggled, by more than tripling the number of games it offers by the end of the year.
"Our message is this: We're prepared to do everything that's needed to make Xbox 360 a success around the world, including Japan," said Takashi Sensui, who became the head of Japan's Xbox operations this month.
Microsoft plans to have 60 games in Japan by the end of the year.
Comment: The AP story says: "Xbox 360 has a pocket of opportunity to win over Japanese gamers because Sony, which makes the market leader PlayStation 2 console, recently announced it's delaying the sale of the next-generation PlayStation 3 until November." But I suspect that's not true.
Basically, Sony owns the Japanese home console (as distinct from portable) market, which is hardly surprising given the fantastic success there of both the PlayStation (PSX) and PlayStation 2. It would be surprising if consumers who have been in the PS camp for a decade decided to switch brands without seeing what Sony has to offer in the PS3 -- especially when the PS3 launch was expected to follow only a few months after the Xbox 360 launch. (A mistaken impression that Sony, naturally, did nothing to correct.)
In that case, the Xbox 360 could do better once the PS3 is out, and buyers can make a fair comparison, instead of one based on hype. If the PS3 is even bulkier than the Xbox 360, doesn't deliver significantly more power, and is noticeably more expensive, then Sony could lose a few customers. Not a huge number -- fan bases don't switch overnight -- but maybe enough.
Of course, if the PS3 does deliver, Microsoft is not going to get more than a toe-hold in Japan, and it might have to do something spectacular for the next round -- like buy Nintendo.
