It's the price point, stupid: Xbox 360 is the top seller in Japan

Japanese gamer mag Famitsu today published Japan's weekly game console sales tallies, and Microsoft's Xbox 360 has secured the top position, thanks to compelling software releases and the console's refreshed pricing.

The Japanese market was initially lukewarm toward Microsoft's game console. Even after price reductions, the console's uptake only saw a brief surge over Sony's PlayStation 3.

Since the beginning of 2008, however, the American-made gaming console has not only caught up to its Japanese competitors, but has seen an amazing position swap. The release of Tales of Vesperia increased Japanese demand for the 360 to the point of supply shortages, but the real surge happened on September 11, when Microsoft slashed prices yet again.

It appears that "cheapest gaming system available" may be the most desirable title for a console to have above all else. The week in which the price cuts took place, a total of 28,861 Xbox 360s were sold in Japan. The previous two weeks combined only sold 3,899 units; an exaggerated low, of course, because of the limited console supplies. Nintendo's same-week sales for the Wii were 27,057 and Sony's PS3 were 8,050.