Microsoft opens Xbox 360 Lounge in Tokyo

Microsoft has finally revealed its plans for the mysterious-looking building draped in the Xbox 360 logo in the fashionable district of Aoyama, Tokyo. The building will be the Xbox 360 Lounge, intended to allow Japanese gamers to sample the Xbox 360 gaming experience prior to the Xbox 360’s Japanese launch.

The Xbox 360 Lounge will attempt to replicate the home gaming experience as closely as possible, with a number of different sections set up to resemble gamers’ living rooms, complete with high-definition televisions and 5.1 home theater systems.

Microsoft Japan’s general manager of the Xbox division, Yoshihiro Maruyama, implied that the Lounge’s opening was part of a concerted effort to capture a greater share of the Japanese console market, saying,

“We will continue to make as much effort as we can to make the Xbox 360 successful in Japan.”

The opening of the Xbox 360 Lounge may well form part of Microsoft’s strategy to woo Japanese gamers into making the switch from the Sony Playstation to Microsoft’s next-generation Xbox 360 console. With the exception of the Tokyo Game Show, opportunities for the Japanese public to test drive the Xbox 360’s gameplay are severely limited.

Opening the Xbox 360 Lounge in Tokyo in November will provide Microsoft with a public venue to demonstrate the games and other features of the console, which may help to boost sales by providing a comfortable place where potential buyers can try the Xbox 360 for free.

At present, there are as yet unconfirmed rumors that Microsoft will be opening a similar Xbox 360 showroom in Times Square, New York.

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