Square Enix boss Yoichi Wada is all about Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Sure, they're publishing it in Japan, so there's that, but it's also about wanting Japanese gamers to open up to western games.
"Even now, there have been people in Japan using the label youge- (literally 'Western games') with a terribly discriminatory meaning," Wada said in an interview.
"I'd like them to try it once," he said. "If they play it once, they'd realize how incorrect that label is."
I can see where the guy is coming from, but I think the release of MW2 there is one of many early steps to get them to warm up to a new type of gaming experience. We're talking about a country that plays games that require no actions other than reading. And these games sell like hotcakes.
Even then, there will always be that divide. Two totally different cultures looking for different things. You'll find just as many westerners that "don't get" Japanese games. Maybe if they took a cue from my above image in Japan. That would surely help, wouldn't it?
[via CVG]
Dale North is Destructoid's Editor-In-Chief, a founding editor, and specialist in Japanese gaming. An accomplished musician, Dale was reporting from Japan during the earthquakes of 2011. Luckily, he got the fuck out alive and is home in America now with his wife and beloved corgi, Einstein. Dale is also a co-founder of Destructoid's sister anime site
Japanator. Likes Corgis, Sega Saturn, PSP, iPhone, Photographic tools.
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Contest:
12:40 PM on 12.09.2009
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CONFIRMED!
and yet the Japanese wonder why the rest of the gaming world has passed them bye. so sad...
Actually, that's not fair. Big western releases often do OK in Japan. There's probably a good sized population there that likes western games too, just like there's a large amount of people here who like Japanese games. It's probably a bit smaller over there though.
Its true, that if many of them don't wake up to western games more, pretty soon the games industry may leave them by the road side, since that's where all the money is to be made these days. I agree that the likes of Mass Effect or Dragon Age would better aid such an effort, but Square know that those games are also rpgs, some of which give Square product a run for their money, being Bioware genius. MW2 also has higher profile and may be easier to sell, since the single player is short and sweet, with multiplayer and special ops adding something extra.
IDD!
Like japanese people can't handle no russian...
I'd be somewhat concerned about nukes tho. :p
You know what Japanese gamers hardly buy? Console games. The PS3s highest selling game (MGS 4) in Japan hasn't even broken 1 million sales. The 360 is downright laughable in comparison to the PS3, however within the top 20 sellers are many Western games. The Wii has semi-decent game sales, however the overwhelming majority are Nintendo products featuring Nintendo characters. Hell, Sonic and Mario at the Beijing Olympics is 14th barely edging out (get this crazy shit) Zelda:TP.
The numbers get downright comedic when I looked at the HANDHELD game sales. They don't just outsell console games, they absolutely destroy console game sales in every sense of the word. The DS game catalog alone probably has more sales than all the consoles combined and probably would lead by a healthy margin. Once again, mainly Nintendo but a few other publishers are in there. The PSP doesn't fair very well but it does decently considering all the issues it had (well at least Monster Hunter fairs well).
Western publishers don't see much in Japan because the majority only work with home consoles. Of course the numbers will look bad when you pitch games in a different country that barely buys console games to begin with. I barely know any Western DS game developers or games, with Scribblenauts being the only one that comes to mind. The only way to truly test the "Japan hates Western gaming" issue is if they publish decent-great Western DS games, of which we have none. I bet Scribblenauts would sell pretty well in Japan.
TL;DR
Japan loves handheld gaming and the only people who make handheld games are either Nintendo or Japanese companies. The tiny fringe of Japanese console users who hate Western games are a minority IN a minority being blown out of proportion. Japan loves Nintendo because only Nintendo makes decent games on NINTENDO platforms.
Ugh this comment is to long.
Yes, but if they dislike FPSers based solely on the fact that they're made by Western devs, that's not cool at all.
...really?
Besides, I think Modern Warfare 2 is a pretty bad game to use to try and catch the interest of Japanese gamers. They just don't like shooters in general, is that so bad? I think if Western devs really want to capture Japan's attention, they need to focus on well-written, well characterized WRPGs from skilled devs like Bioware.
I forgot where I read it, but supposedly the Japanese gamer's mindset is more open to storytelling and interesting characters rather than Hollywood-esque action and violence. If that's true, then no wonder Japanese gamers don't like Western games. Name a Western-developed FPS made in the last year that emphasized deep storytelling and interesting characters with real issues and conflicts.
TL;DR
Western devs need to market good RPGs in Japan if they want to appeal to them. Simply throwing more shooters at them is not going to work, or if it does, it will happen VERY slowly.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rch4lpAmsco#t=0m10s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCbkwDQl0vs#t=0m30s
These are the only two SP clips I've found, seems the rest are all multiplayer videos, where it appears that the in-game voices there also got dubbed. (Trivia: The voice when you see the "Target" truck drive onto the bridge in the second clip? That's none other than SGT Foley.)
They're just annoyed because the Japanese MW2 was dubbed while the first wasn't, so all the authenticity is gone.