Microsoft Xbox Hits Japan

Microsoft launched its much hyped Xbox game console in Japan on Saturday hoping to beat rivals Sony and Nintendo by being the first to release the next generation gaming console.

Queues formed for its main launch event in Tokyo but early sales were reported to be slower than at other launches.

Japan’s games market is traditionally dominated by Sony and Nintendo.

The country is the biggest market for console games, after the US.

Xbox 360 debuted last month in the United States to winding lines of wide-eyed fans, store-aisle brawls to snag machines and top billing on Christmas wish lists. The Japan launch begins with a countdown party at 6:45 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo’s trendy Shibuya district.

Japan is only getting the premium Xbox 360 package, which costs 37,900 yen and includes a removable hard drive that lets owners play games written for the first Xbox. The price on the console is cheaper than the comparable package in the United States, where it runs around $ 400.

Pre-orders for the Xbox 360 had been better than expected at Bic Camera, one of Japan’s largest electronics retailers.

"I don’t think there will be many units left after the first day," a Bic Camera spokesman said.

An estimated 200 fans gathered at the Xbox 360’s main launch event in the fashionable Tokyo district of Shibuya.

Xbox marketing head Peter Moore said the launch signalled market leadership was imminent, "even here in Japan".

One senior store official told AFP the customer reaction had been somewhat "subdued", with fewer than 50 consoles sold in the first two hours.