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Western game sales in Japan 'getting better, but still small'
Zenimax Asia boss reckons that sales of Western games in Japan are improving, but still have a long way to go.
Written by David Scammell, 25 November 2009
Zenimax Asia's Tetsu Takahashi has said that Japanese gamers have often tended to have a "negative, almost allergic reaction" to Western games, and that, despite sales getting better, there's "still room to grow".
Talking to Gamasutra, the Zenimax Asia boss said:
"I think numbers are growing with what we call Western game fans. There has always been like a negative, almost allergic reaction to Western games in Japan in general, but that's going away a little bit.
"It's a lot better than when I started doing this. Back then, if we could sell 10,000 units of a triple A title, it was great. But now, for example, Oblivion, we sold about 150,000 units between PS3 and 360. Fallout 3, we did well, it's still selling, but right now we're at about 30,000. Obviously, GTA has done like 100,000.
"Now we're seeing some interesting numbers. It's getting better, but it's still small. I think there's still room to grow."
We think so too, Takahashi-san. GTA IV selling only 100,000 units in Japan? That accounts for less than 1% of the total units shipped worldwide.
But what do you think? Do you think Western games could ever have the same appeal in Japan as they do in the rest of the world?
