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[HK-47]

Third Party Japanese games are failing on just about every system there. The PSP, Wii, PS3, DS, and even the 360 have all had their successes and failures.

The DS hasnt been an overall third party failure though. And clearly they have found a couple genres worth milking on the PSP. Have they on Wii?

 

[HK-47]

When did this become the worldwide sales thread?

Its about US sales, did we get bored with that discussion

When did we care? Both MC and NPD threads can be use to discuss WW sales

 

[markatisu]

When did we care? Both MC and NPD threads can be use to discuss WW sales

Because the way it always has been in media create was gtfo if you are not talking about Japanese sales

And that should apply here because its focus is US sales and nobody is comparing the US and Japan, they are just ragging on Japan so we get no US discussion whatsoever

 

[onipex]

I was completely with you till you uttered this line. One of the biggest draws to the Wii is the local multiplayer (thats why games like Mario Party 8, Carnival Games, Mario Kart, etc have sold as well as they have)

Now if you are talking about online multiplayer then you may have a point, but not all multiplayer has to be online

This. Releasing a game on the Wii without local multiplayer really limits its sales potential imho.

I remember we were told to get a 2nd job to pay for a PS3. It was a ridiculous comment then and still funnier today.

This explains why PS3 sales are slowing down in the US. Millions of people have lost their second job.

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

The DS hasnt been an overall third party failure though.

Yes "overall failure" and that's due to its massive install base.

And clearly they have found a couple genres worth milking on the PSP. Have they on Wii?

Please enlighten me with these "milking genres" the PSP has had, because outside of Monster Hunter and Square-Enix releases (which besides games with "Final Fantasy" in the title haven't exactly performed starstuded) big successes like Phantasy Star Portable and Tales of World 2 have been few and far in between.

 

[donny2112]

Because the way it always has been in media create was gtfo if you are not talking about Japanese sales

The focus of the Media-Create thread is Japanese sales, the focus of the NPD thread is U.S. sales, and the focus of the PAL Weekly threads is pretty much everything else. However, discussion tends to mix a bit between regions, especially since it is often the same people doing the discussing in the different threads. It's usually safest to stick to the region that the thread is about, though. I know that Dragona specifically gave permission to bring in some discussion of non-Japanese sales to the Media-Create threads to head off making graphs of the # of posts in the weekly MC threads, for example. :lol

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

Definitely the increased amount of DS hardware available this month is largely to credit/blame for NSMB/MKDS outselling themselves from two years ago. They can sell to half as many new users and still do bigger numbers.

The PS3 has sold more blu ray movies than any other near launch console ever.

:lol

The thing is MH3 DQX and all of that for Wii is fine, and can certainly start to build a core base of gamers on Wii in Japan, but lets look at how late these games are coming into the gen. Third parties took to damn long. All of this stuff, RE5 and SO and all of these games with no entries on the #1 console in the country is IMO doing alot of harm to the console (whats the right word to use here.....) ecosystem?

I mean, the gamers are seemingly refusing to embrace the PS3 or 360 over there in the numbers they did the PS2. And the third parties are giving the same cold shoulder to the Wii. I think MH3 and DQX might do just fine, but will in the end be all for naught, it might just be too late to create a console that gets that 'fire' or even a mere spark of what the PS2 had there this gen.

There's precedent for things taking a few years to take off during a transition of dominance. PS1 had some early big support from Namco, and Resident Evil was notable in 1996, but it really took until 1997--more than two years from launch--for things to blow up. If we look at Japan's top PS1 games, the pickings from 1995 or 1996 are pretty sparse.

The DS hasnt been an overall third party failure though. And clearly they have found a couple genres worth milking on the PSP. Have they on Wii?

Music?

 

[Neo C.]

There's precedent for things taking a few years to take off during a transition of dominance. PS1 had some early big support from Namco, and Resident Evil was notable in 1996, but it really took until 1997--more than two years from launch--for things to blow up. If we look at Japan's top PS1 games, the pickings from 1995 or 1996 are pretty sparse.

Compared to the Wii, the transition in the PSX/N64-era was fast methinks. When MH3 comes out, it will be nearly 3 years from launch.

 

[Jammy]

Wii SHOULD be getting better quality support than it is (reaching DS levels or further), but some seeds have been sown already and WiiHD, whenever it may come, will be the PS2 of its era easily because of everybody wanting to get on the profit and sales bandwagon from the start. Getting caught with their pants down won't be a good excuse for a developer whenever the next-generation starts.

 

[Link]

There's precedent for things taking a few years to take off during a transition of dominance. PS1 had some early big support from Namco, and Resident Evil was notable in 1996, but it really took until 1997--more than two years from launch--for things to blow up. If we look at Japan's top PS1 games, the pickings from 1995 or 1996 are pretty sparse.

Sure, but the lion's share of support wasn't being put elsewhere.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

Sure, but the lion's share of support wasn't being put elsewhere.

I'd think that there would be quite a bit for the SNES, but I couldn't tell you for sure.

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

I think the important point to note here is that the bulk of the PS1s support came from the East, just as the Wiis is.

 

[Link]

I'd think that there would be quite a bit for the SNES, but I couldn't tell you for sure.

Just like the PS2 was still receiving lots of support for the first couple of years of this gen, that's standard practice. I mean elsewhere within the same generation.

I think the important point to note here is that the bulk of the PS1s support came from the East, just as the Wiis is.

While Japanese games may have ruled the roost back then, every western publisher making console games under the sun supported the PS1.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

There's precedent for things taking a few years to take off during a transition of dominance. PS1 had some early big support from Namco, and Resident Evil was notable in 1996, but it really took until 1997--more than two years from launch--for things to blow up. If we look at Japan's top PS1 games, the pickings from 1995 or 1996 are pretty sparse.

Looking at that site, I'm once again amazed at the absolute Monster that the DS appears to be. Damn.

Just like the PS2 was still receiving lots of support for the first couple of years of this gen, that's standard practice. I mean elsewhere within the same generation.

It could have been that they were waiting for the N64, and their early efforts found a foothold in the PSX that wasn't quite expected.

 

[Bending_Unit_22]

Probably has to do with the ressesion.

I think I've said this a few times already, though.

I'd agree with you if this wasn't how things have been for the past 2 or so years.

Well Japan is in essentially a perma-recession anyways (at least the domestic economy, export held it up for a time). Consumer spending has been negative or flat for most of the last 4 years and consumer confidence has been in free fall for the last 2 years.

As for the video game question, I think it's a simple case of the falling birth rate in Japan. 18 year olds are the heart of the video game demographic and you can easily find the number of 18 year olds each year at the World Factbook. Japan's situation isn't one where video games should be expected to be doing well:

Number of Japanese Turning 18
1989 - 1,940,000
1993 - 1,843,000
1998 - 1,547,000
2003 - 1,380,000
2008 - 1,212,000

My guess for why the handhelds are doing better is the DS is more to the liking of the older crowd Nintendo is trying to coax into playing video games to offset the decline of younger people in Japan and Sony hit it off with the PSP and younger males. Either way though, being a mature video game market Japan is in long-term decline regardless of what is done.

 

[ViperVisor]

Number of Japanese Turning 18
1989 - 1,940,000
1993 - 1,843,000
1998 - 1,547,000
2003 - 1,380,000
2008 - 1,212,000

I'm more worried about this affecting my other favorite Japanese industry.

 

[Neomoto]

About Wii in Japan. It's not that bad.. sure the last month(s) perhaps, but overal the hardware is on track with PS2 in its day (you think that isn't good?), and Wii's top selling games can match top selling PS2 games already.. despite early in the generation and being new IPs versus industry giants Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. The problem mostly comes from total lack of 3rd party support. Seriously, it's pretty much all first party there with Wii in terms of what sells. In the west you see a lot of 3rd party games succeed, but not in Japan. Mostly because few try, but some do and their games do fail sometimes. And Animal Crossing Wii and Wii Music, while selling pretty good, didn't shot hardware sales through the roof. The Wii will be fine, it just needs more gamezzz.

NSMB sold more this january :lol

:lol Now that is just awesome.

Word of mouth has to be totally insane for these kind of Nintendo titles. And millions of new owners every month can't hurt either! These bad boys will likely show up next year january to, and everyone will laugh and be amazed (again).

 

[Orlics]

I'm more worried about this affecting my other favorite Japanese industry.

Bleh. I don't get how anyone can stand their stuff.

 

[Version 3.0]

My guess for why the handhelds are doing better is the DS is more to the liking of the older crowd Nintendo is trying to coax into playing video games to offset the decline of younger people in Japan and Sony hit it off with the PSP and younger males. Either way though, being a mature video game market Japan is in long-term decline regardless of what is done.

I think Japan has simply hit the saturation point faster than the rest of the world. The main reason the videogame industry has been growing for 25+ years is that it was a children's market that's been slowly becoming an "all ages" market. That's why the industry is "recession proof"--it isn't really, it's just growing fast enough to keep growing in those times. In the West, there's still a lot of resistance it as a "normal" entertainment medium among people who were adults when videogames arrived.

I'd say that's all less true in Japan. Videogames are more widely accepted, and now have to fluctuate with the market and tastes of the population. The industry's maturation process no longer covers up lulls and periods of adjustment.

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Sure, but the lion's share of support wasn't being put elsewhere.

Yeah it was, on the Super Nintendo.

 

[Link]

Yeah it was, on the Super Nintendo.

I already replied to this above.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

Yeah it was, on the Super Nintendo.

I already replied to this above.

Haha. Stands to reason that the Japanese industry was expecting to transition to the Nintendo 64, but between the better business model and some early traction, the PSX became a better target platform before Nintendo's machine had an opportunity to make it's debut.

 

[Epiphyte]

I'm more worried about this affecting my other favorite Japanese industry.

Old men still watch porn

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

I already replied to this above.

Comparing the PS2 to the SNES doesn't make sense. While the PS2 received a fair share of niche games like Mana Khemia and moderate successes like Persona it didn't receive any blockbusters when the generation was set in 2006. The PS2 didn't receive games as big as Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana II, Megaman X2, Tactics Ogre, Super Bomberman, Star Ocean, Bahamut Lagoon, or Dragon Quest. Actually during that time Square-Enix and other publishers already set their banks on HD consoles with Final Fantasy XIII, Yakuza 3, Devil May Cry 4, Metal Gear Solid 4, and other huge hit releases.

The biggest release the PS2 saw since it's "successors" launch was Persona 4 and some Super Robot Wars games in Japan, in North America...yeah nothing third party.

Not to mention comparing games at a time when development was well under a million dollars and took no more then a little over a year to create games versus in the current age of $20 million as a minimum and 3 to 4 year development cycles with 2 being the bare minimum is pretty extreme don't you think? I could go on and on about how much more costly it is to ramp up for next gen development and how they most prepare by recruiting new developers, planning more efficient projects, how there is so much more competition now then ever before (especially then), but I think my first point easily stands enough on its own.

Not to mention above all of this the reason the PSX took so long to find support was due to publishers waiting for someone to bite the line of whether they should go toward the PSX or the N64, the Wii's position involves companies already investing multimillions upon millions on set platforms already and waiting for someone to bite the line to jump back at all they've built toward faster and cheaper development.

 

[Bending_Unit_22]

I think Japan has simply hit the saturation point faster than the rest of the world. The main reason the videogame industry has been growing for 25+ years is that it was a children's market that's been slowly becoming an "all ages" market. That's why the industry is "recession proof"--it isn't really, it's just growing fast enough to keep growing in those times. In the West, there's still a lot of resistance it as a "normal" entertainment medium among people who were adults when videogames arrived.

I'd say that's all less true in Japan. Videogames are more widely accepted, and now have to fluctuate with the market and tastes of the population. The industry's maturation process no longer covers up lulls and periods of adjustment.

Yeah, I think with video games in Japan the two questions are 1) why is the industry as a whole not doing well, and 2) why are consoles in particular not doing well. The industry as a whole isn't doing well since Japan is aging and has already matured to a point where finding new demographics isn't possible (much of Europe is in the same boat demographically but still see growth due to not being as mature a market).

As for the second question why are consoles are doing worse I guess as you've said and I sort of point out, tastes are changing. Why is something I haven't heard explained well and there probably isn't one answer anyways. Anyways, I probably should confine such ruminations to a media create thread but not like much is going on this month anyways .

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

The Japanese industry isn't doing well because the publishers haven't evolved with the times. They keep having their big guns the same game with different flavor while keeping their smaller ones innovative and fun. It's not so hard to-....wait this is the NPD thread...

 

[Link]

Comparing the PS2 to the SNES doesn't make sense. While the PS2 received a fair share of niche games like Mana Khemia and moderate successes like Persona it didn't receive any blockbusters when the generation was set in 2006. The PS2 didn't receive games as big as Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana II, Megaman X2, Tactics Ogre, or Super Bomberman, Star Ocean, or Dragon Quest. Actually during that time Square-Enix and other publishers already set their banks on HD consoles with Final Fantasy XIII, Yakuza 3, Devil May Cry 4, Metal Gear Solid 4, and other huge hit releases.

The biggest release the PS2 saw since it's "successors" launch was Persona 4 and some Super Robot Wars games in Japan, in North America...yeah nothing third party.

Noteworthy third party releases for the PS2 from 2006 - present:

Ace Combat Zero
Ar tonelico
Ar tonelico II
Black
Bully
Burnout Dominator
Dirge of Cerberus
Final Fantasy XII
God Hand
Guitar Hero II
Guitar Hero: Rocks the 80s
.hack//G.U.
Kingdom Hearts II
Metal Slug 6
Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
NFL Street 3
Okami
OutRun 2006
Persona 3
Persona 4
Samurai Shodown VI
Sega Rally 2006
Tales of Destiny Remake
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria
Xenosaga Episode III
Yakuza
Yakuza 2

Note this doesn't include any yearly sports games or games that had simultaneous releases on next-gen platforms, which would increase this list by quite a bit.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

Noteworthy third party releases for the PS2 from 2006 - present:

[Giant List]

Note this doesn't include any yearly sports games or games that had simultaneous releases on next-gen platforms, which would increase this list by quite a bit.

Ooh. List wars. Does everyone get to play?

 

[Link]

Ooh. List wars. Does everyone get to play?

Go nuts.

 

[Golden Darkness]

I think Japan has simply hit the saturation point faster than the rest of the world. The main reason the videogame industry has been growing for 25+ years is that it was a children's market that's been slowly becoming an "all ages" market. That's why the industry is "recession proof"--it isn't really, it's just growing fast enough to keep growing in those times. In the West, there's still a lot of resistance it as a "normal" entertainment medium among people who were adults when videogames arrived.

I'd say that's all less true in Japan. Videogames are more widely accepted, and now have to fluctuate with the market and tastes of the population. The industry's maturation process no longer covers up lulls and periods of adjustment.

Isn't there the fact that people in Japan are having less children than generations prior?

 

[Linkup]

Noteworthy third party releases for the PS2 from 2006 - present:

list

Note this doesn't include any yearly sports games or games that had simultaneous releases on next-gen platforms, which would increase this list by quite a bit.

nice try, but your list fails

 

[Fuzzy]

Isn't there the fact that people in Japan are having less children than generations prior?

I blame videogames.

 

[Version 3.0]

Isn't there the fact that people in Japan are having less children than generations prior?

Of course that would be a factor. What I'm saying is that the industry has had a sort of "built-in" growth because it was still maturing, and I think it's basically matured in Japan, so it's now more vulnerable to other factors, that one included.

I blame videogames.

:lol

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Noteworthy third party releases for the PS2 from 2006 - present:

Ace Combat Zero
Ar tonelico
Ar tonelico II
Black
Bully
Burnout Dominator
Dirge of Cerberus
Final Fantasy XII
God Hand
Guitar Hero II
Guitar Hero: Rocks the 80s
.hack//G.U.
Kingdom Hearts II
Metal Slug 6
Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
NFL Street 3
Okami
OutRun 2006
Persona 3
Persona 4
Samurai Shodown VI
Sega Rally 2006
Tales of Destiny Remake
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria
Xenosaga Episode III
Yakuza
Yakuza 2

Note this doesn't include any yearly sports games or games that had simultaneous releases on next-gen platforms, which would increase this list by quite a bit.

First off comparing any of these games to blockbusters like Chrono Trigger, Dragon Quest, and Megaman X is just ridiculous (You are actually comparing Samurai Showdown and Guitar Hero Rock the 80's to Million sellers in Japan only?)

Second off you put in games that were released before the PS3 even launched. Kingdom Hearts II? Dirge of Cerberus? Okami? Yakuza 1? Final Fantasy XII? You're kidding.

Third you grab and stretch so far that you reach the point about multiplats. The Super Nintendo had multiplats as well such as the ever popular Street Fighter Alpha 2, yearly sports games (I.E. Madden), Ultimate Mortal Kombat III, Shin Megami Tensei If..., movie tie ins (Toy Story), etc.

Fourth I mean seriously I stated in my post that I was talking about significant big hits and that the PS2 has only had Super Robot Wars (which the series was also still on the SNES at the time) and the Persona series (which the series was still on the SNES at the time) as the only moderate successes (and I suppose if you want to stretch so far to grab a game that launched mere days after the systems launched and use it against me then Yakuza 2). The SNES received the BIG HUGE hitters AFTER the PSX and Saturn launched, that were so big that they broke the million mark and some that came pretty close. Yet here you are listing those games I gave examples of as well as far smaller ones which are pretty much the definition of niche (Ar Tollerico? Samurai Shodown 6? Metal Slug 6? God Hand?). Not to mention the SNES got a fair share of these games and more: Shin Megami Tensei: Last Bible II, XMen Apocalypse, Derby Jocky, Wizardry VI, Marvel Super Heroes War of the Gems, etc. which were all just as or even more relevant then any game you listed.

Fifth of all. What? I mean you're complaining about Wii support, yet you completely contridict yourself as many of those games are on the Wii. Bully is, Okami is, Metal Slug 6 is, Samurai Shodown is, Mortal Kombat Armageddon is, Guitar Hero is, so why are you making such a big fuss then?

I mean seriously I give a list of SOME there are easily more (Megaman 7 and Tales of Phantasia immediately spring into mind) of the blockbusters that hit the SNES while the PSX was out (not counting the near irrelevant Saturn that preceded it) as an example yet you list nothing but niche games, spin-offs, and re-releases to counter my point? And you honestly wonder why people usually get riled up by you being "pessimistic"? Did you ever think that maybe the reason people don't enjoy your posts isn't because it belittles the Wii but more so because they are far too rational, over the edge, and/or stretch their way so far toward an a dark black hole that they lose the original point in the process?

EDIT - Oh and don't worry there are way more SNES games I can list that were more relevant then anything you put on that previous list of yours that fits the PS3 then onward launch criteria (except maybe Yakuza 2, because I remember that performed very well).

 

[MWS Natural]

Quick question for the sales experts. Are Gamefly's sales tracked by NPD? I know more and more people who are starting to use it and buy their games from there as well.

 

[Link]

First off comparing any of these games to blockbusters like Chrono Trigger, Dragon Quest, and Megaman X is just ridiculous (You are actually comparing Samurai Showdown and Guitar Hero Rock the 80's to Million sellers in Japan only?)

I just listed all the noteworthy games that released after the next gen started. The only reason it took longer with the PS1/N64 generation for publishers to jump over was because the N64 was already considered DOA thanks to cartridges, and the PS1 was unproven, but turned out to be the only viable option.

Second off you put in games that were released before the PS3 even launched. Kingdom Hearts II? Dirge of Cerberus? Okami? Yakuza 1? Final Fantasy XII? You're kidding.

Those games you listed all launched before the N64 was out. I thought we were talking about the next gen, not the specific console's successor.

Third you grab and stretch so far that you reach the point about multiplats. The Super Nintendo had multiplats as well such as the ever popular Street Fighter Alpha 2, yearly sports games (I.E. Madden), Ultimate Mortal Kombat III, Shin Megami Tensei If..., movie tie ins (Toy Story), etc.

Which is why I didn't include them.

Fourth I mean seriously I stated in my post that I was talking about significant big hits and that the PS2 has only had Super Robot Wars (which the series was also still on the SNES at the time) and the Persona series (which the series was still on the SNES at the time) as the only moderate successes (and I suppose if you want to stretch so far to grab a game that launched mere days after the systems launched and use it against me then Yakuza 2). The SNES received the BIG HUGE hitters AFTER the PSX and Saturn launched, that were so big that they broke the million mark and some that came pretty close. Yet here you are listing those games I gave examples of as well as far smaller ones which are pretty much the definition of niche (Ar Tollerico? Samurai Shodown 6? Metal Slug 6? God Hand?). Not to mention the SNES got a fair share of these games and more: Shin Megami Tensei: Last Bible II, XMen Apocalypse, Derby Jocky, Wizardry VI, Marvel Super Heroes War of the Gems, etc. which were all just as or even more relevant then any game you listed.

You don't think games like FFXII, KHII, XSIII, or Yakuza can be considered big hits?

Fifth of all. What? I mean you're complaining about Wii support, yet you completely contridict yourself as many of those games are on the Wii. Bully is, Okami is, Metal Slug 6 is, Samurai Shodown is, Mortal Kombat Armageddon is, Guitar Hero is, so why are you making such a big fuss then?

Those games were all made for the PS2, then later ported to the Wii. That's hardly the same thing as simultaneous development. The Wii wasn't even in the developers' minds when they were being created.

I mean seriously I give a list of SOME there are easily more (Megaman 7 and Tales of Phantasia immediately spring into mind) of the blockbusters that hit the SNES while the PSX was out (not counting the near irrelevant Saturn that preceded it) as an example yet you list nothing but niche games, spin-offs, and re-releases to counter my point? And you honestly wonder why people usually get riled up by you being "pessimistic"? Did you ever think that maybe the reason people don't enjoy your posts isn't because it belittles the Wii but more so because they are far too rational, over the edge, and/or stretch their way so far toward an a dark black hole that they lose the original point in the process?

I see mostly sequels on the list. Hardly "nothing but niche games, spin-offs, and re-releases." I honestly don't care if you enjoy my posts or not. They aren't made for your amusement. I'm not hosting a variety show here.

 

[Tron 2.0]

Quick question for the sales experts. Are Gamefly's sales tracked by NPD? I know more and more people who are starting to use it and buy their games from there as well.

No, but the amount of games sold though GameFly is essentially statistical noise at this point.

EDIT: On an unrelated note, if Dragon Quest X really is going to be released on the Wii I'm guessing it's going to be one of the last titles for it unless the turnaround between Dragon Quest titles is significantly shorter than VIII and IX.

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

I just listed all the noteworthy games that released after the next gen started.

The 360 is pretty much irrelevant to most Japanese publishers (hence why I didn't count the Saturn for the Japanese comparisons as while it received some support it had nothing major). As for the West, I suppose you can count it but there was really nothing major released except possibly black. I'm sorry but if you think Metal Slug VI and Guitar Hero Aerosmith is "noteworthy" then you should really raise your standards.

The only reason it took longer with the PS1/N64 generation for publishers to jump over was because the N64 was already considered DOA thanks to cartridges, and the PS1 was unproven, but turned out to be the only viable option.

What made publishers move on to the PS1 was it's godly third party software sales. Back in early days outside of Square and Enix very well selling third party games were few and far inbetween in Japan that were left to publishers biggest hits.

Those games you listed all launched before the N64 was out. I thought we were talking about the next gen, not the specific console's successor.

Yes we are hence why I started from PSX which was the first truly relevant system for the region, which all the games I listed launched after them.

Which is why I didn't include them.

...are you admitting that you are cherry picking your facts?

You don't think games like FFXII, KHII, XSIII, or Yakuza can be considered big hits?

I stated Yakuza was the exception in my last two posts. Xenosaga III isn't that big of a hit, and Final Fantasy XII and Kingdom Hearts II came out before the PS3 and Wii (unless your going to claim that such Japanese centric games could have gone to the 360 then).

Those games were all made for the PS2, then later ported to the Wii. That's hardly the same thing as simultaneous development. The Wii wasn't even in the developers' minds when they were being created.

Fair point, but some of the games I listed were ports for the PS2 to begin with (the fighting games) or simultaneous release (Guitar Hero).

I see mostly sequels on the list.

What does that have to do with anything? Samurai Shodown VI is still ridiculously niche, as well as Ar Tollerico, as well as well as Metal Slug 6. Not to mention most games aren't sequels there very lowkey or were release prior to the PS3's launch.

Hardly "nothing but niche games, spin-offs, and re-releases."

Taking out the games that launched before the PS3 (unless you'd count the not counting the 360 for these games being that most are Japanese) pretty much all but Yakuza 2, Black, Bully, and Persona series are nothing but niche games, spin-offs, re-releases, or hammied down multiplats.

I really don't get what you do not understand about this. The Super Nintendo received the biggest hits available in the third party market 2 years and even onward after the Playstation's launch. The PS2 had a single year of dominance after the 360's launched (which was due to most development heading toward the PS3 at that time as the 360 wasn't seen as that relevant outside of the usual Xbox treatment for most companies (hence why I excluded the SEGA Saturn from my comparison) and as soon as the holiday launch in 2006 arrived all the games suddenly stopped going to the PS2 except Persona series and Yakuza 2 (which came mere days after the Japanese PS3 launch).

With the Super Nintendo a year after the PSX launched the big games were still focused on Super Nintendo. It wasn't until the beginning of '97 when the games started coming its way that didn't say "Namco" on the box. When the PSX hit and games were still being planned and developed primarily for the Super Nintendo and not the PSX or the N64, the exact opposite for the PS2 and PS3. 2 years after the PSX launched big blockbuster Super Nintendo games were still exclusively hitting the Super Nintendo, this is anything but what happened with the PS2 which was essentially the exact opposite as publishers finished releasing their major blockbuster and relevant titles that were already in development before the PS3 launched (as for the majority of the games you listed were Japanese the Xbox 360 was anything but relevant) while all of their big games were planned for the PS3 and next-gen development (Devil May Cry 4, Final Fantasy XIII, and Monster Hunter 3 are just a few examples). That is the difference.

There is a mile high difference between what the SNES had (which was true and focused hard hitting support) and what the PS2 had (the final rush to release the games before it's "successor" launched as well as ramping up for the systems "successor").

I honestly don't care if you enjoy my posts or not. They aren't made for your amusement. I'm not hosting a variety show here.

Just keep digging your head in the sand.

 

[Link]

Ok, I'm not going to go through your post point-by-point because it's late, and I'm not even sure why we're arguing this particular situation. The bottom line is going by your scenario, the Wii should be getting a ton of big games starting this year, right? Why don't we just wait and see how that goes.

 

[Suburban Cowboy]

has wiimusic been brought up yet? As expected, its MIA while other Wii-branded games flourish. As it turns out, casuals have discerning tastes

 

[Jammy]

has wiimusic been brought up yet? As expected, its MIA while other Wii-branded games flourish. As it turns out, casuals have discerning tastes

It's probably between 21-30. Within the next two months it'll be a million seller in America alone, given that it did nearly 900,000 through the end of December.

 

[Neo C.]

Well Japan is in essentially a perma-recession anyways (at least the domestic economy, export held it up for a time). Consumer spending has been negative or flat for most of the last 4 years and consumer confidence has been in free fall for the last 2 years.

As for the video game question, I think it's a simple case of the falling birth rate in Japan. 18 year olds are the heart of the video game demographic and you can easily find the number of 18 year olds each year at the World Factbook. Japan's situation isn't one where video games should be expected to be doing well:

Number of Japanese Turning 18
1989 - 1,940,000
1993 - 1,843,000
1998 - 1,547,000
2003 - 1,380,000
2008 - 1,212,000

My guess for why the handhelds are doing better is the DS is more to the liking of the older crowd Nintendo is trying to coax into playing video games to offset the decline of younger people in Japan and Sony hit it off with the PSP and younger males. Either way though, being a mature video game market Japan is in long-term decline regardless of what is done.

I probably beat a dead horse, but I blame the xenophobism in Japan (note: I don't mean every single japanese is xenophobic). A healthy modern economy needs a healthy immigration, they should attract more educated foreigner. Also, when a foreigner wants to naturalize: Am I correct that he needs to give up his former national identity? This is stupid.

In Switzerland, more than 20 percent of the population are foreigners, and a lot of the swiss people were former foreigners and are naturalized now. Needless to say, they play a big role in our economy.

 

[Pachael]

has wiimusic been brought up yet? As expected, its MIA while other Wii-branded games flourish. As it turns out, casuals have discerning tastes

Maybe this means that Wii Music should have come with an accessory pack-in

 

[viciouskillersquirrel]

In Switzerland, more than 20 percent of the population are foreigners, and a lot of the swiss people were former foreigners and are naturalized now. Needless to say, they play a big role in our economy.

Switzerland has pretty draconian immigration laws too, for the record. If I recall correctly, you need to be a permanent resident there for seven years before you can become a citizen and some political groups want immigration to be tightened to zero.

 

[Vinci]

has wiimusic been brought up yet? As expected, its MIA while other Wii-branded games flourish. As it turns out, casuals have discerning tastes

I still say the damn thing's gonna outsell any game on the PS3 by the time it's done.

 

[Neo C.]

Switzerland has pretty draconian immigration laws too, for the record. If I recall correctly, you need to be a permanent resident there for seven years before you can become a citizen and some political groups want immigration to be tightened to zero.

I know, I wish people in rural territories would be a bit smarter, but they vote every time against more liberalization in immigration policy. :/

Generally I believe every country has some serious problems with xenophobism. Though in case of Japan it hurts their economy too.

 

[Tron 2.0]

has wiimusic been brought up yet? As expected, its MIA while other Wii-branded games flourish. As it turns out, casuals have discerning tastes

Yeah...well, WiiMusic is guaranteed to sell more in America than Pikmin did worldwide.

 

[HK-47]

Yeah...well, WiiMusic is guaranteed to sell more in America than Pikmin did worldwide.

Oh man what an accomplishment!!!

 

[Thunder Monkey]

Oh man what an accomplishment!!!

As much as I like Pikmin... that made me tingle in bad places.

Damn sarcastic robot.

 

[C.T.]

I know, I wish people in rural territories would be a bit smarter, but they vote every time against more liberalization in immigration policy. :/

Generally I believe every country has some serious problems with xenophobism. Though in case of Japan it hurts their economy too.

That has nothing to do with xenophobism at all. A lot of western countries suffer; it's called demographic change. It's usually a natural process caused by the increasing average age of citizens. Immigration is a little factor and no answer to the problem in general.