Since the release of the very first Xbox console 20 years ago, Microsoft consoles have always encountered serious commercial difficulties in Japan. Difficulties that have never been greater than during the Xbox One generation. And if it was possible to think that the latter had definitively killed the Xbox brand in the Japanese archipelago, the sales of Xbox Series X | S show that all is not finally lost.
Xbox Series X | S sales have just passed the 100,000 mark in Japan. And this despite persistent inventory problems and modest weekly sales. Thanks to Japanese sales of the Xbox Series X | S last week, they have reached this milestone much faster than the Xbox One in its day.
It took the Xbox Series X | S less than a year to pass the 100,000 units sold. The Xbox One had to wait 50 months to pass this milestone. As of October 10, it sold 102,591 Xbox Series X | S in Japan according to the magazine. Famitsu.
As for the precise breakdown of these sales, it sold 2,920 Xbox Series S and 537 Xbox Series X in Japan last week. This corresponds to a total of 64,284 and 38,307 Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S sold in Japan respectively.
For the Xbox Series X | S, the next step is to surpass total Xbox One sales in Japan. These are around 115,000. Unless Xbox Series X | S sales in Japan come to a complete halt in the coming days, this figure is expected to be beaten before the end of the calendar year.
In Japan, Xbox has come a long way
Obviously, the Xbox Series X | S remain far behind the Switch and the PS5 in Japan (17.20 million and 1.1 million consoles sold respectively). But at the scale of the Xbox brand, this new step can be seen as a small victory.
Especially since console sales are no longer the only way to measure the success of Xbox in Japan. Indeed, Xbox Game Pass subscriptions are also at the heart of Microsoft’s strategy in Japan (and elsewhere). And according to the Redmond firm, Japan is currently the territory where it benefits from “the strongest growth. “
If Xbox goes from very far in Japan, it is clear that it is slowly going up the slope. It remains to be seen how far the brand can go in this territory which has historically always rejected its advances. Finally, remember that the Xbox 360 is the best-selling Xbox in Japan with over 1.6 million consoles sold.
What do you say about this turning point? Can Microsoft congratulate itself on this figure achieved in Japan? Or do you feel it’s way too small to mean anything? Do you think the Japanese can embrace the concept of Xbox Game Pass? Have your say in the comments below.
