In some of my writings on TwitchGuru,
I've lamented about the state of the video games business here in the U.S.,
which isn't terrible but has seen better days. Despite a next-generation
consoles arriving, game sales have been so-so and some well-known publishers and
developers are ailing as a result (see Aaron's post below on Take-Two, a prime
example of top-tier game company struggling). So more reports from market
analysts and research firms are trickling out now that show June U.S. game sales
are down once again for the month of June.

However, news of Japan this week indicates that the country's video game maket
is surging. In fact, Nintendo's DS handheld has helped boost game sales, which
rose 30 percent during the first quarter of this year. So the Japanese market
appears to be doing quite well these days, and it may do even better once
Nintendo's Wii and Sony PlayStation 3 arrive later this year.

The news got me thinking -- maybe Japan would be a nice place to relocate. I'm
serious. For one, the Japanese have got a sweet video game industry over there
and you can get a number of games over there that you can't get in the States.
And they don't ban, censor, or edit games with the same uptight approach to
content that we Americans do.

What else, what else. Let me see...

1. Sushi. It's pretty much my favorite food, mercury poisoning and all. Fatty
tuna, here I come!

2. Japanese cinema. It's pretty darn good, especially some of the recent horror
flicks like "Ju-On," "Ringu" and "Audition." And you can get a lot of American
films unedited and uncensored over there as well (for more on that, check out href="http://www.twitchguru.com/2006/07/06/inside_fangorias_weekend_of_horrors/"
>David Konow's article on Fangoria's horror film convention at
TwitchGuru.com.

3. Baseball. It's big in Japan. Sure, I'd miss Fenway Park and my beloved Red
Sox, but at least I'd have the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters and the Tokyo Yakult
Swallows.

Ham Fighters and Swallows. Better end this post now before it gets out of
control...