Support NeoGAF

[KingDizzi]

I'm assumed at anyone who feels emotions as extreme as anguish because of videogame sales numbers, unless their livelihood is tied to those numbers.

[EDIT] Removed annoying spoiler tags from a non-spoiler.

Well I have made a killing off Activision shares however that is not the reason I enjoy looking at video game sales. I'm only 19 but since the age of 15 got shares through my dad and hit the jackpot thanks to GH and the earlier COD titles. I'm sure 99% of the people here are not affected financially when it comes to how well these consoles sell however there has to be a reason why the NPD titles are so popular. The franchise I care most about is GT and hope GT5 sells millions but however well it does has absolutely no effect on me financially. But Psychotect just likes 360 and wants it to do well, no idea though why people come up with that shitty line of "I want it to sell well because GAF won't like it." Just accept it that you have an emotional bond with a bit of plastic, I openly admit that I will shed a tear when GT5 does not reach 50 million sold.

DKC going to sell 10 million within a year WW, it's gonna be nice seeing a Retro title sell well. Ah WTF happened with Vanquish? Selling worse than Madworld is embarrassing.

 

[Thunder Monkey]

I just want to say I appreciate that you didn't spoiler tag a non-spoiler. Its getting so common and annoying.

Spoiler

Pisses me off too.

 

[Kandinsky]

Everything bombed pretty hard lol

 

[The Librarian]

Spoiler

Pisses me off too.

:lol

 

[dolemite]

...

DKC going to sell 10 million within a year WW, it's gonna be nice seeing a Retro title sell well. Ah WTF happened with Vanquish? Selling worse than Madworld is embarrassing.

Did a single DKC series sell 10 million actually? I know Mario does it every single time, so it's a nobrainer but DKC?!

 

[Psychotext]

But Psychotect just likes 360 and wants it to do well, no idea though why people come up with that shitty line of "I want it to sell well because GAF won't like it."

I own and like all consoles. The whining and mewling regarding Kinect certainly amuses me though... especially when the endless lols turn into anger.

 

[professor_t]

Dear video game companies,

Please stop making skateboarding games.

Sincerely,

The Entire Universe

 

[FirstInHell]

I knew Vanquish was gonna bomb so hard, but it's still a shame. Enslaved, on the other hand, I'm pretty much happy that it bombed.

It's a pretty great game. I am not sure why you would be happy it did not do well.

 

[dolemite]

:lol

Spoiler

:lol

 

[Pride]

Well I have made a killing off Activision shares however that is not the reason I enjoy looking at video game sales. I'm only 19 but since the age of 15 got shares

Not sure I would classify "making a killing" off of a stock that traded between $7-$8 dollars 4 years ago and now is at $11.62 with a 4 year high of $17.

 

[flyinpiranha]

I don't get this whole stifling innovation thing. I have played some of the best, most innovative titles ever in the past 10 years and a lot of those have been in the past 5 years. Do I still love OoT or think _______ on the SNES was great? Sure. But I can't discount the countless titles that have come out.

I keep seeing "oh, but the blockbusters are just the same genre" ... really? So the best selling video game this generation has been a fitness game, I guess all the top games are fitness games?

It's like people have tunnel vision when looking at the games industry these days. "All I see is FPS" ... funny, I'm playing Two Worlds 2, The Witcher, Halo Reach (you caught me!), Skate 3, NBA 2K11 (tops on NPD by the way), Move with Sports Champions and currently waiting for Cataclysm and GT5 and have played a few FPS titles this year sure, but a majority? Hell no. And almost all of these titles have/will do well.

Just because Britney Spears sells doesn't mean the music industry is dying.
Just because The Davinci Code sells doesn't mean the book industry is dying.
Just because Twilight sells doesn't mean the movie industry is dying.
And just because FPS sell doesn't mean the gaming industry is dying.

Do you think Braid, Minecraft, or Flower would/could have happened 10 years ago with this much exposure? I don't.

I'm not saying the financial state of some of these companies aren't in need of some restructuring but the whole doom and gloom ... especially with the example of the movie industry is quite funny ... considering the past 30 years and what we've seen accomplished by the studios.

Honestly, regarding ANY of these mediums if you can't find a multitude of things to read, watch, listen to, or play ... it's you, not "the industry" that is hurting.

 

[Chrange]

Not sure I would classify "making a killing" off of a stock that traded between $7-$8 dollars 4 years ago and now is at $11.62 with a 4 year high of $17.

When you're 16-17, that's a LOT of money... :lol

 

[skyfinch]

Dear video game companies,

Please stop making skateboarding games.

Sincerely,

The Entire Universe

Where do I sign?

 

[Gram Negative Cocci]

Spoiler

Pisses me off too.

oh

....

YOU ;}

 

[KingDizzi]

When you're 16-17, that's a LOT of money... :lol

:lol :lol Fucking right

I got a grands worth when I was 15 for and ended up selling during the time COD4 released and for me it was a killing, doubled what I put in so it only took about 2 years. Not like I doubled £4 though, I would say 1k is pretty substantial. :/ I bailed though at the end, it peaked before that but dropped and thought forget it, was too worried about my A-levels once I belly flopped physics AS first time round.

Did a single DKC series sell 10 million actually? I know Mario does it every single time, so it's a nobrainer but DKC?!

While NSMB Wii is a great game I would say nostalgia plays a big factor in the sales and DK is as big a nostalgia factor as you can really get. It's not like the game is going to be bad either, it's a quality 2D game so I really don't see 10 million being a problem. Probably getting carried away saying it will do that within a year but lifetime? no problem

 

[John Harker]

My livelihood depends on it, so

The writing was on the wall, but the shift is so brutally painful. Ugh.
When will the facebook bubble hurry up and burst?

Oh well. Poor so many games (Castlevania one), poor studios.

So at least, did NBA Jam Wii outsell EA MMA?
I mean, two bads don't make a good, but at least then Jam isn't a colossal disappointment.... it's so fun.

 

[HK-47]

No DK game has ever sold ten million unless you took the SNES, GBC, GBA and VC versions of DKC1 and added them up

 

[Kodiak]

I heard a teenage boy at Gamestop say "That game looks stupid, I mean its like all yarn and gay shit"

I turned to that young lad and said "Hey, Go fuck yourself!"

and walked the fuck out

 

[SapientWolf]

I don't see any similarities between the games.

It's kind of a zero sum game. The average consumer's monthly gaming budget is only so large and every game released that month is competing for it. Mind share is similarly scarce. Dollars that went to New Vegas might have gone somewhere else had it been released at another time.

Similarly, sometimes I have to wonder if Alan Wake would have done better if it didn't release the same day as Red Dead Revolver. May 2010 was murderer's row for everyone that wasn't Nintendo, THQ, or Rockstar.

 

[unomas]

I was expecting EA Sports MMA to do better, 45k units seems rough. Should be interesting to see how the Kinect launch titles do.

 

[Patriotsbball5460]

I heard a teenage boy at Gamestop say "That game looks stupid, I mean its like all yarn and gay shit"

I turned to that young lad and said "Hey, Go fuck yourself!"

and walked the fuck out

:lol :lol

I try to argue with people the creative sides of games, but no one ever gives two shits about it. (ie. Flower, Kirby, Limbo)

 

[Kittonwy]

I only got my EDGE with Bloodstone on the cover yesterday, and I just read the interview with Kotick where he talks about how they nailed it with Shred. Maybe he meant nailed to the cross.

:lol

 

[Kittonwy]

their lack of talent?

Nah Tameem would never do that.

 

[Kittonwy]

I heard a teenage boy at Gamestop say "That game looks stupid, I mean its like all yarn and gay shit"

I turned to that young lad and said "Hey, Go fuck yourself!"

and walked the fuck out

You need to lighten up.

 

[Owzers]

It's kind of a zero sum game. The average consumer's monthly gaming budget is only so large and every game released that month is competing for it. Mind share is similarly scarce. Dollars that went to New Vegas might have gone somewhere else had it been released at another time.

Similarly, sometimes I have to wonder if Alan Wake would have done better if it didn't release the same day as Red Dead Revolver. May 2010 was murderer's row for everyone that wasn't Nintendo, THQ, or Rockstar.

If Alan Wake had the entire month to itself it probably would have sold around 300k initially instead of the paltry 145k. It's possible that people just didn't care about Alan Wake though.

Red Dead Redemption (Xbox 360) - 945,900
Red Dead Redemption (PlayStation 3) - 567,100
Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii) - 563,900
UFC 2010: Undisputed (Xbox 360) - 221,100
UFC 2010: Undisputed (PlayStation 3) - 192,300
Wii Fit
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Alan Wake
Pokemon Soulsilver Version
Skate 3 (Xbox 360)

Getting outsold by UFC 2010 doesn't look very good though, makes me think the money was there but the interest in the game wasn't. I bought Red Dead, Galaxy 2, and Alan Wake that month. Sold Red Dead after getting 75% through it, finished Wake and didn't really like it, haven't played Galaxy 2 yet since i'm aging it like delicious videogame-wine.

I was expecting EA Sports MMA to do better, 45k units seems rough. Should be interesting to see how the Kinect launch titles do.

That was EA deciding to try to get a piece of the action, i'm sort of glad it bombed.

 

[Drkirby]

100k is a bit low for a Kirby game, but it was not that great of a Kirby game ether. Looks good, music is fantastic, but it has far to many loads and NOW SAVING screens, along with some pretty dull stages, killing the replay value.

 

[Rush2thestart]

100k is pretty low for a Kirby game, but its not that great of a Kirby game ether. Looks good, music is fantastic, but it has far to many loads and NOW SAVING screens, and the stages are to dull to have replay value to me.

Pretty sure its in line with the DS Kirby's initial sales.

 

[Thunder Monkey]

You need to lighten up.

I would have stabbed the little fucker.

 

[seady]

:lol at those poor Activision's games' sales. I hope they get more 'hits' like that so they will finally wake up to their poor management and just fire Kodick already.

 

[AniHawk]

Spoiler

:lol

It's Mullet-Laughie.

 

[Thunder Monkey]

It's Mullet-Laughie.

Billy Ray Smiley.

 

[markatisu]

100k is a bit low for a Kirby game, but it was not that great of a Kirby game ether. Looks good, music is fantastic, but it has far to many loads and NOW SAVING screens, along with some pretty dull stages, killing the replay value.

No its actually on par

 

[Sho_Nuff82]

:lol at those poor Activision's games' sales. I hope they get more 'hits' like that so they will finally wake up to their poor management and just fire Kodick already.

How is it again that it's Kotick's fault that people didn't enjoy a well-reviewed, well-advertised game like DJ Hero 2 or Blur?

With Tony Hawk and Guitar Hero sure, I understand the scorn, but it's not like the man has the universal touch of death.

 

[Kodiak]

You need to lighten up.

It was more lighthearted than you're thinking.

 

[seady]

As much as I (and maybe many of you) LOVE Nintendo for focusing on core games this year (Mario Galaxy 2, Metroid, Epic Mickey, Kirby, Goldeneye, Donkey Kong, Sin & Punishment, Monster Hunter, No More Heroes 2....etc), this is simply not what the Wii's audience care about and it is the reason why the system drops so much in sale this year.

Of course you can say the Wii's sale has peaked so it's natural to drop. But I also think the Wii lacks a Wii Fit or Wii Sports kind of game to spark interest and the 'wow factor' in the mass market.

Say what you want about Wii sucks or Wii has no hardcore games. When Nintendo focuses on core games (and they did a phenomenon job this year on that), sale drop is what they get. Maybe the vitality sensor WAS the right answer after all. It has that 'wow factor' if done correctly.

 

[onipex]

FPS genre is next.

Not before Ubisoft kills off the dance genre. They will have 6 dance out by the end of the year.

On another note. It would be interesting to see the 360 outsell the Wii in one or both of the next two months. Nintendo needs something to shake them up more and losing the holidays will speak the loudest to them right now.

 

[MechaX]

So they throw a massive budget at Castlevania and it still manages to bomb (unless it released at the very end of October, which I don't remember if it did). Yikes. At this point, it might actually be more cost effective to give the series back to IGA!

 

[Rainier]

It's kind of a zero sum game. The average consumer's monthly gaming budget is only so large and every game released that month is competing for it. Mind share is similarly scarce. Dollars that went to New Vegas might have gone somewhere else had it been released at another time.

Exactly.

You need to lighten up.

No mention of pushing him into a magazine rack, it could have been worse.

 

[clashfan]

I heard a teenage boy at Gamestop say "That game looks stupid, I mean its like all yarn and gay shit"

I turned to that young lad and said "Hey, Go fuck yourself!"

and walked the fuck out

Kid makes a lame comment about a game. You verbally assault the kid. Somehow this makes you look better? Hmm...

 

[_Alkaline_]

Kid makes a lame comment about a game. You verbally assault the kid. Somehow this makes you look better? Hmm...

I would have hit the kid.

Sounds like a little shit.

 

[Drkirby]

No its actually on par

Now that I think about it, I really don't know how much they tend to sell in their first month in the US, just the lifetime sales. Any hard numbers for US Sales, looking in the past NPD topic I see nothing.

I mean, 500k copies sold in NA would be worse then what Air Ride did, it got 750k in NA sales.

 

[Pureauthor]

So they throw a massive budget at Castlevania and it still manages to bomb (unless it released at the very end of October, which I don't remember if it did). Yikes. At this point, it might actually be more cost effective to give the series back to IGA!

'Might'? I could have told you that from the get-go.

(Not to mention LoS isn't even very good anyway. OoE is the better game!)

 

[clashfan]

I would have hit the kid.

Sounds like a little shit.

And then you probably get beat up by a 13 year COD fan...

 

[Thunder Monkey]

And then you probably get beat up by a 13 year COD fan...

Which is why I brought a knife!

Stabby stabby.

 

[Jive Turkey]

It's Mullet-Laughie.

Damn it...Now I can't unsee it.

 

[Owzers]

Which is why I brought a knife!

Stabby stabby.

Well that IS effective in CoD too. Beats a gun.

 

[perfectchaos007]

Now that I think about it, I really don't know how much they tend to sell in their first month in the US, just the lifetime sales. Any hard numbers for US Sales, looking in the past NPD topic I see nothing.

I mean, 500k copies sold in NA would be worse then what Air Ride did, it got 750k in NA sales.

I had 10x more fun with air ride than I have with Epic Yarn. The art is great but that doesn't make it more enjoyable.

 

[speculawyer]

How is it again that it's Kotick's fault that people didn't enjoy a well-reviewed, well-advertised game like DJ Hero 2 or Blur?

Because it came out the previous year to great reviews but didn't sell. Why did would they think it would sell the second time?

 

[BladeoftheImmortal]

Shaun White will learn to take it in Stride.

Maybe he'll stride into a Wendy's and have a delicious vanilla frosty.

 

[Owzers]

Because it came out the previous year to great reviews but didn't sell. Why did would they think it would sell the second time?

I'm usually happy when they give a low selling initial effort a second chance. I fault the plastic peripheral genre, they should have just re-advertised the first DJ Hero along with new dlc or an expansion disc or something, clear out the inventory of the reduced priced turntables. Instead....here's a new $100 turntable sku!