PixlBit

DMC3 and NG had good word of mouth from the start, difficulty aside.  They had a good base from which to add wider appeal. DmC and NG3 didn't capture the casual or expert player, and the expert player is so disgusted or disinterested they probably would not buy a harder version of either of those games.  That's the difference.  People still speak highly of the former two. The latter two will be forgotten before the year is over, relegated to the dust bin of gaming history.

We ravaged Final Fantasy?  If they want to do this dance, Final Fantasy is the result of ravaging Ultima, so now what?  King's Field, and hence, Dark Souls are the results of 'ravaging' Ultima Undeworld and early Elder Scrolls.  

Just let people ignorant of history stay ignorant.  I need the lulz.

DmC and NG3 both tanked in the west for being less challenging than the best entries in their respective series.

But you touched on the problem: everyone, Japan included, is trying to make blockbuster console games, which of course need to be made accessible for as many skill levels and player preferences as possible.  The shareholders make this choice, they assume all the responsibility and blame, not "foreigners."

Crap, I keep ignoring the fact that you played on PC, my bad.  Yeah, console only players got boned. And yeah, it's common for  Japanese action games to run at 60fps on console.

DMC4 on console ran at 60fps, as did Bayonetta, as does Metal Gear Rising.  All the good Japanese action games do. Please don't try to pull that wool down over my eyes. NT made a choice to use engine they did. It didn't pay off, and I'm surprised you of all people would try to pass that off as a valid defense when it is demonstrably false.

As for the greatness of DmC, that's personal opinion.  I find it hard to believe that every single person that didn't buy the game had the same reason for doing so. People can reduce the argument down to hair color and character design all they want, but there is enough evidence out there, in the form of user reviews,videos, and Ninja Theory's very own track record,  that suggests there is more to it than that

The problem with the anti-Japan arguments is that I don't think people are really looking or at or thinking about what they are actually doing in any given game.  Alot of the western consoles games may be more technically impressive, have more extravagant production values, but the actual gameplay design is kind of thin.  Because of their need or desire to appeal to as many people as possible,  AAA games are limited in the kind of depth, challenge, or oddness they can have.  To put it bluntly, they're making interactive Hollywood movies instead of games.  Besides XCOM and maybe The Witcher 2, the west have no answer to Ninja Gaiden, Valkyria Chronicles, Disgaea 4, Vanquish or Demon's Souls on console, outside of indie games.  That's why I find myself playing mostly Japanese games on my PS3, and games like Binding of Isaac, Civ 5, and Super Meat Boy on PC.

 As far as the whole sex and gender thing in gaming, how about every body, east and west, for a year stop putting cheesecake and beefcake in their games.  I have no problem with people enjoying erotica or games where titiliation is a central theme, but why can't we have realistic girls and women, who aren't all beauties or have the need to show off every bit of curve and cleavage, in games that have nothing to do with sexuality.  Female characters in films and novels aren't all models who walk around in hoochie wear.  I mean, did Mark Twain, Tolkien, or Kurosawa need more T and A in their stories and films? Why would a warrior or special agent wear a chain mail bikini or a tight leather catsuit with high heels and no bra?

Basically, I wish the game industry would stop taking all its cues on women from superhero comics.

 Don't blame the gamers, blame Ninja Theory and Capcom's bad PR.  Some "journalist" tried to reduce people's grievances down to Dante's hair, and he just ended up looking like a shill for the industry.  People didn't buy the game because they don't want an easy, 30ps Devil May Cry game where you can get SSS combos in less than a minute.  NT's arrogance and ignorance in public relations and game design is what doomed the game.

That said, Capcom's track record for in house developed games has been even worse. They're just trying to deflect blame. Dragon's Dogma has been one of their few good games in years.  Dead Rising 2 was a more polished, richer game than the first. Revelations is easily a better RE than 5(which I liked) and 6.  Capcom Japan is too busy trying to figure out ways to milk consumers to concentrate on just making good software.

Monster Hunter Ultimate is a win right there. Too bad I'm not in a position to buy a WiiU right now.  I need a palette cleanser. The RPG(ish) games I'm playing right now are feeling like work. 

Ninja Gaiden 2 Sigma is indeed great. Very underrated. Only Bayonetta can match its combat this gen.  Difficutly feels almost perfectly calibrated. Fun stuff.

Because they compare video games to the cream of movies, not the B level efforts, and games lose out in that comparison.  Is there any game on par with A Clockwork Orange, American Psycho, or The Accused when it comes to integrating sexual violence, themes, and subtext?  If so, you can probably count them on less than one hand.  Movies like Zombie Diaries 2 are considered "trash" or "exploitation" and not on the mind of critics or commentators attempting to make comparisons.

 To sum:  Video game writing hasn't reached the craft or sophistication of the top scripts or novels, which are what they get compared to.  How games handle rape, crime, and sexuality is crude, exploitive, and unintelligent in comparison. That's why they are treated differently imo.