The Xbox 360 has been anything but a success in Japan thanks to a lack of interest facilitated by very few exclusives and abysmal marketing. Nonetheless, Corporate VP for Microsoft Games Studios Phil Spencer says things will be different with the Xbox One when it launches in Japan since it will have several full retail games from developers and expects interest from indie devs as well.
Speaking to Kotaku, Spencer stated, “I’ve been a big fan of our partnerships in Japan. Futatsugi just finished Crimson Dragon, and I’m proud of what he was able to do. We’re talking to him about what we might want to do next with him. There’s some interest out there in some older [intellectual property].
“Phantom Dust has come up around whether we would want to reboot that franchise. It’s a discussion right now; there’s nothing’s signed. But we’re talking. It does seem like there’s a lot of interest around that. And we have a good long relationship with him and I think that would be good.”
Spencer also stated that major announcements for Japan will come in 2014 when the console is near launch. “We have signed some things in Japan that we haven’t announced that we’ll announce in…’14 so that people get to hear about support in Japan. The creative teams in Japan have always been top notch.
“And yeah, you’re right that we’ve never been the top console in Japan, but the support that we’ve received, either from publishers like with Capcom and Dead Rising or developers is always great. We kicked off our independent developer program when were at Tokyo Game Show and saw some top talent walk through the door, so I think you’ll see some indies too…I’m committed to the development there.”
The Xbox One is expected to release in the first quarter of 2014 for Japan.