Posted November 23, 2007 Looking at the various sales figures that are kicking around for this week in Japan DSL 76,069 PSP 65,609 PS3 39,178 Wii 36,230 I was wondering just what is going on over there? The Wii should be destroying the competition especially with Galaxy just coming out but its just not the case. The numbers that Mario Galaxy has pulled in over there is poor as was Zelda and its starting to become a trend which is a little worrying. Matt spoke about this briefly in the Wii-kly review basically saying how wrong it is for games such as Mario and Zelda to get such cold receptions. Sure these games do well over in the western world but with Japan being the HQ of Nintendo im worrying they may start taking the focus off these big guns and concentrate more on games like Wii Fit. Ok im not going to get into a debate with the whole hardcore/casual side of things but like many have said in various topics on here Wii Fit will no doubt storm the charts over there and outsell Mario Galaxy. So with Nintendo being a Japanese company and the Japanese people changing what they want from a game do you think Nintendos attitude towards their key franchises will change even more? I say even more because Nintendo have stated that they have changed Zelda and Mario to be more friendly/easier to players. This can be seen in Galaxys main quest ( not getting all 120 stars ) and Zelda PH. Your thoughts on the situation in Japan? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Its extremely strange. Nintendo is having amazing success with its smaller and new franchises, but at the same time its long established and critically acclaimed ones are doing god awful in Japan but amazing here in the West still. I can't believe how much Wii sales have plummeted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 One possibility (and worrying one at that) is that perhaps there are fewer "hardcore" Wii owners than we thought and the ratio of Casual to Hardcore could be much more in favour of casual than we could have thought? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 I think the Wiis success initially in Japan is due to non-games and the more hard-core gamers aren't really getting the Wii, which can be seen with Zelda and Galaxy. I think Nintendo over-estimated the amount of hardcore fans that bought the Wii and didn't realise it was mostly non gamers/casual getting it for the likes of Wii Sports/Wii Fit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Is it true Tokyo Japan is 5 years ahead in terms of technological advances or is that just a myth? If its true, perhaps thats somewhat attributable to the underwhelming performance of Wii in general. Lack of HD in technological society translates to serious effects on sales, in particular "premium" games that are in lower resolution in which people don't buy for not being "ultimate" like they should be, instead resorting to alternatives like PS3 and get their glorious all time favorite franchises such as Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy in HD in all its glory... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Is it true Tokyo Japan is 5 years ahead in terms of technological advances or is that just a myth? Not anymore, most products are universally sold now. Although Japanese do have the next generation of Plasma TV's that we don't... and OLCD TV's are being launched there fairly soon... and their mobile phones are stupidly powerful and their internet connections are stupidly fast. Okay yeah you have a point. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Is it true Tokyo Japan is 5 years ahead in terms of technological advances or is that just a myth? If its true, perhaps thats somewhat attributable to the underwhelming performance of Wii in general. Lack of HD in technological society translates to serious effects on sales, in particular "premium" games that are in lower resolution in which people don't buy for not being "ultimate" like they should be, instead resorting to alternatives like PS3 and get their glorious all time favorite franchises such as Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy in HD in all its glory... Dragon Quest has actually been moved to the DS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Isn't Wii Fit due out sometime soon? If so, it's only logical that sales are so low before the bomb hits the floor. Edit: Wii Fit according to wikipedia out 1/12 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 In relation to the above, from the Japanese perspective, PS3 really is the only powerhouse alternative, Xbox360 = West = Fail, hence the virtually non existent sales. Very stereotypical I know but undeniably true... HD Wii in Japan only for the time being could really go a long way in bridging the increasing gap/correlation that is emerging between sales of well known long term franchises on PS3 vs sales of well known long term franchises on Wii... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 So this is the second week in a row the Wii is being outsold by the PS3? The difference in sales numbers is smaller though, so it might reclaim its proper position next week. Has the PS3 seen a price drop recently in Japan? Is the Wii short on stock there too? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 So with Nintendo being a Japanese company and the Japanese people changing what they want from a game do you think Nintendos attitude towards their key franchises will change even more?No, I think they'll just eventually reduce the amount of traditional games produced for Japan. Shouldn't have any effect on the western market though, as those types of games still have very good sales. But it is rather strange how things are going in Japan at the moment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 It's kinda hard to figure out what goes through japanese minds. I mean, PS3 saw a hardware sale boost, but software wise, it still doesn't sell. So, what do they buy the PS3 for? Has the PS3 seen a price drop recently in Japan? Is the Wii short on stock there too? I think both those statements are correct. Even though it's a deceitful pricedrop, they just dropped the 60GB version, sell the 40 GB and say the price droppes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 It's kinda hard to figure out what goes through japanese minds. I mean, PS3 saw a hardware sale boost, but software wise, it still doesn't sell. So, what do they buy the PS3 for? Yeah I wonder just how many PS3 owners are buying it just cuz it's a cheap blu-ray player? Either I don't think Sony care much if PS3 owners buy the games or not, i think we can all agree that their main goal with it is to help increase their chances of winning the format war with HD-DVD. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Mabey there actually seeing that the PS3 isn't a pile of a crap like some people make it out to be. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 I think it shows a shift in attitudes towards gaming in Japan. The dominance of handhelds and especially the DS. It also shows them potentially being dedicated to not one platform holder but one platform full stop that being the DS. It also shows for the first time handheld gaming significantly altering and changing the way people look at games to an extent where they affect home console says, which even during the gameboy era never happened as home console sales still blosommed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Says the guy who sold his Hey its still a good console. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Basically, there are fewer hardcore Wii gamers than people think in Japan. Look at the Wii's price (like £110) and you can see why all those casual games are selling so much whereas Zelda and Mario haven't sold into the millions. Also, while the price of the ps3 is unappealing, the xbox is american AND the ps2 still has a good back catalogue, the Japanese are turning towards Handheld games. Look at the sales of the DS and PSP; they are astounding. Also, when you consider that the ps3 is still selling despite the fact that it lacks that big 'brain training' like game, it really shows just how much their attention has shifted. PS3 will sell in it's time in Japan and so will the Wii, however i wouldn't be surprised if ALL of Japan engulf the DS-2 when that comes out. That to me, is where the ps3 will be struggling in a couple of years, because not only will they prefer handhelds, the price of handhelds is significantly lower. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Its hard to think that the Wii is selling so little close to christmas without there being a short supply. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Its not down to the games since dynasty warriors 6 is in at number 3. But as it goes wii sales are down 6% from last week and ps3 sales are down 1%. It could be down to the cheaper ps3 pricing option which kicked a few people off the fence. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Not so strange. The market is becomming more and more "casual". Twilight Princess didn't do to well in Japan. Mario Party 8 and Wii Play on the other hand have become huge. Wii Fit will be a best seller. Mario Galaxy is probably not "simple" enough for the Japanese Wii demographic. You see this a bit in western Wii owners as well with the disappointing Metroid Prime 3 sales (only one week in top 40 in UK). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 The hardcore gamers argument doesn't fit in this, PS3 isn't exactly a casual console. And being casual doesn't mean being stupid, sure you wont buy all of the big games but can buy one ocasionaly, and adding that to the fact that Mario is really big in Japan, the data doesn't add up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Saving for xmas to get the AAA games? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Going back to my earlier point on the new ps3 40 gig unit. It was the same thing in our own market. Ps3 sales went up by a stupid percentage something like 178% in the UK, and that was due to people who might have been put off by the high price before, finally going out and getting the console at a price they were comfortable with.( but even in that the ps3 sales weren't all that amazing anyway) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 23, 2007 Correct me if I'm wrong, but it was a similar situation with the DS. The console's almost three years old now, and it was selling out completely in Japan this year. Sales will pick up when Wii Fit comes out (about a week now?) and then Nintendo will probably announce a load more fitness/sports/mental games like Wii Fit and Brain Training. I just hope they don't stop making games like Zelda and Mario because of the Japanese market, like Shigsy-san hinted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
