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[Rhindle]

May Hardware Sales

PSP = 250,000
PS2 = 273,000
Xbox = 129,000
GCN = 50,000
GBA/DS = 279,000 (approx)

May Top 25 Software Sales

US Top 25 Videogame Titles
Rank Title Publisher

1 GBA POKEMON EMERALD Nintendo
2 PS2 SW EPISODE III: S ITH LucasArts
3 XBX SW EPISODE III: SITH LucasArts
4 XBX FORZA MOTORSPORT Microsoft
5 PS2 MIDNIGHT CLUB 3: DUB Take Two
6 PS2 LEGO STAR W ARS Eidos
7 PS2 GOD OF WAR Sony
8 XBX M IDNIGHT CLUB 3: DUB Take Two
9 XBX LEGO STAR WARS Eidos
10 XBX AREA 51 Midway
11 PS2 AREA 51 Midway
12 GBA SW EPISODE III: SITH LucasArts
13 PS2 MVP BASEBALL 2005 Electronic Arts
14 PSP NEED SPEED:UND RIVALS Electronic Arts
15 PS2 GRAN TURISMO 4 Sony
16 GBA LEGO STAR WARS Eidos
17 XBX T.CLANCY:CHAOS THEORY Ubi Soft
18 PSP HOT SHOTS GOLF:OPEN Sony
19 PSP UNTOLD LEGENDS:BTHRHD Sony
20 GBA FIRE EMBLEM: THE SACRED STO Nintendo
21 PS2 FIGHT NIGHT ROUND 2 Electronic Arts
22 NDS SW EPISODE III: SITH LucasArts
23 XBX DOOM 3 Activision
24 PSP MVP BASEBALL Electronic Arts
25 PSP NBA STREET SHOWDOWN Electronic Arts
Note: Ranked in terms of $$$ sales.

CSFB Notes:

• Overall US videogame software sales were up sharply in the month of May with
sales up 30% y/y, faster than the 9% growth we saw in April due to strong
performance from Pokemon and Star Wars titles. 128-bit software sales were up
9% year over year. Handheld software sales were up 156% y/y, benefiting from
another full month of software for the PSP and the release of Pokemon Emerald. The
PSP sold approximately 250K units in its third month. 128-bit hardware sales were
down 17% y/y in May, with PS2 unit sales up 8%, but Gamecube and Xbox down
35% and 40% respectively. This brings the install base of 128-bit consoles to
approximately 51.4 million in the U.S.

• Electronic Arts U.S. videogame sales in May were down 8% year over year. The
company’s sell through should pick up with the release of three titles in June: Medal of
Honor: European Assault, receiving strong initial reviews (~80%), Battlefield 2, which
is off to a very strong start, and Batman Begins. For the quarter to date including May
PC game sales, U.S. sell through is down 29%.

• Take Two’s U.S. videogame sales in May were down 1% year over year. The
company had no new releases in the month, however April’s Midnight Club: DUB
Edition sold 228K units. For the quarter to date including May PC game sales, sell
through is up 49%. The most significant title from Take-Two in the calendar quarter is
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, which released in early June on the Xbox and PC.

• THQ U.S. videogame sales increased 13% year over year in May. The company’s
WWE Wrestlemania XXI performed well with approximately 135K units sold in its
first two months. For the quarter to date including May PC game sales, sell through is
up 12%. The most significant release in the current quarter should be Destroy All
Humans!, which launched this week on the PS2 and Xbox and is receiving solid initial
reviews (~80%).

• Activision’s U.S. videogame sales were down 24% year over year for the month of
May, due to the tough comparison with last May’s Shrek 2.The company released
Madagascar mid month, which sold approximately 46K units. For the quarter to date
including May PC game sales, sell through is up 59% due to the strength of the Doom
franchise.

• Midway’s U.S. sales in the month of May were down 1% year over year. The
company had a difficult comparison with last year due to continued sales of NBA
Ballers, which released last April. For the quarter to date, sell through is down 36%.

• We expect another solid month in June given the number of titles being released,
despite the difficult comp created by last year’s hardware price cuts.

 

[PhatSaqs]

I win.

 

[Wario64]

i thought HSG was #1 psp game?

 

[Laguna X]

Why must they insist on keeping the DS & GBA numbers together?

 

[akascream]

Hehe, so it takes GBA+DS numbers to outclass PSP? I wonder who added those figures?


Anyway, great numbers for PSP. Developers, TAKE NOTICE ALREADY! =P

 

[Musashi Wins!]

the way they combine gba/ds makes gaf sad

 

[sonycowboy]

i thought HSG was #1 psp game?

Bunkum sorted by units.

BTW,

3 PSP titles > #1 DS Title
13 PSP titles > #2 DS Title

Other Comments:

Xbox & GC are dead.

 

[Laguna X]

i thought HSG was #1 psp game?

it's ranked in terms of $$$. HSG probably sold more units.

 

[DarienA]

PS2 sales are up? Doesn't everyone own one already? (jokingly)... really though.. this crazy.

It hurts my heart that the $49.99 Underground Rivals is the #1 PSP game... <sigh> oh wait it's by $$ not units... still makes me sad.

Oh.. and go go PSP Hardware sales... so that $250 handheld can sell... hmmm

 

[cvxfreak]

The GC is truly dead in the US now. Nintendo should just drop the price now.

 

[Matlock]

PSP = 250,000
GBA/DS = 279,000 (approx)

PSP should be whipping Nintendo's ass much harder than it is. Sales will go away quick if they don't put out any software, tho.

 

[Rocket9]

Dammit why do they have to combine GBA and DS

 

[Zeo]

Putting DS and GBA together is so friggin' stupid. How are we supposed to compare, even if the DS/GBA numbers are a lot higher than PSP, the DS and PSP sales?

But yeah, no one should be surprised. PSP was only out for two months at the end of May, of course sales are bigger than DS. Hell, I was one of the buyers.

It shouldn't be -too- different for June, because Kirby, the blue DS, and the Mario pack-in are more than halfway through the month. But it should be more interesting to see the June numbers and July numbers. With little to no PSP games coming out for the next few months and the previous stuff I just mentioned (along with Nintendogs soon enough), it'll be interesting to watch.

 

[Borys]

GC am dead.

Fixed.

Xbox got lots of games in top 25 (GC none) and sold ~2.3 as many HW units as GC.

 

[Zeo]

The GC is truly dead in the US now. Nintendo should just drop the price now.

GC isn't dead because sales are bad. They still profit off it much more than MS does with Xbox (as far as I've heard).

Expect sales to kick up again in August with the SSBM pack-in and obviously with Zelda. There are a lot of people I know (i.e. the mainstream PS2/GTA gamers), that can't wait for the "real Zelda". Granted, that might not be a sign of the general thought everywhere, but it could be.

 

[Tarazet]

PS2 sales are up? Doesn't everyone own one already? (jokingly)... really though.. this crazy.

It hurts my heart that the $49.99 Underground Rivals is the #1 PSP game... <sigh> oh wait it's by $$ not units... still makes me sad.

Oh.. and go go PSP Hardware sales... so that $250 handheld can sell... hmmm

I have NFSUR on rental until next Friday, but I'm already ready to take it back. The frame-rate bites and the gameplay isn't fun at all.

 

[DarienA]

I have NFSUR on rental until next Friday, but I'm already ready to take it back. The frame-rate bites and the gameplay isn't fun at all.

I rented it too... I pretty much had the same complaints as you.

 

[sonycowboy]

Fixed.

Xbox got lots of games in top 25 and sold ~2.3 as many HW units as GC.

Comparing to a system as utterly and completely morbose as the GC doesn't exactly make one look better

 

[Barrage]

So Need For Speed Underground 2 DS bombed?

That sucks. Firstly, because it's a pretty good game( my favourite of any NFSU game) and secondly, because it might effect EA's support of the DS. When EA looks at the sales of their games on the DS, and the sales of their games on the PSP, something will have to give.

 

[radioheadrule83]

I have to doubt that the majority would be GBA sales with DS sitting on the shelves. I think they're combined because the latter plays the former's titles. If that wasn't the case they wouldn't do it...

Think about it -- the people interested enough to pay for this data are retailers and publishers/developers -- not handheld fanboys looking to start forum wars. This data tells them its worth having both GBA and DS on shelves and that GBA titles can still have a potential audience comparable with that of PSP. The software data tells them what kind of software performs best per platform. Perhaps a breakdown would be better for those companies interested in the DS only but why would that be the case?

PSP wins on the software side this month anyway. Good news for it's second month. Isn't that enough?

 

[Wario64]

So Need For Speed Underground 2 DS bombed?

That sucks. Firstly, because it's a pretty good game( my favourite of any NFSU game) and secondly, because it might effect EA's support of the DS. When EA looks at the sales of their games on the DS, and the sales of their games on the PSP, something will have to give.

dont worry, EA supports everything. well, except the dreamcast

 

[Reilly]

Besides God of War, there are no good video games out

 

[Andy787]

PSP should be whipping Nintendo's ass much harder than it is. Sales will go away quick if they don't put out any software, tho.

Pokemon released this month. For all we know, that number could be 269,990 GBA units and 10 DS's.

In all actuality, though, it would be logical that the DS number would be half, or in all liklihood, much less than half of that combined number, given the software numbers. So it would probably be at <135k.

Personally, I'm surprised PSP did so well this month. I thought it was going to take a bigger fall, but hopefully it keeps doing very well.

 

[Raw64life]

GBA/DS = 279,000 (approx)

This is really annoying. Someone tell NPD to stop doing this.

 

[radioheadrule83]

How long has NFSU2 DS been out in the states?
I picked it up last month in the UK. It is good bit tough though... *buys stuff for car*

 

[radioheadrule83]

Pokemon released this month. For all we know, that number could be 269,990 GBA units and 10 DS's.

In all actuality, though, it would be logical that the DS number would be half, or in all liklihood, much less than half of that combined number, given the software numbers. So it would probably be at <135k.

That's pretty assumptive.

If Pokemon spurred any new hardware sales at all, why assume the majority is GBA? The DS is an affordable backwards-compatible investment... if anything GBA sales should be shrinking off more than ever surely?

 

[Mashing]

Why must they insist on keeping the DS & GBA numbers together?

No shit, they make subscribers pay all taht fucking money and the bastards can't seperate the two. Worthless retards the people who put together NPD are.

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

The GC is truly dead in the US now. Nintendo should just drop the price now.

It is pretty amazing how fast things went downhill. But I guess this is what happens when the third parties cease delivering the multiplatform content... Just looking at the first dozen or so the GCN is missing Episode III, Lego Star Wars, Area 51, and Midnight Club 3.

Year to date year over year it looks like PS2 is +47%, Xbox -14%, GCN -28%. Xbox was doing relatively better in the first months of this year, but April and May 2005 haven't had anything comparable to the Halo bundle or price drop to spur sales. PS2 is doing so well, though, that the sum of all home consoles is up 12% this year.

 

[Borys]

Comparing to a system as utterly and completely morbose as the GC doesn't exactly make one look better

Even I know that Xbox isn't dead.

Yet.

Give or take 2 months

 

[Oracle Dragon]

That's pretty assumptive.

If Pokemon spurred any new hardware sales at all, why assume the majority is GBA? The DS is an affordable backwards-compatible investment... if anything GBA sales should be shrinking off more than ever surely?

I dunno about that... the SP is less than half the price of a DS. Hell, the Future Shop in my area is selling brand new SP's for $89 (CAD) and throwing in a free Fire Emblem while they are at it. The DS is $199 with nothin' ... although Best Buy is still doing the Mario pack in with their DS sales.

I'd like a DS, but $200 is just to much for the amount I would use it. but $89 for an SP sure has me eyeballin' one on a daily basis.

 

[sonycowboy]

No shit, they make subscribers pay all taht fucking money and the bastards can't seperate the two. Worthless retards the people who put together NPD are.

Get a grip.

NPD gives the numbers seperately. In fact, they give like 30+ GBA skus' sales (different colors, orignal GBA vs SP, bundles, etc).

It's CSFB who's combining them. Not NPD.

 

[BuzzJive]

Xbox got lots of games in top 25 (GC none) and sold ~2.3 as many HW units as GC.

Uh - the PS2 has over 2x the HW of the Xbox.

GC is dead compared to the Xbox (and PS2 of course). Xbox is dead compared to the PS2.

 

[Andy787]

Anyone have LTD for the PSP in the US?

 

[Borys]

Uh - the PS2 has over 2x the HW of the Xbox.

GC is dead compared to the Xbox (and PS2 of course). Xbox is dead compared to the PS2.

:|

Well, yeah. That's one of many POVs.

 

[Mashing]

Get a grip.

NPD gives the numbers seperately. In fact, they give like 30+ GBA skus' sales (different colors, orignal GBA vs SP, bundles, etc).

It's CSFB who's combining them. Not NPD.

How was I supposed to do know that? Doesn't change the fact that the people who did combine them are idiots.

 

[AB 101]

PSP should be whipping Nintendo's ass much harder than it is. Sales will go away quick if they don't put out any software, tho.

Lets see a breakdown of the Nintendo numbers.

Well, PSP is $100 bucks more than DS and like $170-180 more than the GBA.

But anyways.........

 

[Mooreberg]

128-bit hardware sales were down 17% y/y in May, with PS2 unit sales up 8%, but Gamecube and Xbox down 35% and 40% respectively. This brings the install base of 128-bit consoles to approximately 51.4 million in the U.S.

This is going to be an interesting situation going into the fall. Sony may or not drop to $129 when Xbox 360 comes out, Microsoft just wants to phase out the unprofitable hardware, and Nintendo probably doesn't want to drop to $79 or lower since it would give people the impression that the system is nearly dead. It seems like the overall industry growth will come down to the handhelds.

 

[Musashi Wins!]

Nintendo probably doesn't want to drop to $79 or lower since it would give people the impression that the system is nearly dead.

um...too late?

 

[Jive Turkey]

Besides God of War, there are no good video games out

By far the most retarded statement in this thread.

 

[Rocket9]

Anyone have LTD for the PSP in the US?

I think it's ...

March: 620,000
April: 351,000
May: 250,000

LTD: 1,221,000

 

[Mooreberg]

um...too late?

I didn't want to be the one to start a flame war. :lol

 

[BuzzJive]

3 PSP titles > #1 DS Title
13 PSP titles > #2 DS Title

That's ranked by price though, right?

2 GBA titles (more if you go by units) > #1 PSP title
Nintendo handheld games in top 25 = Sony handheld games in top 25


Sony is still carrying launch momentum - I think things are about to get interesting.

 

[Defensor]

:lol

 

[sonycowboy]

That's ranked by price though, right?

2 GBA titles (more if you go by units) > #1 PSP title
Nintendo handheld games in top 25 = Sony handheld games in top 25


Sony is still carrying launch momentum - I think things are about to get interesting.

Nope. It's by units. It would be worse by $$.

 

[Kobun Heat]

I think things are about to get interesting.

If by 'interesting' you mean 'boring, as the DS crushes the PSP like a tiny little insect' then ok.

Spoiler

OMG I AM JUST KIDDING GAF. I THINK THE PSP REALLY HAS A SHOT AT THE BIG ONE EVEN IF THERE ARE NO GAMES FOR IT

 

[Mrbob]

Wow, with GBA Pokemon Emerald sales driving GBA hardware sales I wouldn't be surprised if the DS number is like 50-70K for the month.

PSP don't need games. Even though looking at software sales PSP is doing fine. PSP has new movies coming out every week to sustain summer sales!

 

[borghe]

Nope. It's by units. It would be worse by $$.

how is it by units yet NFSU is higher than HSG which was the number one PSP title? also, Fire Emblem sold more than HS and is listecd lower.

that list is by dollars.

 

[Laguna X]

how is it by units yet NFSU is higher than HSG which was the number one PSP title?

SC's quoted numbers are by units. He's not talking about the rankings in Rhindle's post (which are ranked by $$$).

 

[Andy787]

If by 'interesting' you mean 'boring, as the DS crushes the PSP like a tiny little insect' then ok.

Spoiler

OMG I AM JUST KIDDING GAF. I THINK THE PSP REALLY HAS A SHOT AT THE BIG ONE EVEN IF THERE ARE NO GAMES FOR IT

Spoiler

 

[3rdman]

Ever since the release of the new PS2, the numbers have always appeared a little screwy. If they are selling double the number of Xbox's, then why isn't that reflected in the software sales?

Number of Xbox titles in the top 25: 7
Number of PS2 titles in the top 25: 8

It been like this for the last few months...PS2 clobbers everybody but everything seems even in software sales...

My initial reaction is that half of those numbers reflect people "upgrading" to the new version rather than an expansion of the actual userbase...am I far off?