Some news about Japanese XBOX 360 launch...

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 12:20 am

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4524036.stm

Interesting that the JP version is cheaper! And if it can really play American XBOX 360 and XBOX games, that would rock!

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 1:12 am

It doesn't apparently.

More news:
http://japan.classicgaming.gamespy.com/ ... .php?t=975

You can't really flat out say that "it's cheaper". It looks that way on paper, but there's a lot of other factors there in play. First of all, the yen has taken a big hit lately, so things in Japan should seem cheaper. That plays against Microsoft Japan, as there's still an illusion of cheap when keeping the console under 40,000 yen (like in the US, keeping it under $400). They should've just taken a bite and sold the fucker for 29,900 yen. It's the only chance they had, and now the 360 is going to go the exact same route as the first Xbox --- down, and very fast.

FatCobra · Post by **FatCobra** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 4:38 pm

It's not doing well in Japan, I'm guessing?

This calls for a ytmnd:
http://xbox360injapan.ytmnd.com/

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 6:28 pm

GaijinPunch wrote:It doesn't apparently.

More news:
http://japan.classicgaming.gamespy.com/ ... .php?t=975

You can't really flat out say that "it's cheaper". It looks that way on paper, but there's a lot of other factors there in play. First of all, the yen has taken a big hit lately, so things in Japan should seem cheaper. That plays against Microsoft Japan, as there's still an illusion of cheap when keeping the console under 40,000 yen (like in the US, keeping it under $400). They should've just taken a bite and sold the fucker for 29,900 yen. It's the only chance they had, and now the 360 is going to go the exact same route as the first Xbox --- down, and very fast.

But they have more Japanese developers on board this time around, don't they?

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 7:56 pm

But they have more Japanese developers on board this time around, don't they?

Too little too late I'm guessing.

ave · Post by **ave** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 8:11 pm

XBOX360 IS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT!

Kiken · Post by **Kiken** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 8:27 pm

According to NCSX:

From December 12th:
©NCSX▪ Speaking to a distribution rep on Saturday evening, we inquired as to how many Japanese Xbox 360s we'd be able to order in light of the shortages and quick sell-outs in the USA and Europe. Loosely translated, his reply was, "As many as you need up to 89 units," which we surmised was their remaining inventory after the launch earlier in the day. He wouldn't tell us how many units they received in total but judging by his perturbed and anxious tone, we're guessing 100.

Our usual courier does not export shipments on Saturday or Sunday out of Japan and we were planning for a Monday evening dispatch. There was urgency on our side since U.S. consumers are clamoring for units. There was also urgency in his voice to sell the consoles. For once, we didn't get gouged on a new console launch with inordinate price hikes. The quoted shipping rates per unit however were inordinate as usual.

There was moderate chatter on Japanese message boards over the weekend and scattered complaints of overheating and freeze issues. Not overwhelming but not enough people may have gotten a console over the weekend to post yet. We're not sure how we'll handle defective Xbox 360 consoles since they will cost about US$93 each to ship back to Japan for repair/exchange along with a turn-around time. To this end, we may delay the shipment until we hear more reports from our customers and vendors overseas. We'll make a decision tonight and update tomorrow. Since a few USA games are not region-protected as confirmed by many of our European customers last week, some US software will work fine on a Japanese X360.

From December 13th:
Xbox 360 Japan
We didn't confirm our Xbox 360 order from Japan last night but our supplier sent them anyway. We're expecting the units tomorrow and all preorders will ship once they arrive. X360 VGA and D-Terminal cables will also be available tomorrow. According to Enterbrain (Famitsu) by way of this morning's Bloomberg article, 62,135 units of the Xbox 360 have sold in Japan of the 159,000 total consoles shipped to market.

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 9:44 pm

So they are selling well in Japan? Somebody's got their wires crossed somewhere is all I can figure out at this point! That guy in the store with all the 360's looks like he's about ready to go flip somebody off!

(WTF are D-Terminal Cables, BTW?)

The n00b · Post by **The n00b** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 10:35 pm

dave4shmups wrote:

So they are selling well in Japan? Somebody's got their wires crossed somewhere is all I can figure out at this point! That guy in the store with all the 360's looks like he's about ready to go flip somebody off!

(WTF are D-Terminal Cables, BTW?)

They are selling okay, I wouldn't say they are selling "well." BTW Dave, the week after the ps2 came out there were still stores with plenty of ps2's left. Just because those stores didn't sell out, doesn't mean the ps2 didn't sell well.

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 11:29 pm

Dave: Google around a bit. They are selling worse than the first Xbox launch in Japan (estimated by first day sales of about 62,000 units) which was pretty bad. It's a flop -- no other way around it. You can pick them up anywhere (if you live in Japan).

(WTF are D-Terminal Cables, BTW?)

It's a Japanese component cable. Most JPN HDTV's have both D-Terminal and Component. It's not used anywhere else AFAIK.

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 12:04 am

GaijinPunch wrote:Dave: Google around a bit. They are selling worse than the first Xbox launch in Japan (estimated by first day sales of about 62,000 units) which was pretty bad. It's a flop -- no other way around it. You can pick them up anywhere (if you live in Japan).

(WTF are D-Terminal Cables, BTW?)
It's a Japanese component cable. Most JPN HDTV's have both D-Terminal and Component. It's not used anywhere else AFAIK.

Thanks for that info on the cable! IGN's news on the launch wasn't very positive either:

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/675/675386p1.html

OT, this Japanese 360 release by Capcom looks pretty sweet!

: http://media.xbox360.ign.com/media/761/ ... ids_1.html

jp · Post by jp » Fri Dec 16, 2005 3:14 am

Why would the Japanese buy it at this point? None of the "Japanese" games are out for the 360 yet (Dead or Alive 4, Lost Planet, Final Fantasy whatevernumberthey'reon, etc.), and in general, the Japanese are snotty assholes towards non-Japanese games/products. Despite their weird ass fascination with American music (at least, thats what a Japanese girl I work with told me).

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 4:12 am

Generalizations about Japanese by Japanese living abroad are usually very tainted and exagerrated. American music/movies are pretty popular all over the world, and Japan is no exception. I would say fans on that side of the world are just as enamored by rock stars as they are on this side.

Games and electronics are one those weird markets where the US stuff is generally considered inferior. Cars, which pretty much are proven inferior, are still somewhat of a status symbol to have one (a real one, imported from America w/ the wheel on the other side).

benstylus · Post by **benstylus** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 4:00 pm

aventus wrote:

Oh man... I think I just found my new desktop background...

The n00b · Post by **The n00b** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 4:19 pm

GaijinPunch wrote:Generalizations about Japanese by Japanese living abroad are usually very tainted and exagerrated. American music/movies are pretty popular all over the world, and Japan is no exception. I would say fans on that side of the world are just as enamored by rock stars as they are on this side.

Games and electronics are one those weird markets where the US stuff is generally considered inferior. Cars, which pretty much are proven inferior, are still somewhat of a status symbol to have one (a real one, imported from America w/ the wheel on the other side).

I'm not going to rail at the japanese for prejudging American products. I am going to laugh at them though for accepting anything Sony puts on the table for the good japanese citizen to eat up and praise. In their efforts to avoid inferior products, they lap up inferior products. Irony, thy name is Japan.

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 8:29 pm

When it comes to the console, they'll eat it up (shit, I would -- Sony has had by far more games, and stacks of good ones to choose from out of the 32-bit and current generation). All their other departments aren't doing so hot though, despite being a "good seller" in Japan and America. Sharp I believe surpased them in TV's in Japan. Not sure about the other stuff. But again, I'd say that Japanese are just as prone to buying crappy Sony stuff based on looks/features just like the Americans are. Hell, as bad as their track record is, I'd buy Sony electronics before most US stuff. RCA? ZenitH? Magnavox? Bah.

Vexorg · Post by **Vexorg** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 8:42 pm

I've been looking off and on at TVs over the past few months (I still don't have one in my apartment, but haven't really been in a hurry to get one since I can hook up my consoles to my LCD monitor, and there's nothing good on TV these days anyway) and the main thing I notice about Sony products is the price... Every single product I've looked at seems to be $300-500 more expensive than the competition (this being on 27-32" LCD TVs, the price difference is even greater on bigger ones), with little to no apparent difference in quality to explain the inflated pricetag.

Ganelon · Post by **Ganelon** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 8:42 pm

The worst part is that Sony's products have been getting worse and worse, just like Mercedes. At least they made good TVs back in the day but now, Samsung outdoes them in both quality and price. Most people are still too focused on name brand but it's reassuring to know that Sony is losing market share.

The n00b · Post by **The n00b** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 11:07 pm

Vexorg wrote:I've been looking off and on at TVs over the past few months (I still don't have one in my apartment, but haven't really been in a hurry to get one since I can hook up my consoles to my LCD monitor, and there's nothing good on TV these days anyway) and the main thing I notice about Sony products is the price... Every single product I've looked at seems to be $300-500 more expensive than the competition (this being on 27-32" LCD TVs, the price difference is even greater on bigger ones), with little to no apparent difference in quality to explain the inflated pricetag.

That's the problem with Sony, they have grossly inflated prices for shoddily made products. They really are like the microsoft of the electronics world. This holds especially true for their LCD tvs. I'm not saying you should buy American but be very careful when you are buying Sony. If you really want to buy Japanese, buy Hitachi or something. Panasonic is a good brand too but I think that's european.

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 5:07 am

The n00b wrote:
Vexorg wrote:I've been looking off and on at TVs over the past few months (I still don't have one in my apartment, but haven't really been in a hurry to get one since I can hook up my consoles to my LCD monitor, and there's nothing good on TV these days anyway) and the main thing I notice about Sony products is the price... Every single product I've looked at seems to be $300-500 more expensive than the competition (this being on 27-32" LCD TVs, the price difference is even greater on bigger ones), with little to no apparent difference in quality to explain the inflated pricetag.
That's the problem with Sony, they have grossly inflated prices for shoddily made products. They really are like the microsoft of the electronics world. This holds especially true for their LCD tvs. I'm not saying you should buy American but be very careful when you are buying Sony. If you really want to buy Japanese, buy Hitachi or something. Panasonic is a good brand too but I think that's european.

Just because Sony isnt't #1 in TV's anymore does not make all their products "shoddy". That's like arguing that everything that Phillips has made since the CD-i has been crap.

Post by **system11** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 5:48 am

dave4shmups wrote: Just because Sony isnt't #1 in TV's anymore does not make all their products "shoddy". That's like arguing that everything that Phillips has made since the CD-i has been crap.

Well, they're running out of markets.

TVs - crap (flagship CRT model suffering 1 second delay between input source and screen!!! LCD models 10x as expensive as better ones from other makes)
MP3 players - crap (covered with DRM, need special Windows only software - sigh)
Hifi - crap (this one especially sad as they used to make some of the best in the 70s)
DVD players - crap (usual story, can't make some of them region free, even Pioneer who are traditionally not cheap beat them on price/performance)

About the one good product they do make now is the PS2, and that is certainly not without its issues - although the biggest one IMHO is the less widely complained about - they totally failed to get online gaming to work nicely.

To be honest I think this is not unexpected for any company with a huge brand following - they get sloppy and arrogant. Look at that POS operating system most people have on their PCs for a prime example.

MSZ · Post by **MSZ** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 6:33 am

bloodflowers wrote:
dave4shmups wrote: Just because Sony isnt't #1 in TV's anymore does not make all their products "shoddy". That's like arguing that everything that Phillips has made since the CD-i has been crap.
Well, they're running out of markets.

TVs - crap (flagship CRT model suffering 1 second delay between input source and screen!!! LCD models 10x as expensive as better ones from other makes)
MP3 players - crap (covered with DRM, need special Windows only software - sigh)
Hifi - crap (this one especially sad as they used to make some of the best in the 70s)
DVD players - crap (usual story, can't make some of them region free, even Pioneer who are traditionally not cheap beat them on price/performance)

About the one good product they do make now is the PS2, and that is certainly not without its issues - although the biggest one IMHO is the less widely complained about - they totally failed to get online gaming to work nicely.

To be honest I think this is not unexpected for any company with a huge brand following - they get sloppy and arrogant. Look at that POS operating system most people have on their PCs for a prime example.

The PAL markets have crappy Sony TVs. We have much better ones:

http://www.sonystyle.ca/commerce/servle ... 050n100187

I think the SXRD line is North America exclusive. And forget CRT, we don't have them in store anymore.

judesalmon · Post by **judesalmon** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 10:29 am

GaijinPunch wrote:They should've just taken a bite and sold the fucker for 29,900 yen. It's the only chance they had, and now the 360 is going to go the exact same route as the first Xbox --- down, and very fast.

The 360 has sold much worse in it's opening week than the Xbox did.

As for the price - I don't think it would make much difference. Most Japanese gamers are waiting for the PS3, which is going to be significantly more expensive. If it was too cheap then the Japanese would probably be suspicious, like it was badly made or something - price doesn't seem to be an issue in Japanese consumerism, if they really want it, they'll pay for it.

The biggest problems facing the 360 in Japan are:

1) The lack of any games the Japanese want to play (DOA is third in popularity behind Virtua Fighter and Tekken, and neither of those set the charts on fire).

2) It's made by a foreign company.

3) It's made by Microsoft.

4) It's considered underpowered and with fewer features that the PS3 (especially 1080p and Blu-Ray).

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 12:54 pm

Just because Sony isnt't #1 in TV's anymore does not make all their products "shoddy".

But it holds true for vice versa. They make shoddy crap (and have been doing so for years) so are no longer #1. I've bought tons of Sony products... like a dipshit, I give them another chance every now and again, and of course, in less than a year of owning it, it goes tits up. My PS2 is the only thing that's lasted a while, but that was like what, the 5th model they were on?

As for the price - I don't think it would make much difference.

True, but it couldn't have hurt. M$ can more than afford it. The only way they survive in Japan is getting tons of 360's in houses... they should consider giving them away.

price doesn't seem to be an issue in Japanese consumerism,

I think saying they'll spend money on quality over crap is very true, but saying price isn't an issue just isn't. As a race, they are very frugal. You should see how well a Japanese woman can budget a shitty salary. I know that's racist, but it's true.

The n00b · Post by **The n00b** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 2:51 pm

bloodflowers wrote:
dave4shmups wrote: Just because Sony isnt't #1 in TV's anymore does not make all their products "shoddy". That's like arguing that everything that Phillips has made since the CD-i has been crap.
Well, they're running out of markets.

TVs - crap (flagship CRT model suffering 1 second delay between input source and screen!!! LCD models 10x as expensive as better ones from other makes)
MP3 players - crap (covered with DRM, need special Windows only software - sigh)
Hifi - crap (this one especially sad as they used to make some of the best in the 70s)
DVD players - crap (usual story, can't make some of them region free, even Pioneer who are traditionally not cheap beat them on price/performance)

About the one good product they do make now is the PS2, and that is certainly not without its issues - although the biggest one IMHO is the less widely complained about - they totally failed to get online gaming to work nicely.

To be honest I think this is not unexpected for any company with a huge brand following - they get sloppy and arrogant. Look at that POS operating system most people have on their PCs for a prime example.

Dave, this is exactly what I'm talking about. I can only backup the TV's, various music players, and dvd players section of bloodflowers argument though. Throw in Sony's reaction to complaints about the PSP's button placement too: IT'S NOT A FLAW, IT'S A FEATURE!

No this is not just a pal problem either, it's been an ntsc problem for a long time too. At least since the early 90's, Sony was going downhill at an ever increasing speed.

As for the xbox360 being underpowered compared to the ps3... Doesn't anyone remember the days of the dreamcast vs ps2? All that Sony hype and you ended up with a product barely more powerful than a dreamcast and in some ways worse. Sony got tons of people to buy it though, including Japan. So I'm really not expecting miracles from the ps3 except for a better controller(that thing is a disaster in the making).

MSZ · Post by **MSZ** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 6:55 pm

The n00b wrote:No this is not just a pal problem either, it's been an ntsc problem for a long time too. At least since the early 90's, Sony was going downhill at an ever increasing speed.

Definitely not their TV, I have a 42" Grand Wega, it has been serving me well. My 39001 PS2 has been very "healthy" as well.

I do agree with you guys that other Sony products are going downhill though.

zubiac · Post by **zubiac** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 10:01 pm

whoever said that Samsung makes quality TVs etc should visit me at home and listen to the amazing soundquality of my new Samsung TV(the 2nd one within 2 moths;first one nearly burnt down my apartment...):
shhhzzzzzz,shhhzzzzzzz,eeeeeeeeeaaakkkrrrrrrr
yeah very funny Samsung.You bastards should burn in hell for selling the worst(in terms of quality) electronic devices I have ever experienced.
Ultra-cheap "Made in China" TVs I owned before were MUCH better in every aspect.

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 10:41 pm

MSZ wrote:
The n00b wrote:No this is not just a pal problem either, it's been an ntsc problem for a long time too. At least since the early 90's, Sony was going downhill at an ever increasing speed.
Definitely not their TV, I have a 42" Grand Wega, it has been serving me well. My 39001 PS2 has been very "healthy" as well.

I do agree with you guys that other Sony products are going downhill though.

Sony has been making quality consumer electronic products for decades.

And as for the PSP, the button placement was fixed for the American ones; there's a helluva lot more DS's that have been returned then PSPs.

I own a slimine PSTwo, and I love it, if people cannot figure out how to keep a console-any console-well ventiliated, that's their problem. There have been plenty of people who have gone through 4 or 5 XBOX's as well; at least Sony had the courtesy to put a "+" sign on the boxes of older PS2's that could read blue-backed discs better-I don't recall Microsoft giving consumers that courtesy when they finally changed to using Samsung drives in XBOX's.

I'm just sick of how rabidly anti-Sony this site has become-and then everytime a new shmup, like Ibara, comes out for it, it's "OMG!!! D000D! I just teh creamed my pantzorz!!!!!!"

Let's either re-name this site anti-sony.com, or be more consistent.

ArrogantBastard · Post by **ArrogantBastard** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 10:58 pm

For those of you wondering, I've had my PS2 (SCPH 30001) since I bought it brand new, and it has been serving me well and has seen THOUSANDS of hours of gaming, and it has not once had any problems. It still reads blue discs, PSX discs, and DVD discs without any hitches.

Quite frankly, I'm tired of all the ignorant comments diluting online forums everywhere about how a percentage of defective items is considered a nationwide problem and that it's guaranteed that ALL of the products from a manufacturer are inferior just because of that. It gets old, really.

Sure, a product can be defective right out of the box, but that's why there's the customer service. It may be a hassle, but goddamn it, it gets the problem solved one way or the other.

Another thing is environment and owner's care for the system is a factor in this, too. If you're a very careful person and takes care of his / her own system, but it's usually in a bad spot where it recieves little to no ventilation or in an area with high probability that it may get a power surge or some debris / dust getting sucked inside the system rendering the system defective. That's the other problem.

Myself, I've been very careful to make sure that it recieves good ventilation, and keep it off the carpets and whatnot, so that I may have a system that will last a long time. And what do you know? It still works as if I just bought it.

I just think the majority of the percent of defective PS2 owners just generally sucks at taking care of their own product.

P.S.: My PSX still works to this day, and it's the first release model. Huzzah.

Edit: To contribute to the topic: Xbox 360's not doing too well in Japan because there isn't enough niche Japanese titles to appeal to their own tastes. Not yet.

When the time comes, it'll pick up pretty nicely and quickly for it to start generating enough sales and revenues at some point in quarter.

Just give it time if you really care all that much about Japanese Xbox 360.

dave4shmups · Post by **dave4shmups** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 12:28 am

ArrogantBastard wrote:For those of you wondering, I've had my PS2 (SCPH 30001) since I bought it brand new, and it has been serving me well and has seen THOUSANDS of hours of gaming, and it has not once had any problems. It still reads blue discs, PSX discs, and DVD discs without any hitches.

Quite frankly, I'm tired of all the ignorant comments diluting online forums everywhere about how a percentage of defective items is considered a nationwide problem and that it's guaranteed that ALL of the products from a manufacturer are inferior just because of that. It gets old, really.

Sure, a product can be defective right out of the box, but that's why there's the customer service. It may be a hassle, but goddamn it, it gets the problem solved one way or the other.

Another thing is environment and owner's care for the system is a factor in this, too. If you're a very careful person and takes care of his / her own system, but it's usually in a bad spot where it recieves little to no ventilation or in an area with high probability that it may get a power surge or some debris / dust getting sucked inside the system rendering the system defective. That's the other problem.

Myself, I've been very careful to make sure that it recieves good ventilation, and keep it off the carpets and whatnot, so that I may have a system that will last a long time. And what do you know? It still works as if I just bought it.

I just think the majority of the percent of defective PS2 owners just generally sucks at taking care of their own product.

P.S.: My PSX still works to this day, and it's the first release model. Huzzah.

Edit: To contribute to the topic: Xbox 360's not doing too well in Japan because there isn't enough niche Japanese titles to appeal to their own tastes. Not yet.

When the time comes, it'll pick up pretty nicely and quickly for it to start generating enough sales and revenues at some point in quarter.

Just give it time if you really care all that much about Japanese Xbox 360.

Agreed, Arrogant Bastard, it get's REALLY old! Even the PSP's in Japan that had problems with the button being too close to the screen numbered less then 2,000.

And yeah, I'm sure the 360 will pick up in time in Japan; as I mentioned earlier, there are a lot more Japanese developers lined up for the 360 then there ever were for the XBOX.