MS in Japan: "We Will Beat Sony"

[bapenguin]

It appears good ol' Ken Kutaragi isn't the only company head spouting insane gibberish. Yoshihiro Maruyama, head of XBox in Japan, states that Microsoft will "beat Sony on its own turf" (http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=9536) this time around. He also states that the 360 will launch in December in Japan.

What's in the water over there for these guys?

[bobbler]

Not a chance.

The japanese developers on board are still producing very much westernized content -- with ninjas.

It's just being hopeful though -- no harm in that.

[Dirty Harry]

Not a chance.

The japanese developers on board are still producing very much westernized content -- with ninjas.

It's just being hopeful though -- no harm in that.
We forget that sony is like crack cocaine for these ****

[Meusli]

I think the local saki plant has been leaking into the water supply myself. I do not think that xbox360 will do well in Japan either, I think it has something to do with buying their own products over the western made ones.

[netcraazzy]

We expect to win.

Honestly, I would have been more surprised if you DIDN'T expect to win. Now whether reality ends up matching your expectations, that's a whole different story!

[Eon]

I would FIRE anyone on that team who honestly expected to be beating Sony.

I can only assume that somebody has been slipping funny mushrooms in the sandwiches in MS headquarters. I mean, if Sony said that expected to maintain the lead over XBox in America, I'd think they might be surprised, but an expectation that MS will beat Sony in Japan?

Well, somebody already mentioned Crack, but it's got nothing to do with Sony and the Japanese. It might, however, be in the airconditioning in MS Japan HQ.

[Tyrant]

"We expect to do a little bit better this time around.

...please don't leave us you wonderful third party developers!"

[Dracula-X]

You never know *hides*

I'm sure they'll fare much better this time around at the very least. Sony & Nintendo decimated them in that market, so it's safe to say it can't get worse, right? :)

[BloodAngel]

Unlikely, and its realy dumb to be spouting such horseshit no matter who you are.

But, sometimes the unlikey happens, most industry folks thought WoW would run a close second to EQ II for example.

[Hellstorm]

They can't even beat the GBA.

[Borys]

Hahahahaha, how about: NO.

You can't even beat Wonderswan in Japan, Mr Maruyama.

The MS vs Sony PR war is certainly getting interesting. Sony thinks online and Hard Disks still won't matter, MS thinks all those PS2 owners (100 million of gamers, a rather small number) will rush and buy 360 instead of PS3.

[Sion]

The console war is OVER!

[Goronmon]

Sure, they prolly won't beat Sony in Japan, but at least are putting a much better effort over there this go around.

[taxial]

Xbox fan boy or not.... not a chance. I have a feeling that they will do alot better in Japan this time around and even have some months where they do better than Sony.

[BabyJesus]

What's he supposed to say? Big deal.

[riposte101]

I would FIRE anyone on that team who honestly expected to be beating Sony.


If I ran the Japanese Xbox division, I would FIRE anybody who honestly did NOT expect to beat Sony on my team. That's not the way you motivate. Why even bother competing if you aren't striving to be the best?

[bapenguin]

What's he supposed to say? Big deal.

"We will be very competitive this generation"

[BabyJesus]

"We will be very competitive this generation"

Nope, still has a "we already lost" sound to it...

[Banacek]

Come on, both guys HAVE to say that their system is going to win. If he said 'Oh the PS3 will win this round' then he'd be out of a job.

[Kamalot]

They can't even beat the GBA.
NOBODY can beat the GBA!

[Reanimated]

Must be the radiation.

[Goronmon]

If I ran the Japanese Xbox division, I would FIRE anybody who honestly did NOT expect to beat Sony on my team. That's not the way you motivate. Why even bother competing if you aren't striving to be the best?
My sentiments exactly...

[Redline]

Yes. He's supposed to come out and say 'Nah, we won't beat Sony, not a fucking chance. It'll be a cold day in hell before that happens!' - Idiots, the lot of you. :)

[ttoastt]

You can strive to be the best but be realistic at the same time

[Heretic Machine]

What's in the water over there for these guys?

Godzilla Juice.

[TheBrainKills]

I really dont understand this "war", why does someone have to win? What other industry has this pissing contest? What if they all end up with equal shares, are they all failures?

[51|RandoM]

Think it has been mentioned before, but he has to say this.

[XxSATANxX]

We forget that sony is like crack cocaine for these ****

Hmm I seem to remember this term causing issues here once???

RE: Xbox 360 in Japan

I think it's a stupid thing to say. Perhaps crafting it like

"We will surprise SONY in Japan this time around"

Might have accomplished the same thing without sounding like a complete asshat. Bragging is a very western thing. The Japanese look down on it
oddly Microsofts man in Japan misses the mark completely and puts a Bill Gates face on his homeland. The net effect it hurts how the Japanese see X-Box.

[Mrbunchypants]

what ever they are on i want some. :D

[bapenguin]

Hmm I seem to remember this term causing issues here once???


yes it did, and now it's fixed.

[Snowmit]

I really dont understand this "war", why does someone have to win? What other industry has this pissing contest? What if they all end up with equal shares, are they all failures?

Oh man that would be amazing.
"We will release Titanic and it will destroy all over films. People won't even bother... they shouldn't even bother with making new movies. You guys in post production, wrap that up, Titanic is coming."

"Sure, we heard about Coldplay's new album, what's that like Coldplay 1.2? Give me a break. The new Radiohead album is truly next generation. To use it you will need 40 speakers."

"The new Ford Explorer will literally CRUSH CARS. It'll just flatten them. I hope they're developing new rollbars over in Japan because once these babies hit the road, it's ALL OVER."

[wiredInsanity]

All I ever hear in these debates is the same ol' garbage, "blah blah blah Sony blah blah blah Microsoft blah blah blah My Vagina Hurts"

[doyama]

MS can 'eventually' conquer Sony on its own turn. Because it has 2 things that Sony does not have

1) Money
2) Time

Really time is only relevant because MS has tons of money. Look at their financials. Sony's yearly revenues were about $66 billion, Micrsoft $36 billion. So revenue wise Sony has a 2x edge. But of course these are huge companies. Examining their gaming divisions specifically Sony sales are $6 billion, Microsoft about $3 billion. So Sony is definitely doing good sales wise. But the kicker is operating income. Sony $1 billion, MS $9 billion!!

Microsoft is swimming in money. Thus it can take what would normally be considered huge losses in their gaming division. Their gaming division, by itself, LOST $1.2 BILLION in both 2003 and 2004.

Microsoft can therefore wage hugely expensive price wars with Sony. It can afford to take massive losses on its hardware in order to make it appealing to consumers. It can launch expensive marketing campaings and incentives for developers. Of course Sony must do the same since it needs to compete. However the drain of such activities on Sony is immense by comparison. Because Sony's electronic division is doing very poorly, there is alot of pressure to ensure that the gaming division is profitable.

Thus MS is basically sieging Sony. It has vaster resources and can afford to make mistakes that Sony cannot. MS can never be 'taken out' of the game, because it has a vast empire behind feeding it. Thus MS is basically waiting for Sony to make a mis-step so they can capitalize. Once that happens Sony will need to get out of the market since it will no longer be profitable.

My own theory is that the gaming division is really just a HUGE marketing campaign. Basically aimed at getting young children to know the microsoft brand. Thus in the future they will be more inclined to use Microsoft products. You may laugh, but tobacco and alcohol companies have been doing it for years. Basically marketing to young people so that they will be more inclined to user their products when they come of age.

[doyama]

I'm kinda suprised by the very vocal rhetoric coming from Japan recently. It's something that's fairly common on this side of the ocean, but it's seems farily new coming from the Japanese side.

[Phades]

You can strive to be the best but be realistic at the same time

Microsoft should strive to beat Sony in Japan and worldwide. Maybe they will, probably they won't. But, it's certainly a lofty goal to strive for and that's not a bad thing. Any company should strive to be the very best or else that company will not survive.

I respect a statement like "We will beat the competition" much more than I respect a statement like "Our competition sucks!"

[Chandler]

I really dont understand this "war", why does someone have to win? What other industry has this pissing contest? What if they all end up with equal shares, are they all failures?

People spend good money on consoles, they will argue their choices. You don't see people arguing Pepsi and Coke because it's like $1 a can. However, in my opinion, the people who don't argue about this console war are probably higher in intelligence and have a better look on life than people who spend half their lives arguing snes was better than sega genesis.

[PimpMasterToTheMax]

I really dont understand this "war", why does someone have to win? What other industry has this pissing contest? What if they all end up with equal shares, are they all failures?
Man 1: What the heck is a tie game?
Man 2: Tie game?
Woman 1: What the hell?
Woman 2: This is outrageous!
Marge: Oh, I've never been so proud of them.
Homer: They're both losers. Losers!
Abe: Rip-off!
Hans: We paid for blood!
Wiggum: Let's tear this place apart!
Abe: Good idea!

[Heretic Machine]

Umm... just so you guys know, every hobby has these sort of arguments. It's not an industry thing, it's the nature of their product. People who use cars for recreation argue about which models are better, which companies are better... etc. If you don't know about that, then you probably need to go find a few more hobbies, because gaming is obviously the only one you have.

[bobbler]

Man 1: What the heck is a tie game?
Man 2: Tie game?
Woman 1: What the hell?
Woman 2: This is outrageous!
Marge: Oh, I've never been so proud of them.
Homer: They're both losers. Losers!
Abe: Rip-off!
Hans: We paid for blood!
Wiggum: Let's tear this place apart!
Abe: Good idea!

Is there anything the Simpsons can't teach us?

[Cha-Ka]

"We will release Titanic and it will destroy all over films. People won't even bother... they shouldn't even bother with making new movies. You guys in post production, wrap that up, Titanic is coming."

That's quite funny, Snowmit. Yeah, these type of posts (meaning the OP, not yours) seem to generate a few thoughtful comments, but you must sift through a deluge of pissing contestants to find them.

In closing: My dad could beat up your dad!

[DeadPixel]

English!! *pft* Who needs to know that? I'm never going to England.

[riposte101]

I respect a statement like "We will beat the competition" much more than I respect a statement like "Our competition sucks!"
I'm in full agreement with this.

[Mrbunchypants]

anyone have any idea how big the live nextwork is?

[Deadend]

In closing: My dad could beat up your dad!

Yeah... well, my house is better than yours!

The console wars will end for this generation when the Nrev comes out and everyone buys all 3 and each system has its own niche.

Right now, there is a chance that PS3 can do EVERYTHING better than the X36o or vice versa, and thus people will fight.

[Achilles]

I’m with netcraazzy. What do you expect MS to say? “We’re going to lose horribly! In fact we set the bar so low that if a confused child wanders in and buys one 360 we’ll make our quota!”. Of course they expect to win, they’ve been working all these years on trying to build up Japanese support for their new system after they’d written the first one off. I think comparing this to Kutaragi’s comments is unfair, unless he starts calling the PS3 a computer for kids, not future-proof, competing with the Xbox 1, etc.I would FIRE anyone on that team who honestly expected to be beating Sony.Then you’d have a team without drive or ambition, and nobody who actually thought they could do well. Congratulations. If you play to tie against a better opponent you lose, if you play to win you’ll be lucky to tie.

[Rommel]

And I would hire the team whose motto was that not only were the gonna lose, but they were gonna lose big! Yeaaaaah!

[B_Money]

And I would hire the team whose motto was that not only were the gonna lose, but they were gonna lose big! Yeaaaaah!

Can I work for you? I hate the pressure of having to try and win. I'd rather just come in late and surf the net all day.

[Pumped'Up]

It appears good ol' Ken Kutaragi isn't the only company head spouting insane gibberish. Yoshihiro Maruyama, head of XBox in Japan, states that Microsoft will "beat Sony on its own turf" (http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=9536) this time around. He also states that the 360 will launch in December in Japan.

What's in the water over there for these guys?
MS in Japan is like having peanut butter in a Martini.

MS will not suceed in Japan unless they give out 360s literally for free.

LOL, I wonder how much $$$ Gates gave to this dishonarable moron (but rich) Yoshihiro Maruyama.

[Blue]

MS in Japan is like having peanut butter in a Martini.

MS will not suceed in Japan unless they give out 360s literally for free.

LOL, I wonder how much $$$ Gates gave to this dishonarable moron (but rich) Yoshihiro Maruyama.

I find that I rather like peanut butter. In just about anything.

[Stryfe01]

I think the local saki plant has been leaking into the water supply myself. I do not think that xbox360 will do well in Japan either, I think it has something to do with buying their own products over the western made ones.

I believe so too. The only things japanese seem to dig from westerners is our women, music and stereotypes.

[mister_slim]

I'm sure MS will win right up to the launch of the PS3, and maybe a little longer...

[Mojopin]

yes it did, and now it's fixed.
<3 <3 Bapenguin <3 <3 to da XTREME!!!! ;)

[TheBrainKills]

Umm... just so you guys know, every hobby has these sort of arguments. It's not an industry thing, it's the nature of their product. People who use cars for recreation argue about which models are better, which companies are better... etc. If you don't know about that, then you probably need to go find a few more hobbies, because gaming is obviously the only one you have.


Ya but do you get the president of GM or Ford or Honda etc.. come out and say when they release their 2006 models they will crush the competition and the car wars will be over? They are acting like children... oh well I guess I better get another hobby .... mmmm not. Go Nintendo! lol.

[B_Money]

Ya but do you get the president of GM or Ford or Honda etc.. come out and say when they release their 2006 models they will crush the competition and the car wars will be over? They are acting like children... oh well I guess I better get another hobby .... mmmm not. Go Nintendo! lol.


Yea, more or less. Well, not so much Honda, but the top Execs can't shut up about how great thier cars are.

Just recently the head of Toyota said something along the lines of 'GM and Ford can't compete with us, so we should raise our prices.'

[Eon]

I’m with netcraazzy. What do you expect MS to say? “We’re going to lose horribly! In fact we set the bar so low that if a confused child wanders in and buys one 360 we’ll make our quota!”. Of course they expect to win, they’ve been working all these years on trying to build up Japanese support for their new system after they’d written the first one off. I think comparing this to Kutaragi’s comments is unfair, unless he starts calling the PS3 a computer for kids, not future-proof, competing with the Xbox 1, etc.Then you’d have a team without drive or ambition, and nobody who actually thought they could do well. Congratulations. If you play to tie against a better opponent you lose, if you play to win you’ll be lucky to tie.

It seems that my method has undermotivated losers, whilst your method has a whole bunch of overmotivated losers. At the end of the day they're still all losers, ne?

Or perhaps I could say that my team will set realistic targets, achieve those targets and come away feeling good about themselves, whilst your team will overmanufacture and end up building Kansai Airport II out of unsold XBox 360 landfill. If it were my company I'd want sane realists working for me and not a bunch of 'pie-in-the-sky' PR mongering hype-merchants who would jump ship for the competition as soon as the inevitable happened.

Because, and let's be clear about this, XBox 360's overthrow in Japan is as inevitable as its increased US marketshare.