even though switch is "fine" its still a far cry from what consoles used to sell in japan years ago. LET ALONE handhelds
Why is Japanese console gaming on the decline? Does anyone find this trend concerning?
- Thread starter PersianPrince
- Start date
even though switch is "fine" its still a far cry from what consoles used to sell in japan years ago. LET ALONE handhelds
The Japanese audience might not be big on PC or consoles as a matter fact but the appetite and hunger for more Japanese games will only increase as everywhere else outside of Japan will crave for it and make up for it.
There will be more Japanese games coming to western based platforms specifically PC.
The Japanese audience is mainly focused on portable experiences especially mobile and gachas - the real money is outside of Japan which is why Sony's focusing WW rather than Japan.
Saying Switch is a handheld?
I play mine portable 95% of the time, is its biggest strenght.
The console market grew this year in Japan. It's just that the one feasting on that growth are Nintendo and the ones supporting the system. There's opportunity for growth, but Sony has taken a route that Japanese people don't like, not only in hardware but in software as well.
I play mine 90% docked, now it's a console. How we play it doesn't define what it is, much less in Japan.
But it doesn't mean that home console gaming isn't declining in Japan. Nintendo portables always sold more than home consoles.
No doubt that it's playing a large part in the success of the system over there, but if it was the reason then the more expensive OG Switch wouldn't be outselling the handheld-only Lite to the extent that it is.
Y'all need to stop making up narratives about how the console market is ruin in Japan simply because PlayStation's market relevance and brand power is declining. That's all this boils down to.
And that's not even taking into account the fact that most of the Switch's best selling games are traditionally console-like experiences. There's an appetite for console gaming in Japan, it's just that what PlayStation is offering isn't resonating with that audience.
God, I'm not "defending" Sony. But you really think a Switch home console only would sell like the Switch, Game Boy, DS or 3DS? It would outsell PS4, but wouldn't be so huge because for many that's the main appeal.
The market is only growing for Nintendo and mobile. I really hope they focus more on Nintendo than gachas.
It's not that you're defending Sony, it's that your calling Switch "handheld" while it's something entirely different. It can be either, but neither and that's something that Japanese enjoy. It's not the handheld part only, because the cheaper, smaller Lite is heavily outsold by the hybrid Switch. That there shows that there is a market for home consoles.
Console gaming grew this last year. The switch will sell more than the 3DS once all is said and done.
Where did I say you're defending Sony? I said the narrative that console gaming is declining in Japan based solely on the fact that PlayStation isn't doing well is flawed.
I even said in that same post you quoted that yes, the portability of the console is no doubt helping it's success. However, I'll reiterate once again that the more expensive OG Switch is selling better than the handheld-only Lite, and that multiple best selling Switch games in Japan are console/TV experiences.
Simply stating "well of course Switch is doing okay, it's a handheld" is just a weak argument. It's more nuanced than that.
The terrible takes on this forum recently. Christ.
So it was probably a misunderstanding, I said Switch is "also a handheld", didn't mean to imply it was the only appeal.
It is disheartening that the quantity and variety of Japanese games has declined, but at the same time there's been an explosion of ways to explore past console libraries lately. High quality emulation, FPGA solutions, flash carts and ODE products are constantly coming out, and HDMI mods and good scalers like the Retrotink make using retro consoles on modern TVs not an awful experience. As someone primarily interested in Japanese games, I could stop buying new consoles this gen and not run out of new things to experience.
Which only Capcom, Bamco, and Square Enix can do. The rest of the Japanese game industry get most of their money and revenue from Japan.
Aren't switch sales in japan outpacing everything except NDS, launch alligned?
you mean the same Switch that is about to pass every console that has ever been released in japan in a shorter timeframe and is tracking ahead of every handheld except the original DS?
In no reality have Japanese games been killed, let alone by gacha. If you mean PlayStation is declining in Japan, then yes, you're 100% correct, otherwise you're incorrect. Console gaming is doing fine, it's just most people are buying and playing on the Switch.
Also, major 3rd party software not being released for the clear-cut, and I mean clear-fucking-cut market leader will lead to lower sales. It's pretty simple honestly.
Also, major 3rd party software not being released for the clear-cut, and I mean clear-fucking-cut market leader will lead to lower sales. It's pretty simple honestly.
Anything small and portable always prevails in Japan. Apple must be making tons of revenue there. I barely see Android phones among my friends.
The pages before MH Rise announcement were legendary. Painful to read, of course, but legendary nonetheless.
I wonder if this will result in Sony considering making a hybrid device of their own. The only issue is what format would you even use? Especially with the push for 4k/60-120fps/HDR
The issue is playstation as a gaming brand is declining in Japan and has been like this for a long time now. People mention hardware being the issue and that portable being the move forget that Sony had the Vita which sold badly compared to other portables in Japan. The reason is because the Vita lacked any enticing software.
Nintendo are flourishing in Japan because they have appealing software which caters to the Japanese audience. This is something that the PS4 and soon to be PS5 are heavily lacking. There's only so much Japanese third parties can do on playstation hardware and unfortunately some are ignoring the success of the switch.
This is false because the switch is doing better than the majority of consoles and handhelds. It's about to pass up the 3DS and has the the chance to beat beat NDS overall sales.
Nintendo are flourishing in Japan because they have appealing software which caters to the Japanese audience. This is something that the PS4 and soon to be PS5 are heavily lacking. There's only so much Japanese third parties can do on playstation hardware and unfortunately some are ignoring the success of the switch.
This is false because the switch is doing better than the majority of consoles and handhelds. It's about to pass up the 3DS and has the the chance to beat beat NDS overall sales.
Because Sony, since the PS3, made their consoles more appealing to western audiences and development enviroment and, consequently, lost the japanese market in return. AAA development model made most games to feel more and more westernized. Hence most of the gaming community has a very Sony-centric vision of the market, they associate Sony's fallout as the japanese market as a whole.
Anyway, OG Switch is vastly outselling the Lite model, which can check the veracity of it's success being restricted to the portable mode around there.
Anyway, OG Switch is vastly outselling the Lite model, which can check the veracity of it's success being restricted to the portable mode around there.
Correct me if I am wrong but Japanese publishers and developers are finding success in the West, especially on PC. So if they want to continue making console games they can do so. The situation looks much better for the major publishers than at the start of last gen (sans Konami).
PlayStation is on a decline, console gaming isn't.
It will be interesting to see what platform the more "Japanese favoured games" will take in like 5 years.
I see Japanese games continue being big on the Switch and somewhat on PC (in the west) but some will cling to the ps4 for the next 2 years or so.
It will be interesting to see what platform the more "Japanese favoured games" will take in like 5 years.
I see Japanese games continue being big on the Switch and somewhat on PC (in the west) but some will cling to the ps4 for the next 2 years or so.
I don't know... The gaming market generally reflects the habits of it's users, and maybe stationary consoles are a thing on the past that enthusiasts refuse to let it go. The High-End PCS and the smartphones cover both of the extremes on where the technology generally is evolving anyway.
The Nintendo Switch is maybe a first step on the direction of hybrid systems that could eventually be the standard, at least on Japan, but that isn't the only merit of the Switch, after all a no matter how good a console could be, if it doesn't have a game - and a GOOD game for a new proposal, it doesn't sell.
And, speaking only by my point of view, I feel that all the magic that I had once with a traditional console died with the PS3 and the constant fight against colors on that time.
The Nintendo Switch is maybe a first step on the direction of hybrid systems that could eventually be the standard, at least on Japan, but that isn't the only merit of the Switch, after all a no matter how good a console could be, if it doesn't have a game - and a GOOD game for a new proposal, it doesn't sell.
And, speaking only by my point of view, I feel that all the magic that I had once with a traditional console died with the PS3 and the constant fight against colors on that time.
My theory is still that Japanese developers are largely doing PC ports to get the Chinese market (and maybe the Korean market). Basically all the Japanese games you see on Steam at least have Chinese text support.
Yeah it's mainly the smaller dev/pubs and niche titles that still rely on domestic market a bit.
The same Konami that will soon sell the only 3rd party console game not called Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, or Monster Hunter, 2 million units exclusively on one console in the last 5 years.
Well....
Mobile cuts into the new audience DS was able to reach.
Big third parties have completely lost the pulse of the domestic market and increasingly view their business as lopsidedly export dominated as they double down on the bets that lost them relevance in Japan.
Small third parties have often painted themselves into otaku niche corners until they become completely irrelevant.
Development costs in time and money took a major leap with HD. Better tools have cut into that this past generation, but it wiped out or shrank a lot of prospects.
In general, Japanese third parties are incredibly bad at doing anything new and relevant in the domestic market. They are slow. They are conservative. They are stuck on dumb ideas. Nintendo is just becoming more and more dominant as others flounder.
There's also just a lot of harmful fatalism about it all.
Mobile cuts into the new audience DS was able to reach.
Big third parties have completely lost the pulse of the domestic market and increasingly view their business as lopsidedly export dominated as they double down on the bets that lost them relevance in Japan.
Small third parties have often painted themselves into otaku niche corners until they become completely irrelevant.
Development costs in time and money took a major leap with HD. Better tools have cut into that this past generation, but it wiped out or shrank a lot of prospects.
In general, Japanese third parties are incredibly bad at doing anything new and relevant in the domestic market. They are slow. They are conservative. They are stuck on dumb ideas. Nintendo is just becoming more and more dominant as others flounder.
There's also just a lot of harmful fatalism about it all.
This is misinformed. The Switch will outsell every console ever released in Japan later this year.
As many have said, it's really just the PlayStation brand that is fading into obscurity in Japan.
Sony doesn't make as many Japanese games as they did in the PS2 era, and they are increasingly relying on western content to sell playstation. I know a few Japanese people who don't ever play western games, so this is actually a big factor in deciding if they want to get the console.