14 DAY TRIAL // The team at Microsoft in charge of the Xbox One says that the Japanese launch of the next-gen console will be supported by the delivery of an exclusive title created by a local development team, although the company is unwilling to offer any details.
Kris Graft, one of the executives working on the platform, is quoted by DualShockers as telling Japanese magazine Famitsu that, “I’m very excited about the announcement of the release window in Japan. An unique exclusive title for Xbox One is going to be released by an awesome Japanese studio.”
The Xbox One will be launched on the Japanese market in September of this year and on the same date the home console will be offered on 25 other secondary markets.
Microsoft will offer more information about the prices and the actual launch dates for all territories towards the end of April.
Phil Spencer, who leads the Microsoft Studios, adds, “I’m looking forward to go to Tokyo Game Show this year, and I want to show everyone something never seen before. Stay tuned!”
Traditionally, Microsoft has tried to bring all big titles for its consoles to all big markets, so it will be interesting to see what kind of experience it can create specifically for the Xbox One launch in Japan.
A name for the studio and maybe even for the game might be offered before the Tokyo Games Show, but full details will have to wait until the Japanese marketing campaign starts.
The Xbox One is at the moment only available in so-called major markets, but plenty of gamers in other countries have already ordered one.
This means that the sales impact of the September launch might be smaller than Microsoft is expecting and that the company needs to do more to increase the devices impact on the market.
The PlayStation 4 has been launched on the Japanese market on February 22 and the impressive weekend sales have allowed Sony to announce that the device is now over the 6 million in sales mark.
Despite its good initial performance, the home console has been overtaken by the Nintendo-made 3DS and the PlayStation Vita in the most recent weekly sales chart.
The Xbox One is trailing behind the Sony device both in Europe and in the United States, but the situation for March might be changed after the launch of Titanfall, the first-person shooter created by developer Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts.