http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200709250050.html
Wii-loving tourists flock to countryside
Tourists from Taiwan and Hong Kong on a quest to buy Wii videogame consoles are ending up not in Tokyo's Akihabara electric town, but in the countryside.
The phenomenon is the result of a rumor spread among gaming enthusiasts that they would fare better finding the consoles in small-town Japan than in the cities.
The consoles are in hot demand and scarce, and the prospect of getting hold of one is luring many tourists to Tohoku, which has been identified as a Wii hotspot.
The rumor originated in a newspaper article and quickly traveled through the Internet. While some people in Tohoku welcome the influx of Asian tourists, others have mixed feelings.
An employee at an electronics retail store near JR Sendai Station recounted an experience serving an overseas tour group.
"The tour guide came in with a bunch of customers and gave me directions in broken Japanese, 'A Wii for this person and that person; and a PSP (Play Station Portable) for that customer.'"
According to the shop employee, one out of 10 customers who buy Wii is an overseas tourist.
Another store is now fielding the requests by setting up a special duty-free section.
The Wii gaming system was launched by video game giant Nintendo Co. last December. It became immensely popular, and Nintendo has already sold more than 10 million Wii consoles around the world.
In Asia, Wii can be purchased only in Japan, but it has already become a highly coveted item in Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Hotel Taikanso is a resort hotel in scenic Matsushima, Miyagi Prefecture. At Taikanso, Li Jingli from Taiwan is in charge of overseas visitors.
According to Li, many Asian tourists go home with a Wii.
Tourists have been told their chances of scoring one of the machines are better in provincial shops.
Taiwan's travel guide "Travel News" advises that it can be difficult to find Wii in the Akihabara electronics district, but "few people are buying Wii consoles in electronics stores in Japan's remote districts."
To prove the point,
a reporter visited the city of Oga in Akita Prefecture and bought 10 Wii game consoles.
Retailers maintain there is no bias toward country areas in stocking Wii. However, a manager of a videogame store in Sendai commented: "We can always put in reservation requests. I am sure it is easier to get them here compared to places like Akihabara."
Some have come up with another theory in an attempt to explain Tohoku as a budding shopping mecca.
One industry source claims that the travel industry is trying to sell Tohoku as a tourist spot, throwing in Wii as part of the sales pitch.
Li at Taikanso welcomes the attention. "It is good news that Tohoku gets mentioned, in whatever form," Li said.
But some people don't like the attention.
One game shop owner confessed: "I am not too happy to hear the word inaka (back-country) associated with us."