Nowadays, video games have global launches. When a game is set to come out, players from around the world can experience it. Still, this global factor doesn’t mean that the game will be equally as popular everywhere. In fact, some games prove to be more popular in Japan than in the rest of the world.
Here, we are going to take a look at some games that fit this description. It is important to note that these games still came out in places like North America and Europe, but they didn’t receive the same popularity status as they did in Japan.
First up, we have Splatoon. This third-person shooter is a colorful and paint-filled experience that is popular everywhere, but really hit it big in Japan. We found a few comments online of people noting that everywhere you look, there is Splatoon branding; trains, food, and even ice cream flavors!
Japan also holds a Splatoon world championship, which is organized by Nintendo. Interestingly, Splatoon 3 didn’t shake up the game too much, but it still proved to be another successful entry into the franchise for Japanese players.
Now, in 2025, Monster Hunter is massively popular.Before the launch of Monster Hunter World though, it seems that this popularity was concentrated in Japan. If you lived elsewhere but did play Monster Hunter, the community hype wasn’t quite the same (or what it is today globally).
We’ve highlighted Monster Hunter Generations here. This entry came out in 2015 as a Japan-exclusive game, but a year later, it launched everywhere else on the 3DS. The Nintendo Switch only received Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, which came out in late 2018.
Next up, we have Dragon Quest. This is a long-running franchise that got its first game back in 1986 (this was in Japan; in North America, the game came out in 1989). Naturally, these ’80s and ’90s Dragon Quest games were more popular in Japan, and things stayed this way for a long time.
Dragon Quest is so popular that there is even a rumor that Dragon Quest games could only be released on the weekend, as to not disturb work or school. This isn’t true, but can you think of any game that had a similar rumor outside of Japan?
Everyone loves Kirby, right? While this is true, his popularity really skyrocketed in Japan. This little pink blob has a bit more of a cultural impact in Japan; there is a cafe chain in Japan that is completely dedicated to Kirby!
You cancheck out the Kirby Cafe’s menu here. Personally, I love the car-shaped Kirby bowl, as well as the “Suction Salad Bowl”, which is just Kirby opening his mouth all the way.
In recent years,Kirby has become popular elsewhere, but nothing really compares to his popularity in Japan. It’s easy to see why though; he’s pink, adorable, and pretty much a blank slate. you may keep him as a cute blob, or give him a sword and a shield.
In general, rhythm games seem to do better in Japan than in countries like the United States. Rhythm Heaven is no exception to this. The game originally launched in Japan only in 2006, but in 2008, a DS version was localized for gamers outside of Japan.
While Rhythm Heaven didn’t become the number one game in Japan, it was still relatively popular. In fact, the 2008 game was the sixth best-selling game in Japan! The original 2006 version (called Rhythm Tengoku in Japan) also won an excellence award at the Japan Media Arts Festival the same year.
When Pikmin 4 launched, it was immensely popular within Japan. It seems that a week after it launched in Japan, it already sold around 400,000 physical units. Fast forward about a year, and it sold 1.87 million in Japan, and 1.61 million in the rest of the world. Basically, over half the people who bought it were in Japan.
So, it goes without saying thatJapan loves Pikmin. Just look at the little guys though; it’s easy to see why the Pikmin are popular. Personally, I’ve seen a Pikmin 4 x Kung Fu Tea collaboration here in America, but there wasn’t too much hype over this in the area.
Last but not least, we have Yo-kai Watch. In case you aren’t familiar, this game is similar to Pokemon, but instead of ‘pocket monsters’, you collect and battle Yokai, which are spirits and creatures from Japanese folklore.
Yo-kai Watch initially launched in 2013 for the Nintendo 3DS and went on to become one of the best-selling games for the system (Yo-kai Watch 2 in tenth place, coming in right behind Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon). Interestingly, when the first game came out, it was the second best-selling game of the week, with Pikmin 3 being number one.
