Anecdotally: I stayed in a LM in Tokyo (not currently a LM) in the early 1990s, before there was a Starwood. I recall the ANA, a bunch of Prince hotels, and some traditional ones such as the Imperial and the Palace hotels, although the Palace badly needed renovation at that time. There were a couple very expensive and service oriented distinguished small traditional hotels (not ryokan) in Ginza.

In the late 1990s shortly before the handover, Hong Kong had major chains such as IC, Sheraton, etc., but of course this was before the W and RC (and the airport express train as the old airport was still being used).

By about 2000, the major chains were present in Seoul (Hilton, Hyatt, RC, etc.) and seemed better and to be better regarded than the equivalent chains in the USA, but I don't recall international chain hotels in Pusan (but I might not have been staying in the same neighborhood). Smaller cities and local resort areas seemed to have primarily independent or local chain hotels.

In the early 2000s, Taipei had a very well regarded Hyatt and a traditional LHW property that was good but barely four star in quality.

In 2008, the "best" hotel in Guangzhou was supposedly owned by someone in Hong Kong and it was a fine four star property with some luxury touches, such as in room check in. There were some new American chain hotels over by the convention center. Also at that time, Shanghai had a very respected StR (now the Hongta LC) before its downfall, plus I recall the LRM, at least one Marriott, a Howard Johnson's (!), etc. However smaller cities (say, of a population of around only four million) were mostly local hotels, with some respected French chain properties IME.

Somewhat surprisingly, NRT still doesn't seem to have *foreign* chain hotels.

I wouldn't count these "western style" hotels as being chains when they were established: Shilla, Chosun, Lotte, Plaza. I'm aware of them, and aware that especially the Shilla and the Chosun (in its prerWestin form) existed much earlier.