We all saw how Microsoft went all-in trying to crack the Japanese market during the sixth and seventh console generations. First, the original Xbox became SEGA’s second home after Dreamcast collapsed face-first into the floor. Then, for a short stretch, the Xbox 360 even built a reputation as the go-to console for hardcore otaku. But, as it turns out, the reason Xbox couldn’t fully break through wasn’t always a lack of interest from both gamers and studios. In fact, former Microsoft Game Publishing VP Ed Fries revealed that many Japanese developers actually wanted Xbox to go toe-to-toe with PlayStation.
“They wanted Sony to have a competition,” said Fries during an interview with The Expansion Pass. He said that many studios tried to prevent Sony from having a ‘monopoly’ in the console market. “Because otherwise they’re a monopoly, and monopolies, you know, just do whatever they want. They’d like, charge you a higher console fee. And there’s always a fee that the console charges you to be able to ship a game on that machine.”
After all, by the time Xbox entered the scene, SEGA had already ungracefully quit the hardware race. Nintendo itself was struggling to keep pace with Sony through the Nintendo 64 and GameCube. On paper, Xbox looked like the perfect — and only — counterbalance to PlayStation’s domination. But there’s a catch, as Fries pointed out. “[T]hey couldn’t be too overt in their support. They couldn’t make it too obvious that they were supporting Xbox.” And, unfortunately, it boils down to money. “They knew that the lion’s share of their sales [was] going to come from Sony. You know, and so Sony could punish them if they wanted to.”
“They could just not promote their game or just do something subtler. Maybe just not give them dev kits for their next version as early as their competitors or something like that,” continued Fries. Although he clarified he was speaking hypothetically, he emphasized that these were real fears among Japanese developers at the time. “I mean, they could be very friendly, but they could also be very much like, ‘Let’s just do the math. Do you really want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to have this on Xbox?'” he recalled when talking about trying to get exclusivity deals.
This seems to align with decisions by prominent figures, such as the late Tomonobu Itagaki of Team Ninja, who placed their bet on Team Green. While raw hardware power was always the public reason for backing Xbox, there’s a strong argument that it was also about putting franchises like Dead or Alive in direct competition with PlayStation and its loyal supporters, such as Tekken.
In the end, Fries’ interview paints a clearer picture of why Xbox struggled to secure success in the Japanese and Asian markets. It wasn’t simply about platform or nationality loyalty. Sometimes, it’s also about navigating a market where competition was welcome — but only up to a point.
For more on Ed Fries’ experience working with Japanese studios, check out the full discussion starting around the 38:45 mark. And if you want more behind-the-scenes industry stories like this, keep checking GameObserver!
