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Circana (NPD) October 2023: #1 Spider-Man 2 #2 Super Mario Wonder #3 AC Mirage; PS5 #1 Units + Revenue, NSW #2 Units, XBS #2 Revenue

XXL

Gold Member
Yes. 20% of GAF posters are Xbox spokesmen.
Larry David Reaction GIF
 

TheBomb

Member
What about gamepass? The so called best value in gaming that was supposed to take over the industry and put sony and Nintendo on their knees if they didn't follow? It's all I heard before the gen started. Fast forward 3 years and xbox is in decline and getting outsold by a 6 year old switch and slaughtered by the PS5.
I give credit to Microsoft trying new methods in delivering games. They have a vision. Then they learn to get it right, and they might in the future.
 
Is there reason for such a large PS5 sales decrease be last year and that’s with SpiderMan releasing?

Did Sony have a CoD bundle or something?

They do have a MW3 bundle but it only started selling this month IIRC. It's for the new model I believe (the SM2 bundle is still using the old model).

I give credit to Microsoft trying new methods in delivering games. They have a vision. Then they learn to get it right, and they might in the future.

More like several visions, which is part of Microsoft's bigger problem. They want to be everywhere without specializing in a specific lane to its fullest, so they excel nowhere. Some of their gaming initiatives cannibalize each other, and now we're seeing the rot of that.

It's why I'm rather tough on Sony/SIE when it comes to some of their own gaming initiatives and areas they're dipping their toes further into. I don't want to see what happened to Xbox, happen to PlayStation. Even if PlayStation could weather it better simply thanks to being a much stronger brand, it'd be a much bigger blow for Sony than the deteriorating state of Xbox has been for Microsoft.

But I digress. Back on topic...
 

Gambit2483

Member
Great openings for both Spider-Man 2 and SMBW, though I'm a little surprised that Mario couldn't crack the “Top 20” charts even without digital numbers included.
Also, it looks like @DForce was very accurate with his Starfield prediction in last month's thread.
It's strange that SMBW was the 2nd best selling (behind SM2) and yet didn't crack the top 20 YTD even though SM2 made 4th place. Maybe they are including bundled sales?

Either way Mario games tend to have extremely long legs. It should be in the top 20 easily by years end.
 

Heisenberg007

Gold Journalism
The thread has a poll, which means it's an opinion thread. That means the question is pretty much, "Which games did you like more?" 1 in 5 here at GAF based on the poll like the Xbox releases better. Also, kinda stupid to bring that thread up in a sales thread.
Not at all. There is already a question in that poll, and it is clearly not "which games do you like more?". That is your (incorrect) understanding. The poll has a different question.
 

Heisenberg007

Gold Journalism
Is there reason for such a large PS5 sales decrease be last year and that’s with SpiderMan releasing?

Did Sony have a CoD bundle or something?
Waning stock as Sony isn't adding to it and instead waiting for the Slim.

This is the same reason why Xbox has been outselling PS5 in Japan over the last couple of weeks. Sony has been clearing its PS5 stock, which means there will be days/weeks where there won't be any PS5 available to buy.
 

Luigi Mario

Member
I guess Epic has not reported Alan Wake 2 sales (same as CDProjekt which do not report its games digital sales to NPD)?

Otherwise it will be very worrying....

As predicted Starfield will have no legs at all
Epic is not included in their publisher ranking.
Also:



Just like Larian, they don't report their digital sales to Circana (NPD).
 
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Not at all. There is already a question in that poll, and it is clearly not "which games do you like more?". That is your (incorrect) understanding. The poll has a different question.
Take the L, dude. Just read the thread and you'll see what the discussion is about. You don't need a poll to figure out which console had better sales. That's what this thread is for.
 

FrankWza

Member
Yes. 20% of GAF posters are Xbox spokesmen.
Not all, but we've seen the leaks. There's also the evangelists. Gaming is all encompassing and those comments were skewed towards published games being the deciding factor. Why? Because Microsoft bought 2 huge publishers and added it to xbox games. The comments were very similar and we've seen that happen far too often for it to be coincidental. We've seen copy/paste replies from social media to here.
 
Not all, but we've seen the leaks. There's also the evangelists. Gaming is all encompassing and those comments were skewed towards published games being the deciding factor. Why? Because Microsoft bought 2 huge publishers and added it to xbox games. The comments were very similar and we've seen that happen far too often for it to be coincidental. We've seen copy/paste replies from social media to here.
Shills and astroturfers exist, but to just proclaim someone that likes the games you don't like must be getting paid is just lazy discourse.
 

Reave

Member
Shills and astroturfers exist, but to just proclaim someone that likes the games you don't like must be getting paid is just lazy discourse.
Exactly right.

No one is saying that weird console evangelists/shills don't exist. They do.

It's when people assume that almost everyone who happens to like a thing is an evangelistic fanboy on a payroll that it becomes silly and unreasonable.
 
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DrFigs

Member
Spiderman going all the way up to #4 for the year after just ten days on sale is something else. CRAZY that sony made HFW, GT7 and GOW Ragnorak cross gen. Spiderman 2 might not be pushing matrix quality visuals but it has its next gen holy shit moments thanks to the ps5 ssd and cpu. Hope Sony learns from this going into PS6.
they won't
 

MrA

Member
Most telling thing with starfield is it dropped below mortal kombat on the annual
Wonder if spiderman 2 beat spiderman 1 in units, double digit dollars growth could go either way
All hardware down yoy is a bit surprising, I thought the ps5 would be up, seems spiderman and mario did little for hardware but it is close to the holiday season
 
Yeah so that mean that we have no data on 3 big October games (CP77, BG3, AW2).

Pretty big miss

I don't think having the data for those three would have affected the Top 3, but for the 4th and 5th spots it's possible AW2 or BG3 could've changed those placements. CP 2077 may've placed in the Top 10 but most of those sales would've likely been digital.
 
When you have a community hyping up Starfield as the game of the generation and telling people how it's going to sell like Skyrim, then don't be surprised if people are paying attention to sales results.

Starfield’s dream scenario certainly was (and continues) living rent free in their fictitious mind.

These results are not good for Microsoft. Their strategy of acquisitions and GamePass isn’t working. They need to think hard on their future strategy, because it’s clear that omitting and foreclosing on PlayStation is cannibalizing their relevance in the market
 

FrankWza

Member
Shills and astroturfers exist, but to just proclaim someone that likes the games you don't like must be getting paid is just lazy discourse.
I don't remember saying that, especially related to this conversation. The thread that was referenced was the "gaming" thread? It was never just about software and it wasn't about sales. The push was that xbox had the better year because they published more games. It was echoed enough because of a narrative push and because it skewed the argument. Regardless, it was ridiculous enough that you can't help but question it's validity.
 

StereoVsn

Member
Waning stock as Sony isn't adding to it and instead waiting for the Slim.

This is the same reason why Xbox has been outselling PS5 in Japan over the last couple of weeks. Sony has been clearing its PS5 stock, which means there will be days/weeks where there won't be any PS5 available to buy.
Ahh, that makes sense although judging by reports OG PS5 might have been a better bet, lol.

Oh, and Xbox outselling PE5 is clearly due to star power of Phil in Japan. He is moving boxes!
 

Sanepar

Member
The thread has a poll, which means it's an opinion thread. That means the question is pretty much, "Which games did you like more?" 1 in 5 here at GAF based on the poll like the Xbox releases better. Also, kinda stupid to bring that thread up in a sales thread.

Yes. 20% of GAF posters are Xbox spokesmen.
Here I don't know but on Era yes. Even mods there.

I need to know about services, another decline?
 

Mibu no ookami

Demoted Member® Pro™
Spiderman going all the way up to #4 for the year after just ten days on sale is something else. CRAZY that sony made HFW, GT7 and GOW Ragnorak cross gen. Spiderman 2 might not be pushing matrix quality visuals but it has its next gen holy shit moments thanks to the ps5 ssd and cpu. Hope Sony learns from this going into PS6.
Don't think Sony changes too much. This is year 3 of the life cycle, compared to years 1 and 2. The pandemic made certain things necessary as well.
 

DrFigs

Member
Starfield’s dream scenario certainly was (and continues) living rent free in their fictitious mind.

These results are not good for Microsoft. Their strategy of acquisitions and GamePass isn’t working. They need to think hard on their future strategy, because it’s clear that omitting and foreclosing on PlayStation is cannibalizing their relevance in the market
well fortunately for them cod will be the best selling game next month, so they have that going for them. what a great company :)
 

Gambit2483

Member
Starfield’s dream scenario certainly was (and continues) living rent free in their fictitious mind.

These results are not good for Microsoft. Their strategy of acquisitions and GamePass isn’t working. They need to think hard on their future strategy, because it’s clear that omitting and foreclosing on PlayStation is cannibalizing their relevance in the market
A rental service by design goes directly against sales, sustainable sales and player investment. There's no real money to be made in this kind of model beyond subs and subs are heavily dependent on more and more content (which just costs more and more money).

Basically Gamepass is the antithesis of GAAS/live service, which the latter heavily relies on sales and player investment. Maybe MS knows something the rest of the industry doesn't.. 🤔
 

Mibu no ookami

Demoted Member® Pro™
I’m actually really surprised that Spider-Man 2 is #4 on the year with it being only on PS5 while Mario Wonder is #21
Me too, but I think Mario Wonder rebounds a bit during the holidays.


Is there reason for such a large PS5 sales decrease be last year and that’s with SpiderMan releasing?

Did Sony have a CoD bundle or something?

People ignore the fact that PS5 became much easier to purchase last year and that isn't something that can be replicated. It's why I don't think PS5 will hit 12 million units. We'll see how it does in November though. CoD bundle will surely underperform making it almost impossible for them to hit their targets.


Most telling thing with starfield is it dropped below mortal kombat on the annual
Wonder if spiderman 2 beat spiderman 1 in units, double digit dollars growth could go either way
All hardware down yoy is a bit surprising, I thought the ps5 would be up, seems spiderman and mario did little for hardware but it is close to the holiday season

Starfield is a complete flop and it's time we recognize it as such. Microsoft has to re-evaluate their entire strategy after the game's failure. Forza's failure is just outright embarrassing. I tried to tell people that it wasn't going to move the needle because people already bought Horizon, but I was told, this is completely different this is the motorsport release. As I said, it didn't matter.

Anyone who thinks Avowed and Hellblade are going to do ANYTHING for Xbox are purposefully delusional. We're unfortunately looking at a dead console and a dying brand.

There is no way you can develop Elder's Scrolls for Xbox and PC only, even with next gen Xbox if that's a thing. They can't keep absorbing these costs into GamePass. I don't think GamePass was truly profitable before, but it certainly isn't now. Being outsold by Mortal Kombat? A game that probably cost 4x less to create... This is extremely negligent practice on Microsoft's behalf and the only reason why XBS and GamePass haven't been discontinued already is Microsoft's overall wealth.
 

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
A rental service by design goes directly against sales, sustainable sales and player investment. There's no real money to be made in this kind of model beyond subs and subs are heavily dependent on more and more content (which just costs more and more money).

Basically Gamepass is the antithesis of GAAS/live service, which the latter heavily relies on sales and player investment. Maybe MS knows something the rest of the industry doesn't.. 🤔
Yeah, they know they're the only ones as a trillion dollar company that can stand on top of the ashes when they help usher in the loss leading race to the bottom. Thankfully, it seems most gamers don't care for this kind of Black Mirror sub future.
 
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Mibu no ookami

Demoted Member® Pro™
Yeah, they know they're the only ones as a trillion dollar company that can stand on top of the ashes when they help usher in the loss leading race to the bottom. Thankfully, it seems most gamers don't care for this kind of Black Mirror sub future.

A LOT of developers are going to get hurt in the process.

Turn 10 Studios headcount for the last 6 months is down 3% on linkedin. I expect this will only get worse when they're forced to layoff staff.

Why because the Xbox users are conditioned not to buy games, and GamePass can't maintain multiple racing games.

GamePass might have just killed that studio and that franchise. Meanwhile, Gran Turismo has got a new lease on life due to the PS5 and PS VR2.
 

Mibu no ookami

Demoted Member® Pro™
A rental service by design goes directly against sales, sustainable sales and player investment. There's no real money to be made in this kind of model beyond subs and subs are heavily dependent on more and more content (which just costs more and more money).

Basically Gamepass is the antithesis of GAAS/live service, which the latter heavily relies on sales and player investment. Maybe MS knows something the rest of the industry doesn't.. 🤔

"value-destructive" - Bobby Kotick
 

Woopah

Member
Switch hardware is good for its age, but I do think its a bit disappointing. I was expecting the new bundles to have a greater effect.


Spiderman going all the way up to #4 for the year after just ten days on sale is something else. CRAZY that sony made HFW, GT7 and GOW Ragnorak cross gen. Spiderman 2 might not be pushing matrix quality visuals but it has its next gen holy shit moments thanks to the ps5 ssd and cpu. Hope Sony learns from this going into PS6.

F--w0lmbYAEqhZa
Spiderman had an extra year of PS5 supply and globally its doing simailrly to Ragnarok. I don't think Sony sees cross gen as a mistake
Xbox series is a total flop. How you gonna get outsold by switch on its 6th year? That's embarrassing.
7th now!
Not a good month for Hardware, it seems everything was down quite a bit year on year.

September estimates
PS5: 320K
NSW: 210K
XBS: 200K

YTD 2022 estimates
PS5: 4.15M
NSW: 2.98M
XBS: 2.17M

LTD estimates
NSW: 42.39M
PS5: 16.05M
XBS: 11.87M

With November and December remaining of 2023 it's looking like 7M for PS5, 5M for Switch and 4M for XBS for the full year
Is it supposed to say October estimates?
It's strange that SMBW was the 2nd best selling (behind SM2) and yet didn't crack the top 20 YTD even though SM2 made 4th place. Maybe they are including bundled sales?

Either way Mario games tend to have extremely long legs. It should be in the top 20 easily by years end.
I think it shows that there was a massvie gap betewen 1 and 2 this month. Spiderman outdid Mairo physically, plus it has digital included plus it costs more.
 

mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
Spiderman going all the way up to #4 for the year after just ten days on sale is something else. CRAZY that sony made HFW, GT7 and GOW Ragnorak cross gen. Spiderman 2 might not be pushing matrix quality visuals but it has its next gen holy shit moments thanks to the ps5 ssd and cpu. Hope Sony learns from this going into PS6.

F--w0lmbYAEqhZa
1000% agree with you here!
 

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
Another reason why Player Count is a meaningless stat.


Spider-Man 2 not only outsold Starfield in a week but the drop off for Starfield is massive. From #1 to #14 in no time :messenger_astonished:

Frustrated World Cup GIF
Player count "engagement" is a meaningful metric if you're in the data harvesting business. Otherwise, it's meaningless in the sales volume business. Especially for single player games.
 
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