I disagree. If Communism ended 5 years ago that could be the cause but it was over 20 years ago. There are new generations which never lived under communism which show really high levels of pesimism.

I go visit countries like Hungary, Serbia and Croatia every year, as thats where I was born, and it is very foreign to me how people think the worst of every problem which comes up.

The moment their soccer team gets scored on, game is over...they lost. No chance of comeback...lol

Well if you actually have first hand experience, I'll take your word for it. Very interesting.

Came in to say this.  The Japanese companies that put their nose to the grind and just focus on what they do best are ones that have prospered this generation (Nintendo, Level-5, Hudson, Gust, From Software... Capcom until this year).  Those that have made major plays to "appealing to the west", either within their own development or working with western outsourcing, have been the ones to falter (Namco, Square Enix, Capcom just recently).

It's not dying. Japan is fine. Since the start of gaming the Japenese industry just was unproportionately big globally speaking but now as the West has catched up the Japanese market will naturally decrease a bit. 

Not only has the anglo-Saxon West (USA CAN UK) become better at making games but there's so many more countries that make games now. Only 10 years ago almost no games were made in Sweden but now we're a powerhouse. And there's respectable German, Dutch, Danish and Finnish devs now. And the former Eastern Bloc has some original game developers breaking into the market in the last decade making great games such as STALKER, Mafia, The witcher, Metro 2033 and Two Worlds (Two Worlds II will rock).

Japanese share will stabilize at 30% of the market until Korea and China enters the industry for real and then it will reduce further.

I agree with Disolitude. Eastern European people are by far the most pessimistic.

USA Americans and Canadians are the most optimistic by far. Swedes are pessimist compared to America but we're one of the most optimist European nations.

Yeah, next to your neighbours, the Finish, you guys look like sunshine buttercups :)

lol. Correct. The Finns are probably the most pessimistic people in Europe.

exactly my point, you didn't even know the 360 had an exclusive Monster hunter game

Itagaki as a politician...

Soooooo good.

take off the glasses for crying out loud...then i might actually think of taking this idiot seriously