a Master Ninja
Member
That game had like $1000 in DLC, right? Honestly not a terrible idea. It wouldn't really cost anything.
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Microsoft Japan hosting an Xbox One event in Japan
- Thread starter Toadthemushroom
- Start date
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Not really considering the core fans already have it on the 360 and they are the ones who drop loads of cash on the DLC.
You do not honestly think that someone is going to spend a load of cash to buy an XBO to play a 360 game, when they could just get a 360 + game for cheap?
Sangetsu-II
Member
CaviarMeths
Member
They're not, CERO just has different views on violence than most other ratings boards. They're generally much more lax with both sexuality and profanity than the ESRB.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Not really, as they still block Nudity for the most part. Where as in the West we have had games with dicks, tits, sex etc. that were ESRB rated. One example is the difference between the JP and US Saints Row. Reason why am not bring up GTAV is am unsure of what is in the JP version as have not played that one myself, but we know that game has it all for adult content.
Japan with sexually suggestive is indeed more relaxed, but they still are more strict that the ESRB when it comes to nudity.
I remember there was a list of specific words the CERO considers NG also.
Ugh, it's like people who make a post that has nothing but that fucking "you got a vita" gif.
As hopeless as Xbox One in Japan is, I appreciate that Microsoft is still doing something like this. It would be nice if they did have something to show, but even if it is just some appreciation party, it's gotta make at least one person happy
I really do hope they have something new to show, though. Give us some more Mistwalker pls.
Sephiroth_VII
Member
Just look at the difference in output from Japanese companies throughout the 360's lifetime. If you see consistent or growing output, then that company and it's fans were well served, but if there's a drop in output, you can bet that those stakeholders weren't happy.
It depends on what kind of bankrolling you're talking about. Exclusive titles wouldn't sell in Japan, so any developer might well be alienating their own fans and doing little to shore up their audience. A multiplatform title has its own challenges but the big question is how much Microsoft will be willing to pay. Would they be willing to pay Compile Heart a couple of million for something like Hyperdimension Neptunia? Or a few million to Square Enix for Nier 2?
Currently, the PS4 outsells the Xbone by a 90:1 margin, week to week.
My point wasn't intended to cover all edge cases. Who knows, maybe these guys will be interested enough to start pumping out tons of Xbone games.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
That or they live in the countryside.
Hitoribhoshi
Member
someone there will ask if he'll be able to play any of his 360 shmups, and a rep will go : môshiwake arimasen deshita sorewa muri desu :'(
They dropped MW like a fucking rock the moment they got Final Fantasy 13
Links_fantasy
Junior Member
I'd like Mistwalker to get back the Lost Oddysey and Blue Dragon ips if MS still owns them. At least then Nintendo or Sony could fund sequels and ports to their consoles as those were great games. Nintendo especially could do with some big RPGs for the NX when it launches.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Mistwalker is pretty much too busy getting rich off of Terra Battle lol.
Considering Blue Dragon showed up on the DS for Nintendo would have to imagine MS does not own the IP.
http://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/VjdahuUX8pZc7fABzEMbQX2echNzjrzC
Terra battle is doing well? Good for them.
Links_fantasy
Junior Member
As long as Nintendo funded the games like The Last Story on Wii, then theirs no financial risk for Mistwalker. Plus they can still make smaller mobile games on the side.
What does this even mean, and why do you care whether stakeholders are happy? What are you even basing the latter on? The stakeholders wouldn't be getting dick if MS wasn't funding games to begin with it.
It's ridiculous how you treat MS as some nefarious company that buys up all the games before Sony.
Fans will go where the games are as they always have, and if they don't, then maybe they're not really fans or maybe they will eventually when they can afford to. Either way, if they are fans, then they'll be happy their favourite creatives can continue to create games that wouldn't exist without Microsoft funding them.
Scalebound probably isn't going to do very well in Japan. It'll still sell a respectable amount worldwide because, guess what, Japanese games do not exclusively appeal to Japanese gamers.
Given the uneven split in the this generation's console war, gamers have a hard time letting Microsoft create their own first party games without bitching how Xbox fans won't appreciate the title (see: Sunset Overdrive) or demanding ports (see: pretty much every Xbox game) - I think MS are done snatching up established third party IP after Tomb Raider, for a while at least.
The XB1 barely sells at all so that's hardly impressive. And not to mention irrelevant.
This is not true for every game. A major example are the tales games.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
That is interesting, since there were 2 titles made in Japan with the Blue Dragon name for the DS.
Nah, since Idolmaster 3 was confirmed as a PS4 title there's no way people are going back to the old titles. It's a series where I think I can safely say that everyone plays the newest big installment if they can and not the old ones.
Banjo-Kazooie
Member
Ya, not sure :/
I do know that MS also let Rare release games on Gameboy Advance and DS after they acquired them (Diddy Kong Racing DS, Banjo-Pilot, Grunty's Revenge, Sabrewulf, Its Mr Pants, and Viva Pinata Pocket Paradise). Maybe they just didn't mind them releasing there because it isn't a competing market? No clue really :/
Bob Coffee
Member
Wow ms remembers japan exists.
I see no evidence of them going to mobile either as stated in that post.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Not really, as the situation is not that easy. Since JP devs still want to be able to sell their items domestically and if the overall userbase is not healthy looking it makes them back off on it a bit. Esp if its not going to be a project fully funded by MS.
The situation now too is that it seems MS is not exactly into wanting to be dropping as much cash as they used to. Since they had already attempted that during the 360 gen where things were a lot better in comparison to their current domestic standing with the XBO.
https://youtu.be/0TtrBgKoU2s?t=360 If the timing link doesnt work skip to around 6 seconds. Shinobi had originally posted this stuff.
But this is such a chicken & egg situation that I really cant see what else they could do to improve their situation out here without blowing a ton of money, which is what they do not seem to want to do anymore.
With what Spencer has said, it would be more them making a new studio & or team rather than trying to buy content from 3rd party devs, which is what has happened in the past.
Japan is also expensive in regards to upkeep so having their own special studio and such would be a bit of a strain on the division esp considering the potential market returns that could be gained from the existing userbase + any potential growth from it. At least thats how I see it.
Id like for things to improve for them here, but it is just going to be way too expensive and back to the chicken & egg thing about titles for the market.
Are you referring to my post, because my post didn't mention games. I was speaking about the talent behind those games.
The problem is that they can't outpace the third parties in Japan. That means that one or two Exclusive Japanese games on xbone means Jack if there are a tone more on ps4. That's why if they really cared they would be bankrolling ports along with their exclusive games.
Bitch Pudding
Member
When Square-Enix, the largest publisher in Japan, is ignoring the Xbox platform with every Japanese announcement since the console released I think it's pretty telling where the rest of the market will fall.
Many of them tried to create an audience on Xbox last gen and it didn't quite work out for them, with late PS3 ports often outselling the initial 360 version. What indication is there that it would be any different this gen? FF Type-0 probably has as much (actually probably more, tragically) appeal as some niche, new Japanese IP and it probably sold less than 100K copies on the Xbox.
Is there any genuine reason that a Japanese developer or publisher should make a game for the Xbox unless one of these applies?
- Microsoft fully funds the game
- The series sells enough volume to make an Xbox SKU worth while (e.g. FF, MGS, Resident Evil)
I'd also argue that the former is increasingly unlikely as the market of ' people who buy Japanese games' continues to skew towards both PC, PS4 and handheld (I'm talking international here, as there is almost literally no 'people who buy games' that own or want to own an Xbox within Japan itself). Beyond budget titles, like from Experience and 5pb etc. this seems pretty pointless when MS could instead invest in more Western focused titles that actually cater to their userbase.
I don't think Japanese gamers treat the XB1 as a alternative system to the PS4 but rather a complimentary one. At this point MS should focus on exclusives because anyone that wants the tradition ps3/ps4/port games already has or will be getting a PS4.
They need to bet on the hardcore that want to own all consoles. They just need to give them a few reasons to pick up an XB1.
They don't treat the xbone as a complimentary one dude. Look at the sales. And I was talking more about the Japanese game audience in the west.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
I think its not a matter of caring, more a matter of not being financially able to do so for the region. And the numbers in general just do not look like a winning bet for making requests to increase the budget to attempt to reverse their current situation.
I agree with that. It won't stop stupid people shitting on phill spencer on Twitter every time a Japanese game is announced for ps4 and not xbone.
It should be the goal I mean. It's obvious that currently there is no market for XB1 and it's software. There also is no appealing software at the moment.
But they are having a conference so they haven't given up completely.
They are doing that to save face.
DangerMouse
Member
Yup.
I don't think this whole complimentary console notion works or exists outside of a certain hardcore subset of users. People on Gaf buy several consoles because people here care about exclusives and want variety since they consume far more games than other customers. I'd imagine the vast majority of people don't bother with more than one device under their TV.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Over here the hardcore crowd picked it up for the exclusives such as Panzer Dragoon being the big one. Granted while the numbers were small others did it for Chaos Children. But seeing how now titles are going to the Sony platform also has really put a damper on their morale in general when it comes to their purchase of choice. Which is unfortunate for MS, since these were sales that they had done by people who bought the system for those perceived exclusives. That goes to show that market specific software does in fact drive sales for the system, even if its a single title.
I cant even imagine how much MS must have spent in general during the 360 generation as they did most def give it all they got for the region. Just that in the end things did not play out as well as they had expected, which explains things just generally petering out with marketing. I still think the most interesting thing was how well in general the STG devs were with producing stuff for the system here in Japan till the very end. Granted some of those eventually wound up on the PS3 also. But out of all the dev groups, those were the ones who stuck around till the end for "exclusive" content anyways.
I think it's important to realise that, whatever the volume, exclusives do move systems to certain individuals.
At this stage, I just can't understand why you would buy an Xbox if you wanted Japanese games. It'll be interesting to see exactly which titles remain fully exclusive over the next couple of years. As you said, there were a number of reasons for a hardcore niche to own one last gen but the situation is totally different now because selling a couple of hundred consoles per week is obviously not sustainable. Unless the Xbox becomes the Vita with it's reasonably high attach rates, as these titles often don't need to sell 6 figures, or occasionally even 5.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
The thing is at the start, no one knew really which way things would go. Same with announced titles and such. Which is why people just picked one up due to a title that was exclusive to the system at the time.
But now and the sales numbers reflect that, folks know better and are holding off till something interests them or a more enticing title lineup is announced over a reasonable period of time to push them in the direction of grabbing a system now to wait things out.
MS here really needed some sort of title roadmap to help push folks towards purchasing the console. Since without that the Western specific only lineup caters to a small crowd.
Like the example for Sony would be the Dragon Quest lineup, with DQ Builders this year, DQ Heroes + DQ XI next year. Would push folks into the direction of purchasing a new system with the knowledge that other titles they are interested in are coming and in the mean time they have something to play now and might dabble with other titles.
MS really needs something like that as the whole single title here, long wait, another title there is not working out for them. Just that as talked about in another post the problem goes back to $$$. :/
At least Scalebound should bring more interest to the system again as it most def looks like a title that will have Japanese gamers interested. Id imagine the fans who were not too happy with Dragon Dragoon 3 will be all over it for example. Sure its not a large number, but thats still an existing fanbase. Do hope that MS continues to keep good relations with Platinum Games.
I would like to see MS try to reach out to the Japanese indie devs more also. As the bonus for such devs working with MS would be they help assist them to get their titles localized for the West and MS gets more titles under their belt that can be sold in both regions.
RedSparrows
Member
Rare released Viva Pinata on 360 and DS.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Found this old quote by Kagari also, granted the trademark thing that was shown earlier pretty much confirmed it anyways lol
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Anyways thats about all I have to say on the topic overall. And do hope things get better for MS here. At least this is good to see that they will be doing the 2 events in Tokyo & Osaka.
I'm not sure what your point is considering that I'm delineating which parties got burned and which did not.
My point wasn't about the fans so I'm not sure what this part is about.
Yeah, it's really hard to see how Microsoft can get out of this rut without having such favorable conditions wherein they wouldn't have been in the rut in the first place. We're getting to the point where more Japanese games are going to come out on PC than on Xbone.
Do you think that Microsoft can change the tide or is it too late? My gut says that there's nothing Microsoft can do to improve their position in Japan but I'm not in contact with Japanese gamers.
Parakeetman
No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Not really since Spencer pretty much confirmed that they are not going to be going after 3rd party as much now, which puts them in a bad situation of trying to secure titles to be release in the region. Since as we have seen already JP companies that do multiplat overseas are skipping the XBO domestically and just going PS4.
The only real solution is $$$ honestly.
And the hard part too about it all is even if the $$$ is injected, the company will still be bleeding out hard for a while which is a big negative for the new MS in general that seems to be trying to trim the fat and prevent such situations. Which is also why I imagine Spencer said what he did with that interview as it fits the overall direction MS is going in now overall as a company.
Mr. Giggles
Member
I really admire MS persistence in the Japanese market.
Any gaffers going?
Any gaffers going?