In 2008, Harmonix announced that it was working with Tetsuya Mizuguchi's Q Entertainment to bring the Rock Band franchise to Japanese shores. More than three years later that is yet to transpire, and at last week's Tokyo Game Show CEO Alex Rigopulos explained why.
A first stumbling block was the cost associated with "manufacturing and shipping hundreds of thousands more plastic peripherals to an island country," and Harmonix also struggled to license local music for the game, Rigopulos explaining the process proved "very difficult in Japan relative to other countries."
Japanese home life presented a further issue. "Even for people who have the space, Japanese families tend to not make a lot of noise in their homes," he explained. "They generally have a quieter lifestyle at home because they're living in close quarters, and also Japanese families don't entertain in their homes as much." Rigopulos does, however, retain some hope that the Rock Band series will eventually reach Japan, saying: "Never say never."
Source: Joystiq
Comments
1We all knew this would happen. It would seem logic has sadly prevailed. The Japanese would love it!!