Adam Creighton, Computer and Video Gaming: Update on Xbox 360 sales in Japan

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Adam Creighton, Computer and Video Gaming (Subscribe)

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Update on Xbox 360 sales in Japan

Here's an update to this weekend's posting about initial Xbox 360 numbers in Japan. The short version? Not 320,000 units.

A survey by Japanese Famitsu magazine says only about 62,000 units were purchased on December 10 and 11 -- less than half of the estimated 159,000 Xbox 360 consoles available in Japanese stores. This is also half the 123,000 units Microsoft sold of its previous generation Xbox in the first three days of its Japanese intro the beginning of 2002.

Dead or Alive 4 and RPG eNCHANT arM would have changed opening weekend sales of the Xbox 360. Currently, DOA is the must-own franchise for Japanese Xboxers, and its absence may have seriously damaged the consoles cred.

DOA4 slipping from launch (and now at risk for its end-of-year reschedule for Japan) tells me (A) The game wasn't ready, making rock star game designer Tomonobu Itagaki probably very, very unhappy; and (B) Microsoft doesn't have that much influence over Team Ninja or Tecmo, LTD.

After all, Microsoft did ensure its first-party Project Gotham Racing 3 did make the launch, even after announcing a possible slip.

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SOURCES: Gamespot.com, joystiq.com, kotaku.com, Xbox.com, IGN, GameInformer, Official XBox Magazine, CNN, gamesindustry.biz, and others.

Adam Creighton, Computer and Video Gaming (Subscribe)

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Update on Xbox 360 sales in Japan

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