Xbox is a notorious brand known around the world. The brand demonstrates its notoriety when it comes to its hardware such as the Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, or its iconic franchises like Halo, Gears of War, and Forza.Despite Xbox’s impressive accomplishments, the brand has struggled to succeed in one country – Japan.
Since Microsoft is an American company, it is hard to establish a reputation in a country dominated by giants in the video game industry such as Sony, Nintendo, and Sega.
Xbox has always been in those titan’s shadows in the country of Japan. This was one situation that Phil Spencer wanted to reverse when he became the Head of Xbox in 2014.
The first Xbox console attempted to make a name for itself in Japan by luring Japanese game developers to its console. The console was able to secure games in the Jet Set Radio, Ninja Gaiden, and the Dead or Alive series, but Xbox stopped pushing to become the favorite console in the following years.
During the Xbox 360 era, the console was released with limited Japanese developed games. The 360 instead featured several open-world RPGs from western developers such as Bethesda and Bioware, slowing the interest from the players from Japan.
The Xbox One era didn’t make a dent in the console’s profile in the country either, with it launching 10 months after its original launch in North America and other countries. This led players to migrate to the competing PlayStation 4 which helped Sony boost its sales and have the PS4 become a bestseller compared to the Xbox One.
Phil Spencer made it known early in his tenure as Head of Xbox that the market in Japan is one that he wants to change dramatically.
His goal is to make Xbox a well-known brand and be the console of choice in Japan.
Part of his plan to make a dent in the Japanese market is by securing deals with notable Japanese developers.
One of the earlier instances of this strategy was with PlatinumGames.
Xbox and PlatinumGames partnered to create Scalebound, an incredible Japanese RPG set in a fantasy world. Xbox would go on to cancel the title due to the companies fear that it wouldn’t live up to player expectations.
Compared to the PlayStation 4 towards the end of its lifecycle, the Xbox One having a delayed release really impacted their chances of having a significant market push in Japan.
According to Director of Xbox Asia, Jeremy Hinton, the Xbox One failed to make an impact at launch due to the Xbox One launching as, “a Western TV gaming box full of Madden and Call of Duty at the time, and Western TV shows.”
Hinton went on to say that the lack of third-party support, no localization in its first-party games, and the higher price point, when compared to the PlayStation 4, were other major factors that limited their impact.
Phil Spencer knew that he would have a clean slate in Japan starting with the Xbox Series X, the first console to launch under his leadership.Starting with the Series X and Series S consoles, it was easier than ever to enter the Xbox ecosystem. The Series S is a perfect complementary console to other competing consoles due to its lower price point. When paired with a Game Pass subscription, this duo is the perfect entry into Xbox for any player.One significant move that team Xbox accomplished was making its presence known at the Tokyo Game Show. Their presence at TGS solidified Xbox’s commitment to the Japanese gaming audience and proved they are serious about having an Xbox console in as many Japanese households as possible.To make sure they start on the right foot compared to the Xbox One launch, the Series X and Series S consoles launched simultaneously around the world. One interesting fact about the Series S is that the console changed the price just a few weeks before its launch in Japan.
The Xbox Series X and Series S are off to a great start compared to the Xbox One launch, according to Jeremy Hinton.Xbox Series S paired with the Game Pass service have been well received by the Japanese gaming community and Japan is now the fastest-growing market for Xbox.Xbox is planning on fixing its mistakes from previous generations such as the lack of localization for its first-party titles.Even if a game is unable to have voice localization by launch, there will be an inclusion of subtitles for the games, with voice being released post-launch.
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