Microsoft has announced that Xbox One will be launching in Japan on September 4 of this year.
Several Japanese developers are already lined up to make games for Microsoft's system, and Japanese publication Famitsu lists the following games as launch titles in the region: Forza 5, Kinect Sports Rivals, Sunset Overdrive, Halo on Xbox One, Dead Rising 3 and Ryse: Son of Rome.
Square Enix will also release Call of Duty: Ghosts, Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition, Thief and Murdered: Soul Suspect for launch.
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A few of these are similar to what western audiences had available at launch, though I'm not exactly sure what Halo on Xbox is. Sunset Overdrive is not yet released, but will be available by the time the console launches in Japan--a nice benefit of having to wait as it's one of the more interesting next-gen titles we've seen.
Other developers releasing games for Xbox One in Japan include Arc System Works, Bandai Namco, Capcom, Cave, CyberConnect2, From Software, Konami, Level 5 and Sega.
Despite the fact that Xbox console have struggled mightily to sell units in Japan, most still assumed Microsoft's new console would be launching there eventually. The release is still several months away, but an additional market in which to sell units will be key for Microsoft as it trails Sony's PS4.
I wouldn't expect Japan to be the answer to Microsoft's sales problems considering the Xbox track record there however--Xbox 360 only sold roughly 1.6 million units in Japan throughout its entire lifetime. Even if it's not a financial win for Microsoft, at least Japanese gamers who want to get their hands on the new console know they will be able to do so eventually.
Source: Eurogamer
