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[dionysus]

I think Wii Sports single-handedly sold the Wii for about a year, but since it was a launch game there is no pre-existing data to prove the games effect.

 

[Jokeropia]

If FF13 becomes the best selling third party title this gen by a wide margin (a title it will easily take, MGS narrowly holds it over DQS and is likely equalled out for now by dev costs) you don't think publishers will take notice?

Publishers will notice FFXIII struggling to reach historical FF numbers, and I very much doubt that it will outsell DQX.

It hit a ceiling (a ceiling broken by DS' non-gaming-media-audience appeal popularity).

That's pretty ironic, since the DS massive appeal is all about games, whereas the PSP bump you're referring to was largely caused by the multimedia capabilities of the PSP-2000. (As illustrated by the respective software sales of the two systems.)

 

[donny2112]

let's save the GameCube comparisons for the PS3.

Hey, hey, hey, wait just a minute!

PS3 through ~26 months - ~8.56-8.83 million (bttb/GEIMIN's data to Captain Smoker's data, both attempts at complete data)
GCN through ~26 months - 10.0 million (my database's numbers which are not complete and this total is before holiday 2003 numbers are included)

I can't wait until FFXIII launches for the PS3 and silences the GC comparisons permanently.

It looks like the PS3 needs FFXIII to bring up its total software to GameCube levels. The comparisons are just beginning...



The GameCube was fine. It had great games. The PS3 is fine. It has great games. However anyone who thought the GameCube was a poor performer sales-wise has no place thinking anything different about the PS3 in Japan.

There is just too many big games coming out for it that the GC didn't get late in it's life for the PS3 not to defeat the GC sales in Japan quite comfortably.

And it's not just FFXIII (I used that one because it's the biggest) but it's a combination of all the big titles still to be released.

You mean like Pokemon Colosseum (million-seller on the N64), Pikmin 2 (original sold 500K), Paper Mario: TTYD (original sold over 400K very late in the N64's life), a real Star Fox (Star Fox 64 sold over 500K; even SFA sold over 250K, and it wasn't a "real" Star Fox game), Fire Emblem (the last console version released while the console was still kicking sold over 400K), and a little game called RE4. Oh, wait. It's the beginning of 2009, not 2004. My bad.

 

[manueldelalas]

blah blah blah PS3 will rise to kill you motherfuckers blah blah blah

GAF first commandment: Thou shalt not discuss japanese sales with the stump.

 

[BishopLamont]

I think Wii Sports single-handedly sold the Wii for about a year, but since it was a launch game there is no pre-existing data to prove the games effect.

I think the 35% (not sure the exact %) attach rate it was showing for the first year or so does show it's effect on hardware sales. Hell constantly being on the charts show how Wii Sports is still selling the Wii.

 

[Spiegel]

You: There is no new PS2.
Me: It's the DS.
You: It doesn't count.

I'm not saying the gaming market is zero sum, but it's not infinitely flexible either. All consoles are competing, the DS is the successor to the PS2. Just because this is connected to an associated shift from console to portable doesn't mean there's a massive console void waiting to be filled by the magical prayers of Nomura fans.

If we are talking about the games that's not true. the PS2 had all the AAA/AA/A/B/C/D third party teams doing AAA/AA/A/B/C/D games exclusively for the console. Now the publishers in Japan are divided between DS, PSP, PS3/360, PS2 and Wii.

There's no new ps2.

When you bought the PS2 you knew that you had the Capcom/S-E/Konami/Namco/Atlus's best teams doing the games. When you buy the ds you have a few of AAA teams working for the handled and lots of outsourced/B/C teams doing big name games, but like I said you can also find that on the PSP/PS3/360/Wii.

Yeah, the DS has the most A/B/C/D teams but PS2 had much more than that.

You could say that the DS is the closest to the ps2 this gen but in reality it's far from having the ps2 audience.

For example:

Gundam audience is on the PSP/PS3
Capcom big games are on PS3/360/Wii
DQ audience is on the DS
Nomura audience is on the PSP
Metal Gear audience is on the PS3/PSP
FF audience is divided between DS/PSP
PES audience is on the PS2/PS3

And so on.

 

[Link]

Couple that with the fact that as PS3 becomes less expensive it becomes more viable as a Blu-Ray player (which, in Japan, several anime Blu-Rays like Macross have been putting up better figures than the DVDs) and the situation is not comparable in the slightest.

Much like all those people buying a PS2 as a DVD player in 2003.

 

[Dash Kappei]

So what if the Famicom didn't have competition?

Well but how can you "turn the tides" if there's no competion to fight with?

Not entering the argument since I guess we all see it a bit differently here (to me Wii Sports is without a doubt the kind of game Stump said in his statement that it never existed to begin with), I just felt like pointing that out.

edit: damn I should remember more often to F5 a thread before posting in it :lol

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Nobody said its sales were a flop, but more disappointing. Coming after the psp version, it was obviously made with care and Sega had higher expectations given their first shipment. Its second week did perform pretty well, so it might become one of those leg games.

Again, 150k is good for a ds game. Say if DQ sold that much it would have been huge disappointment (Of course PS games are nowhere near DQ, but I'm just explaining how some and me are coming from),

The problem is that the PSP game was the exception not the rule. And comparing Phantasy Star Zero's sales to Dragon Quest is ridiculous. If Dragon Quest IX some how only sold 150k without shortages it would be the biggest bomb to ever hit gaming period as it didn't even come close to reaching the others at all. This game however completely surpassed every main series game (wasn't PSP just a port?) and has only been outsold by ONE game in the entire series. No matter how you look at it this game did not underperform. It is the second best selling interation period. Phantasy Star Portable on the PSP just came out during the right time on the right platform as it had next to zero competition going against it. It's much like the Tales series with Symphonia, Symphonia was the exception and not the rule so saying a Tales game not performing as well world-wide as Symphonia is kind of silly you have to compare it with the rest of the games in the series. Phantasy Star Portable was the exception and not the rule given its situation and Phantasy Star Zero has done pretty well given its conditions.

 

[test_account]

That will be possible.

But how will that allow the game designers to take advantage of Motion +?

The game would still have to work perfectly with the regular Wii Remote.

That is a good point. I am not quite sure how it will work, or if it will work at all. From what i have seen from Wii Sports Resort, i think it looks like everything in that game could be done fine with the current Wii controller, but that the Wii MotionPlus adds more realism/sensitivity (or what i shall say) to how you move the controller. Maybe it could be possible to play the game with the normal controller, but when you use the Wii MotionPlus, then the movements will be much more precise? I dont think Wii Sports Resort will work without the Wii MotionPlus though, but i just used that game as an example to show what i mean

 

[jeremy1456]

If we are talking about the games that's not true. the PS2 had all the AAA/AA/A/B/C/D third party teams doing AAA/AA/A/B/C/D games exclusively for the console. Now the publishers in Japan are divided between DS, PSP, PS3/360, PS2 and Wii.

There's no new ps2.

When you bought the PS2 you knew that you had the Capcom/S-E/Konami/Namco/Atlus's best teams doing the games. When you buy the ds you have a few of AAA teams working for the handled and lots of outsourced/B/C teams doing big name games, but like I said you can also find that on the PSP/PS3/360/Wii.

Yeah, the DS has the most A/B/C/D teams but PS2 had much more than that.

You could say that the DS is the closest to the ps2 this gen but in reality it's far from having the ps2 audience.

For example:

Gundam audience is on the PSP/PS3
Capcom big games are on PS3/360/Wii
DQ audience is on the DS
Nomura audience is on the PSP
Metal Gear audience is on the PS3/PSP
FF audience is divided between DS/PSP
PES audience is on the PS2/PS3

And so on.

Your post would make sense if there was no overlap of fanbases for the various series. As it stands though, you really don't know what you're talking about.

Oh and :lol @ 'Nomura audience'. I guarantee most of the people who buy his games don't know of him. Neogaf isn't a good indication as to how most people buy games.

 

[test_account]

I can easily see Dragon Quest X being the start.

I wonder how much impact Dragon Quest X will have on the Wii software in general. Dragon Quest X has already been annonced for the Wii, but i dont think any release date, or even a release year has been set yet. Dragon Quest 9 isnt out yet.

I am not sure how much later Dragon Quest X will come out after Dragon Quest 9 but maybe somewhere around late 2010 or in 2011 sometimes? If it is in 2011, then the Wii is about 4-5 years old. Will Dragon Quest X come out too late to change anything around the 3rd part software for the Wii?

Of course, now that Dragon Quest X is already announced for the Wii, maybe some 3rd party developers will start and work on something within these days or so. I think it should be interesting to see how things turns out


EDIT: That should be "now that Dragon Quest X is already announce for the Wii", not "not that Dragon Quest X is already announce for the Wii" as i first wrote. That typo is fixed now, sorry about that

 

[Busaiku]

No matter how you look at it this game did not underperform. It is the second best selling interation period.

Well, retailers are slashing prices.
They and Sega obviously expected more.

 

[Y2Kev]

If we are talking about the games that's not true..

OMG HE'S NOT

It's a freaking sales thread! Why are you smushing a poopydiaper into your face!!!!

 

[Stumpokapow]

Yeah, the DS has the most A/B/C/D teams but PS2 had much more than that.

I don't know what to tell you. I disagree. I mean, what you listed all makes sense--the PS2 got a wide wide wide range of development teams making a wide range of games, you bought a PS2 knowing you'd get high quality games from a variety of developers, etc. I agree with all that.

It's just, as far as I'm concerned, the same thing is true for the DS. I mean, this is sort of an "agree to disagree" thing here because it'd just result in an eruption of list wars, but I'm not sure what you feel is missing on the DS either in terms of sales or in terms of games quality or quantity.

You could say that the DS is the closest to the ps2 this gen but in reality it's far from having the ps2 audience.

For example:

Gundam audience is on the PSP/PS3
Capcom big games are on PS3/360/Wii
DQ audience is on the DS
Nomura audience is on the PSP
Metal Gear audience is on the PS3/PSP
FF audience is divided between DS/PSP
PES audience is on the PS2/PS3

Well, we can get into truly silly comparisons like "Where was the PS2's brain training!? Kanji training!? Where were the PS2's Nintendo games!?!? Suck it down, PS2!"--of course, the DS does not have exactly identical types of software from types of companies that the PS2 did. The PS2 didn't have the same stuff as the PS1. A number of genres ebbed and flowed, and teams came and gone. Same way with SFC->PS1. But no one would say that the PS2 is not the successor to the PS1 just because of that.

When you get down to it, the DS has around as high of a percentage of software sales as the PS2 did, it has around as high a percentage of software announcements as the PS2 did, and virtually everyone made the transition. The DS is the PS2's successor. Saying "FRANCHISE X ISN'T ON DS" is silly, because saying "FRANCHISE X WASN'T ON PS2" is silly.

This doesn't mean you need to love the DS as much as the PS2, or believe that the DS has exactly the same number of good games as the PS2, or that every genre needs to have a tit-for-tat comparison with the PS2.

But if we're got to make a tit-for-tat comparison here, I would include these notes--
"Gundam" audience wasn't on the PS2, it was on every console. It's still on every console. The PSP and PS3 have a higher balance of Gundam games versus the DS than the PS2 did versus the GBA or Cube, but Gundam has always been all consoles.

Capcom's two biggest games this gen in Japan are Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney, and Mega Man Star Force. Devil May Cry 4 is third. So, yes, Capcom's audience is on the DS, not the PS3/360/Wii.

Nomura's audience would be divided DS/PSP, although tilted towards PSP. I'd suggest, though, that it's a little silly to talk about Nomura's audience since he's sort of ascended to the role of a "general producer" in SE.

Again, if you want to talk about things objectively--just the numbers, the DS is for all intents and purposes the PS2's successor. If it fills the same role to you personally or not is up to you, and I know people on both sides of the fence.

 

[Spiegel]

Your post would make sense if there was no overlap of fanbases for the various series. As it stands though, you really don't know what you're talking about.

Oh and :lol @ 'Nomura audience'. I guarantee most of the people who buy his games don't know of him. Neogaf isn't a good indication as to how most people buy games.

Okay, prove me wrong. What ds games had the main DMC/FF/PES/RE/MetalGear/ teams done for the handled?

And if you think Nomura doesn't have an audience in Japan.. :lol

OMG HE'S NOT

It's a freaking sales thread! Why are you smushing a poopydiaper into your face!!!!

Yes he is, he was responding to this quote:

"There is no PS2 audience on consoles, so no consoles will hit PS2 numbers. Wii has the HSG crowd and PS3 has the ability to take the MGS DMC crowd. But it can do a lot better than it has been now."

Stumpokapow, I'm just saying that the DS can't be the new PS2 because the publishers usually don't have their main teams working on ds games. They outsource them or put their B/C teams to do the job

 

[Mr.Wuggles]

Oh and :lol @ 'Nomura audience'. I guarantee most of the people who buy his games don't know of him. Neogaf isn't a good indication as to how most people buy games.

that's simply not true. Nomura's artwork is instantly recognizable and when people see that Agito, Crisis Core, Dissidia, BbS, and 3rd Bday are on the PSP, the Nomura audience will almost exclusively be on the PSP, even moreso than the PS3. Nomura's teams have definitely migrated from the PS2 to PSP.

 

[kswiston]

I wonder how much impact Dragon Quest X will have on the Wii software in general. Dragon Quest X has already been annonced for the Wii, but i dont think any release date, or even a release year has been set yet. Dragon Quest 9 isnt out yet.

Dragon Quest V - 1992
Dragon Quest VI - 1995
Dragon Quest VII - 2000
Dragon Quest VIII - 2004
Dragon Quest IX - 2009
Dragon Quest X - ???

Somehow I don't see DQX released any earlier than Q4 2011. Even that release date would represent the shortest time between two mainline DQ games in almost 20 years. 2012 wouldn't surprise me at all. Hell, I could even see Square Enix moving development to the Wii's successor if it is out any early than 2012.

 

[jeremy1456]

Okay, prove me wrong. What ds games had the main DMC/FF/PES/RE/MetalGear/ teams done for the handled?

And if you think Nomura doesn't have an audience in Japan.. :lol

You greatly misunderstood what I said. If you're going to argue against what I said you're going to have start your next post with something along the lines of 'None of the fanbases overlap...' for a rebuttal to make any sense, but if you said that you'd be lying because there's no way of knowing on which levels they do.

And rather than buying something because it has Nomura's name (or art style) on it don't you think people buy the games because they are Kingdom Hearts/Final Fantasy titles?

EDIT: I'm not trying to say that there isn't a fanbase at all for Nomura's style (there's a fanbase no matter how small for everything) but I think you're giving it way too much credit here.

 

[test_account]

Dragon Quest V - 1992
Dragon Quest VI - 1995
Dragon Quest VII - 2000
Dragon Quest VIII - 2004
Dragon Quest IX - 2009
Dragon Quest X - ???

Somehow I don't see DQX released any earlier than Q4 2011. Even that release date would represent the shortest time between two mainline DQ games in almost 20 years. 2012 wouldn't surprise me at all. Hell, I could even see Square Enix moving development to the Wii's successor if it is out any early than 2012.

Ye, i checked the release years on Wikipedia for the previous Dragon Quest games myself before i posted my post Thanks for posting those release years though! Seeing how there are about 4 years between the last 3 main Dragon Quest games, that could mean that Dragon Quest X would be out in 2013, but i am not sure if that is likely though, since then the Wii is maybe 6 years or or so, but who knows

The reason why i think that Dragon Quest X might be out in late 2010 or in 2011 sometime is because Dragon Quest X is already announced. How was it with the previous Dragon Quest games? Was for example Dragon Quest VIII announced in around year 2001? Dragon Quest 9 is also a handheld game, maybe there will be a shorter time before Dragon Quest X comes out since that is for a standalone console?

Are there 2 different teams that are working on Dragon Quest 9 and Dragon Quest X by the way? Maybe Dragon Quest X has been in development for some times now that the game is announced?

But as you say, Dragon Quest X might just as well be out in late 2011 or even in 2012 sometime. It is hard to say, i am just speculating alittle around when Dragon Quest X will be released

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Well, retailers are slashing prices.
They and Sega obviously expected more.

Well looks like they and SEGA signifcantly over-estimated the game's sales. Though I can see why.

 

[jeremy1456]

Dragon Quest V - 1992
Dragon Quest VI - 1995
Dragon Quest VII - 2000
Dragon Quest VIII - 2004
Dragon Quest IX - 2009
Dragon Quest X - ???

Somehow I don't see DQX released any earlier than Q4 2011. Even that release date would represent the shortest time between two mainline DQ games in almost 20 years. 2012 wouldn't surprise me at all. Hell, I could even see Square Enix moving development to the Wii's successor if it is out any early than 2012.

Keep in mind, this is also the earliest they've ever announced a new Dragon Quest game - IX isn't even out yet.

 

[kswiston]

Keep in mind, this is also the earliest they've ever announced a new Dragon Quest game - IX isn't even out yet.

True, but it's not unlike Square Enix to announce a major title 2+ years before it's released. DQIX was announced in Dec 2006. Final Fantasy XII, Crisis Core, and the FFXIII games all had/will have had at least 2-3 years between their announcements and release. My bet is still 2011 (Q4).

Wii be 5 years old by then, but seeing how the best selling game in the series so far (DQVII) was released on the then 6 year old PS1, I don't think that will make much of a difference.

 

[donny2112]

I could even see Square Enix moving development to the Wii's successor if it is out any early than 2012.

DQVII says 'hi.' Coincidentally, or not, it was also the last one that was released at a shift of console maker.

 

[Fredescu]

I don't know what to tell you. I disagree. I mean, what you listed all makes sense--the PS2 got a wide wide wide range of development teams making a wide range of games, you bought a PS2 knowing you'd get high quality games from a variety of developers, etc. I agree with all that.

It's just, as far as I'm concerned, the same thing is true for the DS. I mean, this is sort of an "agree to disagree" thing here because it'd just result in an eruption of list wars, but I'm not sure what you feel is missing on the DS either in terms of sales or in terms of games quality or quantity.

Action games. If the statement "the DS is the new PS2" is to be taken to mean you'll generally get the best and most popular of each genre and only those who consume abnormally large amounts of games need anything else, it is invalidated by the lack of (non puzzle) action games.

 

[kswiston]

DQVII says 'hi.' Coincidentally, or not, it was also the last one that was released at a shift of console maker.

Yeah, I remembered that after the fact. See Final Fantasy IX and Final Fantasy XII for late console releases as well. I take that statement back. Even if the game slipped to 2012, Square Enix probably wouldn't switch platforms.

 

[donny2112]

Even if the game slipped to 2012, Square Enix probably wouldn't switch platforms.

A case could be made that DQIX should've really come out in 2008, which would make 2012 a "normal" four years instead of a "short" three years between releases. I think anything earlier than 2012 should be seen as "surprisingly early," though.

 

[Regulus Tera]

Action games. If the statement "the DS is the new PS2" is to be taken to mean you'll generally get the best and most popular of each genre and only those who consume abnormally large amounts of games need anything else, it is invalidated by the lack of (non puzzle) action games.

[obligatory BUY BANGAI-OH SPIRITS post] BUY BANGAI-OH SPIRITS!!!! [/obligatory BUY BANGAI-OH SPIRITS post]

 

[Fredescu]

[obligatory my region sucks and it's not out here but a handful of examples does not invalidate the point post]my region sucks and it's not out here but a handful of examples does not invalidate the point[/obligatory my region sucks and it's not out here but a handful of examples does not invalidate the point post]

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

Reggie said it was 100% required which is why it comes as a pack-in

I thought they were contemplating selling the Motion + seperate after initial Wii Sports Resort sales

They pretty much have to, unless they expect people will buy two copies right away for multiplayer.

I see the "Play on Wii" titles as budget re-releases, and those do have insane legs. The budget re-releases are the only games that can quite often sell 5K in their launch week and end up over 100K.

Fair point. Unfortunately for us, though, we may only see this sort of thing waaaay later. We'll know DKJB/Pikmin's 2008 total, but if they drop off the top of the lists we probably wait until mid-2010 to get an update in the 2009 Top 500. Barring some special Play on Wii sales update list.

...not too exciting honestly, mostly mulitplatform stuff or old ports/conversions too. Another Code looks like the only real original stand out title imo, at least with a chance to perform

And even that I wouldn't put high hopes on. The first Trace Memory had a 48K first week for a 105K total. Wii's early 2009 userbase is certainly larger than DS's early 2005 userbase, but beyond that it doesn't immediately seem a title that will have greater appeal at home than on the go.

How do you figure? There will be a sales spike, then it will go right back down again. Sounds just like the GC to me.

GCN only got ~1.5 million past where PS3 currently is. Once it can push by that, we'll at least have to stop talking about PS3/GCN switching leads for a given age. Though considering 2008 was only about 1 million for PS3 I don't think it'll do that in 2009.

It dipped even lower in 07 around that time.

2008 didn't get quite as low, but it stayed near that low longer.

I've got a theory that half the Final Fantasy fanbase already owns a PS3 anyway.

I know this is completely anecdotal, but I still remember a news story covering the PS3 launch and one launch buyer being asked what they got it for. "Final Fantasy!"

Err, no?

No, it didn't.

I notice that image is launch-aligned rather than actual dates, though, so it makes N64 seem like it had more of an early chance.

 

[Eteric Rice]

[obligatory BUY BANGAI-OH SPIRITS post] BUY BANGAI-OH SPIRITS!!!! [/obligatory BUY BANGAI-OH SPIRITS post]

I support this post.

I showed it to a friend of mine (the 100 missles thing) and his face was like :O.

 

[jarrod]

Okay, prove me wrong. What ds games had the main DMC/FF/PES/RE/MetalGear/ teams done for the handled?

To be fair, the "main" RE team wasn't focused on PS2 either.

 

[cvxfreak]

To be fair, the "main" RE team wasn't focused on PS2 either.

Which was a good thing for REmake and RE4's quality.

 

[donny2112]

Which was a good thing for REmake and RE4's quality.

Is the "main" RE team from then scattered to the winds, mostly went back to Capcom, or mostly now part of Platinum Games?

 

[cvxfreak]

Is the "main" RE team from then scattered to the winds, mostly went back to Capcom, or mostly now part of Platinum Games?

A lot of moving around has been done over the years. I don't think the concept of "teams" really matters all that much as far as RE games are concerned. It's usually the Directors and Producers that have a lot of influence and sway in a game's direction. Every RE game released so far in the main series is pretty well developed on a technical level. In that sense, the "main" RE figureheads are now gone from Capcom.

 

[Allan Holdsworth]

Action games. If the statement "the DS is the new PS2" is to be taken to mean you'll generally get the best and most popular of each genre and only those who consume abnormally large amounts of games need anything else, it is invalidated by the lack of (non puzzle) action games.

I dunno, between the three Castlevanias, two Mega Man ZX, Contra 4, Bangaio and Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword, you have a solid action lineup. Not as good as GBA's, but still.

 

[schuelma]

Wow, did I timewarp into early 2007??

 

[jrricky]

I dunno, between the three Castlevanias, two Mega Man ZX, Contra 4, Bangaio and Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword, you have a solid action lineup. Not as good as GBA's, but still.

There are a lot more action games than that too.

Anyways, with all the talk about the 'Nomura audience':lol , has anyone proven why he always develops for Sony platforms?

 

[perfectchaos007]

Wow, did I timewarp into early 2007??

2008 looks like the year of the PS3. You'll see.

 

[GCX]

has anyone proven why he always develops for Sony platforms?

I don't think anyone's ever proved the "Nomura is a Sony fanboy so he can't develop for any other platform!!1" argument true.

 

[Fredescu]

I dunno, between the three Castlevanias, two Mega Man ZX, Contra 4, Bangaio and Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword, you have a solid action lineup. Not as good as GBA's, but still.

In the context of "the new PS2" that is a positively anemic lineup. When people hear "the new PS2" they think "the only console you really need", or in other words, home to the various genre kings. If you're a fan of the many action based genres such as racers, shooters, and sports, the DS won't come close to satisfying you, and these are big genres in the west. There are some examples of each on DS, but not genre leading ones.

I'm not saying the DS is anything short of awesome, but "the new PS2" it isn't.

 

[Eteric Rice]

There are a lot more action games than that too.

Anyways, with all the talk about the 'Nomura audience':lol , has anyone proven why he always develops for Sony platforms?

I've always heard "he hates Nintendo and only likes high end platforms!" But I've never actually seen a source on that. Hell, he even made TWEWY on the DS, so there can't that much bad blood between them.

Same with Kitase, never seen him say anything against Nintendo. Maybe when Nintendo was run by Yamauchi, but not currently.

 

[shykyoichi]

Includes Best-rereleases, etc.:


*should've 110.000 now

Thanks. So it's better than Rhapsodia and other spin offs but not yet at the level of Suikoden 5.

 

[HK-47]

In the context of "the new PS2" that is a positively anemic lineup. When people hear "the new PS2" they think "the only console you really need", or in other words, home to the various genre kings. If you're a fan of the many action based genres such as racers, shooters, and sports, the DS won't come close to satisfying you, and these are big genres in the west. There are some examples of each on DS, but not genre leading ones.

I'm not saying the DS is anything short of awesome, but "the new PS2" it isn't.

When did PS2 satisfy on shooters? You'd get a Xbox or a PC if you wanted that.

 

[Fredescu]

When did PS2 satisfy on shooters? You'd get a Xbox or a PC if you wanted that.

It didn't.

 

[cvxfreak]

No one system rules all. News at 11.

 

[HK-47]

No one system rules all. News at 11.

PC and emulators to the rescue!

 

[sphinx]

I don't know about this PS2 Icon.

The PS2 didn't have anything like Metroid Prime or Windwaker. In that context, no fucking way was the PS2 "the only thing you need for gaming".

Hell, REmake alone destroys the idea.

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

So for the most part, Garaph weekly sales data starts with PS2. It's from that point on we can pretty much get information in full, and I thought it better to focus on that than include half-assed version of earlier data. There are times I've wanted to make exceptions to better compare new games with older counterparts, but I never got around to it. I've decided that adding in the data from older annual Top 100 lists is a decent compromise, though. It gives a few sales data points for the major games, allowing us to get some early point of comparison, even if Japan-GameCharts remains the best place to see their final totals.

Anyway, the first thing I'm doing is N64 games. Several reasons:
*N64 being a 1996 release and we having access to Top 100 (or more) from 1996 on, we get a complete picture of the biggest N64 games, while PS1/Saturn will have a 1994/1995 gap.
*N64 being less successful, there's much less data to work with. Getting all the important annual N64 data in there will be done in a fraction of the time it will take for the PS1 equivalent.
*I'm a Nintendo nerd, so it's more interesting personally.

I've just added in the N64 data from the Top 100s for 1996, 1997, and 1998. This only meant adding 16 games to the database, and 22 sales points. However, even with that little there are some interesting things to see.

Through its first appearance on the annual list, Super Mario 64 (3331) was just a bit under Super Mario Galaxy (546) at the same age. However, it's clearly had a hell of a lot better legs.

Mario Kart 64's (3334) success is pretty evenly between the GBA/GCN games (648/1212) and MKDS (214). A while back MK Wii (2854) passed up MK64's eventual 1.8 million total (not yet apparent on this image), but as you can see it also did it years more quickly.

Bomberman 64 (3338) sold more than any Bomberman game on PS2-or-later systems. It's not even close. Since I haven't looked at the other old data yet I'm not sure if this one is a fluke or if there were others in the late 90s that did so decently.

 

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I've been meaning to ask, Joshua, is there anyway to change your script so the legend lists the game titles and not just numerical codes? I never know which title is which.