History GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff / VideoGames

** In terms of individual characters, [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots Mettaton]] consistently ranks among Japanese fans' [[EnsembleDarkHorse top characters]], due to a combination of his AntiVillain nature, being the Underground's designated {{idol|singer}}, and his very [[InTouchWithHisFeminineSide effeminate nature]].

** The series has obviously been a major critical and financial success Europe and North America, but it is also one of the very few [[WesternRolePlayingGame WRPG]] series to experience great success in Japan, where traditional [=WRPGs=] struggle. ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' seemed to start the trend, even though it was never even officially ''released'' in Japan. (One of the game's more popular {{GameMod}}s is an unofficial Japanese translation.) This trend continued through ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'' (though [[NoDubForYou without dub]] and published by Creator/SpikeChunsoft) to ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' (which published in-house by Bethesda's Japanese branch, featuring Japanese dubbing), which holds the honor of being the first Western game to ever receive a perfect score in ''Famitsu''.

** And inversely, ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents'' did crazy well in Japan, to the point where it was sold in normal stores rather than as an import. The [[WidgetSeries cross-cultural weirdness factor]] is quite possibly why the games do better in opposite regions.

* ''VideoGame/TheNeverhood'' was a bit of a low-key cult hit in the West. The PC version got a Japanese UsefulNotes/PlayStation port called ''Klaymen Klaymen''... and Japanese gamers absolutely ''adored'' it. In addition to getting some cool pieces of promotional merchandise, the Japanese company that localized it (and its sequel, ''VideoGame/{{Skullmonkeys}}'') made a spinoff called ''Klaymen Gun-Hockey'', which is about as [[WidgetSeries weird as it sounds]]. The game is also very popular in Russia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

** While she's still a controversial character in both sides of the pacific, Plutia is a lot more loved in the West compared to Japan, due to her being cute and friendly with her hint of sadism, while Iris Heart is considered EvilIsSexy and despite her dominating personality, [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold has an occasional soft spot]].

** Judging by popularity polls, ''[[VideoGame/Persona4 Persona 4's]]'' Kanji Tatsumi is a lot more popular in the west than in Japan, for, like Shinjiro above, being a BruiserWithASoftCenter with a well-received character arc involving coming to terms with his "unmanly" interests. An excellent performance from Creator/TroyBaker helps too.

** Ryuji Sakamoto has far more fans in the west than in Japan, where he is usually at the bottom of the thieves' popularity polls. Western fans tend to sympathize with his ostracization and leg injury, enjoy his PlatonicLifePartners dynamic with Joker, and find his IdiotHero moments either hilarious or not enough to detract from his better qualities. He also aligns with western cultural perceptions of rebels against society. Because of this, Ryuji's ButtMonkey treatment in comedy scenes is far more contentious with western fans, and it's common to see them express outright [[DudeNotFunny disgust]] for his [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale treatment]] after [[spoiler: Shido's Palace]]. These scenes aren't as disliked in Japan, with him generally being considered a KarmicButtMonkey.

** Even some countries that are not considered third-world such as China and South Korea prefer PC gaming over consoles because not only did UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 result in the global console market being dominated by companies from Japan, a nation that invaded and annexed both countries in the early 20th century respectively, China is where many of the PC parts are produced due to it being a manufacturing powerhouse, not to mention for both countries, the abundance of games, mostly free to play games. China in particular [[BannedInChina banned consoles from 2000 until 2015]] because their MoralGuardians thought video games would have an "adverse effect" on children, forcing Chinese gamers to either hunt for a grey market console or stick with the PC.

* The UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 was quite popular around the world, selling nearly 115 million units worldwide by the time its successor released, but it was not particularly popular in its home country of Japan, where it sold fewer than 10 million units. A lot of this has to do with the Japanese game market's increasing shift towards handhelds like the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS, UsefulNotes/PlayStationVita, and later the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, increasing adaptability toward PC gaming, especially gaming on UsefulNotes/MicrosoftWindows (helped by the below-mentioned [[BattleRoyaleGame battle royale shooter genres]]), as well as the perceived lack of Japanese-focused games on the [=PS4=] compared to Western ones. Sony's introduction of policies requiring many Fanservice-heavy Japanese games to be censored on [=PS4=] while Nintendo is surprisingly more tolerant as well as the open PC platform in comparison, also didn't do Sony any favors. The disproportionate international popularity of the [=PS4=] likely played a large role in Creator/SonyInteractiveEntertainment relocating their headquarters to North America during the [=PS4's=] life cycle.

* ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooie'' is surprisingly popular in Japan. One notable Japanese fan is [[WebAnimation/{{Hololive}} Inugami Korone]], who gets a kick out of Mumbo Jumbo's dialogue in her playthrough of the game. It got to the point where the reaction to Banjo and Kazooie's reveal in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' as playable character was absolutely estatic among many players in the region.

** Even some countries that are not considered third-world such as China and South Korea prefer PC gaming over consoles because not only has the console market been dominated by companies from Japan, a nation that invaded and annexed both countries in the early 20th century respectively, since the American console pioneers [[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 had an extremely bad reputation]], China is where many of the PC parts are produced due to it being a manufacturing powerhouse, not to mention for both countries, the abundance of games, mostly free to play games. China in particular [[BannedInChina banned consoles from 2000 until 2015]] because their MoralGuardians thought video games would have an "adverse effect" on children, forcing Chinese gamers to either hunt for a grey market console or stick with the PC.

*** ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' was somewhat of an attempt to make the series more appealing to wider Japanese audiences. The fandom [[BrokenBase is thoroughly split]] over ''Other M'''s more linear gameplay, but the story (which received heavy focus with hours of FMV cutscenes) got unanimous derision by fans for being dull, poorly-written, and ruining what little characterization Samus has. The game still managed to sell about as well as any other ''Metroid'' game in Japan, but [[AmericansHateTingle it quickly became one of the worst-selling entries]] in the West, as a result of Yoshio Sakamoto's plan backfiring big time (but still refuses to let go of the game as ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'' still acknowledges it), the Metroid franchise (Not counting Samus being in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'') laid dormant 6-7 years.

*** ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' was somewhat of an attempt to make the series more appealing to wider Japanese audiences. The fandom [[BrokenBase is thoroughly split]] over ''Other M'''s more linear gameplay, but the story (which received heavy focus with hours of FMV cutscenes) got unanimous derision by fans for being dull, poorly-written, and ruining what little characterization Samus has. The game still managed to sell about as well as any other ''Metroid'' game in Japan, but [[AmericansHateTingle it quickly became one of the worst-selling entries]] in the West, as a result of Yoshio Sakamoto's plan backfiring (but still refuses to let go of it as ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'' still acknowledges it), Metroid laid dormant 6-7 years.

*** ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' was somewhat of an attempt to make the series more appealing to wider Japanese audiences. The fandom [[BrokenBase is thoroughly split]] over ''Other M'''s more linear gameplay, but the story (which received heavy focus with hours of FMV cutscenes) got unanimous derision by fans for being dull, poorly-written, and ruining what little characterization Samus has. The game still managed to sell about as well as any other ''Metroid'' game in Japan, but [[AmericansHateTingle it quickly became one of the worst-selling entries]] in the West, as a result of Yoshio Sakamoto's plan backfiring (but still refuses to let go of it as ''VideoGame/MetroidDread still acknowledges it), Metroid laid dormant 6-7 years.

*** ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' was somewhat of an attempt to make the series more appealing to wider Japanese audiences. The fandom [[BrokenBase is thoroughly split]] over ''Other M'''s more linear gameplay, but the story (which received heavy focus with hours of FMV cutscenes) got unanimous derision by fans for being dull, poorly-written, and ruining what little characterization Samus has. The game still managed to sell about as well as any other ''Metroid'' game in Japan, but [[AmericansHateTingle it quickly became one of the worst-selling entries]] in the West.

* ''VideoGame/{{Onmyoji}}'' is developed by a Chinese studio but maintains a steady Japanese fanbase, enough to spawn ''two'' [[TheMusical musical adaptations]] there, a radio show and even a ''themed cafe service'' in a Tokyo cafe. It may be chalked up to the fact the game is ''about'' Japan and stars an AllStarCast of big-name anime voice actors.

* ''Top Gear'' (the racing game [[MorePopularSpinOff derived]] from the Amiga ''Lotus Turbo Challenge'' series, not [[Series/TopGear the TV show]]) is very popular among Brazilians, due in no small part to the soundtrack penned by Barry Leitch (there are even people who have the BGM for the first game's first track as a ringtone!) - [[https://www.gamevicio.com/noticias/2020/01/por-que-top-gear-nao-e-famoso-fora-do-brasil/ an article]] also it was helped by piracy (at times being in cartridges with many SNES [=ROMs=]) and hindered overseas by not being as promoted by Kemco. So much so that it has a SpiritualSuccessor, ''VideoGame/HorizonChase'', developed by a Brazilian studio, and to top it off, they brought in Leitch himself to score the game!

* Despite it being considered a failure regardless of region, the UsefulNotes/ThreeDOInteractiveMultiplayer saw moderate success in Asian regions, especially Japan. Alongside some exclusive peripherals, such as an add-on that could play Video CD discs, nearly half the system's library was exclusive to Japan and South Korea, mostly thanks to the 3DO Company's relaxed licensing policies and the relative power of the hardware for the time (which also led to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UFBSIjEl5s a number of rather experimental games being released on the platform]]). It was even successful enough that it got some small support from bigger names like Konami and Capcom and a few models of 3DO were made exclusively for the region, such as the Sanyo TRY.

** ''Mario'' is easily THE biggest name of video games in Mexico alongside with SNK's fighting games, and the Xbox consoles. His games are well regarded in the country, and merchandising (both official and unofficial) is very huge, when Mexican store chain Liverpool had their first Bolo Fest Desfile Navideño in 2015 in Mexico City (Which is similar to Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in the United States) Mario became the first of two video game series to get a balloon for that parade (similar to how Sonic The Hedgehog got his own balloon by Macy’s back in 1993.), and until the Japanese release overtook it, the Mexican release of ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'' became one of, now the second highest grossing international release for any Illumination film (surpassing their previous releases like ''Minions'') and for any video game film adaptation and became the highest-grossing film ''of all time'' in Mexico. (Even surpassing the two ''[[Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|2020}} Sonic]]'' [[Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog 2|2022}} movies]], two [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome Marvel]] [[Film/AvengersEndgame movies]] and two [[WesternAnimation/{{Coco}} Pixar]] [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory4 films]] in Mexican box office performance.)

** ''Mario'' is easily THE biggest name of video games in Mexico alongside with SNK's fighting games, and the Xbox consoles. His games are well regarded in the country, and merchandising (both official and unofficial) is very huge, when Mexican store chain Liverpool had their first Bolo Fest Desfile Navideño in 2015 in Mexico City (Which is similar to Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in the United States) Mario became the first of two video game series to get a balloon for that parade (similar to how Sonic The Hedgehog got his own balloon by Macy’s back in 1993.), and until the Japanese release overtook it, the Mexican release of ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'' became one of, now the second highest grossing international release for any Illumination film (surpassing their previous releases like ''Minions'') and for any video game film adaptation and became the highest-grossing film ''of all time'' in Mexico. (Even surpassing the two ''[[Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|2020}} Sonic]]'' [[Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog 2|2022}} movies]], two [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome Marvel]] [[Film/AvengersEndgame movies]] and and two [[WesternAnimation/{{Coco}} Pixar]] [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory4 films]] in Mexican box office performance.)

** ''Mario'' is easily THE biggest name of video games in Mexico alongside with SNK's fighting games, and the Xbox consoles. His games are well regarded in the country, and merchandising (both official and unofficial) is very huge, when Mexican store chain Liverpool had their first Bolo Fest Desfile Navideño in 2015 in Mexico City (Which is similar to Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in the United States) Mario became the first of two video game series to get a balloon for that parade (similar to how Sonic The Hedgehog got his own balloon by Macy’s back in 1993.), and until the Japanese release overtook it, the Mexican release of ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'' became one of, now the second highest grossing international release for any Illumination film (surpassing their previous releases like ''Minions'') and for any video game film adaptation and became the highest-grossing film ''of all time'' in Mexico. (Even surpassing the two ''[[Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|2020}} Sonic]]'' [[Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog 2|2022}} movies]], two [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome Marvel]] [[Film/AvengersEndgame movies]] and ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' in Mexican box office performance.)

* The ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' series wasn't very popular during the 8-bit days, although [[VideoGame/MetalGear1 the original]] had a cult following among [[UsefulNotes/{{MSX}} MSX2]] users in Europe, but when ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' came out, not only did it become popular in Japan, but even moreso in America, likely for reasons similar to ''Silent Hill'' (namely, the two games are known for their [[InvertedTrope inverse]] CreatorProvincialism, made by a Japanese company, taking place in largely Western settings). The original game sold so much better in America that most subsequent games have actually been released there first. It is more likely that it was because of these overwhelming love towards these two series and [[Creator/HideoKojima the creator]] of ''Metal Gear'' (who was once announced to almost helm a ''Silent Hill'' project) that Americans practically ''hated'' everything Konami did to these franchises later on (compounded with other factors on Konami's fault) and kept their hatred to the company undying, while the Japanese didn't prolong their own hatred because aside of their general respect on Kojima and popularity, they weren't that immensely worshipped in the first place[[note]]The aforementioned inverse CreatorProvincialism naturally didn't work as effectively to those not living in the Western region of the world[[/note]] and generally Konami's latter actions seems to be more geared to their Japanese-exclusive properties, so the Japanese has an easier time to let time heal their own frustration.

* The ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' series wasn't very popular during the 8-bit days, although [[VideoGame/MetalGear1 the original]] had a cult following among [[UsefulNotes/{{MSX}} MSX2]] users in Europe, but when ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' came out, not only did it become popular in Japan, but even moreso in America, likely for reasons similar to ''Silent Hill'' (namely, the two games are known for their [[InvertedTrope inverse]] CreatorProvincialism, made by a Japanese company, taking place in largely Western settings). The original game sold so much better in America that most subsequent games have actually been released there first. It is more likely that it was because of these overwhelming love towards these two series and [[Creator/HideoKojima the creator]] of ''Metal Gear'' (who was once announced to almost helm a ''Silent Hill'' project) that Americans practically ''hated'' everything Konami did to these franchises later on (compounded with other factors on Konami's fault) and kept their hatred to the company undying, while the Japanese didn't prolong their own hatred because aside of their general respect on Kojima and popularity, they weren't that immensely worshipped in the first place and generally Konami's latter actions seems to be more geared to their Japanese-exclusive properties, so the Japanese has an easier time to let time heal their own frustration.

* The ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' series has a modest Japanese following that only really started to develop ''after'' Creator/{{Sega}} became a third-party developer, due to the Genesis/Mega Drive and Dreamcast being unpopular consoles in the region and the Saturn not having a ''Sonic'' title of its own. Meanwhile, Sonic quickly became a cultural icon in America and Europe, where the Sega's 16-bit console competed for first place with Nintendo's SNES, and the Blue Blur retains much of that popularity to this day. The brand is especially loved to pieces in the United Kingdom, where Ride/AltonTowers even has a Sonic-themed hotel room and used to have a Sonic-themed roller coaster, and London, England is the hosting place for the "Summer of Sonic" (the first official fan convention for a video game character). That being said, the series has always been particularly Western-oriented, as most major releases have come out in America and Europe before Japan ever since the first game and Sonic was intentionally created to appeal to Western audiences in mind. Several major ''Sonic'' titles (such as ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'', ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' and ''VideoGame/SonicMania'') were even developed in the West as opposed to Japan.

* ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysofEurope'' (a GameMod for ''VideoGame/HeartsOfIronIV'') has a very large Russian fanbase and a sizable Chinese one as well. The Russian fanbase is easy to understand, as some of the most well-written characters and factions in ''The New Order'' are Russian and [[ShownTheirWork the dev team had help from Russians when writing them]]. The Chinese fanbase is a bit harder to explain, but some of it comes down to its depiction of Albert Speer, [[spoiler:whose leadership of UsefulNotes/NaziGermany (reforming the system, undoing UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler's worst excesses, and focusing on economic development without truly liberalizing the nation) has been compared by many fans to the real-life UsefulNotes/DengXiaoping, considered to be "the Architect of Modern China" for how he pulled the People's Republic out of the chaotic 1960s and '70s and set it on the road to becoming an economic superpower]].

* Swedish-made ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'', while very successful in its home country, is pretty much loved by the entire world. Japan gets a special mention for introducing the Creeparka (a Creeper themed hoodie). Japan's love of Minecraft is so great that a number of [[FollowTheLeader Minecraft-like games]] that didn't do well in the West for being "ripoffs" saw enormous success in Japan, and ''VideoGame/DragonQuest,'' one of the most famous and beloved game franchises in the country, had a [[VideoGame/DragonQuestBuilders Minecraft-like spinoff.]]