Despite strong competition in the West, the PlayStation 4 is posting some pretty extraordinary figures at the moment. The system has been consistently outselling the Xbox One on Microsoft’s home turf all year, while reports suggest that it’s also flying off the shelves in Europe. However, things aren’t quite as rosy in every region for Sony, as the next-gen console is really starting to struggle in Japan.
The latest numbers from Media Create show that the record breaking super machine managed to move just 6,792 units in the Land of the Rising Sun last week – approximately 600 units less than its ageing predecessor the PlayStation 3. In fact, the brand new device was just about neck-and-neck with the Nintendo Wii U, and was a long way off the PlayStation Vita, which sold a slightly more respectable – but still quite dismal – 13,865 units.
To add insult to injury, there wasn’t a single PS4 title in the top ten, with the charts dominated by new PS3 and Vita releases, as well as a slew of evergreen Nintendo 3DS titles. The atrocious numbers are perhaps indicative of the lack of Japanese focused software currently available for Sony’s latest format, but also flag a slightly more worrying trend, as the region tunes its tastes to smartphone experiences.
What can the manufacturer do to get people flocking to its newest home console? Honestly, it’s not going to be easy. Improved output from Japan Studio will help, so cross your fingers that the rumoured Project Beast turns out to be a real product. Until the likes of Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III are completed, though, there could be some troubling times ahead. What would you do if you were in charge of SCEJ? Let us know in the comments section below.
Hardware
1. 3DS – 23.600 (35.943)
2. Vita – 13.865 (18.494)
3. PS3 – 7.339 (7.684)
4. PS4 – 6.792 (8.480)
5. Wii U – 6.716 (7.613)
6. PSP – 1.642 (2.022)
7. Xbox 360 – 201 (233)
Software
1. The Idolmaster: One for All (PS3, Bandai Namco) – 83.395 / New
2. Genkai Totsuki Moero Chronicle (Vita, Compile Heart) (7.344) – 32.957 / New
3. Yo-kai Watch (3DS, Level 5) – 30.305 / 950.035
4. Mario Golf: World Tour (3DS, Nintendo) – 9.439 / 86.210
5. Mario Party: Island Tour (3DS, Nintendo) – 8.049 / 371.184
6. Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment (Vita, Bandai Namco) – 7.868 / 201.381
7. Pokemon X / Y (3DS, Pokemon Co.) – 5.553 / 4.063.466
8. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call (3DS, Square Enix) – 4.594 / 120.549
9. Kirby Triple Deluxe (3DS, Nintendo) – 4.504 / 584.509
10. Monster Hunter 4 (3DS, Capcom) – 3.386 / 3.277.125
[source neogaf.com, via computerandvideogames.com, vg247.com]
Comments 20
Needs more Dream Club.
@ShogunRok
Ugh... what the hell? 0_o
@get2sammyb Okay, maybe not. If Dream Club PS4 is anything to go by, only one Japanese gamer owns it, and he streams it virtually night and day everyday on Live on PlayStation. Seriously, same guy every time. All day.
I guess the positive in this is that if the trend is truly moving towards mobile, Sony are in a much stronger position than Nintendo to make the transition successfully.
@eLarkos why is that?
At least the PS Vita is doing well.
PS Vita is my favorite console. :3
@eLarkos if the future is mobile, I'd much prefer the present
So it's not just the Wii U, or the Xbox... it's all home consoles in Japan. What we once brushed off as isolated incidents has now revealed itself to be a problem of a much larger magnitude. The home console market is shrinking at an alarming rate in Japan, even to the extent I would say "disappearing".
You could combine the PS3, PS4, Wii U and Xbox 360 sales- and they STILL don't match the sales of the Nintendo 3DS. Alarming indeed.
But, I wouldn't write off home consoles in Japan yet. This generation is just warming up, and all three platforms have some pretty impressive titles on the way.
Hopefully it means Sony will stick with the vita. And hardware sales cruddy due to poor choice of software, obviously a reason but can't be everything. Pretty horrific either way.
Must be all that fake applause.
The Japanese have always been extremely innovative and way ahead of the curve. Looking at them has often been like looking at a window into the future for the rest of us. I hope that their muted response to the new console technology is the exception rather than a sign of things to come for us. Mind you, if it means we turn out to experience something better instead then that's probably a good thing....... right?
And Microsoft are 'still' going to release the Xbox ONE in Japan?!?! OH LORD don't do it MS! Sad to see PS4 low numbers in Japan but it's been like that for years for home Consoles. Hopefully maybe SONY can do/find a Killer game that might boost the PS4 in Japan soon + it's still early days yet(i am trying to be positive...)
So you mean to tell me that in the land of mass public transportation and often smaller living spaces, people prefer portable game devices regardless of the launch of new consoles? Noooo...couldn't be!
Seriously though, not sure why this is news; I'm not the least bit surprised. Between software availability; cultural differences; and the fact that a lot of the console's features were clearly designed more with the West in mind (which is itself linked to culture, I guess), it was a given that the PS4 wouldn't do the crazy numbers it's been doing out here in its native land. I don't think that's really even a problem for Sony either...I'm sure they also had the sense to foresee this, hence the Western focus up to and including the delay of the Japanese launch.
@divinelite What @ErnisDy said.
Can't wait to see the sales numbers of Xbox One when it launches in Japan.
The sales are pathetic, no matter how you look at it. Before completely writing the PS4 off over there, I'll wait to see what happens after games like FF XV and KH 3 hit, but for now there's really not much Sony can do other than wait for those, whenever the hell they come out. I'd say it's almost a certainty that MGS V: The Phantom Pain will be out before either of those two games, and that could've provided a slight bump but it's cross-gen so likely no chance of it helping PS4 sales.
I can't justify a PS4 myself for the lack of Japanese games, so of course this doesn't surprise me.
And to be fair the PS4 isn't selling too well in Brazil either. Thai is, until Sony fixes that ridiculous price point. It's R$4000,00 and the Xbox One is half that price anyway.
Oh, and when I say I can't justify a PS4, I mean IMPORTING one, because I'm not **** to pay that price.
I was watching a Japanese player stream BF4 on Live from PlayStation last night and i asked him why Japan isn't buying PS4. His simple answer was, "it is too expensive".
Another theory is the declining Japanese economy, so people can not fork out as much on a console as they used to.
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