Let’s first look back at the history of Xbox in Japan. Xbox’s Complicated Relationship With Japan Having spoken with key players involved in Microsoft’s plan to address the company’s shortcomings in Japan, it’s clear they understand what’s at stake. While Microsoft’s brand in Japan has always been strong, the Xbox brand has never been more than a niche concern, and it’ll take a lot to overcome the idea that it’s anything but. Whether or not it will succeed, however, depends on how much Microsoft has learned from past mistakes – most recently and notably with the Xbox One.
This generation, it will try to win over Japanese gamers with its most powerful (in the case of the Series X) and most affordable (in the case of the Series S) consoles ever, in combination with a comprehensive big picture strategy and a bundle of value-conscious services it hopes will lure Japanese gamers to the platform like never before. Despite past struggles to win over the Japanese video game consumer, Microsoft has a plan to course correct. By the time you read this, Microsoft and its Xbox platform will have embraced the challenge in Japan head-on, with a TGS-tailored introduction to the Xbox Series X and S courtesy of Phil Spencer, Executive VP of Gaming at Microsoft. This week, the Tokyo Game Show has gone virtual for the first time since it was founded in 1996, transforming the usually public event that draws over 250 thousand people annually into a streaming event – like every other game show before it in 2020. The worldwide impact of COVID-19 has derailed globally-anticipated events like the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo into next year. 2020, as most of us are aware, is one of the most challenging years in living memory.