Japan

The demographic of the Japanese games market is far broader than in other territories, and the games available reflect this. Similar to how comic books - or Manga - are an everyday part of Japanese culture, so too is gaming.

If you play a game that's in any way quirky, bizarre or unique, it's likely to have originated in Japan. Fishing games, horse racing games and get-me-a-boyfriend 'em ups are all thriving sectors of the marketplace. However, if there's one thing that every Japanese gamer is guaranteed to adore, it's a role-playing game. It's not just the big-name titles, such as Final Fantasy and Zelda, that do the business in Japan: the more obscure titles, such as Super Dragon's Love-Love Gaiden Adventure IV: The Monkey's Quest, are likely sell in vast quantities to their dedicated fanbase.

The Japanese either have a very well developed sense of humour or a very strange one. How else could you explain Japanese game shows in which participants are forced to swig Tabasco from a baby's bottle while being baked beneath a giant magnifying glass? Likewise, how else could you account for Parappa The Rappa, a game in which the player assumes the role of a rapping dog who's trained in this mystical, lyrical art by a giant onion? This complete unshackling of the imagination is fantastic - without it the world would never have seen a Pac-Man, Mario or Tamagotchi. The Japanese may be out of their trees, but we love those crazy fellas all the more for it!