Why aren't Nintendo doing better in Japan?

[Ernster]

It's not rocket science as to why Nintendo arent going very well in markets such as US, UK and Australia, but in their home land, were they advertise more I cant understand why the GC sells so much less than PS2.

Arent Japanese people suppose to love weird colourful, "kiddy" games, GC has plenty of those types of games. Is it just an image problem in Japan as well? Does anyone have any idea why Nintendo arent as dominent in Japan as they use to be regarding there home conesoles :/

[anagrama]

I suspect it's because more people are buying PS2 games.

[Lemmy Kilmister]

Could be that Sony launched their system with a built in DVD player. Remember how the Matrix was out selling most games at the time of the PS2 release? I think the PS2's DVD play back capability was it's strongest selling point, because it got a cheap DVD player in most japanese peoples homes.

[EnemyZero]

bingo, testament nailed that on the coffin, thats the same reason the DC met its demise so soon, when ps2 came out it was the cheapest dvd player in japan, and if you went to a store on the launch day most of the ps2 units were in movie stores displaying DVD's of the GC and even DC included one...who knows...dc could still be around and nintendo could still be number one! - another thing is the japanese lover there RPG's and dating sims...which is something the GC isnt big on ...nintendo hasnt been big on those since snes

[Iron Draggon]

Yeah, same reason the PS2 killed the DC in Japan too. I still say the big N is about to make the move to making handhelds and software only. Sony is just kicking everyone's ass way too badly, and only Microsoft can really keep up. Nintendo is just like Sega used to be now. Yeah, look at us, we're here, but nobody cares, hey will you buy our system for only $50? Sad, but true.

[jdc]

Yep.....I remember reading that a large majority of PS2s sold in Japan went to non-gaming households to be used as affordable DVD players.

The delay and shortage of machines at launch in North America wasn't accidental. Sony wanted to protect the sales of their high end DVD players. Since the PS2 launched near Christmas time, they wanted to avoid the same disaster that happened in Japan.

[WanganRunner]

Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest = teh win

PS2 has both, so PS2 runs the show in Japan. It doesn't hurt that all the dating sims that were once split between PSX and DC are now all pretty much on PS2, as GCN and Xbox don't really have any.

And don't go bringing up FF:CC, we all know that aint' relevant, lol.

[SirDrexl]

Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest = teh win

PS2 has both, so PS2 runs the show in Japan. It doesn't hurt that all the dating sims that were once split between PSX and DC are now all pretty much on PS2, as GCN and Xbox don't really have any.

And don't go bringing up FF:CC, we all know that aint' relevant, lol.

This is part of what I was thinking. It's not just those two RPG's, but also other games from key Japanese developers like Square-Enix, Namco, Capcom, and Konami. The other two systems are sorely lacking in support from those companies. Other than EA (who isn't nearly as much of a factor in Japan as they are in the U.S.), most third parties heavily back the PS2.

[swlovinist]

I agree with alot of the things said already and think that it is many reasons and not just one.

1. Games.....The PS2 has many more games covering all the kinds of games. Nobody can question that the PS2 kicks it's competators ass when it comes to coverage of games.....It may not have the BEST FPS, but every other genere is covered SIGNIFICANTLY.

2. Built in DVD player out of the box...without buying a 'gimmick' adaptor. It was the right place at the right time when the PS2 launched with one built in....what companies need to remember is that it is not whether a customer uses the thing to play DVD's....it is the power of having the option to.

3. Backwards compatibility....being able to play over 1000 games of one of the most successful systems, again without the use of a 'gimmick' adaptor is a nice feature.

4. Balls. Sony had the balls to come out swinging first and to have the first all inclusive next generation machine. While the quality of games took awhile to show up, they did...in a big, big way. IT may be showing its age and may not have the best online support, but lets face it...it is not about technology and we have seen that in the past(SMS vs the NES)

[Captain Wrong]

Y'know, I think at this point in time the DVD player arguement doesn't hold that much water with regard to the PS2 doing better than the GC. Yes, it certaintly had something to do with the PS2's initial sucess, but the price of DVD players has come down since then. (I remember buying my PS2 back then because at the time it wasn't that much more than a DVD player even in the States.) Besides, if it was just cheap DVD player the Japanese were after, why hasn't the Xbox done that well in Japan? After all, MS has put together a lot of Japanese packages trying to entice gamers with a good value.

People can point to the DVD player thing, and 3 or 4 years ago, they would have been right. The fact of the matter is, people buying PS2s today are buying them to play games and that's why Sony is #1 in Japan. They simply have the games more people want to play.

[Jincman]

I think the biggest problem that Nintendo has in Japan (and the rest of the world for that matter) comes from the fact that Nintendo doesn't seem to be aware that the demographic for gamers is getting broader. Nintendo still has it in their mind that most gamers are 7 to 16 years old, which is simply not true anymore.

It's surprising really.

Back in the Famicom days . . . Nintendo always threw 'the old folks' a bone with games like Gomoku Narabe and Mahjong. Now the only nod to 'older folk' are retro type levels in Mario and Zelda games.

[Anexanhume]

I think the coolest thing ever would be if Nintendo and Sega joined up to put a console out together to strike back at the man 8-) :D

[sabre2922]

lets shed some light on the topic(s) at hand shall we?
its not like the Gamecube has been some large failure worldwide.
yes it hasnt sold as well in Japan as previous Nintendo systems and is #3 in the U.S. but the GC itself has sold through enough units and software worldwide to be considered a moderated success.
While that fact certainly shows that the big N isnt the powerhouse that it used to be pre-Playstation it doesnt neccassarily mean GAME OVER for nintendo in the console market.
you must look at the broader aspect of things in that Nintendo is much larger and more successful (gameboy-and now the DS) than Sega had ever been even when they had the Genesis.
I dont see them making a quick exit strategy ala SEGA for many reasons, one of them being that they are still a profitable company right now.
I have to admit that I have come to both like and enjoy my PS2 after fighting it for so many years if just for the sheer amount of choice a gamer has with it be it backwards compatibility (wich i do enjoy) or the large volume of third-party support.
I do see a good possibility of them going to handheld only if the revolution doesnt change things though.

[vincewy]

I think the biggest problem that Nintendo has in Japan (and the rest of the world for that matter) comes from the fact that Nintendo doesn't seem to be aware that the demographic for gamers is getting broader. Nintendo still has it in their mind that most gamers are 7 to 16 years old, which is simply not true anymore.

It's surprising really.

Back in the Famicom days . . . Nintendo always threw 'the old folks' a bone with games like Gomoku Narabe and Mahjong. Now the only nod to 'older folk' are retro type levels in Mario and Zelda games.

Be thankful that in US/Europe you still have 3 systems to choose from, compared to the West, Jp gaming scene is now obliterated with Sony and PS2, plus the mainstream mentality.

This is the first time we have 3 viable systems, with MS and Sony battling for mainstream gaming dollars, while Nintendo survives with unique games, remember if you want to play RE4, Tales of Symphonia, or Baiten Kaitos, (at this point at least), you have to get GameCube.

This is the reason I love Nintendo and why it separates from everyone else, games are suppose to be fun, easy to play, Nintendo sticks with that, not I'm against violent games but nowadays you'll come across a lot of young gamers who're in interested in games with blood and guts, not a healthy trend. I'd also have to disagree that Nintendo is failing, if you look at 16-bit era, the gaming market is quite small compared to the current form, Gamecube's install base is still bigger than SNES, their system is cheap to produce.

The same can be said about their portables, they cater to different market than PSP. Sony is simply expansing the market.

[goatdan]

While I would definitely agree that I don't think the GameCube is failing in the Japanese market (failing is what? Not selling more than the PS2?), I do think it has had a few tough sells there...

Nintendo upated Metroid Prime in a way that appeals greatly to US gamers (by the way, I'm playing through it right now and holy hell does it RULE!), but Japanese gamers haven't taken to first person shooters, which is at least what Metroid appears to be. Nintendo only released one Mario game (Luigi's Mansion does _not_ count!) and took a LONG time to get out games like Mario Kart that are definite system sellers worldwide.

Lastly, as others mentioned Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior are both games for Sony systems... That's a HUGE chunk of the Japanese market right there.

[GobopopRevisited]

Nintendo upated Metroid Prime in a way that appeals greatly to US gamers (by the way, I'm playing through it right now and holy hell does it RULE!), but Japanese gamers haven't taken to first person shooters, which is at least what Metroid appears to be.

Deffinately True that the Japanese haven't taken to first person shooters... But the Japanese weren't taken by Metroid either. Metroid never sold well in Japan, Its probably Nintendo's only franchise that has sold more in the US than Japan.

[Aussie2B]

A few of you are overestimating the popularity of dating sims in Japan. ;) The don't have THAT much influence on the industry, and most of them come out on PC, anyway. The majority of the console dating sims (since the very beginning of console dating sims) are half-assed PC ports with all the nudity removed.

ANYWAY...

You've hit the nail on the head with RPGs, though. There are other contributing factors, but the fact of the matter is that RPGs dominate Japanese gaming. The reason why the Super Famicom was a mega-success was because there was a huge library of RPGs, but the N64 and GameCube don't have many. The PlayStation came along and allowed RPG developers to produce their games for really cheap and they could bloat their games up with FMV and such if they so desired. They went to Sony, the PlayStation started to have a large library of RPGs, the gamers followed, and the cycle continues. Unless Nintendo or some other company can create hardware so great that the RPG developers go to them (or they lure them back in some other way), they're likely just going to stick with Sony because that's what the gamers are playing and what gamers expect RPGs to come out on in the future.

[Sylentwulf]

Didn't see anyone mention RPG's until almost the last post.
And that sums up my feelings on it. The second nintendo stopped having quality RPG's on their system, they completely lost the japanese (and world) market.

[Promophile]

Yep people are making it seem like a bigger deal than it really is. Nintendo isn't going bankrupt; in fact they are doing very well, just not "Playstation well".

[Sylentwulf]

But they are doing well ONLY because of their handheld system, and their first party gamecube games (which are starting to get REAL old). The point is that they could be doing MUCH better with minimal effort.