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Lightning08 on 01 February 2008
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Soriku said:
makingmusic476 said:
I don't get it. Why does MS keep funding JRPGs if they keep flopping horribly, and aren't selling 360s in Japan? I say just give up, and work on keeping Sony out of NA, and more importantly, Europe.

Look at Eternal Sonata. They completely funded development, yet the game has sold only 200k WW so far, and barely moved consoles in Japan. It was also announced that it will be ported to the ps3. Why fund ES2 for the same exact thing to happen? It's a waste of money.

Of course, it's not like these rumors have any legs to stand on.


Here's my theory...

I think MS has got it clear in their heads that Japanese games WILL NOT sell well on their console. There will be no exclusive Japanese game on the 360 unless MS funds it. That's what MS are doing. But WHY are they doing if they see Japanese games won't sell? Well, don't you think that getting many Japanese games on the 360 could set up a path for the third Xbox? I mean, if the Japanese see MS bringing some popular games on their console, don't you think for the next Xbox there could be more Japanese games on it and not shunned by it like they've done with the 360 because it has many Western (mostly shooters) games?

The whole plan is to set things up for the future. They've shunned Japan with the Xbox, and tryin to gain ground from Sony, and to a larger extent, Nintendo (the Wii, really. I'll get into why not the DS in a second...) for their next system to get more Japnese games on it and for more sales.

Make sense?

You realize right that the only thing MS can do with this goal is fail?  Japan are not multi console owners and no matter how many games Microsoft buy it will never match what either Nintendo or Sony are offering. MS are funding a lot of RPG's from Namco but Namco JRPG's don't sell systems, they are niche, no one is going to buy a 360 to play them. That is the problem Microsoft has. As long as FF, DQ or KH are on other systems the 360 will never get the penetration required. Games like Takes of Versperia, Eternal Sonata etc... don't sell systems, they sell to an already existing userbase. Microsoft lack that (exclusive) game that will attract JRPG gamers in Japan so that the smaller RPG's can sell. It doesn't matter how many ES, TOV type games MS release in Japan because they will all meet the same fate until MS get that big game.

You watch, PS3 has the same problem, every JRPG on the PS3 will bomb until Final Fantasy XIII provides the JRPG userbase for them to sell to. Japan are not going to buy PS3's to play White Knight Chronicles, that game will sell to those who already want the system. Games like Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts are system sellers but the rest are not. Microsoft on the other hand don't have much choice because without Japan they are pretty much guaranteed to finish 2nd at best throughout their gaming existance because you cannot finish 1st and not have Japan but they are going about this the wrong way.

Microsoft need to buy a system seller, not niche games to make up a gaming library.

 

And these rumors indicate that the Microsoft games surprises are unannounced games, so why would everyone jump to MGS4 or FFXIII going 360? That rumor talks about 360 getting exclusives of their own. And I doubt RE5 will ever go 360 exclusive. Surfer Girl said no on her blog when someone asked her and Capcom are being really staunch on their multi platform strategy with their biggest budget games. I think it's more something like Lost Planet 2, Dead Rising 2, Bioshock 2 etc... that people expect to go multi platform but may not.