The Beetles Take Over Japan
Sega's latest winner is a game in which angry beetles do battle - and the kids absolutely love it.
The best-selling game in the UK at the moment is a bloody tale of brutal military conflict set during the darkest days of modern human history. The best-selling game in Japan is about bugs.
Sega's beetle-flavoured Mushiking franchise has exploded in Japan and now encompasses much more than just games. What began as an innocent arcade game is now an arthropod juggernaut.
Mushiking: Greatest Champion for the aging Game Boy Advance topped the weekly sales charts in Japan, selling more than 200,000 copies during its coming out period - more than the rest of the top 10 combined.
Kids were so excited to play with the myriad beetles that they rushed out to buy Game Boy Advances giving the handheld one of its best weeks this year and helping it outsell even the PSP.
Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games