As Xbox One Launches in Japan, Akihabara’s Gamers Really Aren’t Standing in Line
The sun has finally risen on an uncharacteristically mild September 4th in Tokyo, and stores are finally about to open with their shelves loaded with Xbox One consoles.
Yet, perhaps as a sign of changing times, Japanese gamers aren’t standing in line at the gaming mecca of Akihabara like they used to do at previous console launches.
The Yodobashi Camera store in Akihabara is the “go to” place to buy a new console in Tokyo, which is why the shop always gets organized to stand long queues. This time, though, it’s simply not happening as you can see from the picture below, shot between 7 and 8 AM by various Twitter users.
［今朝の秋葉原の待機列状況］XBOX ONE発売日だけど、特に見かけず（7:00頃）
Xbox One発売日朝8時前後のヨドバシ秋葉「整列場所」。い、急げばまだ間に合うよ！(震え声) 秋葉原では別会場で記念終夜イベント開催中のため本気勢はそちらか、昨年海外版を輸入済みか http://japanese.engadget.com/2014/09/03/xbox-one-24-3-20/ …
アキヨドXBOX One待機列無しのRTがいくつか回って来たから寄ってみたけどほんとに誰も並んでねーや
The lack of queues shouldn’t probably be chalked completely to the Xbox One itself, but also to a generational shift in the purchasing habits of Japanese gamers. Online shopping and pre-orders have become more and more widespread in the archipelago of the rising sun, as more and more day one purchases shift to Amazon and similar outlets and away from brick and mortar stores.
Ultimately we’ll have to wait for next Wednesday with the release of the Media Create charts to know how the Xbox One’s Japanese launch is really going.
The spectacular queues snaking around the block we used to see at the times of past consoles and big games like Dragon Quest or Monster Hunter may have become a thing of the past. Times change.
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