Topic: Official Sales Thread

[BlackNMild2k1]

i wonder how many RE5 units were traded-in after a day.

I don't think trade-ins are allowed in Japan. They probably just put it on eBay and sold it to unwitting Americans.

Really? I always thought that one of the reasons the Japanese game market was so difficult for hardcore games was that hardcore gamers bought the games, beat em in days, then resold them back to the used games market almost instantly.

Kairon, you're right.
Japan doesn't have a game rental system, you have to buy the game either new or used if you want to play it.
Thats why 1st day & 1st week sales are usually very important unless a game has infinite replay value.

[Stratos]

i wonder how many RE5 units were traded-in after a day.

I don't think trade-ins are allowed in Japan. They probably just put it on eBay and sold it to unwitting Americans.

Really? I always thought that one of the reasons the Japanese game market was so difficult for hardcore games was that hardcore gamers bought the games, beat em in days, then resold them back to the used games market almost instantly.

Kairon, you're right.
Japan doesn't have a game rental system, you have to buy the game either new or used if you want to play it.
Thats why 1st day & 1st week sales are usually very important unless a game has infinite replay value.

That's what I was thinking about. Not resales, but rentals. Sorry for the misinformation.

This is the quote I remember:

Well folks, I really wanted to revisit this game with you. I've even located a reasonably-priced used Japanese Wii. But game rentals are a no-no in Japan, and they want 4,800 yen (!) for a used copy of Luigi Mansion. That's, like, $50. W. T. F.

Plenty of other games are reasonably priced at that store. Is this some sort of cult favorite out in Japan? It's the same freaking price I paid for the North American version new in 2001--and I still own that copy! OoooOooh, Weegie so sad!

[SalesBot]

Media Create 03/02 - 03/08
Hardware:
PSP 59,568
PS3 39,835
DSi 32,102
Wii 16,560
Xbox 360 14,994
DS Lite 11,240
PS2 4,954

Code: [Select]

Hardware | This Week | Last Week |   YTD   |    LTD   
NDS      |    43,342 |    47,601 | 822,759 | 25,942,402
PSP      |    59,568 |    35,588 | 536,490 | 11,900,509
WII      |    16,560 |    17,876 | 336,426 |  7,815,327
PS3      |    39,835 |    36,513 | 271,836 |  2,894,264
360      |    14,994 |    11,795 | 125,861 |    956,401
PS2      |     4,954 |     5,099 |  60,850 | 21,460,374
--------------------------------------------------------
DSi      |    32,102 |    35,827 | 643,255 | 1,874,622
DSL      |    11,240 |    11,774 | 179,504 |
*original post updated*

Feb NPD to be released on Thursday March 19th

[BlackNMild2k1]

OMG PS3 is selling more that the Wii + 360 combined.
Nintendo... where are those new colors?
Maybe an earlier(and/or solid) release date for WiiSports Resort w/ M+

& just for fun, who do you think hits the next million mark 1st?
X360 - 956k = 54k to reach 1 million sold
or
PS3 - 2,894k = 106k to reach 3 million

Place your bets.
PS3 is the obvious favorite in this situation but...
With the way the Wii is selling, it might even be interesting to include that too

Wii - 7,815k = 185k to reach 8 million (a good game better come out soon for Wii to win)

[Mop it up]

The XBox 360 is catching up to the Wii! Oh noes! Nintendo is teh doomeded!

[Chozo Ghost]

The reason that the Wii is sinking like a stone is because there aren't any new games. Where are Nintendo's AAA games?! 

[Mop it up]

They're coming, Nintendo just needs a little time off. If Wii Sports Resort doesn't result in a resurgence of Wii sales, then I might actually be serious the next time I post a "Wii are doomed" message.

[Kairon]

I don't know, I'm not convinced that the Wii will be able to catch PS2 sales in Japan. I sometimes wonder whether the console market and portable market in that country have switched positions.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I bet it could if they came out with a Pokemon RPG in the vein of WoW,  Released new colors & had special edition consoles w/ specific games that are guaranteed system sellers (MH3, DQX, PokemonOnline, etc, etc)

[KDR_11k]

I'm still not convinced the numbers Sony touted for the PS2 were not a lie.

[Chozo Ghost]

I don't know, I'm not convinced that the Wii will be able to catch PS2 sales in Japan. I sometimes wonder whether the console market and portable market in that country have switched positions.

In the case of the DS, the reason it is being outsold now by the PSP is everyone and their grandmother has 5 of them at this point, and with Japan's population actually declining due to low birth rates, who is going to keep buying them? That said, I find it alarming that the DSi's sales figures aren't higher than they are. With its improved capabilities, it should at least be outselling the PSP when combined with DSL sales, but it isn't...

In the case of the Wii, I'm not surprised. Most of the top games for it came out in 2007 or early 2008. You can't go a year without great titles and expect to lead in sales. I guess the Wii is actually doing much better than it should. Nintendo REALLY needs to get new games out, and not just GC-ports or grandma mini-games.

[Flames_of_chaos]

I really doubt DS hit the saturation point in Japan but it's close. The reason why PS3 is selling well is because RE5, RE5 PS3 bundle, Yakuza 3, Yakuza 3 PS3 bundle. For PSP a dynasty warriors game came out and those games sell relatively well which will cause a bump in the hardware sales. Wii sales aren't doing that great is because there's nothing major coming out in Japan for the Wii for a few months.

[Chozo Ghost]

I remember Nintendo said they were going to avoid the system's first-year drought of games that had plagued the GC and N64, and it seems like they did that, but in their effort to avoid a first-year drought what they did was create a second-year drought, and I don't know if that has really gained them anything. They just pushed the release date of their big games forward, so now they've shot their load and there really isn't anything for them to push out until the next batch is ready (probably not until the end of this year, sadly).

Unfortunately, a lot of the progress Nintendo made with the Wii in regards to Market share has been squandered, and the PS3 and 360 are not sitting idle during this time, and they are gaining ground while Nintendo just sits on their thumbs. I guess Nintendo may have assumed that with as successful as the Wii became, it would have drew in major third party support and that would have filled this void, and by all rights that is what SHOULD have happened, but for some reason 3rd parties seem to hate NIntendo hardware, even if it is in the lead. Nintendo was probably counting on this 3rd party support to be here, and it should have been, but it isn't... and now they're hurting for it.

[KDR_11k]

The good news is that it's hurting the third parties far more than Nintendo so support for the other consoles will go down as well.

[Kairon]

I remember Nintendo said they were going to avoid the system's first-year drought of games that had plagued the GC and N64, and it seems like they did that, but in their effort to avoid a first-year drought what they did was create a second-year drought, and I don't know if that has really gained them anything. They just pushed the release date of their big games forward, so now they've shot their load and there really isn't anything for them to push out until the next batch is ready (probably not until the end of this year, sadly).

Unfortunately, a lot of the progress Nintendo made with the Wii in regards to Market share has been squandered, and the PS3 and 360 are not sitting idle during this time, and they are gaining ground while Nintendo just sits on their thumbs. I guess Nintendo may have assumed that with as successful as the Wii became, it would have drew in major third party support and that would have filled this void, and by all rights that is what SHOULD have happened, but for some reason 3rd parties seem to hate NIntendo hardware, even if it is in the lead. Nintendo was probably counting on this 3rd party support to be here, and it should have been, but it isn't... and now they're hurting for it.

I think that Nintendo made the best play they could be expected to make in the situation, and their gangbusters first year and a half has served them well. It's true that Nintendo is seeing, and perhaps even accepting, a year 2/2.5 drought, but that's vastly preferable to a year 1 drought. And of course, like you say, a lot of the cause for that is really out of Nintendo's ability to do much about: third parties simply are failing to step up to the plate in terms of consistent tentpole titles, and while Nintendo can support a console almost entirely by themselves, and in fact hasn't let up their support one bit, one company can only do so much.

Now, I'll be the first to point out that third parties are truly improving, and in fact I feel this is the best third party situation for Nintendo in generations. But it's also true that unlike the other consoles, it is Nintendo who's games are defining the Wii by catching unquestionable attention and pushing boundaries, and rarely third parties. I actually don't think this problem is as acute in Europe and America, but in Japan, especially with the shrinkage of the hardcore market there, and with the shift to the handheld arena, I feel that third parties are having an especially difficult time delivering on the home console market there.

However, I don't know if I'm quick to agree with the idea that Sony and MS are catching up in Japan. (I don't think they are elsewhere in the world either.) I suspect that Sony and MS in Japan are severely restricted to major hardcore game releases, and that makes their hardware sales successes short term. Nintendo, meanwhile, might only be slowing down with the Wii because they're actually on the tail-end of their successes, and that a new hit will drive the userbase for an extended "evergreen" period of time that's less drastic than the one-two week increases seen on other consoles, but more lasting.

... then again, that sorta sounds like the thing an analyst would say, so I could be wrong.

[Mop it up]

... then again, that sorta sounds like the thing an analyst would say, so I could be wrong.

What makes your post different than what an analyst would say is that you've based it on facts and logic.

[Kairon]

... then again, that sorta sounds like the thing an analyst would say, so I could be wrong.

What makes your post different than what an analyst would say is that you've based it on facts and logic.

I'm sure that every so-called analyst would like to believe that about themselves. &P

[GoldenPhoenix]

We have to remember that NIntendo still has the price drop card to play. Also it is a bit ridiculous to say Nintendo is squandering their lead, the PS3 has a VERY LONG way to go before it catches up to Wii which has almost 3 times as many systems sold.

[Chozo Ghost]

We have to remember that NIntendo still has the price drop card to play. Also it is a bit ridiculous to say Nintendo is squandering their lead, the PS3 has a VERY LONG way to go before it catches up to Wii which has almost 3 times as many systems sold.

That lead isn't quite so much in Japan, which is what prompted this whole discussion. There the PS3 is now outselling the Wii, and even the 360 isn't too far behind.

[BeautifulShy]

Um Chozo the Wii is nearing 8 million in Japan.The 360 hasn't broken 1 million yet while the PS3 is nearing 3 million in that region. There is a 5 million gap between the Wii and PS3.Come back to me when The Wii is 1 million units ahead.

[GoldenPhoenix]

Um Chozo the Wii is nearing 8 million in Japan.The 360 hasn't broken 1 million yet while the PS3 is nearing 3 million in that region. There is a 5 million gap between the Wii and PS3.Come back to me when The Wii is 1 million units ahead.

WHat Maxi said. The Wii has STOMPED PS3 and 360 in Japan, don't you remember how several months it was outselling PS3, at times, 5 to 1?

[Chozo Ghost]

Um Chozo the Wii is nearing 8 million in Japan.The 360 hasn't broken 1 million yet while the PS3 is nearing 3 million in that region. There is a 5 million gap between the Wii and PS3.Come back to me when The Wii is 1 million units ahead.

WHat Maxi said. The Wii has STOMPED PS3 and 360 in Japan, don't you remember how several months it was outselling PS3, at times, 5 to 1?

Like I said, now it is being outsold by the PS3. I don't know why you two are arguing about this... the latest weekly sales figures shows the PS3 is leading, and the 360 is now only about 2,000 units behind.

[BeautifulShy]

Just looked at the last few pages of this thread.The PS3 has been beating the Wii the last few weeks but in the long run those sales aren't going to put much of a dent in the Wii's lead in Japan.
Keep in mind the PS3 and 360 got RE5. As I recall the RE series is a good seller in Japan. Wii doesn't have much in upcoming Wii games in Japan.So that is likely to be a factor.

[Chozo Ghost]

Wii doesn't have much in upcoming Wii games in Japan.So that is likely to be a factor.

Which happens to be exactly what I said, if you read my earlier post. I said the Wii is squandering their lead by now having a drought of new quality games, and this is allowing the PS3 and 360 to gain ground. It isn't completely Nintendo's fault, because games like Street Figher IV and RE5 absolutely SHOULD have been released on the Wii as well, even if the controls depended entirely on the classic controller. At least that would have been something.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Which happens to be why I said they should release new colors...