What can Sony do about Japan?

[Archgamer]

Right now the Wii is making a killing over there while the PS3 is having decent sales. I still think somewhere down the line they can still win but for some reason I don't think the answer is JRPG's.

Japan nowadays seem more and more interested in the quirky 1st Party Nintendo games. That controller is probably the biggest selling point over there. In the West I can see the novalty wear out if that's the case, but in the far East I don't think it will slow down.

I'm picturing the Wii as the DS and the PS3 as the PSP as far as to how things are shaping up. The PS3 can't fight a price war with them. However I don't think they are completely out of luck winning back Japan. We all know it's still very early and a lot of stragetic movements can be made.

 

[TheChefO]

Right now the Wii is making a killing over there while the PS3 is having decent sales. I still think somewhere down the line they can still win but for some reason I don't think the answer is JRPG's.

Japan nowadays seem more and more interested in the quirky 1st Party Nintendo games. That controller is probably the biggest selling point over there. In the West I can see the novalty wear out if that's the case, but in the far East I don't think it will slow down.

I'm picturing the Wii as the DS and the PS3 as the PSP as far as to how things are shaping up. The PS3 can't fight a price war with them. However I don't think they are completely out of luck winning back Japan. We all know it's still very early and a lot of stragetic movements can be made.

Perhaps the console is too large?
/shameless_jab

I don't think they are completely out either. However it is entirely up to the developers IMO. Right now I see it as a race against time between userbase growth and compelling games selection. If the gap becomes too large I don't think the devs in the region can afford to ignore the Wii platform by withholding the big hitters. If they produce enough compelling software to shift enough consoles before the big hitters come, then they will be ok.

 

[whatever7]

Nothing, the Japanese console market is getting more and more tired every year.

Pray not all of the PS2 3rd party niche developers will move to the DS I guess.

 

[infinity4]

i wouldn't judge how PS3 will do in japan until...

- Winning Eleven Squared
- Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of Patriots
- BioHazard 5
- Monster Hunter 3
- Final Fantasy XIII
- White Knight Story
- Gran Turismo 5

comes out. PS3 won't be selling 20~k /wk forever. I think SCEJ needs to keep up momentum, then i think they should be fine in Japan. Most worrying region for SCEI i believe, is North America. 360 has focused on US, Wii is success everywhere. NA is at least 35% of world gaming market AFAIK

 

[quest55720]

I really think it comes down to coming up with unique quirky games for the PS3. I think games that take advantage of the motion sensing of the PS3 and maybe stuff like the eye toy. The traditional game market has been on life support in japan for a few years now. Sony almost has to think backwards come up with games and concepts that are portable at heart. What I am talking about is easy to pick up and play for a few minutes at a time like Wii sports. You mix in those kind of games with the FFs of the world and sony is in pretty good shape in japan.

 

[djskribbles]

i wouldn't judge how PS3 will do in japan until...

- Winning Eleven Squared
- Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of Patriots
- BioHazard 5
- Monster Hunter 3
- Final Fantasy XIII

comes out. PS3 won't be selling 20~k /wk forever. I think SCEJ needs to keep up momentum, then i think they should be fine in Japan. Most worrying region for SCEI i believe, is North America. 360 has focused on US, Wii is success everywhere. NA is at least 35% of world gaming market AFAIK

add White Knight Story and GT5.

 

[whatever7]

They can make a completely Japanese version of LittleBigPlanet. And give out user custom designed LBP plush dolls, that's a start.

 

[infinity4]

add White Knight Story and GT5.

i personally don't know much about japanese games apart from Pro Evo

btw i feel i am only person @ B3D who has never played any of previous sequels of games i have mentioned... because i never owned a ps2 before in my life!

 

[Deusp]

Part of the problem is that Japan is in a creativity wasteland by any company not named Nintendo. Japan is just too insular and too non-diverse to be much of anything right now. No doubt, PS3 will do better in the future and claims of Wii victory are vastly overblown, because PS3 has good games coming, in particularly the "next-gen" games that cannot be reasonably ported to the Wii. However, I do see Sony needing to break Japan from its insular nature. Japan is no longer the center of video gaming world and most of the games made today are western in nature. Western games have to be more popular in Japan, because right now the existing stranglehold by Japanese devs is just limiting gaming selection and thus hurting the market there.

 

[quest55720]

Part of the problem is that Japan is in a creativity wasteland by any company not named Nintendo. Japan is just too insular and too non-diverse to be much of anything right now. No doubt, PS3 will do better in the future and claims of Wii victory are vastly overblown, because PS3 has good games coming, in particularly the "next-gen" games that cannot be reasonably ported to the Wii. However, I do see Sony needing to break Japan from its insular nature. Japan is no longer the center of video gaming world and most of the games made today are western in nature. Western games have to be more popular in Japan, because right now the existing stranglehold by Japanese devs is just limiting gaming selection and thus hurting the market there.

I would disagree I think over time the Wii will get much stronger like the DS. The Wiimote in most games is just tacked on when games get designed around it the Wii will shine. Just like the ds got off to the rocky start till games started to creatively use the touch screen like nintendogs. Also like the ds lots of 3rd partys well caught off guard and are well late to the party. The DS early was carried by nintendo now many 3rd party games are selling well because 3rd partys finally figured out shovel ware or ports by the b team will not cut it. I figure by this time next year 3rd parties will figure out shovel ware by the c team will not cut it and start to devote A teams on Wii projects. While the PS3 will get much better graphically the Wii will get some very unique games that can only be played with a Wiimote type controller. I think right now in japan unique and different game play trumps graphics. It will take more than killer graphics to get the PS3 to outsell the Wii.

The writing has been on the wall for the last 18 months. The PS2 should of been a money printing device but instead the DS has owned the sales charts. A few japanese third party developers like capcom saw this coming and changed they way they do things. If a developer wants to make money on a traditional console game it is going to be in the west.

 

[Deusp]

I would disagree I think over time the Wii will get much stronger like the DS. The Wiimote in most games is just tacked on when games get designed around it the Wii will shine. Just like the ds got off to the rocky start till games started to creatively use the touch screen like nintendogs. Also like the ds lots of 3rd partys well caught off guard and are well late to the party. The DS early was carried by nintendo now many 3rd party games are selling well because 3rd partys finally figured out shovel ware or ports by the b team will not cut it. I figure by this time next year 3rd parties will figure out shovel ware by the c team will not cut it and start to devote A teams on Wii projects. While the PS3 will get much better graphically the Wii will get some very unique games that can only be played with a Wiimote type controller. I think right now in japan unique and different game play trumps graphics. It will take more than killer graphics to get the PS3 to outsell the Wii.

I totally disagree. I don't see these innovative games coming like we did with the DS. So far there's only been Wii Sports and nothing else in the pipeline that's showing a meaningful use of the Wii-mote. Even the innovative ones tend to be DS ripoffs, like Cooking Mama. Also, DS has a lot of its weight carried by more traditional games (Pokemon, NSMB, Yoshi, etc.). The Wii will have very few traditional games to carry it. I expect it to go downwards, not upwards, after some point in time in the future.

The writing has been on the wall for the last 18 months. The PS2 should of been a money printing device but instead the DS has owned the sales charts. A few japanese third party developers like capcom saw this coming and changed they way they do things. If a developer wants to make money on a traditional console game it is going to be in the west.

And that's why Japan is such a creativity wasteland. Capcom has abandoned Japan already, and in many ways Sony has too (yes it's true, most of Sony's first party are very western oriented). Even if DS and Wii takes off, the Japan gaming market will still go downwards over the long run because there will be so little diversity in gaming. In short, no matter how innovative or fun a game is, the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, ad naseum version of that game will neither be fun nor innovative. Hence the need for diversity and western tastes in gaming. While Sony will do better with price cuts and more games, the Japanese video market itself will not resuscitate without a shift in gaming tastes altogether.

 

[LogisticX]

There is more to the general malaise going on in Japan right now than just lack of originality....which I'm not so sure I completely agree with.

I think Japan is really hard to predict given all the external factors affecting sales and the economy in general. The population is getting older and older and there's just less youth culture coupled with the persistent xenophobia......there just isn't the people to support a gaming industry the way it used to I think. We'll have to see what happens with Sony's big games but honestly, I don't know how to call it.

Wii could be like DS and just keep running without looking back.

 

[quest55720]

There is more to the general malaise going on in Japan right now than just lack of originality....which I'm not so sure I completely agree with.

I think Japan is really hard to predict given all the external factors affecting sales and the economy in general. The population is getting older and older and there's just less youth culture coupled with the persistent xenophobia......there just isn't the people to support a gaming industry the way it used to I think. We'll have to see what happens with Sony's big games but honestly, I don't know how to call it.

Wii could be like DS and just keep running without looking back.

I know it is a handheld but the DS in japan is tracking higher than the PS2 and around the first of the year actually catch the PS2s LTD sales in japan. I think there are plenty of people to support gaming in japan it is just the tastes have changed. The DS kicks out million seller after million seller so the gamers are there. As an outsider looking it I would say they are almost bored with traditional games now. I can't really blame them outside online play there has not been much of a change since the PS1 days besides of course graphics. While some traditional games do well on the ds like pokemon it is the nintendogs and brain training ect that are drawing in fresh blood into the gaming market. I see so much potential in the Wii just turning the Wii sports games in to full titles would rock. A new mario golf and tennis using the Wiimote sounds great to me. A new punch out using 2 Wiimotes could be an all time classic game. EA or Take 2 taking Wiisports baseball to the next level would be pretty damn great.

 

[Natoma]

I totally disagree. I don't see these innovative games coming like we did with the DS. So far there's only been Wii Sports and nothing else in the pipeline that's showing a meaningful use of the Wii-mote. Even the innovative ones tend to be DS ripoffs, like Cooking Mama. Also, DS has a lot of its weight carried by more traditional games (Pokemon, NSMB, Yoshi, etc.). The Wii will have very few traditional games to carry it. I expect it to go downwards, not upwards, after some point in time in the future.

Uhm, the Wii just launched 4 1/2 months ago. Don't make such bold statements. You'll find that they may come back to haunt you.

And that's why Japan is such a creativity wasteland. Capcom has abandoned Japan already, and in many ways Sony has too (yes it's true, most of Sony's first party are very western oriented). Even if DS and Wii takes off, the Japan gaming market will still go downwards over the long run because there will be so little diversity in gaming. In short, no matter how innovative or fun a game is, the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, ad naseum version of that game will neither be fun nor innovative. Hence the need for diversity and western tastes in gaming. While Sony will do better with price cuts and more games, the Japanese video market itself will not resuscitate without a shift in gaming tastes altogether.

You're kidding right? Japan has some of the most creative and oddball games I've ever seen. Are they games that necessarily translate to western tastes? No. But to say it's a creative wasteland is to be rather myopic when it comes to what makes a good game and what doesn't imo.

 

[one]

IMHO

1) price drop
2 & 3) HDTV & Blu-ray (equally important)
4 & 5) games & non-game applications (equally important)

This is the order of priority. In 2011 analog TV broadcast ends in Japan so HDTV adoption will only rise towards it along with Blu-ray. The influence of traditional games is below them. The price drop also depends on how PS3 & PS2 sales go in other markets.

 

[Deusp]

Uhm, the Wii just launched 4 1/2 months ago. Don't make such bold statements. You'll find that they may come back to haunt you.

Better to make predictions than to predict nothing.

You're kidding right? Japan has some of the most creative and oddball games I've ever seen. Are they games that necessarily translate to western tastes? No. But to say it's a creative wasteland is to be rather myopic when it comes to what makes a good game and what doesn't imo.

That use to be the case. Not really the case anymore. In fact, there was an 1up show (video podcast) during GDC where a Japanese developer was worried about the lack of fresh blood in the industry. That's certainly not true in the US where swarms of young developers exist, so he must have be referring to the Japanese industry.

 

[one]

That's certainly not true in the US where swarms of young developers exist, so he must have be referring to the Japanese industry.

Probably you took it wrong. It's rare that younger developers can produce their own new idea as a new console game be it in Japan or in the US.

 

[Natoma]

Better to make predictions than to predict nothing.

Well that's some crazy logic.

That use to be the case. Not really the case anymore. In fact, there was an 1up show (video podcast) during GDC where a Japanese developer was worried about the lack of fresh blood in the industry. That's certainly not true in the US where swarms of young developers exist, so he must have be referring to the Japanese industry.

And from that you extrapolate to the entire industry?

 

[inefficient]

Probably you took it wrong. It's rare that younger developers can produce their own new idea as a new console game be it in Japan or in the US.

I think that one developer was confused about the situation in the west. Some Asian people have real difficulty guessing Caucasian people's age accurately. And visa versa of course.

CliffyB, Dave Jaffe probably seem like the young new crop of game designers to him since they act a bit juvenile sometimes. But really they are in their mid 30's and the same age group has he is. Plus they have been in the biz for decades.

 

[Ben-Nice]

Ummm. Release some decent games.