PlayStation and Nintendo dominate in Japan and the rest of Asia, and for years Microsoft have tried to push into the region. But it’s come up empty handed every time.
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That said, it appears Microsoft is once again giving it another shot.
According to some new job listings on Microsoft’s career page, the company is looking to create a brand-new Xbox Asia Division that would be dedicated to seeking partnerships in the area and expanding in relevant markets.
“The Microsoft Global Gaming Partnership & Development team (GGPD) is looking for a knowledgeable, experienced, and energetic leader to lead partnership and business development in Japan, China, and South Korea to make Microsoft the global leader in Gaming,” reads the job description.
It continues:
“As a leader across the Asia region, you will work with other business development leads, finance and legal teams to source, develop and manage key partnerships to support Microsoft’s strategic gaming initiatives including Xbox One, Mixer, Game Pass and Gaming Cloud. You will collaborate closely with engineering and marketing teams and lead local resources to advance the Microsoft presence in these key markets. You will also be asked to assist in creating strategies for new gaming-related services and/or business models that will drive revenue and user growth across all gaming platforms, including, but not limited to, subscriptions, streaming, and mobile.”
Recently, Phil Spencer has headed a push back into the area after Microsoft seemingly gave up on it for awhile. However, despite numerous trips to Japan, it seems the attempts haven’t changed much, or at least the impact of a new Japan and Asia initiative hasn’t produced its fruit yet.
With the Chinese console and PC market rapidly expanding and the Japanese development scene in a bit of a renaissance, getting a foot into Asia could prove crucial for Microsoft going forward.
As you may know, many of the best games have come out of Japan from third-parties this generation, and a considerable amount of them skipped Xbox entirely or arrived on the platform well after launch.
That said, with games like Kingdom Hearts III, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Devil May Cry 5 all appearing on Xbox’s E3 stage this year — the latter notably being revealed there — it appears Microsoft under Spencer is finally striking some deals in at least Japan. But not only will it need to expand to other parts of Asia, it will need to do so while growing its market presence there.
