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[QuickKick89]

In the world of video games, there's only one premiere selling pinnacle, not including games with different versions or bundled with hardware. That pinnacle is Super Mario Bros. 3, which sold an outlandish 18 million copies upon release in 1990. Despite pushes from games such as Grand Theft Auto, Gran Turismo, Final Fantasy, and others, nobody has been able to knock SMB3 from its pedestal.

But there's never been an entertainment release like Halo 3.

It's not going to happen initially - there's only 10 million Xbox 360s sold worldwide. But it's pretty obvious that most people will start buying 360s now that it has a definitive killer app - and they'll be likely bringing Halo 3 along with it. Since Halo 3 will likely never be packed in with the 360 (due to its M rating), it's only going to find itself sold seperately. Based upon that, in 2-3 years, we could see Halo 3 take to the top of the list.

So what do you think?

 

[TemplaerDude]

people will come in here laughing but i think halo 3 has the best chance of any game released in recent years.

that said though, no, i don't think it will.

 

[Great Rumbler]

You think Halo 3 will sell 10 million more copies than Halo 2 did?

 

[Tieno]

No, I don't think so.

GTA4 has a better shot, considering it's day and date multiplatform. Most Probable is some DS game.

 

[Unison]

No way on earth.

Nintendogs collectively has a better chance.

 

[Odysseus]

sure, it can happen.

 

[crbowen]

Nope. Halo doesn't have a broad enough appeal like Mario does to the dreaded non-gamer.

 

[Kintaro]

Nope.

 

[Zapperkhan]

Probably not. Halo 3 doesn't appeal to a wide enough audience. It's more of a gamer's game. Mario appealed to everyone. Although gaming is more popular now, 18 million is quite a reach. Over time possibly, with the movie coming out eventually, but thats only if it's good

 

[bogg]

I highly doubt that.
But there is a very good chance it will outsell halo 2, thats good enough, no?

 

[jman2050]

Simply by virtue of Halo having no pull in Japan, this will not happen.

 

[Busaiku]

No chance at all.

 

[Chemo]

Hahah no. How can anyone even entertain this thought.

 

[Splatt]

When pigs fly.

 

[Kaako]

I just don't see it happening either.
Halo 3 needs sell well internationally for that to happen. This includes Japan.

 

[Iam Canadian]

Now that gamers are so split over the consoles, as opposed to the eight bit days, where most gamers were concentrated on the NES, I'm not sure that any game can have the kind of universal appeal that Super Mario Bros. 3 did. I don't think the gaming market will ever be that homogeneous again.

SMB3 is such a good game that it deserves the number one spot in sales.

 

[AstroLad]

Unequivocally yes.

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

So what do you think?

I think selling as much as Halo 1 and Halo 2 combined would still leave Halo 3 with a hell of a long way to go.

Now that gamers are so split over the consoles, as opposed to the eight bit days, where most gamers were concentrated on the NES, I'm not sure that any game can have the kind of universal appeal that Super Mario Bros. 3 did. I don't think the gaming market will ever be that homogeneous again.

Homogeneity schmomogeneity, that's unnecessary. There are twice as many PS2s as NESs.

 

[Chiggs]

Nope. It will do well, but won't come close to SMB3. I don't think we'll see a game that does for a long, long time.

 

[Kabouter]

Including expansion packs, the franchise has sold over 70 million units worldwide as of January 2007

That at least would make The Sims more commercially succesful than Super Mario Bros. 3 . And obviously, Halo 3 won't even touch even the sales of the base version of The Sims (16 million) let alone the sales of Super Mario Bros. 3

 

[Jacobi]

No. Europeans don't care as much about Halo and Japanese don't.

 

[gregor7777]

When pigs fly.

 

[DongHungLong]

LMAO at the OP for creating this thread and the never ending Halo 3 over hype getting to peoples heads :lol.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

What is the 360 hardware numbers World Wide?

If its well above 18 million I don't see a reason it could not sell that much since most people buy 360s for Halo anyway

 

[Duderz]

Simply by virtue of Halo having no pull in Japan, this will not happen.

Needs to be repeated.

Halo 3 will likely be the number 1 selling game this generation, but it won't pull SMB3 numbers.

 

[dallow_bg]

How many 360s are out there?

Alright then.

 

[gregor7777]

What is the 360 hardware numbers World Wide?

If its well above 18 million I don't see a reason it could not sell that much since most people buy 360s for Halo anyway

Right, but it isn't, and probably won't be until this time next year so I'd say no, it will end up around 7-8 million.

How many 360s are out there?

Alright then.

In the neighborhood of 11 million.

Simply by virtue of Halo having no pull in Japan, this will not happen.

I don't think it will, but this certainly won't be the reason.

 

[Prime crotch]

Are there even that many 360's sold? Unless it sells like Atari expected ET to.

 

[Firestorm]

You're a funny man.

Duderz, Halo 3 will likely be outsold by Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3 + 360) just like Halo 2 and Halo were outsold by GTA:SA.

 

[Raist]

Sold, no, not a chance.

Shipped maybe

Spoiler

thanks to scratched disks

 

[Version 3.0]

Not a chance in hell. It won't even hit 10 million.

 

[FabCam]

Maybe after 5 years or so, but not any time soon.

 

[Manmademan]

Halo3 is going to struggle to hit the sales of Gran Turismo 3- Super Mario Brothers 3 is a virtual impossibility.

it was the most anticipated game of all time up to that point on a system with NO significant competitors. If you were playing Games back then, you owned a NES. No question.

The 360 doesn't have that kind of leverage, and Halo 3 appeals to a much smaller segment of the population.

 

[dskillzhtown]

Let's not get out of hand here, there is no way that is going to happen. Games these days don't have those kind of legs and mass appeal.

 

[jman2050]

Needs to be repeated.

Halo 3 will likely be the number 1 selling game this generation, but it won't pull SMB3 numbers.

GTA4 and Pokemon say no.

 

[PetriP-TNT]

:lol

Spoiler

No.

 

[Unison]

Halo 3 will likely be the number 1 selling game this generation, but it won't pull SMB3 numbers.

I doubt it will even beat New Super Mario Bros.

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

people will come in here laughing but i think halo 3 has the best chance of any game released in recent years.

Halo 3 will need to best Halo 2 by a few million to approach where New Super Mario Bros. is now.

 

[Parl]

The game will barely/struggle to be in the top 10 of this generation (inc handhelds - aka, DS) and you're asking whether it can outsell the best selling non-bundled SKU of all time (?).

Halo 3 will need to best Halo 2 by a few million to approach where New Super Mario Bros. is now.

Key words... Also, this is on New Super Mario Bros. The mega-seller that isn't close to SMB3 levels.

 

[D.Lo]

New Super Mario Bros is probabaly your best shot to beat the record.

 

[IzumiK]

I don't even think it'll beat Halo 2. But this is the last Halo supposingly, so its attach rate might be higher.

 

[Grecco]

Does it need to?

 

[Kabouter]

GTA4 and Pokemon say no.

Well, if we're counting handheld too.
Halo 3 won't beat Nintendogs or New Super Mario Bros. either.

 

[VonGak!]

Wow the Bots have lost their minds to MS PR. :S

In units Halo3 didn't blow away only in gross which is due to it costing $10 more.

And let's not forget all the franchises like Pokémon, GT, GTA,.. which the previous Halo titles never managed to outsell or that the franchise mainly caters to the North American market while it's pretty insignificant in the rest of the world.

Keep it real. ^.^

 

[cilonen]

Not in any way.

NSMB might get close, five years from now.

 

[VonGak!]

Does it need to?

In the land of fanboys? YES or else it's not worth playing.

 

[VonGak!]

Not in any way.

NSMB might get close, five years from now.

That's very true, though I see Wii Sports as a much bigger competitor to Super Mario.

 

[AfunkyArcadeStick]

Halo 3 is the biggest thing to happen to entertainment.

It's only a matter of time.

Spoiler

spoilers:issajoke:lol

 

[AstroLad]

What many people are forgetting is the SMB3 appealed only to little kids and adults with a Peter Pan complex. Halo 3 appeals to everyone, be it kids or teens to your average adult. Though the install base is currently less, the target market is much broader so it's verily a possibility.

 

[Alcibiades]

Halo 3 hasn't even managed Halo 2 numbers, so unless XBox 360 somehow becomes the next PS2 in terms of userbase size, it won't happen.

What DOES have an outside shot in the long term is something like Wiifit, or maybe even Mario Galaxy or Brawl IF they stay on the charts the same way Mario 64 and the first Smash Bros. did. If the N64 had been the same phenomenom the Wii is turning out to be, then Mario 64 would have had a shot at matching Mario 3, but it never had the userbase size needed.

Mario Galaxy will have the userbase, the question is whether it will appeal to it's casual and hardcore users, and whether the Mario license has gotten so diluted (it will be the 4th Mario game on Wii this year) that it's hard for a single game with Mario in the title to really break through above all others...