Leading Microsoft's Japanese Xbox division has got to be a tough job. The Xbox 360 console got off to a rocky start there, with sales below expectations, and gamers have clear loyalties to the Japan-based Sony and Nintendo.

But someone's got to do it, and that someone is Takashi Sensui. Microsoft said today that it promoted Sensui to general manager of its Japanese Xbox division. He's replacing Yoshihiro Maruyama, who has moved to a "strategic position" in Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division. Sensui previously was director of the division's marketing department and game content group.

Given the Xbox 360's troubled launch, is this a demotion for Maruyama?