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[andthebeatgoeson]

So 45% of GH:WT sales are on the platform that will be getting GH: Metallica 2 months late? Good call there Activision.

Where are you getting 45% from? I still think it's stupid for them to hit later on Wii.

What do you expect?

Big publishers like Activision and EA have invested heavily in the HD consoles, and while they -- along with everyone else -- can accept the outcome of this generation cycle, it doesn't necessarily mean that they won't try to compel consumers to purchase an HD console to complement their Wiis.

That doesn't make sense. They should hit all consoles at the same time so they can maximize their exposure. Hitting at another time just means they have to advertise more. Wii owners and PS2 owners end up just being confused. They hear about it and undoubtedly forget.

 

[cw_sasuke]

So 45% of GH:WT sales are on the platform that will be getting GH: Metallica 2 months late? Good call there Activision.

really ? REALLY ? come on they can`t be that dumb....

 

[JJConrad]

Where are you getting 45% from? I still think it's stupid for them to hit later on Wii.


That doesn't make sense. They should hit all consoles at the same time so they can maximize their exposure. Hitting at another time just means they have to advertise more. Wii owners and PS2 owners end up just being confused. They hear about it and undoubtedly forget.

GHWT Wii:
Oct = 183k
Nov = 475k
Dec = 850k
LTD = 1508k
Which equals 44.4% of the games combine 3.4 million. Once you include the PS2 version, Activision is jilting about 2/3 of there base.

On the otherhand, it could be that they rushing out the PS360 versions to meet their fiscal year promises.

 

[Link]

On the otherhand, it could be that they rushing out the PS360 versions to meet their fiscal year promises.

If that were the case, wouldn't it be both easier and make more sense to rush out the Wii/PS2 versions?

 

[frankie_baby]

If that were the case, wouldn't it be both easier and make more sense to rush out the Wii/PS2 versions?

Maybe they want to give the games biggest platform a more polished project

 

[cw_sasuke]

Maybe they want to give the games biggest platform a more polished project

I don't think so :lol

 

[JJConrad]

If that were the case, wouldn't it be both easier and make more sense to rush out the Wii/PS2 versions?

That undercuts GHWT continued strong sales on those two systems. It's still important to maximize sales.

Based on the timing of the release, it should be obvious that their fiscal calender has a lot of influence on their plans for GHM. Releases at the end of the fiscal year aren't necessarily there to inflate sales as much as possible, so much as they are used to reach goals. It'll hide the series' shortcoming caused by GHWT on the PS3 and 360... which was likely outsold be the Rock Band series on those platforms.

Plus they can also fix the PS360 versions easier if need be.

 

[poppabk]

If that were the case, wouldn't it be both easier and make more sense to rush out the Wii/PS2 versions?

360 and PS3 games are more front loaded so it would actually make sense to release those versions if you need immediate sales.

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

Maybe they want to give the games biggest platform a more polished project

:lol :lol :lol

Oh wait, you're not joking, rite?

 

[DMeisterJ]

I bet EA feels really stupid staggering Rock Band 2 like that. Instead of beng exclusive for a month on the 360, then the PS3, then Wii/PS2, coming out with them all at the same time would have been much smarter.

Or if you needed to be exclusive to one platform, should have been the Wii or PS2 for a period of time. We'll see if EA makes it 360 timed exclusive again this year given GH: WT Wii (espeically) and PS2 sales.

 

[Archie]

I bet EA feels really stupid staggering Rock Band 2 like that. Instead of beng exclusive for a month on the 360, then the PS3, then Wii/PS2, coming out with them all at the same time would have been much smarter.

Or if you needed to be exclusive to one platform, should have been the Wii or PS2 for a period of time. We'll see if EA makes it 360 timed exclusive again this year given GH: WT Wii (espeically) and PS2 sales.

There isn't going to be a Rock Band 3 this year and The Beatles game will probably hit every system simultaneously.

 

[Stumpokapow]

Or if you needed to be exclusive to one platform, should have been the Wii or PS2 for a period of time. We'll see if EA makes it 360 timed exclusive again this year given GH: WT Wii (espeically) and PS2 sales.

That's dumb.

If you listen to EA, they were exclusive because XBL made it easiest to implement their design goals technically (song export, DLC carrying over, etc). If you don't believe EA and think it's an MS moneyhat, then it's a moneyhat.

Either way, why would it have been exclusive to Wii or PS2?

I mean, I'm with you on a simultaneous launch being the best move, but I don't see any situation where it'd launch first on Wii because it's not a friendly system technically and Nintendo is disinclined to support or help out or comarket or moneyhat software.

 

[Archie]

That's dumb.

If you listen to EA, they were exclusive because XBL made it easiest to implement their design goals technically (song export, DLC carrying over, etc). If you don't believe EA and think it's an MS moneyhat, then it's a moneyhat.

Either way, why would it have been exclusive to Wii or PS2?

I mean, I'm with you on a simultaneous launch being the best move, but I don't see any situation where it'd launch first on Wii because it's not a friendly system technically and Nintendo is disinclined to support or help out or comarket or moneyhat software.

It's easier to nerd rage at MTV and Harmonix than try to come up with a rational explanation.

 

[DMeisterJ]

It's easier to nerd rage at MTV and Harmonix than try to come up with a rational explanation.

Me? Nerd Rage? I don't even own a Wii, lol. Just looking at how well GH: WT sold on Wii and how it launched their last is all.

 

[markatisu]

Well we have proof over the last 2 years that launching late on the Wii does not hurt the sales (and really late at that if you look at RB1 coming 6-7 months late and still outselling the competition) at all so I guess they figure they will allow the HD twins to get their front loaded sales first without competition.

We do not have definite numbers from GH:Aerosmith, we just know it sold most on Wii so maybe Activision thought the Wii version simultaneous release hurt the sales from the other two

 

[Vinci]

This is a good sign for Deadly Creatures - *snip*

There is NO good sign for Deadly Creatures. That game is going to bomb. Making a game that's well developed and with some actual effort on the Wii? Yes. Big yes. Making it about creatures that ordinarily are the stuff of phobias? Less yes.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

MTV, MTV, MTV, MTV

Get it right, people.

 

[BishopLamont]

Well we have proof over the last 2 years that launching late on the Wii does not hurt the sales (and really late at that if you look at RB1 coming 6-7 months late and still outselling the competition) at all so I guess they figure they will allow the HD twins to get their front loaded sales first without competition.

We do not have definite numbers from GH:Aerosmith, we just know it sold most on Wii so maybe Activision thought the Wii version simultaneous release hurt the sales from the other two

Why would Activision care which platform people are buying their games on?

 

[Link]

Well we have proof over the last 2 years that launching late on the Wii does not hurt the sales (and really late at that if you look at RB1 coming 6-7 months late and still outselling the competition) at all so I guess they figure they will allow the HD twins to get their front loaded sales first without competition.

We do not have definite numbers from GH:Aerosmith, we just know it sold most on Wii so maybe Activision thought the Wii version simultaneous release hurt the sales from the other two

You don't think EA lost a bunch of holiday sales on RB2 Wii by releasing it less than a week before Christmas? If not to GH:WT, then to whatever else people bought instead during the holiday rush. Yeah, the game will still sell over the next few months, but I don't see it being a smart move.

 

[markatisu]

You don't think EA lost a bunch of holiday sales on RB2 Wii by releasing it less than a week before Christmas? If not to GH:WT, then to whatever else people bought instead during the holiday rush. Yeah, the game will still sell over the next few months, but I don't see it being a smart move.

Who said it was a smart move? I was just stating possible reasons

I think its ass backwards to stagger the releases, the games sell on all platforms (just in the case of the Wii and PS2 they sell longer) so the fact that anyone has to wait is just utterly retarded.

I do not think there is any good or justifiable reason for doing it, but obviously they have decided to do things that way

Why would Activision care which platform people are buying their games on?

Because if one platform is selling more than the other it could eat away from possible revenue. We all know that Wii games cost less to develop (for the most part) so if the more expensive version is bringing in less money it eats away from the profit the lower costing version is bringing in.

 

[Link]

I was just refuting your "launching late does not hurt sales" remark.

 

[Cipherr]

Why would Activision care which platform people are buying their games on?

........

 

[Sushen]

Why would Activision care which platform people are buying their games on?

Because publishers assign their best team with the most resources to the platform that they believe will do the best. Of course, you want to sell more on the platform that you invested more. This is the very reason why turning the tide around gets tougher for Sony every day passing by.

 

[markatisu]

I was just refuting your "launching late does not hurt sales" remark.

Yeah I can see that, but at the same time Rock Band 1 launched almost 7 months late and still managed to outsell its competitors. I guess they figure Rock Band 2 is going to be the same way so what they lost on instant large sales in christmas they will receive during slower times in the year.

 

[Link]

Maybe, but I'm not so sure. Just because the game still ends up selling the most on Wii doesn't mean it couldn't have sold even more. I think missing the holidays for a game like this was a mistake.

 

[markatisu]

Maybe, but I'm not so sure. Just because the game still ends up selling the most on Wii doesn't mean it couldn't have sold even more. I think missing the holidays for a game like this was a mistake.

I agree completely, especially since people were snapping up the $99 Rock Band 1 bundle at stores all across the US, they almost surely would have bought Rock Band 2 just to go along with it.

 

[JJConrad]

Here's on idea of just how crappy World Tour did compared to GH3. Keep in mind that only GHIII 2007 totals for each plaform and 2008 GHWT Wii totals are known, therefore GHWT 360 and PS2 totals are only estimates based on rank:

First the bright side...Wii:
GH3 - 2007 : 1.22 million
GHWT-2008 : 1.51 million
*Oct. 183k + Nov. 475k + Dec. 850k*

Now the other side... 360:
GH3 - 2007 : 1.48 million
GHWT-2008 : about 841k
**showing my work: Oct. 191k + Nov. (Ranked#15 @ about) 250k + Dec. (Unranked but #6 on 360 @ about) 400k**

Now for death... PS2:
GHIII - 2007 : 2.72 million
GHWT-2008 : about 715k
***showing my work: Oct. 65k + Nov. (Ranked#17 @ about) 225k + Dec. (Ranked#17 @ about) 425k***

Also, notice how quickly the 360 version starts compared to the other two versions despite where it ends up.

Well we have proof over the last 2 years that launching late on the Wii does not hurt the sales (and really late at that if you look at RB1 coming 6-7 months late and still outselling the competition) at all so I guess they figure they will allow the HD twins to get their front loaded sales first without competition.

We do not have definite numbers from GH:Aerosmith, we just know it sold most on Wii so maybe Activision thought the Wii version simultaneous release hurt the sales from the other two

IGN's article was a little misleading. First, the >1 million Wii versus the <800k 360 figures don't consider that the Wii version was just released last year and that the 360 version sold 775k in 2007. Second, IGN admits that they don't know which SKUs were being given, but we know now, based on the ranges we have from other numbers, that the article's numbers were not combined SKU ... so they're not really comparable to begin with.

 

[John Harker]

Have we any real indication that Tales of Symphonia Wii has outsold Tales of Vesperia? People have said it, but us there any truth to it

 

[markatisu]

Have we any real indication that Tales of Symphonia Wii has outsold Tales of Vesperia? People have said it, but us there any truth to it

I do not think we have any proof of it in the US as we got Vesperia numbers the first month but nothing at all on Symphonia

In Japan though we know Symphonia outsold Vesperia, so maybe thats what you are thinking of

 

[vanguardian1]

I do not think we have any proof of it in the US as we got Vesperia numbers the first month but nothing at all on Symphonia

In Japan though we know Symphonia outsold Vesperia, so maybe thats what you are thinking of

I know we got the first 2 months of Vesperia sales in the NPD, but nothing about Symphonia.

 

[Beer Monkey]

When misinterpretations of NPD numbers in the fall led some to believe that RB kicked GH's ass and we had calls for Activision to discontinue the GH franchise.

I wonder if any of these people now feel RB should be axed?

I predicted this a year ago, that RB couldn't beat GH in sales in 2008, but I'm not real thrilled to be right. GH is a monster. I tell all my friends to get RB if they only get one of the two games, but all of the non-diehard game nuts (i.e. the type that doesn't do online boards and podcasts about gaming) bought GHWT. Every last one of them.

2:1 sales ratio is even more than I expected. It would have been even more if the band kits for GHWT weren't impossible to find over the holidays.

 

[JJConrad]

When misinterpretations of NPD numbers in the fall led some to believe that RB kicked GH's ass and we had calls for Activision to discontinue the GH franchise.

I wonder if any of these people now feel RB should be axed?

I predicted this a year ago, that RB couldn't beat GH in sales in 2008, but I'm not real thrilled to be right. GH is a monster. I tell all my friends to get RB if they only get one of the two games, but all of the non-diehard game nuts (i.e. the type that doesn't do online boards and podcasts about gaming) bought GHWT. Every last one of them.

2:1 sales ratio is even more than I expected. It would have been even more if the band kits for GHWT weren't impossible to find over the holidays.

That 2:1 almost entirely comes from the Wii. Rock Band 2 almost certainly outsold World Tour on the 360 (mostly due to its headstart). GH dropped (hard) and RB didn't really make any gains... It was just a bad year for the genre.

 

[Beer Monkey]

Rock Band 2 almost certainly outsold World Tour on the 360 (mostly due to its headstart).

No way. Look at the top 10 Live charts. Are you going to tell me that RB sells to the offline 360 owners? If anything, it would be the other way around.

 

[jarrod]

There is NO good sign for Deadly Creatures. That game is going to bomb. Making a game that's well developed and with some actual effort on the Wii? Yes. Big yes. Making it about creatures that ordinarily are the stuff of phobias? Less yes.

I smell bomba too, but hopefully it was cheap enough to at least recoup costs. As noted, there's quite a few lower tier original Wii games that are doing well enough off 250-500k (Zack & Wiki, Boom Blox, de Blob, No More Heroes, etc).

 

[Archie]

No way. Look at the top 10 Live charts. Are you going to tell me that RB sells to the offline 360 owners? If anything, it would be the other way around.

Consider that the Live charts are worldwide and RB2 isn't really even out in Europe yet.

 

[Beer Monkey]

OK then, somebody show real numbers that indicate that RB2 360 outsold GHWT 360 in North America.

 

[GarthVaderUK]

Edit: I get you.

 

[Kifimbo]

Do we have any idea how the Wii version of NHL 2K9 sold ? I was watching the All-Star Game this weekend and that particular version was still promoted, so I guess it's successful.

 

[JJConrad]

No way. Look at the top 10 Live charts. Are you going to tell me that RB sells to the offline 360 owners? If anything, it would be the other way around.

Live charts don't matter nearly as much as people give them credit. RB2 had a 363k headstart from September. A figure GHWT couldn't match until December (maybe). And RB2 was only 2 spots behind GHWT that month. So unless RB2 abolutely tanked for Oct & Nov, it should still be ahead of GHWT. Even if it isn't, it close to it, which is a huge turnaround from 2007.

 

[Beer Monkey]

Live charts don't matter nearly as much as people give them credit.

I suppose it's possible that people who bought RB2 aren't playing it.

 

[jamesinclair]

Maybe they want to give the games biggest platform a more polished project

The only polish the Wii and PS2 version will be getting are 3 extra songs because they didnt get the death magnetic pack.

That's dumb.

If you listen to EA, they were exclusive because XBL made it easiest to implement their design goals technically (song export, DLC carrying over, etc). If you don't believe EA and think it's an MS moneyhat, then it's a moneyhat.
.

Why believe EA? They also said that the 20 free songs were a last minute thing and would be DLC for the 360 because there wasnt enough time to get it on the disk.

Why is it then, that the PS3 version didnt have it on the disk? Or worse, why didnt the Wii version, with all the storage space concerns not include them? And as a final slap in the face, the PS2 version doesnt include them or have any way to access them.

I think 3 months is enough time to slip extra songs onto the disk that were promised.


Being 360 time exclusive is one thing. Launching on December 18/22 on your two most successful formats was inexcusable.


Its shocking that Activision is doing the exact same thing. What a way to alienate your audience and lose sales.

"Hey guys, theres a new GH game!"
"Um, its not out for wii"
"That sucks"
*No purchase made*
3 months later
"Hey guys, theres a new RB game coming out!"

 

[markatisu]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=14525877

IGN Podcast says Shaun White Wii sold 450k, which means we now know the Top 20 cut off

 

[Chris FOM]

Those are numbers "through" December, ie 470,000 for November AND December. We know the game did roughly 100,000 in November from prior numbers, so it looks like the December number was 370,000, give or take a bit.

Edit: Based on this. I assume the article has the correct number, not the PodCast. Especially as the De Blob number in the podcast also appears to be LTD.

 

[FrankT]

Is it 450k or 470k?

 

[markatisu]

Those are numbers "through" December, ie 470,000 for November AND December. We know the game did roughly 100,000 in November from prior numbers, so it looks like the December number was 370,000, give or take a bit.

But we still know the cut off now between 11 (Wii Music) and 20 (Shaun White)

 

[Azelover]

Well we have proof over the last 2 years that launching late on the Wii does not hurt the sales

Not really, the games still did well but we don't have proof sales weren't hurt. The amount of focus should have been greater, to me it was really a no brainer from the start these games would have been most successful on Wii. Even today it is considered an afterthought, personally I still think that resonates primarily from the developers.

 

[radcliff]

Adjusted according to IGN's latest podcast which said Shaun White sold 450K for Wii in December.

Top 20 Games of December 2008

1. WII PLAY W/ REMOTE WII NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 1.46 million
2. CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR* 360 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 1.33 million
3. WII FIT WII NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 999k
4. MARIO KART WII NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 878k
5. GUITAR HERO WORLD TOUR* WII ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 859k
6. GEARS OF WAR 2* 360 MICROSOFT - 745k
7. LEFT 4 DEAD 360 ELECTRONIC ARTS - 629k
8. MARIO KART NDS NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 540k
9. CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR PS3 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 533k
10. ANIMAL CROSSING: CITY FOLK* WII NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 497k
11. WII MUSIC WII NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 487k
12. NEW SUPER MARIO BROS NDS NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 250k-487k
13. PERSONAL TRAINER: COOKING NDS NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 450k-487k
14. FALLOUT 3* 360 BETHESDA SOFTWORKS - 450k-487k
15. CLUB PENGUIN: ELITE PENGUIN FORCE NDS DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS - 450k-487k
16. LINK'S CROSSBOW TRAINING WII NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 450k-487k
17. GUITAR HERO WORLD TOUR* PS2 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 450k-487k
18. MADDEN NFL 09* 360 ELECTRONIC ARTS - 450k-487k
19. CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR WII ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 450k-487k
20. SHAUN WHITE SNOWBOARDING: ROAD TRIP WII UBISOFT - 450k

Top 10 Wii Games

1. WII WII PLAY W/ REMOTE NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 1.46 million
2. WII WII FIT NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 999k
3. WII MARIO KART NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 878k
4. WII GUITAR HERO WORLD TOUR* ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 859k
5. WII ANIMAL CROSSING: CITY FOLK* NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 497k
6. WII WII MUSIC NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 487k
7. WII LINK'S CROSSBOW TRAINING NINTENDO OF AMERICA - 450k-487k
8. WII CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR ACTIVISION BLIZZARD - 450k-487k
9. WII SHAUN WHITE SNOWBOARDING: ROAD TRIP UBISOFT - 450K
10. WII NERF N STRIKE ELECTRONIC ARTS

 

[schuelma]

Adjusted according to IGN's latest podcast which said Shaun White sold 450K for Wii in December.

No I think its "through" December.

 

[bistromathics]

Anybody know how Orange Box 360 did compared to Orange Box PC? Valve released the Steam numbers right? What were the numbers for Orange Box PC Retail?

 

[SuperBanjo]

Damn, all those games sold over 450k?

Wow, December really is a monstrous month for sales.