November 2008 Console Sales Figures (featuring broken records)

[Scoobz0202]

Originally Posted by Neon_Chaos

You can use something like this:

Audiogear.com

You can plug in the male RCA jacks and plug in the male audio sterio mini jack so the audio from your XBOX goes into your headphones.

Damn, that is exactly what I need.

Thanks a lot, Neon.

[KWhit]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Word of mouth was going to help GH:WT a lot. I know personally that a lot of the kids in my extended family raved on pre-release about how the GH:WT had 5 pads instead of 4 and it had cymbals! To us, it doesn't mean all that much. To kids under the age of 14, it's the latest and greatest and the cool thing to buy.

You see the same phenomenon with games like Madden. Most of us realize it's basically a roster update most years with some PR talk thrown in to promote a feature or two that doesn't enhance the game that much overall. But that same PR talk and word of mouth makes it the greatest Madden ever in the 14 and under crowd, resulting in huge (though declining) sales of a game that really isn't much of an advance over the previous version of the game.

Or how some people will yell and scream that PS3 IS TEH GREATEST!! AND HAS THE MOST HORSEPOWER AND SONY RULEZ AND THE WII SUCKS BUTT AND SO DOES THE 360!!!!!!!11!!ONE!!

Where most of us just want to play great games.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

But isn't World Tour just the reaction to RB1? I don't follow the exact details of these franchises super closely, which probably puts me in line with the average consumer, and in my eyes RB1 = GH:WT = RB2. Aside from track lists, I honestly don't see the difference... oh, except that GH3 sucked and RB1 has huge acclaim, so I'd purchase RB1 over GH:WT if I could choose.

Well, except for the fact that it's not quite *that* straightforward. Especially, as MBBF pointed out, among a certain crowd. Really, there are three things you're trying to accomplish here, if you're EA/MTV. Three groups you're trying to cater to, if you will.

1) Retailers. You want to make sure that GHWT isn't getting the lions' share of the shelf space just because it's new and your product is older. So you release Rock Band 2 in reaction to GHWT so that you have significant shelf space for *a* Rock Band product.

2) Kids. The "nag factor" is as powerful as it ever was, and kids are going to see a few different things. One is, yeah, "the drums are way better!" Not a lot you can do about that except release the cymbal expansion after the fact if you haven't materially changed the way the game is played. Another, though, is going to be the music. DLC is definitely a trump card for Harmonix and MTV, but there are a LOT of parents out there who are worried about "that internet thing." They don't want to even hook the machine up to the network for Xbox Live Silver, for fear that the pedophiles will somehow get to their kids. Reasonable? Maybe, maybe not. Not gonna judge. But I bring that up to point out that if a kid has been playing Rock Band at a friend's house for the last year, and here comes GHWT, and NOW Mom is ready to buy one for Junior...which one is he going to ask for? The new one he hasn't played yet, or the one he's spent the last year on?

3) Stockholders. Gotta keep them happy, and "we're going to combat our primary competition by continuing to promote last year's game" probably isn't going to do that.

I honestly think the Rock Band guys should have just spent some money on advertising RB1, especially advertising all the DLC, maybe thrown out a DLC "expansion" in November, and focused on RB2 for Q3 '09.

Might be. But remember that RB1 doesn't have the ability to expand the drums for cymbals, which...and I know this sounds kinda facile, but there you are...is going to matter to the young kids. They like to bang on stuff, and the more stuff on which there is to bang, the happier they are.

It's not an A+B=C equation.

[gstelmack]

In the olden days, RB2 would have been an expansion + patch on the PC for RB1 rather than a full sequel. Not as easy to do on the console.

[RainMaker]

JamLegend :: Music Gaming Unleashed

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by KWhit

Or how some people will yell and scream that PS3 IS TEH GREATEST!! AND HAS THE MOST HORSEPOWER AND SONY RULEZ AND THE WII SUCKS BUTT AND SO DOES THE 360!!!!!!!11!!ONE!!

Where most of us just want to play great games.

Certainly you have the right to make those kinds of claims, but the industry trends tend to show right now that pricing of hardware and word of mouth in software are the two most powerful ways to make sales at this point. Even quality takes a secondary back seat for both hardware and software. It's a factor, but for the majority of the purchasing public, quality is not the primary deciding factor.

I do think that the people in this discussion probably use quality as a primary decision point, but the public doesn't follow that trend.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I know personally that a lot of the kids in my extended family raved on pre-release about how the GH:WT had 5 pads instead of 4 and it had cymbals! To us, it doesn't mean all that much. To kids under the age of 14, it's the latest and greatest and the cool thing to buy.

Sounds like my house.

It took probably the hardest game related lobbying effort I've ever done to swing my son to RB2 instead of GH:WT as his primary game for Christmas.

Intellectually he knows he's ultimately better off with RB2 as their DLC makes up for the less appealing initial song list. Intellectually he knows that there are even more issues with the GH:WT hardware than with the RB2. But emotionally ... the extra pads go to eleven.

[Mota]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I do think that the people in this discussion probably use quality as a primary decision point, but the public doesn't follow that trend.

In the rest of the world, it's all about the hype and nothing about quality. I work in the video game industry and get tons of non-traditional gamers so intrigued with the Wii. They don't want to hear about anything else.

So at that point I wish them the best, have fun with Wii Sports for 2 weeks until the console gets turned off and becomes a dust collector.

I know tons of people with Wii's and nearly all of them go unused for long periods of time. All my friends with 360's put them through fairly regular use.

[gstelmack]

I dunno, my Wii and 360 both get tons of use. Right now MLB Power Pros 2008 is getting a ton of playing time from me.

[Fidatelo]

I go in phases, mostly based on what games are coming out. Last year I played my Wii way more through the January-April months, but since then it's been mostly 360. I plan on getting Animal Crossing at some point in the next little while, so that will likely get the Wii more prominently involved again, with the bonus of having the wife playing as well.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Arstechnica puts out a 'Biggest Disappointments of 2008' list. Nintendo, Home, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, Mirror's Edge, and Spore make the top list. Honorable mention goes to Sonic Unleashed and Little Big Planet.......

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post...s-of-2008.html

[Cringer]

Is Mirror's Edge a crap game, or is it a disappointment because of bad sales? I may rent it some time, perhaps over the holidays. From the promos it looks decent.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Is Mirror's Edge a crap game, or is it a disappointment because of bad sales? I may rent it some time, perhaps over the holidays. From the promos it looks decent.

I haven't played it yet, but it sounds like it's one of those 'love it or hate it' games. You either really like the new concept of gameplay or you get bored by it. Rental sounds like a good option, especially with the shorter length of the single player game.

[Big Fo]

The demo of Mirror's Edge was alright, but I haven't played it since trying it out initially. Other games (mainly FM2009) have been sucking up all my gaming time.

[Daimyo]

Yeah, Nintendo was such a disappointment in 2008. All they could manage after the November 2007 release of Super Mario Galaxy was Mario Kart, Wii Fit, Smash Bros., and WiiWare. You really have to wonder what the 25M people who purchased one in 2008 were smoking.

[Eaglesfan27]

I posted about a couple of gaming studios closing due to the recession in the recession thread. Anyway, EA is now joining in by consolidating a studio and laying off 10% of their worldwide work force (over 1,000 people losing jobs.) They state they will narrow their product portfolio as well:

EA layoffs hit 1,000, Black Box 'consolidated' - News at GameSpot

[Big Fo]

Free Radical (Timesplitters series, Haze) are shutting down apparently. kotaku.com link

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Arstechnica puts out a 'Biggest Disappointments of 2008' list. Nintendo, Home, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, Mirror's Edge, and Spore make the top list. Honorable mention goes to Sonic Unleashed and Little Big Planet.......

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post...s-of-2008.html

Originally Posted by Cringer

Is Mirror's Edge a crap game, or is it a disappointment because of bad sales? I may rent it some time, perhaps over the holidays. From the promos it looks decent.

I think some of them are on the list in terms of 'disappointment to the player' and some are 'disappointment to the studio.'

LittleBIGPlanet is fantastic. It has also sold like shit warmed over.

Spore was cool for a while, but I put it away after a couple weeks, and haven't touched it since. That would be a disappointment to the player.

[Kodos]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

Free Radical (Timesplitters series, Haze) are shutting down apparently. kotaku.com link

I love the Timesplitters series.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Daimyo

Yeah, Nintendo was such a disappointment in 2008. All they could manage after the November 2007 release of Super Mario Galaxy was Mario Kart, Wii Fit, Smash Bros., and WiiWare. You really have to wonder what the 25M people who purchased one in 2008 were smoking.

Ummmm, I'm guessing you didn't read the article. There's no question that the sales were good, but that doesn't have much to do with the point made in the article.

[Daimyo]

Actually I did read the article. The article stated that there wasn't much released by Nintendo in 2008 and I listed four things from Nintendo that were all really good and a fifth that was right before the cutoff. I didn't even include games like Animal Crossing that are huge for some people, but not for me. How many good games did Microsoft or Sony publish in 2008?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Daimyo

Actually I did read the article. The article stated that there wasn't much released by Nintendo in 2008 and I listed four things from Nintendo that were all really good and a fifth that was right before the cutoff. I didn't even include games like Animal Crossing that are huge for some people, but not for me. How many good games did Microsoft or Sony publish in 2008?

Obviously, both Sony and Microsoft had very good years related to software releases. Sony likely had the best of the three, but does it matter if no one notices because the system is so expensive?

Including WiiWare as a good release is a huge stretch. It's a download/development platform, not a game. And it really doesn't have a mass market appeal to the casual gamer.

I don't think that there's any question that the Wii had a down year from the perspective of game releases. The article was spot-on in that regard. With that said, the people who bought the console do have other options from past years to catch up on at a discount price. Many Wii owners are hoping that the lull in games in 2008 means a big uptick in games next year. Hopefully that's the case.

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I don't think that there's any question that the Wii had a down year from the perspective of game releases.

You need to rephrase this.

There is no question that the Wii had a down year from the perspecitve of game releases that appeal TO YOU.

Smash Bros Brawl, Mario Kart, Wii Fit - all huge successes. Most console owners buy 4 or less games per year, right? Wii owners may even tend tend to buy less. They are not going to be disappointed at all that there weren't 20+ quality 3rd party games released for the system. They are going to buy Smash Bros, GH/RB, Mario Kart, Wii Fit (if they can find them, 6 and 7 months post release - definitely a bad year for games on that system) maybe a Boom Blox or some other smaller title (and there are a few good ones). They are not going to feel that this was a down year for releases, instead they are going to feel like they are playing great games and continue to love their system.

Its amazing that you want people to take you seriously, yet you continue to paint huge successes by Nintendo in the darkest possible terms, compared to the shining light of the dismal failures of the other two platforms. We get it, the Wii does not appeal to you. We get it, its not the right system for a "serious" gamer like yourself.

Why is it so important to you to convince the rest of the world they are flat out wrong for liking it?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Samdari

You need to rephrase this.

There is no question that the Wii had a down year from the perspecitve of game releases that appeal TO YOU.

Smash Bros Brawl, Mario Kart, Wii Fit - all huge successes. Most console owners buy 4 or less games per year, right? Wii owners may even tend tend to buy less. They are not going to be disappointed at all that there weren't 20+ quality 3rd party games released for the system. They are going to buy Smash Bros, GH/RB, Mario Kart, Wii Fit (if they can find them, 6 and 7 months post release - definitely a bad year for games on that system) maybe a Boom Blox or some other smaller title (and there are a few good ones). They are not going to feel that this was a down year for releases, instead they are going to feel like they are playing great games and continue to love their system.

Three big games over the course of a year is a disappointment to any system. I'd even give the nod that the Wii is somewhat a victim of its own success in that regard. They blew out all their big games early in the console life and it paid off in spades in regards to console sales.

The Mario creator admitted in an interview earlier this year that Wii Music was the final big title that he had envisioned for the console and that they weren't even sure what was next. Thanks to the success of the 1st person titles, a whole lot of sequels is the likely next step. Another Zelda is already in the works along with a 3rd party sequel of Boom Blox.

As for the backlog of good games, I pointed that out in my previous post as a positive for the Wii. I'm assuming you're agreeing with my point in that regard.

Originally Posted by Samdari

Its amazing that you want people to take you seriously, yet you continue to paint huge successes by Nintendo in the darkest possible terms, compared to the shining light of the dismal failures of the other two platforms. We get it, the Wii does not appeal to you.

I stated that the good games on the PS3 don't do a whiff of good if the console remains at a high price. That's certainly not a 'shining light' assessment. I've been very forthright in how disappointing Sony's handling of the price structure has been.

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Three big games over the course of a year is a disappointment to any system.

You responded before I finished my edit, but I thing you're wrong on this point.

With attach rates being what they are, three great releases per year seems to satisfy 2/3 (or more) of console owners. And I don't think Nintendo minds at all that all of them are their titles.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Samdari

With attach rates being what they are, three great releases per year seems to satisfy 2/3 (or more) of console owners. And I don't think Nintendo minds at all that all of them are their titles.

I'd actually agree with that with one caviat. I think your statement is true of Nintendo, but not the other consoles. Nintendo fans generally have a relatively narrow focus in regards to games. If Nintendo releases 3 big games, I'd agree that most of the user base will like those games because Nintendo is know for putting out great quality games and something that caters to their fans (Wii Music being the exception thus far).

On the 360, 3 great games won't be enough. The only possible way that might work is 3 great shooters since the 360 base tends to gravitate to those games.

There's absolutely no way that 3 good PS3 games of different genres will cut it. There's far too many variances in what their owner base likes. Price aside, the lack of focus on any genre has hurt Sony IMO. PR has been a nightmare as well.

[gstelmack]

If Nintendo is considered to have had a bad year, then can I have some of that pain please?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

If Nintendo is considered to have had a bad year, then can I have some of that pain please?

Agreed. It's a good situation for them when they can put out a small number of quality titles and still sell tons of hardware.

[Big Fo]

Compared to what they have released up to that point, Nintendo's fall/Christmas 2008 lineup for Wii (Mario Super Sluggers, Wario Land: Shake It, Animal Crossing, and Wii Music) isn't up there with Aug 2007 to May 2008 where they came out with a ton of good to great games (Mario Strikers Charged, Metroid Prime 3, Battalion Wars 2, Fire Emblem, Super Mario Galaxy, Link's Crossbow Training, Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart Wii, Wii Fit).

Since standard practice in the video games industry has been to release your best stuff in the fall, the gaming media looks back at the last few months and calls 2008 a disappointment. If Wii Music and Animal Crossing had swapped release dates with Mario Kart Wii and SSB:B I bet Nintendo's 2008 would be viewed in a more positive light despite all the games coming out in 2008 either way. How many great games is one company expected to produce per year anyway? Even Nintendo can't maintain their late 2007-early 2008 pace all the time.

As far as whatis coming from Nintendo on the Wii for 2009 and the future, here's what I know of:

The New Play Control series (GameCube ports with added features or IR/motion controls):

Pikmin - March 09
Mario Tennis - March 09
Pikmin 2, Metroid Prime 1 and 2, Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat, Chibi-Robo! - dates TBA

Wii games confirmed for North America in 2009

Wii Sports Resort - Spring 2009 (includes Wii Motion Plus)
Punch Out Wii
Sin and Punishment 2

Wii games released elsewhere in 2008, waiting for NA announcements in '09:

Disaster: Day of Crisis
Fatal Frame IV
Captain Rainbow (likely not coming over)

Wii games announced for 2009 release in Japan, still waiting for NA info, some but not all will be coming probably:


* Start w/ 100 Conversations! English Conversation (probably not coming over obviously)
* Another Code: R, Gateway of Memory
* Kensax
* Cosmic Walker
* Spawn Smasher
* Dynamic Slash
* Tact of Magic
* Forever Blue 2: Beautiful Ocean
* Everyone's the Star on the NHK Red-and-White Quiz Battle
* Line Attack Heroes

Games it's known Nintendo is working on, release dates unknown anywhere:

Kirby
next Mario platformer
next Legend of Zelda
Pikmin 3

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

THQ cancels the PS3 version of the Destroy No Humans 3, citing "development problems" as the primary reason for canceling the PS3 version. They are still releasing a 360 version next week:

THQ Destroying no Humans on PS3 - News at GameSpot

Judging from the reviews on the 360 version, they probably should have cited development problems on the 360 as well and not released it at all. They obviously have development problems on all platforms, not just the PS3. Following review is pretty similar to other reviews of the game.............

Review: Destroy All Humans! Path of the Furon - Loot Ninja

[Eaglesfan27]

The sole reason I'm hoping I get a PS3 for Christmas:

ESPN - MLB 09 The Show: Exclusive first look - Videogames

[SackAttack]

They are releasing it in Europe still, though, so maybe they'll solve the problems and then the PS3 will get to go 'nanny nanny boo boo' with a region-free release that doesn't suck?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

The sole reason I'm hoping I get a PS3 for Christmas:

ESPN - MLB 09 The Show: Exclusive first look - Videogames

Wow. Just wow. You're definitely right that it's the biggest and best reason to own a PS3.

[Neon_Chaos]

Well, one month in and my PS3 is essentially collecting dust. Too many good games on the 360 right now for me to be bothered to buy any for the PS3. I'm going to shop for Bluray movies so that the PS3 can get some exercise.

[GrantDawg]

Punch Out Wii? Color me excited.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

Punch Out Wii? Color me excited.

Yeah, that's definitely one to be excited about. Motion controls should work well for that one.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

A few articles of interest. First, it looks like 3D game development will be available as an option in 2009. Probably a pie in the sky thought, but it's worth watching as this is expected to be the next big home entertainment thing.

http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Sto...1622.44781.htm

PS3 build price has come down to $448. That's a vast improvement, but it demonstrates why Sony is in the predicament they are in. They can't drop prices at this point and make any profit.

Teardown of Sony's PlayStation 3 - BusinessWeek

Gaming has been demonstrated to improve brain function for people who are 60+ years of age.

http://www.reuters.com/article/techn...4BI63O20081219

[Big Fo]

The 60 GB PS3 cost $840 to make at launch

Sony should have present-proofed it in addition to making it future-proof.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

The 60 GB PS3 cost $840 to make at launch

Sony should have present-proofed it in addition to making it future-proof.

Oh yeah. That was widely reported before release. Obviously a very expensive lesson for Sony.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

A few articles of interest. First, it looks like 3D game development will be available as an option in 2009. Probably a pie in the sky thought, but it's worth watching as this is expected to be the next big home entertainment thing.

http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Sto...1622.44781.htm

PS3 build price has come down to $448. That's a vast improvement, but it demonstrates why Sony is in the predicament they are in. They can't drop prices at this point and make any profit.

They can't leave prices where they are and make any profit, either.

Why not drop prices to spur the install base and hope like hell that the new buyers get in on blu-ray as well as a result, since that's supposed to be the second pillar of Sony's profit base?

[Mustang]

Speaking of PS3 prices, anyone know who has the best bundle deal out there presently (or possibly in another week or so?)

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

Why not drop prices to spur the install base and hope like hell that the new buyers get in on blu-ray as well as a result, since that's supposed to be the second pillar of Sony's profit base?

Welcome to the thoughts of the entire industry in June 2008.

[Kodos]

Gotta be honest. I've played more PS2 games on my PS3 than PS3 games so far. Doesn't help that most games that I might do multiplayer on are bought for the 360 due to the large contingent from FOFC. Mostly, mine has been a DVD/Blu Ray player so far.

[Jon]

Here's a quick question that I'm certain has been asked hundreds of times:
after years of both consoles being out, which system is better--xbox 360 or PS3? Is the red ring of death a killer for most 360s? I may upgrade my system and am wondering which one to get.

[Kodos]

I think if you want to play multiplayer, go with the 360. If you plan to play by yourself most of the time, go with the PS3.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Kodos

Gotta be honest. I've played more PS2 games on my PS3 than PS3 games so far. Doesn't help that most games that I might do multiplayer on are bought for the 360 due to the large contingent from FOFC. Mostly, mine has been a DVD/Blu Ray player so far.

The community definitely has something to do with it. I'm a regular over at CAG and they have Warhawk game nights on the PS3 with 200-300 people in multiple rooms. Gears and Halo are obviously the big ones on the 360. Warhawk, Metal Gear Online, and SOCOM: Confrontation have big followings on the PS3. COD4 is also still huge on both systems. Really just depends on preference more than anything else.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Jon

Here's a quick question that I'm certain has been asked hundreds of times:
after years of both consoles being out, which system is better--xbox 360 or PS3? Is the red ring of death a killer for most 360s? I may upgrade my system and am wondering which one to get.

Depends on what you want. If you are someone who has a HDTV and expects to get a Blu-ray player, the PS3 is the clear choice at this point. It's a great value as a gaming and home entertainment platform. If you don't expect to be a Blu-ray user, the 360 is the better option at this point assuming you purchase the cheaper model. There's some inherent risk of failure, but the cheaper price of the base system probably justifies the risk.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Kodos

I think if you want to play multiplayer, go with the 360. If you plan to play by yourself most of the time, go with the PS3.

So true. I still have very few friends who have/play a PS3, but most of my friends who I game with have a 360. Even if I get a PS3 tomorrow, I'm sure I'll be buying most of my sports games on the 360 to play with guys from here in MP leagues/online games.

[Kodos]

In a way, it's a shame, because the dual shock is my favorite controller, but all my sports games get bought on the 360. It pretty much has to be an exclusive or an offline game for me to buy it on the PS3.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

There's some inherent risk of failure, but the cheaper price of the base system probably justifies the risk.

This is only true these days if you buy a used launch model. From all reports out there, starting with the Falcon design, the failure rates of the 360 have fallen dramatically, and are no better or worse than the failure rates for the PS3 or Wii.