Xbox have announced there will be “no new next-gen news” during their segment of the Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online presentation.
Will Tuttle, Editor in Chief for the Xbox Wire blog, explains what Xbox will show off during the Tokyo Game Show. “Our presence at Tokyo Game Show will celebrate the visionary creators and vibrant players in the region,” Tuttle explains. “Tune in to see the latest on games, content from our Japanese partners and players, and further details on Xbox services.”
Tuttle also lists their presentation as showing “a celebration of Japanese game creators,” “the latest updates coming to Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox Game Pass for PC, Windows 10 and Steam,” “creativity from the Japanese Minecraft creator community,” and “a review of first- and third-party announcements from recent months.”
The end of the list notes “no new next-gen news.” The move is surprising, considering how desperate Microsoft have tried to make the Xbox brand succeed in Japan.
Market research company IDC stated (via CNBC) that as of 2019 only 0.3% of Xbox One global sales are made in Japan. Considering the other two of the “Big Three” are Japanese companies- Nintendo and PlayStation- this is hardly a surprise.
Famitsu reported in 2018 that the Xbox One sold an estimated 15,339 units over that year, and 102,931 since launch by that point. For comparison, the Nintendo Switch had sold an estimated 3,482,388 units that year (6,889,546 cumulatively), while the PlayStation 4 sold an estimated 1,695,227 units (7,552,090 cumulatively).
While the main audience of the Xbox Series X will likely be the US and Europe, next-gen Xbox Series X titles that would appeal to Japanese audiences could have been premiered at the event.
This may mean that Microsoft’s vision for Xbox Series X launch titles are focused purely on the west, or have “global appeal” (such as appealing to Japanese fans who want western style games). Of course, we are likely to see already announced titles, and gameplay premieres may happen.
What do you think? Sound off in the comments below!
Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online runs from September 24th to September 27th. You can find the schedule here.
The Xbox Series X launches November 2020.
Image: Xbox
