One of the biggest milestones for the 360 in Japan was when it surpassed the sales of the original Xbox in October 2007. Unfortunately, the original Xbox was hardly a success story, selling a mere 473,000 units. Still this was a stepping stone on the path to where the 360 is today, with a total install base of 1,001,133 as of March 14th, according to VG Chartz.com.

One of the major reasons for the improved performance of the 360 this time round has been due to Microsoft's effort to...

Chris_D

This series aims to provide a tiny bit of insight into the mind and habits of Japanese gamers. Although I'm sure most will be pretty dry, I hope to occasionally surprise some of you.

In part nineteen I'm talking with Arashi, a 17 year old high school student.

Me: When was the last time you had guests over?
Arashi: On Sunday an old friend from elementary school came over. We watched an animation, Toradora.
Me: Did you play any games?
Arashi: Not...

Chris_D

Engrish is the name sometimes used to describe the attempts by the Japanese to translate their own language into English, usually in written form. Engrish pictures are a dime a dozen on the net but I hope to make this a little fun for you guys.

First read the following Engrish:
Now, try to guess which item, product, or location this Engrish was found on (no Googling!):

• An ad for a ladies'

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Chris_D

This series aims to provide a tiny bit of insight into the mind and habits of Japanese gamers. Although I'm sure most will be pretty dry, I hope to occasionally surprise some of you .

In part eighteen I'm again talking with Hiroyuki, the researcher from part nine.

Me: So did you finish White Knight Chronicles yet?
Hiroyuki: Yeah I did. Now I'm playing Demon's Souls.
Me: Yeah?
Hiroyuki: It's an RPG for PS3. It's really good.
Me: What's it...

Chris_D

Something I've noticed in Japan is that the unsuspecting can be suddenly exposed to adult material in unlikely places. One example is riding the train and having an old man open a pornographic magazine or comic in front of you. Another is receiving a flier for your local adult club in your mailbox. In this entry I decided to take closer look at one of these fliers and see exactly what services are for offer!

First, here's an image of the flier:

...

Chris_D