"Dreamcast outsells Xbox in Japan..."

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aracefan
From:
http://www.gamers.com/news/1132721

It's no secret that the Xbox hasn't exactly been flying off shelves in Japan. As Gamers.com has reported in the past, interest in the Microsoft console has sunken with each passing week since its release. Now it seems things have fallen to a new low for Xbox in Japan.
Sales tracking firm Media Create reports that in the first week of April (4/1 - 4/7), Microsoft sold an abysmal 2,179 units, a number that in and of itself is astonishingly low for a newly-released console system. But when you examine sales of some of the other hardware on the market, the news gets even worse. In the same week in April, Sony's seven-year old PS one platform sold 3,959 units. And get this--Sega's discontinued Dreamcast console even managed to outsell the Xbox with 3,427 units purchased by Japanese gamers. As for the other next-generation platforms, the PS2 and the GameCube sold 80,734 units and 15,068 units respectively.

Clearly, Japanese gamers are not taking well to the American-made gaming console. Many analysts are calling for Microsoft to drop the Xbox price in Japan, but others say it's not the price, but the Xbox games that are simply not appealing to the market.

Then there's the issue of faulty Xbox hardware in Japan. Though Microsoft isn't commenting publicly, some storeowners in Japan have revealed that they're carefully replacing potential faulty Xbox units before they are sold to consumers. Though this move, if announced publicly, could possibly help instill more faith in the Xbox name in Japan, Microsoft is reluctant to address the subject for fear of having the replacement labeled a recall.

If there's a glimmer of hope for Xbox in Japan, though, it's this: up until now many of the software titles available for the machine have been developed with primarily American gamers in mind. As more Japanese-themed Xbox games become available, sales should hopefully increase accordingly.

Let's hope so, because thus far Xbox sales seem awfully reminiscent of those of the 3DO and the Jaguar - two other American consoles that performed poorly in Japan and failed miserably.

X-BLOX anyone? :rolleyes:
 
It's obvious that Xbox isn't failing, but it's Xbox software that is failing. Japanese gamers love RPGs and strategy games. Does Xbox games have these genres?

No.
 
That's good stuff! A lot of my friends that work at game stores were telling me to get an XBox. But before that they said to get a Dreamcast. Apparently they were right on one case. They also said the PS2 was total crap and never would take off. They're not business majors though ... and honestly, they're not really even very good gamers (:

~LoudMusic
 
I won't ever get rid of my Dreamcast (unless it breaks), but apparently if I wanted to get rid of it, it would sell.
:lol: :lol: :lol:

I can't believe somebody said the PS2 was total crap. :rolleyes::lol: What an idiot...or idiots
 
Oh, it was a whole collective of guys. I couldn't believe they were saying that. The XBox is good hardware, but it's a first attempt to break into a pretty defined market. The DirectX support is huge too. It makes it so much easier for Windows game programmers to port to a console.

~LoudMusic
 
Originally posted by InterCooler
I would like to see X-Box succeed because I think Sony needs a competitor. Without a stiff competition, we just end up paying more for less.

I think I can agree with that. It's good for the market to have two big industries going at it. It'll take quite a bit to de-throne Sony, but they could definitely use some competition. And I don't think Nintendo can quite belly up to the table anymore.

~LoudMusic
 
Yep, Nintendo and X-Box missed the launch timing by about a year. DC, in my opinion had the upper hand but Sony's announcement of PS2 led to its demise. That may be over simplification but it was definitely true in my case.
 
Originally posted by frestkd
I just bought a used Dreamcast for $60.00! Now I can just find a copy of Linux for Dreamcast!
try www.boob.co.uk
Its a DC rearch site that I used to go to until i sold my DC. I regret that now because I have to pay £1 every time I want to play F355 challenge.
Remember PS2 thrives on the casual gamers market, these are the ones that buy the console and the games but dont realy play them
 
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