Why Did Xbox 360 Fail in Japan?

The Xbox 360 has been a failure in Japan, which is strange when you consider how much it dominates the North American market, as well as parts of Europe. The console is unlikely to cross the two million sold mark in Japan (which is how much the original Xbox sold there), and has been soundly outsold by its competitors in the form of Nintendo’s Wii and Sony’s PlayStation 3. It continues to see terrible sales, and many stores in Japan carry neither the console or games for the console today in 2013.

In a conversation with IGN, famous Japanese game creator Keiji Inafune – the mind behind Mega Man, Onimusha and the upcoming Vita game Soul Sacrifice – commented on why he thinks Xbox 360 failed to catch on in Japan.

“When I was working at Capcom, I supported Xbox 360 all I could,” Inafune told IGN. “I love PlayStation, but I also enjoy Xbox and I think it’s not a bad console personally. I understand Japanese users don’t prefer Xbox 360, but if I was asked why, I wouldn’t be able to put a finger on it.”

Inafune proceeded to touch on something interesting. “Probably one of the reasons is because PlayStation is a domestic brand in Japan,” he continued. “As a Japanese [person], I think it’s only natural you feel closer or attached more to domestic products and I find myself being that way too. When you see two products with similar features and one is from your own country and the other is from foreign countries, it’s easy to pick the one from your own country.”

He concluded: “From this perspective, Xbox is made by Microsoft in the US, so it’s not a domestic product. It’s only natural that you want to support your domestic products. If there were more Xbox-exclusive games out there, things may have been different, but usually a title is developed for multiple platforms so that’s not the case.”

The question now – with two failed consoles in Japan – is if Microsoft will bother to launch its yet-unannounced third generation Xbox console, codenamed Durango, in Sony's and Nintendo's home territory. Hopefully, we’ll find out soon.

Colin Moriarty is an IGN PlayStation editor. You can follow him on Twitter and IGN and learn just how sad the life of a New York Islanders and New York Jets fan can be.

Source : ign[dot]com

Unreal Engine 4, Frostbite 3 Will Not Support Wii U

Update: Speaking with Engadget, Epic's Mark Rein doubled back on his previous comments to IGN concerning Wii U and Unreal Engine 4. "If someone wants to take Unreal Engine 4 and ship a game on Wii U, they can," Rein said. "If they wanna ship an Unreal Engine 4 game on Xbox 360, they could make it happen." The scalable nature of Unreal Engine means we'll see it running in browsers and mobile in the future -- and maybe current-gen consoles as well. Why Rein denied it so aggressively in the first place isn't certain.

Original story follows.

When someone asks if Unreal Engine 4 will work on Wii U, Epic co-founder Mark Rein bursts out laughing. "No," he says.

Following an Unreal Engine presentation at 2013's Game Developer Conference, Rein clarifies his response to IGN, still laughing, "I just laugh at the question...Unreal Engine 4, we're not PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, or Wii U. It's next-gen technology. That's what we're aiming for."

So while UE4 proper won't make its way onto Wii U, Rein explains that developers are capable of porting software powered by the engine. "The truth is, if a developer wanted to take an Unreal Engine game and put it on Wii U, they could," Rein continues. "Unreal Engine 3 is kicking ass on Wii U. The best games on Wii U are made on our technology. What more do you want from us?"

In addition, says Eurogamer, Nintendo's hardware won't see the likes of Battlefield 4 and Dragon Age 3's Frostbite Engine 3.

Mitch Dyer is an Associate Editor at IGN. He’s also quite Canadian. Read his ramblings on Twitter and follow him on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon Is Probably Real

Rumors surrounding a Far Cry 3 expansion called Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon for some time now, but a new Ubisoft-branded teaser site -- which arrives just in time for April Fool's Day -- seems to confirm the downloadable spinoff. The tone and presentation of the teaser site seems to align with previous 80s-inspired themes rumors suggested.

A fake merch shop within the website links out to the leaked Achievement list, which tells me this is more legitimate than its timing would have us believe.

The story description is almost too good to be true.

The year is 2007. It is the future. Earth has been ravaged by a nuclear war and new paths for peace must be found. A U.S. cyborg army may have found a solution: a powerful bioweapon on a distant island. A Mark IV Cyber Commando, Sergeant Rex Power Colt has been sent over to gather information and figure out what the hell is going on.

Among the teaser site's many outgoing links is a bunch of music, including some trippy 80s synth jams that'll trigger Tron flashbacks.

You can even punch in the ol' Konami code (up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A) to destroy the site.

The entire thing landing on April Fool's Day seems a little on the nose, and if it hadn't leaked ahead of time we'd likely call this a goofy joke, but the connections lend some legitimacy to this.

Ubisoft, however, declined to "comment on rumor or speculation."

Mitch Dyer is an Associate Editor at IGN. He’s also quite Canadian. Read his ramblings on Twitter and follow him on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Telltale Games' Poker Night 2 Announced

It's been rumored for a while, but now, it's official. Telltale Games' Poker Night 2 is real, and it has one hell of a cast. The sequel to 2010's Poker Night at the Inventory, will star Claptrap from Borderlands, Brock Samson from The Venture Bros., Sam from Sam & Max, and Ash from Evil Dead/Army of Darkness. Even better? Portal's GlaDOS is dealing every game.

Here's some more info straight from Telltale:

"Telltale Games’ Poker Night 2 will offer the chance to win ‘Bounty Unlocks’: rewards for use within other games when special goals are achieved.  With cunning and skill, players will unlock prizes including exclusive skins and heads for use within Borderlands 2 (Xbox 360, PS3 and PC), character accessories for Team Fortress 2 (PC only), unique Xbox 360 Avatar Items, and Premium Themes for dressing up PlayStation 3."

Deal.

Look for Telltale Games' Poker Night 2 this April on PSN, Xbox Live and PC. Other platforms will be announced eventually.

Greg is an executive editor at IGN, cohost of Podcast Beyond and host of Up at Noon. Follow IGN on Twitter, and keep track of Greg's shenanigans on IGN and Twitter. Beyond!

Source : ign[dot]com

Paramount Preps G.I. Joe 3

Following G.I. Joe: Retaliation's admirable $132 million opening, Paramount has decided to move forward on another action-packed sequel.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation Debuts Atop the Box Office

As Variety points out, the decision may seem sudden, but it's worth noting that the studio had nine months to think it over during Retaliation's 3D conversion delay.

While little is yet known about G.I. Joe 3, one thing's for certain: It will definitely be in 3D.

Max Nicholson is a writer for IGN, and he desperately seeks your approval. Show him some love by following @Max_Nicholson on Twitter, or MaxNicholson on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Win WeSC Headphones With The Man With The Iron Fists Blu-ray

Presented by Quentin Tarantino and directed by RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, The Man With The Iron Fists is a kung fu action adventure that tells the story of a lone outsider hero in 19th-century China who must team up with warriors and assassins to destroy a clan traitor.

The Man With The Iron Fists hits Blu-ray and DVD on April 1st, and to celebrate we've got a pair of cool WeSC headphones (designed by RZA himself), plus Blu-rays and soundtracks to give away to our UK readers.

Top Prize:

• A pair of WeSC headphones designed by RZA
• The Man With The Iron Fist Blu-ray
• Official Soundtrack CD

Four Runners Up:

• The Man With The Iron Fist Blu-ray
• Official Soundtrack CD

Own it on Blu-ray™ & DVD April 1st

How To Enter

To be in with a chance of winning you simply need to answer this ridiculously easy question:

Who directed and starred in The Man With The Iron Fists?

• a)    Snoop Dogg
• b)    Bruno Mars
• c)    RZA

Post your answer in the comments below and we'll select five winners at random on April 9th. This competition is open to UK residents over the age of 18 only with full terms and conditions on the next page.

Source : ign[dot]com

Win WeSC Headphones With The Man With The Iron Fists Blu-ray

Presented by Quentin Tarantino and directed by RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, The Man With The Iron Fists is a kung fu action adventure that tells the story of a lone outsider hero in 19th-century China who must team up with warriors and assassins to destroy a clan traitor.

The Man With The Iron Fists hits Blu-ray and DVD on April 1st, and to celebrate we've got a pair of cool WeSC headphones (designed by RZA himself), plus Blu-rays and soundtracks to give away to our UK readers.

Top Prize:

• A pair of WeSC headphones designed by RZA
• The Man With The Iron Fist Blu-ray
• Official Soundtrack CD

Four Runners Up:

• The Man With The Iron Fist Blu-ray
• Official Soundtrack CD

Own it on Blu-ray™ & DVD April 1st

How To Enter

To be in with a chance of winning you simply need to answer this ridiculously easy question:

Who directed and starred in The Man With The Iron Fists?

• a)    Snoop Dogg
• b)    Bruno Mars
• c)    RZA

Post your answer in the comments below and we'll select five winners at random on April 9th. This competition is open to UK residents over the age of 18 only with full terms and conditions on the next page.

Source : ign[dot]com