Microsoft has reduced the suggested retail price of the Xbox Series S in Japan from 32,980 yen to 29,980 yen, a change announced just before the start of the console’s local pre-sale period.
The price cut arrives days ahead of preorders scheduled to begin on Friday, October 25. Microsoft did not give an official explanation for the adjustment. Observers noted the new price equals the Nintendo Switch’s suggested retail price in Japan, which could be part of an effort to increase the console’s competitiveness in a market where Nintendo remains dominant.
Microsoft’s position in the Japanese market
Microsoft has historically struggled to become a top seller in Japan despite targeted efforts dating back to the Xbox 360 era, when the company supported locally oriented RPGs such as Blue Dragon and Eternal Sonata. Those investments have not displaced Japan’s leading console manufacturers: Nintendo and Sony continue to sell more units than Microsoft.
Unlike some previous generations, Microsoft’s new consoles will launch in Japan on November 10, the same global release date as several other markets including the United States. The consoles will also arrive in other regions in November, though no specific local release date was provided for every market.
Xbox game streaming now available on Android for all users
Separately, Microsoft expanded access to its console streaming feature, Xbox Remote Play, allowing any Xbox user to stream games to an Android smartphone. The capability had been restricted to Xbox Insider program participants but is now available via a beta version of the Xbox app on Google Play.
To use Remote Play, players must pair an Xbox controller with their smartphone over Bluetooth. Microsoft recommends a 5 GHz Wireless 802.11ac network for both the console and the phone to ensure performance, but the devices do not need to be on the same local network; with a sufficiently fast connection, the feature can stream games to a phone from the console remotely.
The phone itself does not perform game processing; the Xbox handles computation while the mobile device receives video and audio and sends controller input back to the console. Microsoft compared the setup to a personal version of cloud streaming where the home console acts as the server instead of remote cloud servers.
Not all Xbox One controllers are compatible with this streaming functionality. The very first Xbox One controller model is not supported.
Source: Engadget
