PS3 hits one million sold in Japan, double Xbox 360

I don't know what the hell is happening in Japan, but the PS3 is getting a lot more traction here in the US nowadays. Mine arrived yesterday - my first new game system since getting a ps2 in 2002! The craigslist want ads here in Boston (and it's true for the other US cities I checked) are rife with people selling off their Wiis and looking to pick up a PS3. I know multiple people who aren't interested in a 360 but are going to pick up a PS3 in time for GTA4 and Rock Band...between this winter's releases, the price drop, and the increasingly number of interesting PS3 exclusives...people who seem to expect the PS3 to die will be surprised by the turnaround.

It's interesting looking back on things.

When MS announced the XBox they were a laughing stock for the most part. Hell, I laughed. Who ever thought they would beat Nintendo and get in 2nd place?

Then, when Sony and MS were hyping their machines up, and no one really heard anything from Nintendo, we all pretty much figured they were destined for 3rd place yet again. And, we all assumed Sony would deliver the number 1 hit yet again.

Things don't seem to be turning out that way. MS and Sony are neck and neck with current sales, while the 360 total is obviously higher due to the year lead, while Nintendo sales is destroying both of them.

Seems like we might see a flip flop this gen, 1) Nintendo, 2) Microsoft, 3) Sony.

I like the traction the PS3 is starting to get these days - could turn out to be a good system. I know that this entire week has been a big blur of working, sleeping, and Super Stardust HD.

...Do people still really think the Wii is in direct competition with the 360 or the PS3?

I'll put it flatly: It's not.

It's an awesome system, I have a lot of fun with mine, it's selling like crazy, but really now: There is no way I would want it as my only system.

If you want to play games like Forza2, Burnout, Resistance, Ninja Gaiden Sigma, etc., you can't if you only have a Wii. If you want to play online games like Halo2, StreetFighter, UNO, Rainbow 6, GRAW, Crackdown, Gears of War, etc., online with your friends, you can't if you only have a Wii. You can't get into high-def detail if you only own a Wii. You're not downloading movies, trailers and especially *game demos* if you only have a Wii.

I think it's like comparing a TV show to a movie, you can enjoy both and you're missing out if you choose to only own one. Everyone will own a Wii and one of the other systems... which are much more "comparable": the 360 and the PS3.

And what's the deal with Nintendo fans "flipping the script" and changing what flag they choose to wave around?

For instance, when the gamecube was tanking, many Nintendo fans acted like sales didn't matter that much, and it was often brought up that the system was more capable than a PS2 and had good games too. Now if you mention the Wii versus other systems, it seems the first salvo is all about sales... "Graphics don't matter! Sales! You care about HD graphics? I don't, because another 100k sold in Japan this week!"

Sales only confirm that others are buying one too... Which is good, and I would be one of the first to assume that huge sales like that should indicate that the industry would be planning and releasing greatness for the uber-darling that is the Wii... But it's been in sort of a slump, hasn't it? Metroid not online? Delays on Galaxies? No major releases that interest me, and no online support? I have a few Wii games I enjoy, but not as many or as often as I have to choose from on the 360. They aren't the same type of games on both systems.

I know I sound negative and anti-Wii, but I'm not - I like the system a lot. But I don't really think it has the same attraction as the other systems - for some, it has more, for others, less... But picking it as your only system would be shooting yourself in the foot.

Food was big on Joystiq yesterday, so let's try this one: Having a Wii and one of the other systems is like Steak and Potatoes! It's up to you which is the steak and which one is the potato, but you're better off with both!

"but you're better off with both!"*

*...unless you're worried about cholesterol. In which case, which one of these is the salad?

M$ just needs more games that looks good to the Japanese.....
Katamari and Lost Odyssey might help but I don't think 2 games will make a huge diffrence lol..
But then Eternal Sonata and Blue Dragon increased Xboxs hardware sales in japan...
up comming MistWalker games will help alot IMO....
But they need a game that will get them to play on XboxLive...I think the xbox community is small in japan so Live there is pretty....empty&boring..
I say thy need a good Jap MMO hahaha....
Well anyways...gratz sony....slow and steady....or...maybe just slow who knows...lets see who wins the race :)

Well,after that great *American* ET fiasco(that and the whole over- saturation of consoles,which took part in a crash that almost killed video games in the early 80's),came a message from God. That message was the Nintendo Entertainment System.

xbox trivia from wiki:

In March 2007, Mexico, in an attempt to lower the amount of weapons on the street, offered an Xbox to anyone who turned in a weapon.[18]
In Japan, the nickname for the Xbox is "Batsu Bako," meaning 'Wrong Box' or 'Bad Box,' as the Xbox is unpopular in Japan. The choice of the nickname was inspired by the common handsign of putting the arms or hands into an X shape and saying "Batsu!" when someone did something wrong.[19]
The Microsoft gaming division has reported losses leading up to 2006 totaling over $4 billion.[20]

Considering the fact that the PS2 sold 1 million consoles in Japan instantly, and the PS3 took 9 months to do so, I really don't see the positive here.

Everyone EXPECTED the 360 to do shitty in Japan, not the PS3. Sony owned Japan last time around. This time they are getting owned by Nintendo.