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[Fox318]

No wonder why Konami left console gaming.

 

[Lumyst]

as have consoles shown over the years to sell significantly better software than PC despite inferior tech, the mass market doesn't care about graphics.

Slightly related, there was a time when analog displays were the norm and one needed a console for convenient TV gaming since consoles were designed for analog output; nowadays, with most technologies being digital and connected through the internet, I sometimes think of all the monitors and devices as substitutes for each other, and the value of one box over the other is almost like comparing commodities that access content. Instead of thinking about platforms, I start to think about content I enjoy first, then where to get it. For them, content they enjoy can be readily accessed on their mobile device.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Japan wants in on that sex and violence. How does Japan take GoT?

 

[Taruranto]

Japan getting tired of all the waifu JRPG's...?

Spoiler

But the Witcher series is a waifu RPG.

 

[Sephiroth_GR_]

Traditional console gaming in Japan is dying. 67 thousand units for #1 is definetly NOT A GOOD number. Congrats on the game though.

 

[Opiate]

What's so amazing is that a "dead" console market in Japan is still 1.5 million PS4s & the third largest console market for Sony. Which shows you how massive console gaming was in Japan a decade ago.

You can't blame them, Japan's favorite genre is turn based RPGs, & the only compromise in doing those games on mobile is graphical fidelity which is irrelevant to the mass market as have consoles shown over the years to sell significantly better software than PC despite inferior tech, the mass market doesn't care about graphics.

If my favorite games didn't require precise input & controllers, I'd be playing mostly on mobile too, it's just more convenient to Japanese gamers.

I generally agree, but don't really feel that touch controls are universally inferior to a game pad.

In the same way that keyboard/mouse are generally more precise and with more buttons than a game pad, so too is a game pad generally more precise / more buttons than touch. But there are some genres that play better with a game pad -- most notably fighting games, as an example. And again, some genres play better on touch; card games like Hearthstone are an example, and some types of strategy games play better on touch controls, too. Neither is a uniform, unquestionable downgrade.

 

[Aressa]

I know this is Japan but 67,385 only.. sad not many there are going to play this awesome game.

 

[Parakeetman]

No wonder why Konami left console gaming.

Konami did it to themselves really. They have been in a downward spiral for some time now.

 

[Kristian]

- Wow, thats impressive.

- You are as good as dead!

Don't know witch one to choose, help?

 

[CadetMahoney]

Just so people know witcher also has japanese voice dub, not just subtitles.

But for 67k units was it worth it?

 

[Alo0oy]

I generally agree, but don't really feel that touch controls are universally inferior to a game pad.

In the same way that keyboard/mouse are generally more precise and with more buttons than a game pad, so too is a game pad generally more precise / more buttons than touch. But there are some genres that play better with a game pad -- most notably fighting games, as an example. And again, some genres play better on touch; card games like Hearthstone are an example, and some types of strategy games play better on touch controls, too. Neither is a uniform, unquestionable downgrade.

Absolutely, I can't imagine playing Civ on my PS4,, but it's perfectly playable on my phone, Visual novels also work better with a touch screen, Pool, Chess, & board or card games.

 

[uncleniccius]

Just so people know witcher also has japanese voice dub, not just subtitles.

But for 67k units was it worth it?

It will continue to sell, so it's for more than 67k units - especially when you consider digital.

How much does a full dubbing cost? I imagine far less than that.

 

[GorillaJu]

Yes, it's extremely popular. Gaming in general in Japan is actually increasing overall (in terms of revenue).

It's just that most of that revenue is coming from mobile now, not consoles.

Yep. Both men and women of all ages go crazy for mobile games. The games market is huge in Japan, just not console games.

 

[flaviusconstantius]

Just so people know witcher also has japanese voice dub, not just subtitles.

But for 67k units was it worth it?

NIS games with sales in the 20K-30K range regularly get fell dubs, so it must be profitable at that sales-level, though I admit to being curious as to how.

 

[GoonerTRON]

These numbers don't save the ps4.

They saved the XB1, they doubled their weekly sales from the previous week!

Geralt will take Japan back to the good old times!

Localization probably named him Sephiroth.

Don't crap up this thread with FFXV screenshots!

 

[duckroll]

Just so people know witcher also has japanese voice dub, not just subtitles.

But for 67k units was it worth it?

The game costs 80 bucks in Japan, so with the initial shipment Spike Chunsoft already made a few million dollars.

 

[TechOne]

Wow... I had no idea video games sales were this bad in Japan compared to the west.

Japan really is moving on to mobile gaming.

 

[Game Guru]

In the same way that keyboard/mouse are generally more precise and with more buttons than a game pad, so too is a game pad generally more precise / more buttons than touch. But there are some genres that play better with a game pad -- most notably fighting games, as an example. And again, some genres play better on touch; card games like Hearthstone are an example, and some types of strategy games play better on touch controls, too. Neither is a uniform, unquestionable downgrade.

This is a bit off topic, but given that I generally use a laptop as my go to device for my PC stuff, I do have to ask... What makes a touchscreen different from a touchpad? I certainly played stuff like Peggle and Bejeweled on this PC and the touchpad generally works fine for them. I'm just curious given the PS4 has a touchpad on the controller so something like Hearthstone should theoretically play just as well on a console as it would on my PC.

Also, yes, it is impressive that a dedicated console market that seems to be around the size of the UK can be considered dead, but that is just how big console gaming was in Japan.