In a report from the current issue of Japanese game magazine Weekly Famitsu, Microsoft Japan officials reflected on the Xbox 360’s abysmal launch in Japan. So far, the 360 has sold only 107,800 units which is lesser than what original Xbox did in its first three days of its launch.
Microsoft of Japan Xbox chief of operations Yoshihiro Maruyama said;
It was a lot more difficult than we had imagined. We couldn’t prepare the launch titles that we had promised, and it made an impact.
To add to its woes, the two games whose release were planned with the launch - Dead or Alive 4launch and [em] -eNCHANT aRM, were delayed by several weeks to a month now.
However, Maruyama expressed hope sales would bounce back now that these titles were now on the market, with additional ‘Japan-friendly 360 exclusives’ that are on the way such as:
a) Q Entertainment’s Ninety Nine Nights,
b) Mistwalker’s Blue Dragon, and
c) Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XI
Furthermore, according to Maruyama, more Japan-specific game announcements were in the pipeline, and may be out before E3.
Maruyama also blamed ineffective marketing campaign based around the 360’s HD-video capabilities as another factor affecting the launch.
He said;
We also received some criticisms toward our promotions, saying that people don’t understand what high definition is. The Xbox 360’s main appeal is high definition, but we couldn’t successfully convey it.
Sony must be smiling at this.
Source: Gamasutra
