May Console Sales Thread (E3 this week!)

[Big Fo]

Hardware: (last month in parenthesis)

Wii ... .......... ......675.1K (714k)
Nintendo DS . ..... 452.6K (415k)
PlayStation 3 ..........208.7K (187k)
Xbox 360 .............. 186.6K (188k)
PSP. .................... 182.3K (193k)

Software:

360 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV ................. ........... ..........871.3K
WII MARIO KART W/ WHEEL................ ......... ........ .......787.4K
WII FIT W/ BALANCE BOARD............... ........ ... ..........687.7K
PS3 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV................. .......... ..... ..............442.9K
WII PLAY W/ REMOTE......................... ............ ...............294.6K
WII SUPER SMASH BROS: BRAWL................ ..... .............171.1K
PS2 IRON MAN SEGA OF AMERICA APR 2008......... ............ ....130.6K
WII GUITAR HERO III: LEGENDS OF ROCK........ ....... ......116.8K
NDS POKEMON MYSTERY DUNGEON: EXPLORERS OF DARKNESS.. ....107K
NDS POKEMON MYSTERY DUNGEON: EXPLORERS OF TIME ... .....102K

Industry Stuff
Dollar Sales...... ... May 2007..... .... May 2008 ... .... CHG
Video Games........ $816.3M........ ..$1.12B .............37%
Video Games Hardware $319.7M....... $428.6M .........34%
Video Games Software $380.8M .... . $536.9M ......... 41%
Video Game Accessories $115.8M .... $150.8M ........ 30%

Originally Posted by NPD

Overall:

"The U.S. video games industry has generated $6.6B in sales so far this year which exceeds total 1997 annual revenues. The industry is on pace to achieve revenues in the $21-$23B range for 2008."

Hardware:

"Nintendo's Wii and NDS have captured the top two spots in terms of hardware sales for the fourth consecutive month."

"The continued success of GTA IV is not translating into big hardware sales for either the PS3 or the 360 but there may yet to be a lift in June due to gift-giving for Father's Day and Graduations."

Software:

"Coming in at number 12 on the top-sellers list, We Ski from Namco, which utilizes the Wii Fit balance board, was able to captilize on Wii Fit's cross-promotions in circulars and at retail."

"GTA IV has now generated combined sales of 4.2 million units, making it the top-selling title of the year."

"A lot of folks are interested in the battle of the bands. Year-to-date, Guitar Hero III has sold 2.5 million units compared to Rock Band's 1.3 million which lands them both in the top 10 titles for the year so far."

Lifetime sales for the consoles and some of the top 10:

PS3 - 4,450,000
Wii - 10,180,000
X360 - 10,270,000

Wii Play - 5,760,000
Brawl - 3,190,000
Guitar Hero 3 Wii - 2,200,000
Mario Kart - 1,907,000
GTA4 360 - 2,721,000
GTA4 PS3 - 1,442,000



Welcome back to another month of numbers, analysis of said numbers, general gaming news, fanboy baiting, speculation, spin, general gaming discussion, and the occasional inquiry as to what the point of these threads are.

Not much has changed from last month. The Wii sells as many as are available, DS marches on, and the HD twins continue to have decent but unimpessive numbers. The lack of PS2 numbers is a shame, it sold 124k last month so there's no way it died completely.

PS3 beats 360 by 20k. Statistical noise or the dawn of the revolution?

GTA sold another million plus this month, Mario Kart outsells Wii Fit though I've read both were hard to find for some people, and I think Guitar Hero for Wii has been in the top 10 every single month since it came out in October. Pokemon continues to print money.

Looking at the charts, every Wii game should come with a peripheral. I can see a future where Nintendo provides a much-needed USB hard-drive packaged with Animal Crossing, an online StarFox game with a headset, perhaps a new WaveRace game that comes packaged with an actual jet-ski. Rock Band should do well, the average consumer might not realize what they are missing out on compared to the PS360 version.

[Cringer]

Is this just NA numbers? I thought I had seen were the Wii had sold something crazy like 23-26 million consoles world wide. edit: overall I mean, not this month....

[Big Fo]

Not even North America, this is USA only for the month of May.

[Kodos]

I don't think there will be a system seller for the PS3 or 360 until there is a price drop. I think they've kinda tapped out the people who will pay the current price.

[Big Fo]

I know that Metal Gear Solid is not half as big as GTA as far as sales go, but with the 80 GB PS3 being available once more (consumers seem to prefer having backwards compatibility) it might get credited with a sales bump.

Yes, price drops would be better. Microsoft has only dropped the 360's price by $50 in two and a half years, that is unprecedented.

Edited the original post for some more info from NPD, including We Ski coming in at number 12. (Has anyone on here played this?)

at the Father's Day/graduation gift hypothsis

[Big Fo]

PR from the Big Three:

Originally Posted by Nintendo

Nintendo’s NPD response - NPD Figures Show Strong Consumer Response to Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit

Two Nintendo video games designed to appeal to both novice and expert gamers posted healthy numbers in the May sales charts, according to the independent NPD Group, which tracks sales of video game products in the United States. Mario Kart® Wii and Wii Fit™ finished No. 2 and No. 3 for the month, demonstrating continued consumer response to new controls and experiences.

“The Wii Wheel and Wii Balance Board accessories make game play fun for new gamers while presenting new challenges for those who have been playing a long time,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “The diversity of the seven Nintendo games represented in NPD’s top 10 for May demonstrates how Nintendo has something for everyone.”

Other highlights from NPD’s May U.S. sales report include:

* Wii™ (675,089 sold) and Nintendo DS™ (452,608 sold) again emerged as the two top-selling video game systems.
* Wii represented 63 percent of all current-generation consoles sold in May, while Nintendo DS had a 71 percent share of the portable market.
* Lifetime sales of Wii now stand at nearly 10.2 million.
* Lifetime sales of Nintendo DS are now at more than 20 million.
* Wii Play™ sold more than 295,000 in May, bringing its lifetime sales to more than 5.8 million.
* Of the top 30 best-selling games of May, 19 are made for Nintendo systems, including third-party hits like Guitar Hero™ III: Legends of Rock from Activision, We Ski™ from Namco Bandai, Game Party™ from Midway and Boom Blox™ from Electronic Arts.
* Pokémon® Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Pokémon® Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness combined to sell more than 208,000 in May, with lifetime sales of more than 613,000.

Originally Posted by Sony

PlayStation by the Numbers
May 2008

PS3 Eclipses Xbox 360 Hardware Sales; PS3 Hardware Sales Growth Exceeds 155 Percent Year-Over-Year

PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) continued its break-out year, selling 208,709 hardware units in May. 22,106 more units than Microsoft’s Xbox 360 (according to NPD May 2008 sales data).

Spurred by enthusiasm for Grand Theft Auto IV and the exclusive releases of SingStar for PS3 and Haze, 1.26 million software units were sold for PS3 in May, representing an increase of 234 percent from this time last year.

* 442,910 of copies of Grand Theft Auto IV were sold for PS3 in May, with more than 1.4 million of copies of the game sold for PS3 in the U.S. to date. More than 32 percent of U.S. PS3 owners have purchased a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV, a 6 percent higher attach rate than Xbox 360.
* PS3 hardware sales momentum is expected to continue in June, spurred by the highly anticipated launch of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, exclusively for PS3, as well as the introduction of the special edition Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots PS3 bundle.
* Popularity of the PLAYSTATION®Network continues to rise, with more than 20 million pieces of content downloaded from the PlayStation®Store in May (11.6 million for North America), including the monster hit echochrome. There are currently more than 9 million registered PLAYSTATION Network accounts worldwide (nearly 4.2 million in North America) with more than 160 million pieces of content downloaded from the PlayStation®Store to date.



PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) continued to boast solid sales in May with 182,310 PSP hardware units sold. In June, SCEA launched an exclusive God of War: Chains of Olympus PSP bundle including the Superbad UMD and a PSN voucher to download Syphon Filter: Combat Ops, which will further increase sales of the handheld.

PlayStation®2 (PS2) also had another strong month in May with hardware unit sales reaching 132,708 units, up 6.7 percent over the previous month. More than 42.2 million PS2s have been sold to date.

Power of the PlayStation Portfolio

The PlayStation brand continued to generate impressive sales, earning $331.6 million in May.

* Year-to-date (Jan-May), the PlayStation brand generated close to $2.27 billion in revenue, 46 percent higher than Microsoft, and representing an increase of more than 17 percent year-over-year.
* PlayStation total hardware revenue was $133 million in May, 98 percent higher than Microsoft, and representing a year-over-year growth of over 20.4 percent.
* PlayStation total software revenue in May was $159 million, representing a year-over-year growth of 19.2 percent.



“Leading into a pivotal season packed with blockbuster titles and unique online service offerings, consumers have chosen the PS3 as their home entertainment console of choice - showcased by its year-over-year sales growth of 155 percent. With its commanding line up of software titles and enhanced movie playback capabilities, the PS3 has seen phenomenal momentum with a software sales increase of more than 234 percent and additional studio support of delivering content in the Blu-ray format. The dual platform release of the much anticipated Grand Theft Auto IV title reaffirmed its legacy on the PlayStation platform with a 6 percent higher attach rate than Xbox 360, reinforcing consumer choice of PS3. Poised for continued momentum, PS3 is delivering on its breadth and depth of exclusive titles to its gaming fans with today's prized exclusive title launch of Metal Gear Solid 4. The media have hailed 2008 as the year of the PS3, and with solid sales and growth opportunities ahead, we feel consumers are saying the same.”

- Jack Tretton, president and CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment America

Originally Posted by Microsoft

NPD has released its May retail sales data, and Xbox 360 continues to lead the current generation of gaming consoles. Highlights include:

“Grand Theft Auto IV” continues blistering pace on Xbox 360 platform, beating the other platform version by 2:1

* With 871,000 total unit sales in May, “Grand Theft Auto IV” on Xbox 360 outsold the other platform’s version 2:1. (May NPD data)



Xbox 360 generates more dollars at retail for third party publishers

* With $110 million in third party game sales in May, Xbox 360 continues to move more third party games than any other console. Lifetime-to-date Xbox 360 has generated $3.9 billion dollars at retail for third party publishers, or 59% of the total in this generation. (May NPD data)
* 21 of the 25 top selling third party franchise titles with releases this generation, like “Grand Theft Auto IV,” sell best on Xbox 360. Eighteen of those franchises were previous best-sellers, and two were exclusives, on the PlayStation 2. (May NPD data)
* Only Xbox 360 is providing an improved software attach rate for third party games generation-over-generation. Xbox 360 continues to lead the industry with a record-breaking software attach rate of 7.7. (May NPD data)



Xbox 360 games outsell, outplay the competition

* Xbox 360 games rank higher than the competition with 12 games with a Metacritic score of 90 or higher, more than PS3 and Wii combined.
* Top-ranking games helped drive sales of 187,000 consoles in May contributing a global install base of more than 19 million. (May NPD data and Microsoft internal data)
* Game sales contributed to $214 million in total consumer spending on the Xbox 360 platform in May. Lifetime-to-date spending on Xbox 360 tops $9.9 billion, or 51% of share. (May NPD data)



Among 10-26 year olds, Xbox 360 gets more playing time than the Wii and PS3

* As reported in Nielsen’s Consumer Insight newsletter, a summary of Nielsen Games GamePlay Metrics service (which electronically tracks console usage) from April 2007 to February 2008 shows that among 10-26 year olds, Xbox 360 gets on average over twice the game play as the Wii with younger gamers, likely due to a record software attach and a blockbuster games library. The Xbox 360 gets roughly 75 hours of use per month. Wii users spent just 35 hours per month gaming during the same time period.
* Xbox 360 gamers in this age range also play more than their counterparts on PS3, who spend about 53 hours per month gaming.



Xbox 360: E3 bound

* Last month we showcased an all-star lineup of games including “Gears of War 2,” “Fable 2,” “Banjo and Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts,” “Viva Piñata 2,” and “Too Human.” We still have quite a few aces left up our sleeve; see you at E3 next month!

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Your thread title said it all. GTA4 may be the last multiplatform title where we see a console maker lay out big dollars for 'exclusive content'. Not only did it not provide any boost, but the content is now not coming until November at the earliest. It just was a bad business decision by Microsoft. Microsoft's May sales numbers were actually 1,000 units less than their May 2007 sales. Also, Microsoft was outsold in the rest of the world by roughly 150K units in a month where they expected a boost. That's disasterous.

We may now be seeing the early fallout from Microsoft's poor sales. Jeff Bell, VP of Global Marketing at Microsoft, 'resigned' from his post. It certainly appears that he's being placed as the fall guy for the GTA4 mess.

On the positive side for gamers, it would seem that a fall price war, likely initiated by Microsoft, is in store. That's great news for everyone, as a bigger installed base on all the systems is better for industry growth as a whole. But that's likely to bring Microsoft's short run of profitibility to a screeching halt. Sony should see a reduction of chip costs in August, so that would allow them to retaliatory price cut if Microsoft initiates a price war.

June's NPD results are a given. Sony will see a big win in June due to MGS4. Just how big may decide how quickly Microsoft makes a price cut, profits be damned.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

Yes, price drops would be better. Microsoft has only dropped the 360's price by $50 in two and a half years, that is unprecedented.

I think they would like to be at a lower price point already. The RROD and other hardware warranty repair costs have really hindered any chance at more price drops.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

June's NPD results are a given. Sony will see a big win in June due to MGS4. Just how big may decide how quickly Microsoft makes a price cut, profits be damned.

As much as I like to mock your fanboyism, I think you're dead-on here.

If MGS4 turns out to be even a moderate system seller (which I think it probably will be) then M$ better react quickly. They're already getting surpassed when a multi-platform game comes out, this could be especially bad for them.

[Cringer]

If MGS4 gets labeled a system seller I think it's half crap at the least. The reason I was close to getting a PS3 was because the 80GB coming back out, getting a $100 gift card when I buy it, and oh I get a free game with it which happens to be MGS and will probably be a cool enough game.

I guess that counts as a MGS sold? That now makes it look like a system that was sold because of that game, which would be false. I think MGS gets a good amount of sales from that. "Oh look, good time to buy a PS3 and you get a new game? Ok, lets do it."

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Cringer

If MGS4 gets labeled a system seller I think it's half crap at the least. The reason I was close to getting a PS3 was because the 80GB coming back out, getting a $100 gift card when I buy it, and oh I get a free game with it which happens to be MGS and will probably be a cool enough game.

I guess that counts as a MGS sold? That now makes it look like a system that was sold because of that game, which would be false. I think MGS gets a good amount of sales from that. "Oh look, good time to buy a PS3 and you get a new game? Ok, lets do it."

Good point.

I guess I should say if the combo of MGS4 and the 80GB return boost sales...

Essentially if anything causes the PS3 to jump to let's say... 50-60k more in a given month than the 360 (let alone more than that) then M$ needs to react immediately, do not pass go, etc.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by wade moore

Essentially if anything causes the PS3 to jump to let's say... 50-60k more in a given month than the 360 (let alone more than that) then M$ needs to react immediately, do not pass go, etc.

That is a bit of an overreaction. If the PS3 starts to consistently sell 60K more units per month than the 360, it would still take over 8 years (97 months) for the PS3 to catch the 360 in the US based on the NPD numbers listed above.

From my layman's perspective, I think the next 360 price drop will be sometime this fall, once they move the GPU to the 65nm process.

[Cringer]

Originally Posted by cartman

That is a bit of an overreaction. If the PS3 starts to consistently sell 60K more units per month than the 360, it would still take over 8 years (97 months) for the PS3 to catch the 360 in the US based on the NPD numbers listed above.

From my layman's perspective, I think the next 360 price drop will be sometime this fall, once they move the GPU to the 65nm process.

Anyone able to explain how this has an actual effect on game play? Clearly my first batch system will be playing the same games, so what is the difference?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Cringer

If MGS4 gets labeled a system seller I think it's half crap at the least. The reason I was close to getting a PS3 was because the 80GB coming back out, getting a $100 gift card when I buy it, and oh I get a free game with it which happens to be MGS and will probably be a cool enough game.

I guess that counts as a MGS sold? That now makes it look like a system that was sold because of that game, which would be false. I think MGS gets a good amount of sales from that. "Oh look, good time to buy a PS3 and you get a new game? Ok, lets do it."

Totally agree. I think the reintroduction of the 80 GB machine in good supply will be just as much of a factor. If anything, there's a whole lot of people who are buying the 80 GB PS3 through the Wal-Mart deal and just see MGS4 being included as icing on the cake.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by cartman

That is a bit of an overreaction. If the PS3 starts to consistently sell 60K more units per month than the 360, it would still take over 8 years (97 months) for the PS3 to catch the 360 in the US based on the NPD numbers listed above.

Dear cartman,

Hi! We're 65% of the total gaming market. Europe is the largest gaming region. Still acting like we don't exist?

Sincerely,

The rest of the world.

FYI....using your 60K number plus the 200K the PS3 is outselling the 360 in the rest of the world, means that the PS3 is outselling the 360 at a pace of roughly 250-260K units/month. If that trend were to continue exactly the same over the coming months, the PS3 would surpass the 360 in worldwide sales in 24 months. That assumption also carries the thought that the PS3 will continue to sell 20K/month in Japan. That's a very faulty assumption.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Anyone able to explain how this has an actual effect on game play? Clearly my first batch system will be playing the same games, so what is the difference?

No effect on gameplay, but smaller chip = lower price generally speaking.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Anyone able to explain how this has an actual effect on game play? Clearly my first batch system will be playing the same games, so what is the difference?

None. It affects heat and price, not performance.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Dear cartman,

Hi! We're 65% of the total gaming market. Europe is the largest gaming region. Still acting like we don't exist?

Sincerely,

The rest of the world.

Dear MBBF,

Please state where I mentioned European numbers. The discussion in this thread, based on the numbers above as provided by Big Fo via NPD, is about US sales figures.

Sincerely,

People with a clue

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by cartman

Dear MBBF,

Please state where I mentioned European numbers. The discussion in this thread, based on the numbers above as provided by Big Fo via NPD, is about US sales figures.

Sincerely,

People with a clue

These discussion threads have always been about worldwide numbers. That's always been very clear. The only reason that NPD numbers trigger the new thread is because the NPD numbers are always the last numbers of the three regions to be released. It's impossible to get a full picture until that point. Japan and Europe both release their numbers on a weekly basis.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Anyone able to explain how this has an actual effect on game play? Clearly my first batch system will be playing the same games, so what is the difference?

No affect on the playing of the games. The reason it will allow a price drop is that when you shrink the size of the chip, you can get more chips per silicon wafer. Think of it like this. You have cookie dough that you roll out to a 2 foot circle. You can get more cookies out of it if you make each one 8 inches across instead of 12 inches across. Basically the same concept. The companies that make the silicon wafers all sell them for the same price. It is up to you to figure out how many chips you can create out of the silicon wafer. More chips make from each wafer = lower cost.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

These discussion threads have always been about worldwide numbers. That's always been very clear.

Then it should also be very clear that there haven't been any other official numbers outside of USA data posted in this thread.

[Fidatelo]

Dear People Still Arguing About This,

Please realise that at this point, all of these numbers are meaningless. Nintendo is going to be #1, and the other two consoles will remain viable regardless of who finishes the generation in 2nd or 3rd, either worldwide or stateside. There is no Sega Dreamcast scenario this time around. We all won.

Sincerely,

FOFC

[Cringer]

Thanks for the explanation on the newer chips. For some reason I was thinking the 65nm had to do with speed. Now that I think about it I can't possibly think of any speed that would be labeled 'nm'.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

Dear People Still Arguing About This,

Please realise that at this point, all of these numbers are meaningless. Nintendo is going to be #1, and the other two consoles will remain viable regardless of who finishes the generation in 2nd or 3rd, either worldwide or stateside. There is no Sega Dreamcast scenario this time around. We all won.

Sincerely,

FOFC

Oh, they're far from meaningless. There's a lot of shifts occuring in the market right now. Nintendo is finally reaching the point where supply actually is catching up with demand, which should provide for an interesting new dynamic for that console. Sony is finally reaching a maturity point as a console (though most agree it should have happened sooner) and is cutting down the 360 worldwide lead with the AAA franchises coming in the next year starting right now. The 360, which looked to be a market monster only 10-12 months ago, is now limping through what should be some of the largest growth months of its life cycle and just had their marketing VP leave the company. There's plenty to discuss.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Now that I think about it I can't possibly think of any speed that would be labeled 'nm'.

I believe a snail measures his progress in nm/hour.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Interesting development regarding the Madden 20th Anniversary event. It is a PS3-only event. There will be no branding of the Xbox 360 or Wii at the event. I'm guessing Sony laid out some pretty good cash to do that. As everyone knows, I'm not a supporter of the series, but there's no question that the game still carries weight as long as they hold the NFL licence.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Thanks for the explanation on the newer chips. For some reason I was thinking the 65nm had to do with speed. Now that I think about it I can't possibly think of any speed that would be labeled 'nm'.

yeah, nm is a measurement of size: nanometers. 1nm = 1 billionth of a meter. It's pretty tiny.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Microsoft E3 announcements to be 'spectacular, desparate'.........

http://www.videogaming247.com/2008/0...ss-conference/

Too Human nears completion........

http://blogs.ign.com/silicon-knights/2008/06/12/92677/

Shane Kim comments on next-gen Xbox.......

http://www.n4g.com/industrynews/News-156921.aspx

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Analysis of NPD numbers.........

http://dubiousquality.blogspot.com/2...l-is-gone.html

Updated article about the FTC investigation into the EA/Take Two merger........

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/level...g-the-ftc.aspx

[twothree]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Nintendo is finally reaching the point where supply actually is catching up with demand...

What???

I might believe that when I actually see a Wii on a store shelf on more than 3 different days in a given year. So far, I have only seen a Wii on a store shelf once this year (and that was in a bundle where you were forced to buy a bunch of other accessories with it), and at most once in any previous year.

[Big Fo]

fwiw I've seen Wiis available for sale twice since I bought mine in December 2006, both in the last two months. One of these was on Mario Kart launch day. I've never seen any Wii Fit in stores though. That said I don't work in retail or anything and I'm in those kinds of stores maybe once a month or once every few weeks.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by twothree

What???

I might believe that when I actually see a Wii on a store shelf on more than 3 different days in a given year. So far, I have only seen a Wii on a store shelf once this year (and that was in a bundle where you were forced to buy a bunch of other accessories with it), and at most once in any previous year.

It's still not reached the point where they'll stay on the shelves for days, but you can go in on retail shipping days and find Wii systems on the shelves during the day. It's just a matter of finding out which days the various retailers receive shipments. There was no chance of that as little as 3-4 months ago. Nintendo's ramp-up of production in recent months has helped quite a bit.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Another article about the recent NPD numbers. Analysts mention that PS3 exclusives tend to be much better at moving consoles than 360 or Wii exclusives. Also, they predict that a 360 price cut needs to happen as soon as E3 next month.

http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/ne...t-at-e3/?biz=1

It would be absolutely wonderful if we could get a $50-75 price cut from the 360 that quickly. The Wii would suddenly be outpriced by the 360 and it would also force Sony to make cuts to remain competitive. The previous console sales records would be blown out of the water.

[KWhit]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Another article about the recent NPD numbers. Analysts mention that PS3 exclusives tend to be much better at moving consoles than 360 or Wii exclusives. Also, they predict that a 360 price cut needs to happen as soon as E3 next month.

http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/ne...t-at-e3/?biz=1

It would be absolutely wonderful if we could get a $50-75 price cut from the 360 that quickly. The Wii would suddenly be outpriced by the 360 and it would also force Sony to make cuts to remain competitive. The previous console sales records would be blown out of the water.

That would make sense, because far fewer people already have a PS3.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by KWhit

That would make sense, because far fewer people already have a PS3.

I believe they're measuring it as a percentage of the installed base on that system, which would mean that statistic doesn't favor a console with a smaller installed base (i.e. it's measured in a way where that argument is immaterial).

[BrianD]

Is there a way to measure that in a way that doesn't make current install base an issue? About the only way I can think of is to calculate consoles sold as a result of a particular game and divide by the total amount of people that ever own the console - which can only be done after the console is no longer for sale.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by BrianD

Is there a way to measure that in a way that doesn't make current install base an issue? About the only way I can think of is to calculate consoles sold as a result of a particular game and divide by the total amount of people that ever own the console - which can only be done after the console is no longer for sale.

Very true. It's a liquid situation, so there's never an absolute number.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

More indications that we'll see Wii's in stock on shelves in the next month or two. Nintendo says it was hit with demand on Wii Fit release, but expects that large recent increases in production will allow Wiis to be on the shelves in much better numbers.

http://www.n4g.com/industrynews/News-157190.aspx

[gstelmack]

Maybe they'll actually get some Wii Fits on the shelves to go with them...

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

Maybe they'll actually get some Wii Fits on the shelves to go with them...

Are there THAT many obese Americans?

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I believe they're measuring it as a percentage of the installed base on that system, which would mean that statistic doesn't favor a console with a smaller installed base (i.e. it's measured in a way where that argument is immaterial).

Explain that logic. A lower number of installed consoles would still make for a more drastic percentage change when people buy consoles. Kwhit's point is still valid unless they do it like BrianD said, which is impossible during the actual life of the console.

[Cringer]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Another article about the recent NPD numbers. Analysts mention that PS3 exclusives tend to be much better at moving consoles than 360 or Wii exclusives. Also, they predict that a 360 price cut needs to happen as soon as E3 next month.

http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/ne...t-at-e3/?biz=1

It would be absolutely wonderful if we could get a $50-75 price cut from the 360 that quickly. The Wii would suddenly be outpriced by the 360 and it would also force Sony to make cuts to remain competitive. The previous console sales records would be blown out of the water.

I can understand this and have a simple take on it. I bought a PS3 last year, had it for a month and returned it having never opened it. There was no point to have it IMO, because the games were all crap. There is probably a group (and maybe a good size one) that has been saying to themselves since the PS3 came out, "I want one of those, but for that much money I will wait until there are more good games." An exclusive, or big franchise name game in general comes along and the time is right to justify the purchase. Again, this is what almost happened for me, but instead went the route to just fix my 360. What actually cost Sony a purchase from me was not having the 80GB for sale when GTA IV came out.

I keep telling you guys, I am the common man with this crap.

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Are there THAT many obese Americans?

Yes. Take a good look around next time you go to any place that sells food.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Are there THAT many obese Americans?

Have you been outside lately?

SI

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Have you been outside lately?

SI

No, I'm not able to fit out my bedroom door. Why do you ask?

[Mota]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

fwiw I've seen Wiis available for sale twice since I bought mine in December 2006, both in the last two months. One of these was on Mario Kart launch day. I've never seen any Wii Fit in stores though. That said I don't work in retail or anything and I'm in those kinds of stores maybe once a month or once every few weeks.

I've gone to retail at least 10 times in the last month, and have probably seen it in stock 70% of the time.

Wii Fit is a different story.

[sterlingice]

I must be horribly unlucky or maybe we don't get them in flyover country or something. I've seen a Wii in stock all of twice. Ever. And I'm someone who compulsively goes into game stores to check out sales and over the past year, I've given a quick look to see if there are Wii's in stock.

SI

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

MGS4 Japanese numbers are in. Pretty healthy bump for the PS3 in Japan. MGS4 is the highest selling game for the PS3 in Japan in only 4 days. Here's the sales figures for the MGS4 release week.........

PS3 - 75K
Wii - 46K
360 - 2K

Dark Cloud 3 in development for the PS3........

http://www.psbeyond.com/news/Rumor-D...ively.657.html

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Interesting sales numbers for Boom Blox. It only sold 60K units in the first month of release. Was the $49 price point too much for consumers to swallow? All indications are that it was a good game, but the sales numbers certainly are cause for concern.

[gstelmack]

$49 for BoomBlox wasn't too much for me, and my kids LOVE it. I just don't think many folks know about it: it was hyped in typical gaming circles, but I never saw a TV ad or anything. I suspect it has a decent chance of slow but sustained sales for a while as word-of-mouth spreads.

[rjolley]

I'd never heard of it and just checked it on on EA's site. Looks like a lot of fun. When we get a Wii, that will be one of the games to get.