Xbox 2/360 Launch Lineup May Shock The Industry

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Video Games

In an interview with the official Xbox magazine of Japan, Mr. Yoshiki Okamoto says there are many other ‘big name’ game developers getting behind the next gen Xbox. He said, “When announced, the lineup of launch games for the console may shock the industry.”  Hironobu Sakaguchi (Final Fantasy), Tetsuya Mizuguchi (Space Channel 5), and Yoshiki Okamoto are all legendary game creators in Japan. This is just one of the ways Microsoft is committed to winning the hearts and minds of Japanese gamers while wowing their American audience too. Okamoto said that if the current lineup of launch games in development for the next gen Xbox was revealed, there probably wouldn’t be anyone in Japan who would be uninterested in buying one. Those are big words, but aren’t they always before a launch?

Then there’s Shane Kim who took over as head of Microsoft Game Studios (MGS). He has led some of the largest and most successful game launches in the publisher’s history, including Fable and Halo 2. In an interview on xbox.com, he says “We’ve also built some great franchises that customers love and look forward to playing for many generations of Xbox, like Halo, Fable, Project Gotham Racing, and the upcoming Jade Empire and Forza Motorsport.” Obviously, these games will continue to live their life on the next Xbox.

These console wars are beginning to remind me of election years. The propaganda and dirt start flying as soon as someone makes a move to introduce new hardware. I’ve got huge hopes for this next round. I have no worries about the Playstation 3, as Sony has a huge and loyal audience here and in Japan. Microsoft, on the other hand, really needs to convince their Japanese audience that they are there for them. Xbox has sold dismally in Japan. Maybe the next gen Xbox with all of these giant Japanese developers will do the trick.

I’m not a Sony hater. I’m just a lover of progress. I’ve always been pretty quick with the credit card when anybody releases a console. I loved my first Playstation. I bought Playstation 2 consoles and I will buy a Playstation 3.  I was a late adopter of the Xbox as I had been burned before - by the Dreamcast and the Philips CD-i. We’re really excited about the next generation of gaming from a gamers perspective, and info like this interview with Mr. Okamoto hyping the next gen Xbox just adds more fuel to that fire.

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