Famitsu most wanted: FF13, DQ9, RE5, other acronyms; Square Enix dominates

So what do Japanese gamers these days want to get their hands on the most? The latest list of most wanted games from Famitsu reveals a heavy leaning towards RPGs (mostly from Square Enix – no surprise there), with a healthy dose of other games from different genres, publishers, and platforms. See the Top 15 Famitsu Most Wanted list in the full article.

Famitsu has always provided a list of games to see what their readers in Japan are looking forward to. As far back as I can remember, Final Fantasy XIII and Dragon Quest IX have always been somewhere at the top of the most wanted list.

The current issue of Famitsu tells the same story, with both Square Enix RPG titles sitting on the first two spots, with Resident Evil 5 coming up at the third spot. Nothing out of the norm there. But what about other titles? Check out the roster to see what Japanese gamers are currently clamoring for:

1. Final Fantasy XIII (PS3, Square Enix)
2. Dragon Quest IX (NDS, Square Enix)
3. Biohazard 5 / Resident Evil 5 (PS3, Capcom)
4. Dragon Quest VI (NDS, Square Enix)
5. Super Robot Taisen Z (PS2, Namco Bandai)
6. Monster Hunter 3 (Wii, Capcom)
7. Chrono Trigger (NDS, Square Enix)
8. The Last Remnant (PS3, Square Enix)
9. Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3, Square Enix)
10. Pokemon Platinum (NDS, Pokemon)
11. Animal Forest (Wii, Nintendo)
12. Dissidia Final Fantasy (PSP, Square Enix)
13. Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3, Capcom)
14. Star Ocean: The Last Hope (X360, Square Enix)
15. Tales of Hearts (NDS, Namco Bandai)

Nice to see Dissidia up there. It’s the only PSP title on the list though; strangely, Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is absent from the list – even the NDS’ KH: 358/2 Days isn’t part of it. Meanwhile, it’s also good to see an Xbox 360 exclusive warming up to the Japanese gamers – and whaddya know, it’s an RPG!

Forget trying to distinguish which platform Japanese gamers prefer. Maybe it’d be easier to got at it by developer. Based on this list, at least, it looks like Japan is gripped by Square Enix!

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• Famitsu: Japan’s most wanted ending July 26 (2007)