When you ask someone what the first video game they can remember playing was, they will probably answer something among the lines of Super Mario Bros., Street Fighter, Contra, Ghost and Goblins, or some other NES title derived from Japan.

While Japan was definitely one of the biggest players in gaming during the 80s and 90s, it slowly fell off from that point, and just recently, that part of the world has been gaining more and more attention, and Fnatic happened to notice that.

How is Fnatic expanding?

Organizations like Fnatic are known to have a branch in pretty much every game out there, but the one that Fnatic is interested in when it comes to the Japanese region is Rainbow Six Siege. In the 2022 Rainbow Six’s Japan League, you will be able to watch a team playing under Fnatic, and that is quite an exciting investment from the organization.

Last year, we could see TSM doing something similar by branching out into Japan by having a team of their own in one of the most popular BR games out there, Apex Legends. There have also been many others that got interested in Japan, such as SCARZ, Tier One Entertainment, and ZETA Division.

Why is Fnatic expanding?

Recently, you might have noticed that Fnatic is really looking to expand its organization and brand; for example, not that long ago, Fnatic launched a blockchain-based fan club through Crypto.com. The reason why organizations like Fnatic are investing in the Japanese region is that it is a region with a lot of potential, and the esports viewership is growing rapidly. According to Statista, the viewership from 2018 to 2024 will increase by 281 percent.

Another reason why Fnatic is gaining interest is that the Asia-Pacific region is just one of the most competitive regions in the world of esports. In recent years, when it comes to bigger international tournaments, Asia-Pacific had fantastic results, and Rainbow Six falls into that category of success.

Japan is slowly shifting to PC gaming

Considering that the land of Japan basically grew up on consoles from Nintendo, as well as arcade gaming, it is no surprise that PC gaming has been behind in the region. However, another reason why Fnatic and other orgs are investing in Japan is that the PC market has been growing substantially in the last few years. Rainbow Six and Apex legends are by far the most popular PC titles in the region, and those who are into esports betting probably already know that.

Will Fnatic make it big in Japan? Only time will tell. However, one thing is for sure, and that is that the Asia-Pacific region is getting more and more attention from western organizations, and that is a beautiful thing to see for any fan of esports.