Ben-DutkaGlobal sales of the PlayStation 4 have been estimated at around 9 million units so far.
But according to a new Eurogamer report , Sony's new console has only managed to move 620,000 units in Japan. For the record, the PS4 sold over 370,000 consoles when it launched in the Land of the Rising Sun at the end of February.
PlayStation boss Andrew House has described this performance as merely "okay," as opposed to the PS4's great performance in North America and Europe (it was the fastest-selling console of all time in the UK). The problem in Japan? Well, for one thing, there aren't quite enough games from Japanese developers just yet, which House views as "temporary." Thus far, the PS4 has proven to be a "tougher sell" with Japanese publishers and developers.
There's another reason, too:
"If you look at the Japanese market, for a variety of reasons, you have not seen a dominant player in streaming services happen. You see an inherent conservatism around film and TV content holders that doesn't allow for the rise of these brand new services. I think that's another factor.
We'll see over time great games coming from Japanese publishers and developers. That's point number one. Point number two, which is hampering us a little bit, is for a variety of other structural reasons around the entertainment industry in Japan, we're not seeing that secondary usage. Those two are colluding together."
House went on to say they've "turned a corner" in regards to developer apprehension for the new console, so that's good news. It's a little weird for a PlayStation console to be under-performing in Japan but hey, things change.
Were I in charge I would send American development troops to Japan to help them get all of their Sony exclusive games, even by third party devs, ready for primetime at a much faster clip.
Think about it, all the best Japanese games for PS3 are only coming out now. PS4 really can't wait until its own end to have the games it needs to appeal to that market. Must go faster, I want my Japanese games too.
If everyone was Hideo Kojima, all Sony would need is to include a ps4 version of that model he adores and it would be the most sold console of all time, just in Japan.
Why would it not?
There's hardly any game that's appealing to the Japanese audience.
Killzone and inFAMOUS doesn't help.
I'm sorry but that's a borderline racist remark. The Japanese are not *that* different from us. The big titles in the west usually top the Japanese charts too.
Racist?!?!
Not once did he mention Gran Turismo or Forza!
Definitely not close to racist. If you really think the japanese people like the same style of games as much as we do you have another thing comin. There's a reason tentacles are much more important there :^)
not enough games for that audience is the biggest issue. what are they expected to play out there? knack?
yeah it is strange but Kojima is definately leading the charge from japan.
happy gaming
Last edited by Rachet_JC_FTW on 7/12/2014 1:29:00 AM
The Japanese market is mostly dominated by handhelds because families live in such small spaces (mostly in larger cities like Toyko), handheld gaming devices now offer the same or better and unique experiences as a console (in terms of graphics, multiplayer, accessibility, price, variety) and handheld devices are a lot cheaper and convenient than consoles.
Until there is a larger library of Japanese and Western games, such as fighters, RPG's and action games, Japanese audiences won't see any reason to own the PS4. Better graphics, more memory and a smoother UI just isn't enough. They need games that interest their tastes, whether they be from Japanese or Western developers.
It's a shame Nintendo clawed Monster Hunter away from Sony. It actually makes Nintendo very appealing now next to Mario, Zelda and Metroid games.