Well, if Spencer knows this they could do something about it, although at this point is basically impossible to save the XBOne there. Japanese games catter to japanese audiences first, and why would anyone release those games on a console that is outsold there by every other piece of software? By a lot. The PS3 sells more in japan in one week than the XBOne in a couple of months, and it's even more loopsided with the current gen consoles. PC seems like a way better bet.

Why would they do it?

The Xbox sales in Japan won't be better because nobody cares about it there. You could even put a Persona 5 port on the One, it won't sell. And Japanese games don't sell on the Xbox One in the West either. Do you remember that Final Fantasy Type 0 had a 80/20 sales ratio for PS4/One? No Japanese developer has any interest in porting games on the Xbox One. Even FF15 will surely sell a lot more on the PS4. Recore flopped, Scalebound will flop hard too.

So why would MS moneyhat Japanese games? If they moneyhat Japanese ports, it won't change anything and cost money for nothing. If they moneyhat entire Japanese games, it's more expensive, it won't change anything either because the games flop hard, and it even shows to other Japanese developers that there is no audience for them on the XBox One. MS would have to moneyhat EVERY Japanese game they want on their console, with no benefit. It doesn't make sense.

The entire Xbox and even general culture should be changed. Xbox is the "dudebros" brand, Playstation is the "otakus" brand. That's it. You can't change that, or at least not in this generation. You want Japanese games, buy a PS4 or maybe a NX. You want to sell Japanese games, release it on PS4 or maybe NX. Forget the One. Phil Spencer can talk about it when Play Asia ask him, but he knows that they gave up on this a long time ago.

Japan's franchises that sell million+ on consoles didn't launched yet.

When was the last time that a Microsoft or Sony game surpassed 1 million in the UK ? or even a multiplataform game ? One of the very very few games that surpassed 1 million in the UK were Call of Duty and Fifa, 2 games that already sell very well on the UK.

What I mean is that a game, despite not being of the biggest genre of the country, does not flop on Japan. While a game that goes a little away from the multiplayer of Halo, usually flops on the USA.

Metal Gear Solid sold over/under 1 million worldwide on the Xbox One. The game never launched for the PC, if I remember well, but, even so, it sold 700-800k units at 60US$ on Steam. Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 launched for the Xbox  in the past.

The best selling game on the UK, with the exception of Cod and Fifa, was Fallout 4, which sold 500k in 1 version and 600-650k in the other version.(The 3 best selling game of 2015 in the UK).

The difference isn't so big. I don't know the reason why you think that Japan is a worthless market for Microsoft, or other companies, to invest.

If Microsoft and Sony invest in the UK to sell some hundreds of thousands, why would not be good to invest in Japan ?

Tomb Raider had  a bad launch in the UK last year, it sold 60-63k in the first week. Halo 5 sold much less than it usually sells on the UK, it sold a little more than Metal Gear Solid V sold in the UK. The number is still far from 1 million

The Xbox 360 had a pretty decent start on Japan and had games selling well, charting on Japan. But they stopped their Japanese focus (they were just with 1/3 of the sales of the PS3, which isn't that bad).  They would have outsold the Nintendo 64 if they really tried on Japan.

Microsoft needs to invest during entire cicles of consoles in order to start selling in a competitive level with Nintendo and Sony in Japan. Who will trust Microsoft when they don't have a single Japanese game after 3 years of Xbox One ? Only Recore.

1. I don't get what you're saying here. I'm saying software sales in Japan are modest, the best selling physical PS4 game in Japan is under 500K.

2. UK software sales >>> Japan software sales. European consumers generally enjoy the same stuff as NA consumers as well. So the west in general is a much more important audience than Japan.

3. Don't understand your what you're saying again.

4. Not sure what you're saying... again.

5. Again, UK consumers simply buy more games than Japan. Its a more important market to Sony and MS.

6. Japan simply isn't a market worth investing in. Sony themselves doesn't care about Japanese consumers, basically all of their games are for us western consumers. But PS4 is a popular platform in Japan because it will have significant 3rd party content.

7. MS and Sony doesn't invest in the UK per se, UK consumers just buy the same games as other western countries. To gain success in Japan though, you have to make or acquire games that appeal to a smaller market. Its not worth it for MS, they can move more hardware investing more money into western content.

8. For the recod, X1 software sales in UK > PS4 software sales in Japan. GTAV and BOIII will likely do 1 million UK. While Fifa has.

he is a god for the people, i think - The xbox man :P

this "edit" is good:

Phil Spencer Says Xbox One Isn't As Big In Japan Due to Preferring Games Like Persona 5 or Nioh & Ni No Kuni 2, Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Shenmue 3, DQ Builders, Bloodborne, World of Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest 11 ect :P

This isnt just about the japanese market though.
There are people across the world that enjoy japanese styled games.

When you give up japan, and trying to make those types of games, your also giveing up on those types.

Persona 5, World of Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy 7R, Ni No Kuni 2, Dragon Quest 11....

These are big titles for alot of people.
Sure they dont sell as much as Call of Duty... but I bet you they potentially sell alot of hardware.

One game cannot save them, even if its made from one of the greatest Japanese directors of all time.

Japan is not as easy to crack as America. America is free to anyone based on the quality of their product. In Japan, not only does an outsider product have to be unique, but it has to cater to the Japanese market in a major way that no one is at home. You literally have to impress your way into their market. Microsoft has never been up for this task, especially since they cannot make their own games. Sony has Japan on lock for third party and Nintendo is the most popular brand there despite a lack of third party. The nationalistic hold is a strong one, especially if you are not up to the task of wowing people who have seen a lot from their own culture. They culturally game differently as well. Sonys offerings are hard to beat because they are the best of both worlds third party wise.

If you try, and you fail, atleast you had a chance of success.

The only way to be sure to fail, is to never even try.

With the Xb360 they atleast put in some efforts to try and succede, and they did fairly well.
With the Xbox One, they havnt even tried and it shows, with them being at like 60,000 consoles sold in japan.

Also I dont think its true that Japan is that hard on other non japanese products, its just MS isnt giveing the market there what they want.