Xbox = "Bad Box" in Japanese
April 25th, 2005
I doubt this has anything to do with why XBox didn't do so well in Japan but "X" in Japanese means "no, bad, don't want it, wrong".  "X" in Japanese is pronounced "batsu".  When you mark something you either mark it with a circle "O" pronounced "maru" to mean "yes, I'll take that, correct" or with an "X" for "no, bad, wrong, don't want it".  If you watch any Japanese game show you'll see them talk about "maru" and "batsu".  When they show someone get the answer correct a "O" maru will appear.  When they are wrong a "X" batsu will appear.  If you are you with your friends and they challenge you with a question, if you guess correctly they will say "maru!" and if you guess wrong they might say "batsu!".  If you lose a game they say "batsu-game".  Batsu is also a kanji character, 罰, which means punishment or penalty.

ps: XBox fans, don't get yourselves worked up.  This isn't a dis on XBox, I have 2 of them.  But, it is interesting that X in the U.S.A. is like eXtra, eXcellent, eXtreme, ... but it has no such connotations like that here in Japan and in fact arguably means the opposite.


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360
I am sure it had something to do with the console failing in Japan. Having a name that sparks negativity in people isn't a good start. I think M$ just got everything wrong for that territory. The machine was way too big, the controller was way too big and the look of the thing was not aesthetically pleasing, especially when compared to a PS2. It also didn't have more than a handful of games that appeal to the Japanese.

I think they genuinely didn't understand how different the Japanese culture is. I am sure greggman has a better understanding of it than most working there.

There is an article in EDGE magazine this month where J Allard admits he had to go and see Mistwalker 6 times before they agreed to develop for XBox 360 exclusively. Allard sees this as a test of patients where as Mistwalker viewed it as just a negotiation.
posted by uk_designer_mattApril 25, 2005 at 2:44 [ e ]
if you get enough Xboxes and enough CD media, you could have a 3D tic-tac-toe game.


*ducks*
posted by alien8April 25, 2005 at 4:07 [ e ]
batsu bako

You are probably right that the name isn't really helping the situation for M$.

It's kind of common for Xbox to be called as "batsu bako" (bad box) or even "kyou bako" (凶箱 - evil/negative powered box) amongst some JP people who do not really like Xbox.

posted by thatgirlApril 25, 2005 at 4:44 [ e ]
X...
Isn't X about eXperience as well?
posted by bikokoApril 25, 2005 at 7:09 [ e ]
I laughed when I read it on tokyopia too.
posted by vegApril 25, 2005 at 9:43 [ e ]
Nova
This reminded me of when they released the Chevy Nova in Mexico.  Just in case there's a few people that don't know about that, in Spanish, nova  (no va) means "no go/doesn't go."  I wonder if some Japanese people are laughing at our English how some Americans laugh at Engrish.
posted by GreggFApril 25, 2005 at 23:24 [ e ]
Oh yeah

You too??  I also thought of NOVA which was disastrous in Mexico.  I used the case in a presentation called, "Promoting Diversity in Business," for organizational psych class when I was in school. 

I seriously doubt anyone Japanese is laughing at "your Eng"...  Ok, maybe for something else, hmmm...  :p

posted by thatgirlApril 26, 2005 at 0:43 [ e ]
Nova Urban Myth
That Nova story is an urban myth...see:

http://www.snopes.com/busine
ss/misxlate/nova.asp
posted by kongorillaApril 26, 2005 at 1:27 [ e ]
How funny

Very interesting. 

I'm glad my psych professor didn't bring this up in class.  ;)

posted by thatgirlApril 26, 2005 at 2:31 [ e ]
I give you... the Mitsubishi Pajero

Heard about the Mitsubish Pajero?

In spain (not in central and south america, AFAIK), "pajero" refers to a man who masturbates very often.

What´s worse, they even started selling the car here in Madrid with that very same name!  Not sure why no one pointed it out at the beginning to the japanese (too embarrassed maybe?) Who knows.  Anyway, they renamed it to "Montero" after a little while.

This one isn´t an urban legend at all, in fact you still see the older Monteros still with the "Pajero" name around in Madrid now and then...

To top it all off, if you type "pajero car" into google, what´s the first thing you see? That's right: "Pajero = Fun".

Oh dear! :)

posted by pupuApril 26, 2005 at 20:01 [ e ]
the list goes on...
http://www.namingnewsletter.
com/article.asp?id=29
posted by dbosApril 27, 2005 at 7:49 [ e ]
from that list

Thanks for the list.  Living in Japan this one sticks out

11. Japan’s second-largest tourist office was mystified when it entered English-speaking markets and began receiving requests for unusual sex tours. The owners of KINKI Nippon Tourist promptly changed their name.

Kinki is the name of an area in Japan which includes Kyoto and Osaka so there are tons of business named Kinki.  Kinki Japanese Tours (in Japanese, Kinki Nihon Tourist) still exists inside Japan as does Kinki Bank, Kinki Apartments, Kinki Electric, Kinki University, etc, etc, etc. Kinki is basically the whole s

When I first got here I didn't know that and was shocked that one of the most popular teen j-pop groups was the Kinki Kids, two heart-throb pretty boys from Kinki Japan.  At the time I actually assumed they were a name someone that knew English picked kind of as a joke but that the Japanese didn't know it .  I was only later that I found out they were originally from Kinki Japan. They are still super popular and even have a TV show.

There are joke names.  For example this one.  I doubt very few Japanese know what that means but I'm positive the person that named the band does.

posted by greggmanApril 28, 2005 at 1:23 [ e ]
don't batsu the box!

Just a reminder to anyone who is doing paperwork for Japan... if you ever have a multiple-choice selection to choose from, and you have boxes that you have to mark to designate your selection, do not mark with the X. It will confuse Japanese people who are expecting you to "check" the box.

;)

posted by OzchinMay 1, 2005 at 19:13 [ e ]
re: don't batsu the box
Yeah, the same thing happens in China.  I was filling out a bank form in front of a coworker and I used an X to mark a multiple choice box and he said that's "wrong."  Coming from the US where any mark in the box means "this thing is selected," I was surprised that I could fill in a check box incorrectly.
posted by wulongMay 22, 2005 at 1:53 [ e ]
Thanks, that helps me work out the meaning behing the name of the Sanrio character Badbadtz Maru
posted by robin100June 9, 2005 at 9:59 [ e ]
Also...
>if you guess correctly they will say "maru!"

more likely, 'pin-pon', the chime for being correct on TV shows.

'X' also has a big negatory use in american pop culture via the Family Feud TV show, but I hadn't thought of the batsu factor in Japan.
posted by anonymousTroyJune 19, 2005 at 4:51 [ e ]
Xbox didn't do well in Japan not because ...
'batsu' means 'no good, wrong' but simply because it didn't catch on with young people. Xbox didn't actually remind us of 'batsu' at all.
posted by SakumaOsamuMay 18, 2007 at 4:13 [ e ]
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