Some interesting news this week as Microsoft launches Xbox Wire Japan, further reinforcing their ongoing attempts to capture the Japanese market.

While the new launch of Xbox Wire Japan will bring consistent updates for Microsoft-published games and localized to Japanese games for the local market, this is the latest bid from the American company to inch their way into that market.

Previously, Microsoft has taken unorthodox but definitely engaging attempts to further promote the Xbox brand in Japan, like hiring popular anime YouTubers to stream and promote the platform. Even small attempts from Microsoft are noticed while Sony’s dominance is waning to both Microsoft and most especially Nintendo.

Here’s the word from Microsoft Asia:

As we celebrate 20 years since the first Xbox was sold to Japanese fans, we are proud to announce that the official home for all Xbox news and announcements, Xbox Wire, has also launched in Japan! We are so excited to bring the joy and community of gaming to so many more fans, journalists and content creators, who will now be able to keep up to date with first-hand news and articles in Japanese about our consoles, services and content – including Xbox Series X, Xbox Game Pass for console and PC, Xbox Cloud Gaming and everything related to the Xbox Game Studios and partner studios.

The announcement of a Japanese Xbox Wire comes at an incredible time for both Xbox and the Japanese gaming community, as we continue to see impressive growth locally. Japan remains one of the most important and fastest-growing markets for Xbox worldwide, and with the recent launch of the Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Cloud Gaming with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate in Japan, it’s important we establish a platform that allows for all our Japanese fans to access the latest Xbox updates.

We’ve come a long way since our first Xbox console sale in Japan in February of 2002. Last year at the Tokyo Game Show 2021 Xbox Stream, we celebrated our rich relationship with Japanese fans by launching Xbox Cloud Gaming. We also announced the full Japanese localisation of highly anticipated titles Starfield and Redfall and celebrated our ever-growing partnerships with Japanese independent developers.

As we continue our journey, we are excited to bring the joy and community of gaming to so many more players in Japan and help them keep up to date with all the content and experiences available on console, PC as well as cloud. We are thrilled to offer our fans consistent updates through Xbox Wire and are reinforcing our commitment to Japanese gamers by bringing you the most important Xbox news, when you need it and in your own language.

The launch of the Xbox Wire Japan means Japanese fans can receive up to date, relevant and fully localized news as and when they need it. Our hope is this launch will bring Japanese players even closer to the Xbox brand and strengthens our commitment to the Asia region.

The Xbox Wire Japan will have regular updates with relevant information for the region and can be found at https://news.xbox.com/ja-jp/.

Xbox wo nijuunen mo asonde itadaki arigatou gozaimasu!