Topic: Call of Duty Black Ops Wii > Goldeneye ;)

[BlackNMild2k1]

I really don't want to have this argument again, but NPD, Media Create, Chart Track GfK, Famitsu and whatever other official sales tracking services there are get actual numbers from retailers and only estimate sales from non-reporting retailers (i.e. Walmart) based on complex calculations involving shipments and sell through at other retailers.

VGChartz is a fan run site that has no official source such as retailer reportings, and the person running that site has been making up and then adjusting their numbers to match more official sources since before VGChartz became a website.

It's one thing to estimate a portion of your numbers due to uncooperative retailers and it's a whole other thing entirely to guesstimate the numbers based off of nothing more than a hunch and some calculation based on hype and early review scores.

[Ymeegod]

People can't read:

"•A telephone survey of retailers across America. We called over 200 retailers (distributed across the country and across different chains in a proportion representative of market share) and asked how many Kinect units they had purchased and how many they had sold. Now 200 retailers from 30,000 isn't a lot, but one GameStop will sell similar amounts to another - each new store you call follows the law of diminishing returns in terms of accuracy improvement. Then, on a retailer by retailer basis, we took an average per store and multiply by the number of stores. We then scaled this with any missing retailers to match the overall marketshare. This gives one estimate of Kinect sell-through.
•A pre-order analysis using a typical pre-order to week-one ratio for a casual Xbox 360 title to arrive at a second estimate. An explanation of where our pre-order data comes from can form it's own editorial but a combination of retail pre-order info from best-seller lists at various stores and user pre-order data (purchase intent) via trawls of major sites like GameSpot, IGN, Eurogamer and so on are the two main contributors.
•Contact a small retail panel who provide regular data for VGChartz and weigh and scale that data to provide a third estimate. We have a lot of experience with this data so while it isn't particularly representitive we have a lookup table of scaling factors and adjustment for different types of game / hardware.
•A Gamercard analysis of more than 5 million Gamercards to calculate the proportion of players playing Kinect games (specifically Kinect Adventures), and from the raw figures we can scale up to produce a fourth estimate of sales via an analysis of gamercard to sales ratios for different types of game.
"

NPD states they have data collected from 850 retailers but there's one big difference.  VGCharts only focusses on games where NPD collects data on everydamn thing that's sold.  Meaning out those 850 chains, how man actual sell games? 

And for the most part they post similar numbers within a certain about of error.  For example, I recall one of those Aliens games being quoted by NPD as selling 630k first month sales when the developer stated it just broke 1/2 million sales one week after NPD quote.  That's an error of 26%.  Higher than normal, yeah, just still means NPD's human just like the rest.

[ShyGuy]

I think I read somewhere that Call of Duty World at War for the Wii passed a million sales worldwide.

[Ymeegod]

CoD WoW WII: 1.6 million

Well according to VGchartz

PS:  NPD does track Walmart sales now for the past couple of years, it's right from NPD's website.  Think it was 07 or 08 when the two got together. 

[BlackNMild2k1]

People can't read:

I'm sorry, but where were we supposed to read that? you didn't put a link.
I'm gonna assume that is from ioi himself over at VGChartz (pre post edit: a quick google search confirms this)
And do you know what that non sourced BS explanation is in response to? Him getting called out by a MS representative over some BS and very  incorrect Kinect sold through numbers

"LOL'ing at sales reports from VGChartz, why do people release info as official when there is no source or science behind the #s?"

Those are the same type of responses that he would always give that don't actually prove anything and still not citing any such source.
So this guy called 200 GameStops and asked them how many Kinects they got in stock and sold, then through some BS extrapolation equation he came up with, estimated how many units that must mean sold across the country in that given period of time. And that is just as useful as NPD who tracks everything sold at just about every damn retail chain across the country? really?

VGChartz is **** and to argue over their numbers being anything close to legit is a waste of time as they have been called out on numerous occasions and caught adjusting their numbers to match more official sources. We even had a thread on it here where we followed their numbers and seen how "close" they were after NPD released (hint: they were far off enough to not use them as a legit source). VGChartz is a joke and shouldn't be treated any other than.[/quote]

[Ymeegod]

1.  I did post a link

2.  They don't call 200GS, what's the point when they only have to call one regional manager who can tell you everything to do with the chain?  It's 200 different retailers like Target, BB, Walmart, ect.  Yes, NPD does 850 different chains that cover 125K stores but it doesn't state how many are just target video games.  For example, NPD tracks food, clothing, ect so chains like Wendy's and the Gap are part of that 850. 

3.  NPD isn't 99.9 right, hell they not even close.  It's like a weatherman, one day this guy right the next this one.  The are not to be taken as face value meaning there's always going be gap between actual and what market research states. 

[Stratos]

Great link Ymeegod! I actually put a lot more stock in VGChartz now. It just like the people running polls in elections. They tend to be fairly close overall and it really is a science. You can peg things pretty well with stuff like that. Not 100% of the time but close enough to get a good feel for what is actually happening.

So please stop making those cheap shots at VGChartz guys. It's actually getting on my nerves truth be told. Yes, we all know they aren't always right. You don't have to badger us with it every time their name is mentioned. And look at what Ymeegod quoted from that article: they don't pull numbers out of their ass. They poll retailers and come up with an estimate based on the average.

[TJ Spyke]

Sigh, you don't get it. NPD tracks about 85% of all sales and uses that info to extrapolate the rest. VG Chartz just randomly guesses. They are as reliable as asking a random person for data, you lose all credibility if you use them.

[NeoStar9X]

Back to the damn game people.

Has anyone been having issues with the disc drive dying on them due to playing the game? Seems a number of people are having this issue due to the constant streaming the game requires. Now granted their drives might be in bad shape due to constant use over the years and this game could have finally pushed it over the edge. I had mine replaced some time ago but really curious if those that have had their drives replaced already are having any issues with the game?

[Mop it up]

ShyGuy's system stopped reading discs and has to be repaired, and my system did the same thing shortly after reaching the hundred-hour mark in Modern Warfare. It is hard to say for sure, but it would seem that the Wii drive may not have been built to withstand this kind of constant streaming.

[kraken613]

If your that concerned about your disk drive just install a USB Loader through homebrew.

[Mop it up]

I've considered it, and I might do that once my warranty expires.

[BranDonk Kong]

Why wait until then? It doesn't void your warranty.

[Mop it up]

It was my understanding that unauthorized modifications (homebrew) of any kind voids the warranty. Why risk it?

[BlackNMild2k1]

Did you guys know that CoD Black Ops wasn't actually a game after all!?
It's actually an optionally interactive movie in the first person perspective where you control where the camera goes and when... most of the time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RULv6HbgEjY#!

[TJ Spyke]

It was my understanding that unauthorized modifications (homebrew) of any kind voids the warranty. Why risk it?

Correct, I just checked Nintendo's online Wii warranty (I am not home at the moment to check my physical copy):

THIS WARRANTY SHALL NOT APPLY IF THIS PRODUCT: (a) IS USED WITH PRODUCTS NOT SOLD OR LICENSED BY NINTENDO (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NON-LICENSED GAME ENHANCEMENT AND COPIER DEVICES, ADAPTERS, AND POWER SUPPLIES); (b) IS USED FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES (INCLUDING RENTAL); (c) IS MODIFIED OR TAMPERED WITH;. So if you modify the system in any way and it needs to be repaired, you better hope you can remove any signs that you modded it if you want the warranty to cover the repair.

[BranDonk Kong]

Pretty sure they're talking about hardware, since even using an SD card to backup your saves and whatnot would be modifying the system. You can look around the internet and find tons of people that have sent in a homebrew-equipped Wii and they've fixed it for them. I've ever read numerous accounts of Nintendo fixing a Wii that had a physical modchip installed, one time (it was a solderless chip, IIRC), they even put it separate in a bag and shipped it back with the console.

[TJ Spyke]

But they don't have to. If you mod your Wii and they still fix it for free, good for you. They just don't have to if they don't want (and using SD cards are not modding the system since they even mention on the Wii Channels screen that you can use SD cards).

[BranDonk Kong]

It's still *technically* a modification, I understand that it's a fully supported modification.

About the Black Ops video - that's the first level of the game, and it's basically a 15 minute scripted sequence, so the video is actually pretty stupid. It's obvious when you play that level, and you don't have anything on the HUD but a compass, that your real participation isn't too important.

[broodwars]

About the Black Ops video - that's the first level of the game, and it's basically a 15 minute scripted sequence, so the video is actually pretty stupid. It's obvious when you play that level, and you don't have anything on the HUD but a compass, that your real participation isn't too important.

Indeed.  I've played through the entire game, and the first level is really the only one like that.  An odd design choice to be sure, but it didn't bother me all that much.

[Stratos]

I think it is a cool idea. It lets you feel a part of the introduction. Sure beats MGS-scale opening cinematics.

[cubist]

ShyGuy's system stopped reading discs and has to be repaired, and my system did the same thing shortly after reaching the hundred-hour mark in Modern Warfare. It is hard to say for sure, but it would seem that the Wii drive may not have been built to withstand this kind of constant streaming.

Yep.  I bought my Wii at launch.  Just had the drive replaced last summer.  It started making a loud disc spinning sound...and then died.

[Stratos]

So I was dropping off a Redbox movie for my family and out of curiosity I checked to see what games they had and discovered Black Ops Wii.

And let me say, it is amazing. I just wrote down my settings from Reflex and punched them in. I few tweaks later and I'm in business. The game definitely feels more balanced. It's fast-paced and very fun. The customization of your perks and weapons is awesome. The game feels a big laggier but I did bump down my internet speed to save some money. I'm gonna try and raise it back up this month on a new deal so those issues should be resolved. Graphics do seem a bit simple. Seems like they didn't use too many advanced textures.

The shotgun actually seems to hit people now. And Nuketown is an awesome map.

Also, the game is going for $40 at my local Wal-Mart. If it weren't so close to Christmas I'd be more tempted to splurge my food money on it. But around this time of year it's understood in my family that you don't buy anything for yourself that someone else could have already gotten you as a gift.

[Retro Deckades]

Meh. I already own Reflex Edition. I really don't see why I would need another COD/war game.

[MegaByte]

Pretty sure they're talking about hardware, since even using an SD card to backup your saves and whatnot would be modifying the system. You can look around the internet and find tons of people that have sent in a homebrew-equipped Wii and they've fixed it for them. I've ever read numerous accounts of Nintendo fixing a Wii that had a physical modchip installed, one time (it was a solderless chip, IIRC), they even put it separate in a bag and shipped it back with the console.

They changed their policy about a year ago.  Now they scan for any traces of homebrew/modified system files even for unrelated repairs.