Japanese hardware sales, 19 June - 25 June: the bigger they are

Sometimes I get the feeling that they are overly into american pop culture though. Some american movies do incredibly well there that are just awful.

As far as the whole thing about XBox games appealing more to a western audience...lies. No thanks, I don't particularly want to play 97 FPS right now. Honestly, if you're that easily entertained that you'll buy 50 copies of the same game when all they've done is switch weapons around and maybe update the graphics a little, it's kind of sad.

@ at the japanese nationalism comments in oppsotion to

Then i guess the racist nazi bars and black caricicatures and the racist goverment offcial(forgot his name) are wsetern pop culture too huh? ive been there and they see foreigners as less than them, idont know if that translates into hardware sales but they have other manifestations of it( the no-roundeyes signs)

there are too many of every genre right now too many effemanate spiky haired guys in rpgs, too many muscle bound tough talking hombres and too many goddamned horse racing sims

"As far as the whole thing about XBox games appealing more to a western audience...lies. No thanks, I don't particularly want to play 97 FPS right now."

Just b/c YOU aren't into western-style games doesn't mean everyone feels the same way. I'm not into FPS on consoles either but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the difference between western games and Japanese games.

Johnny M

You will always find racism in any culture if you go looking for it. And I will openly admit that there are some serious racial issues here in Japan. But it is mostly in the older generation and it dosn't translate into product sales. American goods are hot in Japan and sell extreamly well if properly marketed.

Also I have lived in Japan for 4 years and I have never been turned away from any bar or resturant. Nor have I ever seen othe "no-round eyes" sign anywahere but an anacronistic photograph.

The only place I have heard of foreigners being turned away are the sex clubs, which are often owned by the Yakuza who feel a bit aprehensive about foreigners.

But I am sick of this topic. EVERY time the xbox fails everyone pulls out the racism card. Long before the poor marketing card. Or lack of titles that interest the Japanese. Because of course they should buy something that dosn't interest them in the name of racial harmony.

Poor Microsoft! Come on Japan! Don't be racist! Buy a 360! Pretend you like it! Don't play the games you like! Play that games WE say are great! You love EA! You love Halo! If you don't, you are a racist bastard.

It is the older generation just like the US south and also the areas where the American military is based. But the bad behavior of those GIs is what made a lot of the Japanese around the bases be real hatefull. It's an understandable hate.

You know there's something I've been picking up reading gaming news blogs & forums.

I always hear people saying that the Japanese are ANTI ANYTHING not made in Japan.

This argument is mostly brought up when X-Box/X-Box 360 sales in Japan are posted.
(like here for instance)

I don't know if I quite believe that.

This is the same country that gets a kick out using random English words on T-shirts & reporting on THE AMERICAN NBA on their sports programs? Why report about the NBA of the nation, USA, on a Japanese sports news program? What about THEIR basketball teams? Or at least China's?

This is the same Japan that has absorbed so much American & Western culture in their music (R&B, Hip-Hop, Rock & Roll, Funk, Folk, Country), in their fashions, in their overall culture.
(just heard today about "president" Bush & Prime Minister of Japan, Junichiro Koizumi, touring Graceland because Koizumi was a big Elvis fan)

EVEN in their food products!

Milk is a delicacy in mountain-laden/farmland-deficient/seafood-centric Japan. And those "western" foods are changing the way the people over there are developing.
Hamburgers from McDonald's & Burger King, KFC complete with the Colonel's fixin's...I wouldn't be surprised to see a BBQ joint over there somewhere!

Don't know if any Wal-Marts have surfaced yet (they'd be best to keep it that way).

Hell, it's even in their language!
How many words in Japanese are basically Japanese-accented ways of saying English words?

Ice Cream = Aisukuriimu
Hamburger = Hanbaagaa
Sunglasses = Sangurasu
Pro Wrestling = Puroresu
Television = Terebijon/Terebi
Family Computer = Famicom/Famicon

So I just don't buy that argument that Japanese are nationalistically-biased against anything outside of their country.

You could make a case that they would be more willing to purchase something made direct from their country as it benefits their economy but that would be the case for every country that makes its own or has a populace who wants to own products from their own country (sadly this only applies to America in the realm of processed foods. i don't even think the paper towels are made here anymore).

Japan's a smaller country than America land-wise & resource-wise so I think that would only be natural but I don't believe they are dead-set resistant to anything not from their own country. Their culture surely isn't.
A lot of the characters in videogames based out of Japan are not Japanese & are usually of European descent. Hideo Kojima's Solid Snake for example.

I think the real reason the X-Boxes are having such a hard time getting ahold of the Japanese market is because of size.
Small, island-shaped, mountain-dominated country with lots of people = little living space.
This is the reason why celllphone gaming & portables are so big over there. Plus they're busy people mostly on the go so that also goes hand-in-hand.

The other reason I think is lack of appeal of the genres most commonly featured on X-Box systems. Metroid was never big in Japan but in the West it's a monster. First person shooters just don't grab the Japanese's attention. And I really don't know how well WWII-based games sit with Japanese audiences.

America has a habit of being too set in its ways when it comes to fresh ideas. This is seen in the movie industry, the TV industry, the music industry & the videogame industry (how many orcs do you need? can't nobody come up with nothing else for characters?). The Japanese took over videogaming from the West mainly because they tend to think outside the box, outside the contemporary, outside the usual. Very artistic creative people as a whole.

Style, design & function is a big part of what they do & this derived from the environment they came from just like cultural attitudes around the world are shaped by their physical environments.

Gaming depends on freshness & out-of-left-field ideas so that's why Japanese gaming sells & is loved around the world.
Western gaming in the FPS-realm is fixated on assortments of guns & little really changes in that aspect though we get some innovative perks from time to time (Goldeneye 007, Perfect Dark).
But for the most part most of those games outside of the backstory & theme are mostly the same. Which is not a crime but little has really changed over the past 10 years in that genre.

Nobody reinvents the wheel enough in much of Western gaming & all that changes really is the characters, the backstory, & maybe slight modifications to game engine.

Nintendo & Sony rule over there not simply because they're Japan-based but because the games on their systems (ESPECIALLY Nintendo's) keep it fresh.

Sony with its 3rd party mostly-Japan-based powerhouses makes characters, gameplay, & genres that appeal to the Japanese audience.
This is why Sony took control of the home-console market with the PS & PS2.

Nintendo (which is more true to Japanese artistic sensibilities than Westernized Sony) makes distinct characters, inventive gameplay, & fresh scenarios that appeal HIGHLY to the Japanese audience.
This is why Nintendo is perenially unbeatable in handheld market & why their homeconsole is more competitive there than here.

The X-Boxes seems to only appeal to the Western-centric world though even there they still run into competition from Sony's 3rd party monsters & Nintendo's trademark franchises. All because of the influence Japanese gaming has had on the world since the 1970's/1980's in arcades & on consoles.

The eternal classic Pac-Man was designed by a Japanese man from Namco.
Back then mostly all you had was your Space Invaders-type shooter & Pong with some other primitive sportsy games.

Who created Donkey Kong? Japanese. Nintendo. Shigeru Miyamoto.
Who created Frogger? Japanese. Konami.
Who created Dig Dug? Japanese. Namco.
Pole Position? Japanese. Namco.
Zaxxon? Japanese. Sega. (Sega originally American but transferred to Japan early in its history)
Defender? American. Williams Electronics.
But Galaga? Japanese. Namco.
Now Joust? American. Williams Electronics.
And Gauntlet? American/British. Atari/U.S. Gold.
And Pitfall? American. Activision.
And Centipede? American. Atari.

But most of the games we remember from back in the day that were distinct, fresh & totally unforseen before were usually Japanese. And that was for a reason.
They kept it fresh.
And that's how a Japanese company named Nintendo ended up saving videogaming as a prominent pastime.

For the X-Box to TRULY break into the Japanese market they will have to capture that spirit that encourages you to take chances & be TRULY creative not just with storyline but with entire game engines. Also to create more of the types of games that will more readily appeal to Japanese audiences.

Dating sims? Horseracing? Custom robot battles? RPG makers? Courtroom simulators???
I mean, wow, those folks over there in Nihon love their variety. I'm so glad the barriers have broken down over the years as to what would be "sellable" in Western markets because Japanese gaming is rich. Still some ways to go in that regard though.

Sega's Project Seaman could have come from nowhere else but Japan. And the same for The Typing of the Dead. And what about Crazy Taxi & these Dance Dance Revolution games?

American Football only means something to Americans while Football/Soccer is a worldwide phenomenon. If X-Box 360 only focused on American Football a la Madden paying no regard to other audiences then they will have limited themselves only to the American market. A market that they may be significant in but not dominating because of Americans' historic love of Japanese gaming.

Now say they start making scores of various baseball games serious, arcadey, AND quirky/campy they might get somewhere because the Japanese love their Yakyuu. All this while keeping the game mechanics fresh & fun to use.

Knowing all of this I think that line about Japanese resisting non-Japanese products is a cop-out.

John Lucas

I wonder why after of years of testing Japan will still not let us sell them our beef saying only that "Japanese stomachs are different", causing them to pay about $50 a pound for beef when you can get that same beef for .35 in Buenos Aires stubborness ignorance,also they tried to stop us from from clam farming over there to of course they arent the only racist nation but I am alarmed when anti-semtic conspiracy literarutre becomes bestsellers in a country with few Jews....

I think this problem has an easy fix. Let Japan ban any american product. and let USA ban any Japanese product. I'm sure I can live without super mario.I'm sure lots of business people will be very happy, and I'm sure that lots of other countries will also be happy. Is japan now importing anything right now that no other country or less say the USA can't produce themselves? I hate their arrogance about their so product superiority. I say ban the everything made in japan. Also, why do you freaken idiots have to mention macdonals, BK or a freaken burger to prove you are not bias against USA; that right there is a freaken insult. Bastards!

Wow bladestar... you're THAT mad that 360 isn't selling well over there?
Thats....amazing...i mean Wow.

COme on the US isn't exactly self sufficient... do you realize how much we import? not ot mention export in order to keep our economy running? Banning products would do nothing but make a black market for them.

Thats why we have free trade. If hte product is appealing people will buy it, if not they wont. Right now the 360 over there just isn't appealing for whatever reason. Heck i know people in the US who wont buy a 360 because it doesn't appeal to them right now. (Hardcore gamers aside.. who buys a $400 system for 1 or 2 games?)
Give it time, sales may pick up. There's still at least 4 or so years left in the 360 (comparing it to the original xbox in terms of lifespan). Plenty of time for it to come out with more appealing games to for the masses both here and abroad.

Johnny M

Did Japan kill your best friend or something? Wow. Perhaps you should research the beef ban (which is in the process of being lifted right now) before you fly off the handle. I meat was banned because of confirmed incidents of Mad-cow. But still most of the beef in Japan is non-domestic, largely from Australia. If Japanese think that only Japanese beef is allowed in their stomachs then why are they eating so much meat from other countries? Also before 3 years ago, American Beef was the most popular beef. Yoshinoya (a popular gyudon chain) almost went out of business when the ban was imposed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoshinoya

And the anti-Semitic literature becoming best sellers? I know it exists here (as it does in America, or most other places) and I know it sells better in Japan than in other Asian countries, but it only sells to a very marginalized minority. Still the fact that it exists here at all is indeed very troubling. But to call these books "best-sellers" is being very liberal with the term. And if held to that standard, they are "best-sellers" in the US and Europe as well.

As for the clam farming. I have no idea. So I am willing to let you have that one.

And bladestar, I don't even know how to respond to that. Your ideas about the world around you are ignorant at best. The burger example is just an easy one to point out but it is not the only American product that does well here. Another American product that does very well here is Microsoft Word (despite the fact that there are many Japanese made Word Processing software). But go ahead, take your PS2 and smash it in a public square like people did to protest Sony walkmans and Toyota cars in the early 80's.

You know, as much as some of you are calling the Japanese people racist, look at the blanket statements you are making about the Japanese people. While perhaps not racist, they are definitely prejudice. Japan has many problems and many race issues to resolve. But it appears that they are not the only ones who have a long way to go. And if it makes you feel better about the state of the 360 to blame Japanese Racism, go right ahead, there is little I can do to stop you.

Who's talking about the 360? the problem it's not as simple as just a video game. don't you watch news?

(2003) "Japan has decided to reimpose a ban on US beef imports after finding risk materials that could cause mad cow disease in a US shipment." Magic word is "Could" not that if found mad cow disease in meat.
A total of 390 kg of beef imported from a meatpacker in New York was found to contain the risk materials when it was inspected upon arrival at Narita International Airport, thats all it took for the gov of Japan to ban all (not the supplier that made the mistake) shutting down a 1.4 billion USD/year business indefinite. This happened in 2003. so, tell me how appealing to the people of united state is that? how about all people that lost their job; probably because Japan found a better deal maybe from another country. Damn, isnt this the most expensive piece of beef in the world? 390 kg of beef (1 offense) = 4.2 billion USD in only 3 years. This is like saying, "Ban every Japanese car because 1 Honda civic was shipped with a defect that may put the life of someone in danger."

United State needs to set an example, too bad our gov are too affraid of being political incorrect. They need to ban Japanese product or better yet, tax the crap out of their product to balance things out. i.e. 50% more taxes to imports from Japan. It would be nice to see a Playstation 3 costing $1,200.00 while the XBox 360 (which happends to be the only american console) 399.00. I'm sure we can use that tax money. How about giving it to those people that lost their jobs when they needed the most. Post 911 economy.


http://depts.washington.edu/einet/?a=printArticle&print=1366

So I ask again. Weekly updates for ALL TERRITORIES please, at the same time.... i'm interested to see the overall picture. Why do you only focus on Japan?

Bladestar...just go back and cry in your little corner. You act like this is the first time any country has ever banned a product from another country. What are you? 12?

GSI, that’s the best you can come up with? I though you would try to defend or excuse Japan, but instead you say, "You act like this is the first time any country has ever banned a product from another country. What are you? 12?" what are you 10? I do agree with you about, not being the first time, but I think the USA should do it too from time to time; how about starting with Japan.

Funny blade how you just totally gloss of Vinnks comments....Because he actually did a good job at refuting them. Because they stop some beef that could give them a health scare (Much like west nile and what not here in america)you flip out...hmm. Ok, I think stopping bad food that COULD kill someone ranks a bit higher than consumer electronics. Last i check playing PS2 or 360 didn't give you a disease that COULD kill ya. But i digress.


The reason they dont have it from all territories Phip is because japanese sales are tallied weekly, here in the US its monthly and even then its hard to get the numbers.

Umm...there is a REASON why Japan put a ban on US beef and JJ hit it right on the money. Bad food (especially Mad Cow disease) can KILL people. Last time I checked buying a PS2, PSP, PS3, etc. won't kill anyone.

I don't expect you to see the big picture since like most people you are PS fan boys which happens to blind a bit certain facts. You see, Japan ban an American product because they found that one (1) beef distributor deliver a piece of meat (A total of 390 kg of beef) how about the other millions of pounds that did not have this? How about the other distributors that did not break any rules? This is all bull; everyone knows that Japan didn't ban this American product because of health. This problem could easily be fix by 1) Ban the distributor that screw up, 2) Impactions. But banning an American product just because of 390 kg of meat it is simply insulting. "Last time I checked buying a PS2, PSP, PS3, etc. won't kill anyone." I heard people can die of execution. I know it is a stupid statement. So it is shutting down lots of businesses including innocent companies and workers that had nothing to do with the 390 kg of meat. You don’t see any of this, since all you care about is the electronic gadgets and the PS3 or Nintendo wii you want to play so bad. Besides this is not something that affects you directly, so who cares as long as you can play you japs video games.

By the way I am not the only one that thinks this is unfair. So, accusing me of being 12 does not change any of these facts.

“WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States should impose economic sanctions on Japan if it fails to put aside its fears of mad cow disease and open its borders to U.S. beef by the end of the summer, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted on Thursday.”

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060622/pl_nm/madcow_usa_dc

Too bad politician are usually right about what should be the solution, but are too weak to execute it.

DS will reach 10 million units sold in Japan ALONE next month. Read an article on it this morning.

That means it must be getting close to 20 million worldwide...

Ok JJ, cheers :)

@Vinnk

That's the most intelligent post I've seen on this quasi-anti-Sony web site in a LONG time.

As far as saying "It's not fair to compare PS2 sales in the US to 360 sales because of the price difference, one is a Toyota and the other is a Ferrari, blah blah blah".

Money is money. I'm sure M$ would LOVE to be able to sell a "Toyota" and have it outsell a Ferrari. Not to mention the fact that the PS2 is mostly profit now, while every 360 M$ is selling is at a LOSS.

Oddly, if you look at games like God of War, the analogy doesn't really hold up. The 360 does have better graphics than the PS2, and the PS3 will have better graphics than the 360, but as any M$ fanboy will tell you, that's not the whole story. All I know is that when the PS3 comes out, the PS2 will still be outselling the 360, so Sony will have a Lamborghini PS3 to the M$ Ferrari, yet they will still be outselling M$ with their "Toyota". Sorry Mr. Ballmer.

To bladestar, I own a 360 and ps2. One thing I have to say is that I barely ever play my 360, why? SHITTY ASS GAMES THAT WHY. I still play my ps2 because I enjoy the games and I don't really care about graphics, or that it can be displayed in HD. And for your information, ps2 is outselling the 360 in the USA also. God I hate fanboys.

Look, I have them all. PS2, Xbox, Xbox 360, Gamecube, N64, PSP(until recently), DS. I have always found the Xbox, and now, the 360, to be my weapon of choice. I am heavily biased toward FPS genre. Not to call all others inferior, just that I like FPS more. I think the Japanese predominantly like FF-style RPGs , and that is something that the Microsoft machine has not tried to get into. Look at the 360 sales in Europe. And we all know Europeans are not to crazy about Americans. They are paying £90 for a copy of GRAW without thinking twice. It boils down not to marketing, or advertisement, but to effectively capturing the gamer with the support for their preferences. If the 360 suddenly switched their orientation to RPGs, mine would be going on Ebay within a month. But I can almost guarantee that the sales in Japan would pick up.
In all reality, you can attempt to cater to both, but the developers are a little sketchy treading new waters, especially if there is a lot of money involved. And there would have to be, as the Japan-winning titles would have to be exclusives. It is not going to happen, not anytime soon. But what hurts the most is the lack of support for the 360 States-side. There are entirely too many people not willing to even try the 360, because they are waiting for the magical Blu-Ray-wielding PS3. Technology aside, try everything once. At least then you will be able to say, "Yeah, I tried it, not my cup of tea!" and actually mean it. Until then, please try to restrain yourself and don't knock everyone else's chioce. Thanks for reading this.