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[Regulus Tera]

I was just going to post how awesome Capcom is this gen but you are absolutely right..they really have kind of dropped the ball with DS. I think part of it possibly is most of Capcom's franchises seem like they wouldn't translate graphically very well to the DS? I dunno..good point though.

Hey now.

Order of Ecclesia was gorgeous.

 

[charlequin]

I think part of it possibly is most of Capcom's franchises seem like they wouldn't translate graphically very well to the DS?

Despite being a big publisher, Capcom have been working quite hard at narrowing their focus. At this point, they're almost exclusively an "action game" publisher. With their one RPG series dead forever and no pure platformers out of Capcom in some time, there's not much left for them to put on the DS.

 

[Pureauthor]

Despite being a big publisher, Capcom have been working quite hard at narrowing their focus. At this point, they're almost exclusively an "action game" publisher. With their one RPG series dead forever and no pure platformers out of Capcom in some time, there's not much left for them to put on the DS.

One of the reasons I love(d) Capcom was that they had strong showings in a large amount of genres. Oh well.

 

[Grampasso]

Hey now.

Order of Ecclesia was gorgeous.

This joke still holds well :lol

 

[jman2050]

Despite being a big publisher, Capcom have been working quite hard at narrowing their focus. At this point, they're almost exclusively an "action game" publisher. With their one RPG series dead forever and no pure platformers out of Capcom in some time, there's not much left for them to put on the DS.

Awesome nostalgic 8-bit games don't count?

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

I was just going to post how awesome Capcom is this gen but you are absolutely right..they really have kind of dropped the ball with DS. I think part of it possibly is most of Capcom's franchises seem like they wouldn't translate graphically very well to the DS? I dunno..good point though.

Capcom's primary focus are 15-35 year old Western gamers. And handhelds aren't popular with them.

 

[Jonnyram]

Ummmm i think you forget that most retailers are sold out of the PS3 after they discontinued the 80GB version.

Sony stopped taking orders for 80GB machines on the 9th August. I don't think that is a factor

 

[charlequin]

Awesome nostalgic 8-bit games don't count?

Megaman is like the prototypical Capcom action platformer game, ridiculous bosses and alll!

 

[apotema]

Tomodachi collection may not stop at 1 million, it's legs are way better than Girls Mode

 

[Dalthien]

That's an extremely liberal translation of what they said.
Basically it was just lip service to Nintendo, but Capcom knows what they are doing. For games that will sell in the west, they will continue with HD development. Of that, I'm sure. But for franchises which are mostly targeted at the Japanese, Wii will be the platform of choice (hence MH3 and Sengoku Basara).

For sure-fire western hits, or franchises that have already been established on the HD platforms - I absolutely agree.

But for new franchises or mid-level stuff - I think it is up in the air at this point. I think Dark Void will have a say in whether Capcom wants to keep trying expensive unproven stuff on the HD platforms. If it performs well, then you are probably correct. If it tanks again, like Bionic Commando just did - then all bets are off for costly unproven franchises. Bionic Commando and Dark Void were both expected to sell roughly on par with Monster Hunter 3, and two expensive duds like that back-to-back will have an influence on Capcom going forward.

It is far more difficult to establish a big new franchise on the HD systems now than it was during the first 12-18 months of the 360's life. Capcom did a great job getting Dead Rising and Lost Planet out there during the early part of the 360, when competition was still fairly light. It is proving to be far more difficult to achieve a similar success with a new or unproven property in today's market.

 

[Jonnyram]

It is far more difficult to establish a big new franchise on the HD systems now than it was during the first 12-18 months of the 360's life. Capcom did a great job getting Dead Rising and Lost Planet out there during the early part of the 360, when competition was still fairly light. It is proving to be far more difficult to achieve a similar success with a new or unproven property in today's market.

Totally agree. I don't have much hope for Dark Void, to be honest. I think, like you, that new IPs are best tested with a fresh launch. It's worked very well for a lot of games this gen, and last. Onimusha and DMC are other examples from last gen.

 

[Tenbatsu]

Seems like BicCamera having super sale or something:

40% Off Magna Carta 2
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4988648667358

40% Off BLEACH DS 4th
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4974365910686

50% Off J League Winning Eleven 2009
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4988602147353

50% Off Blood of Bahamut
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4988601005920

44% Off THE KING OF FIGHTERS XII
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4964808800117

46% Off GEARS OF WAR 2
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4988648605879

 

[duckroll]

Super sale for super bombas.

 

[ShadyMilkman]

Magna Carta is terrible

 

[Jonnyram]

Bomba Carta 2, Bleach DS Bombath, J League Bomba Eleven, Blood of Bombamut, The King of Bombas XII, Gears of Bomba 2... none have dropped in price as much as Bomba Hunter tri.

 

[markatisu]

Bomba Carta 2, Bleach DS Bombath, J League Bomba Eleven, Blood of Bombamut, The King of Bombas XII, Gears of Bomba 2... none have dropped in price as much as Bomba Hunter tri.

None got as large a standalone shipment as it either...well maybe if you combine them all :lol

 

[Tenbatsu]

MH3 is still expensive thou for bundle pack.
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4976219030250

 

[Grimmy]

Sony stopped taking orders for 80GB machines on the 9th August. I don't think that is a factor

Then perhaps for next week's Media Create/Famitsu?
http://kotaku.com/5337043/is-japans-ps3-supply-drying-up

 

[Takao]

PS2 is like an old once retired wrestler stepping back into the ring, honor and pride are things of the past, the only reason it still fights is because the family needs the money. He usually gets beaten to the ground by the younger fighters, but he's still got fight in him. And every now and then he gets the glory.

Are you saying that one franchise, good as it may be, can be considered great support? I think one would have to question the judgment of someone that said yes.

To be fair, they treat the PSP more or less the same. All they've thrown at the PSP has been ports, or remakes, including Monster Hunter. Resident Evil PSP will be the first PSP game of theirs that the PSP was the first platform to hit.

 

[Moor-Angol]

I have bad news for you guys...

Bic Camera, the store, not the online section, has started discounting MH3 (standard version, not CC bundle)

Price dropped to 2930yen

The same shop also had discounted KoF XII by 50% off (both PS3 and 360)

 

[duckroll]

So -now- can we cry price collapse? :lol

 

[Cosmonaut X]

So -now- can we cry price collapse? :lol

Are we not in the same position as we were earlier when a similar pic was posted? One retailer slashing the price on one SKU? Bic have dropped the price on this one by another 50 yen but as noted the price on the bundles is unaffected.

 

[kadotsu]

Little OT (General Japan Sales-age):

How important is DD in Japan? The mobile phone market seems to be DD only and jap phone games had, until the iphone arrived, the higher production values. J-PSN also has the most PS1 titles etc.
I'm only asking because I have no idea how the PSPgo will do. Japanese game retail seems to be very fierce. Why would anyone pay for the overpriced PSN download. Will SCEJ do game vouchers to keep retail happy? Will there be price collapses on PSN?

 

[big_z]

MHtri will cross 1 million easy but it will be interesting to see if it has legs like the psp games.
theres no way you can call the game a bomb. im sure it's already pulling in profit and since it's pay to play in japan even if a lot of units get moved at cost capcom can still earn money from the online.

 

[Johann]

Magna Carta is terrible

How bad can it be? They removed the trinity ring of fail, right?

Little OT (General Japan Sales-age):

How important is DD in Japan? The mobile phone market seems to be DD only and jap phone games had, until the iphone arrived, the higher production values. J-PSN also has the most PS1 titles etc.
I'm only asking because I have no idea how the PSPgo will do. Japanese game retail seems to be very fierce. Why would anyone pay for the overpriced PSN download. Will SCEJ do game vouchers to keep retail happy? Will there be price collapses on PSN?

According to Square-Enix in 2008, the vast majority of DD videogame purchases are on the cellphone. They suggested typical gaming consumers are not as comfortable using credit cards/pre-paid cards for game related purchases as they are with cash. Coverage for DD games/content is also difficult since most Japanese magazines are unlikely to preview or review them.

This is just off memory. There is probably someone here who has first hand experience with this.

 

[duckroll]

According to Square-Enix in 2008, the vast majority of DD videogame purchases are on the cellphone. They suggested typical gaming consumers are not as comfortable using credit cards/pre-paid cards for game related purchases as they are with cash. Coverage for DD games/content is also difficult since most Japanese magazines are unlikely to preview or review them.

This is just off memory. There is probably someone here who has first hand experience with this.

That's not really the reason imo. Cellphones are stand alone devices. They do not require a separate internet connection to use. You can download games onto your phone anytime and anywhere, without having to worry about anything aside from the bill. That is the main reason why they succeed where all other DD fail in Japan.

 

[Naruto]

clearly the 'tri' stands for 'totally redundant inventory'

Nice.

 

[DangerousDave]

That's not really the reason imo. Cellphones are stand alone devices. They do not require a separate internet connection to use. You can download games onto your phone anytime and anywhere, without having to worry about anything aside from the bill. That is the main reason why they succeed where all other DD fail in Japan.

Another interesting thing is that in Japan, paying a subscription for playing a phone game (or paying a fee for a limited number of games) is something normal. And there is even DLC for phone games.

 

[duckroll]

Another interesting thing is that in Japan, paying a subscription for playing a phone game (or paying a fee for a limited number of games) is something normal. And there is even DLC for phone games.

It's more of a subscription of a service rather than to the individual games themselves though. Each publisher has their own special cellphone sites with membership for ringtones, wallpaper, games, etc. You'll need to be a member to buy the games, and they only work as long as you stay subscribed to the service. It's more like a fanclub than just a game subscription service imo.

 

[Acosta]

it will be interesting to see if it has legs like the psp games.

No, it won't be interesting, the answer is no.

 

[Johann]

That's not really the reason imo. Cellphones are stand alone devices. They do not require a separate internet connection to use. You can download games onto your phone anytime and anywhere, without having to worry about anything aside from the bill. That is the main reason why they succeed where all other DD fail in Japan.

I figured as much. Out of curiosity, do any phone services allow customers to download whatever they want without hassle and bill them (or their parents) later?

 

[DangerousDave]

But is a "subscription fee" only, that you can play for free all the content? Or you have a basic service with that subscription and then you can be charged for premium content, as DLC for the games (i'm not japanese, but I'm curious about this)

 

[Sipowicz]

Wow, one moderately successful franchise on the best selling console in history. Really taking advantage of that fanbase.

Are you saying that one franchise, good as it may be, can be considered great support? I think one would have to question the judgment of someone that said yes.

they're not that good on ds but they've pretty much ruled every other platform. they'be been doing a stellar job on psp, wii and ps3/360/pc

 

[duckroll]

I figured as much. Out of curiosity, do any phone services allow customers to download whatever they want without hassle and bill them (or their parents) later?

I'm not sure what you're asking, but isn't that how all phone services work? Here in Asia generally as long as your subscription plan for the phone itself supports internet/multimedia data services, you just do whatever you want and get charged for it later. Even if you buy songs or games off sites the payment comes in your bill, not a credit card charge or anything. All websites offering such services are tied up with the mobile providers themselves to handle payment.

But is a "subscription fee" only, that you can play for free all the content? Or you have a basic service with that subscription and then you can be charged for premium content, as DLC for the games (i'm not japanese, but I'm curious about this)

You're still charged for actual downloads on top of the subscription. Both in terms of data charges as well as paying for premium content or whatever. You generally buy "points" for each service (Like Square Enix points for example), and then spend those points on games and other downloads available on their site.

 

[Tenbatsu]

I have bad news for you guys...

Bic Camera, the store, not the online section, has started discounting MH3 (standard version, not CC bundle)
Price dropped to 2930yen

Wow its good to be in Japan now, dam it!

 

[DMeisterJ]

No, it won't be interesting, the answer is no.

Yeah, hope is fading each week now. The huge drop from week 1 to week 2 and the price collapse this close to launch give a big fat 'no' to that question. Maybe it'll make a million in JP, maybe not, but it will be nowhere near the PSP versions.

What Capcom needs to ask themselves is if it is worth it to keep on with the Wii version when the PSP version just shipped 3.5 million and the Wii version won't sell too much outside of Japan... Topping off at 1.5 million shipped with a larger development costs, and having the advantage of all the Momentum the MH franchise has gained. I think they'll be smart and keep it on the PSP (duh) but they may not do another Wii version, which we'll have to wait to see.

I just hope to have MHP3 announced at TGS or sometime before then.

 

[schuelma]

What Capcom needs to ask themselves is if it is worth it to keep on with the Wii version when the PSP version just shipped 3.5 million and the Wii version won't sell too much outside of Japan... Topping off at 1.5 million shipped with a larger development costs, and having the advantage of all the Momentum the MH franchise has gained. I think they'll be smart and keep it on the PSP (duh) but they may not do another Wii version, which we'll have to wait to see.
.

Oh come on. Even if it doesn't break a million, its the best selling third party game for a console this gen and nothing outside of Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest is likely to beat it. A bit of perspective people?

 

[duckroll]

I'm glad everyone is back to being retarded again. Only took 3 pages right?

 

[near]

Oh come on. Even if it doesn't break a million, its the best selling third party game for a console this gen and nothing outside of Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest is likely to beat it. A bit of perspective people?

It'd be nice if people just stopped bringing this up as if it's some sort of nice counter in every MH3 argument. All this tells us is that the console market in Japan for sales sucks hard. A bit of perspective people?

 

[schuelma]

It'd be nice if people just stopped bringing this up as if it's some sort of nice counter in every MH3 argument. All this tells us is that the console market in Japan for sales sucks hard. A bit of perspective people?

Ok then, how about this- in 9 days it's surpassed all previous Monster Hunter franchise console releases. I'm not arguing that Capcom won't be a bit disappointed if they don't sell out their first shipment, but take a step back and realize that it is still on track to sell well.

 

[swerve]

Seems like BicCamera having super sale or something:

GoW2 isn't a bomba, though, right? It can't have had expectations in Japan much beyond 40,000.

Is it some kind of time-limited Obon sale, to make the most of the holidays? I'm going to go pick up GoW2 first thing tomorrow at that price.

Maybe Bic has really bad buyers at the moment

 

[Road]

Because Famitsu and Media Create are not getting along that well the past couple of weeks, here are the Dengeki numbers for the same week:

01./00. [PS2] SD Gundam G Generation Wars (Bandai Namco) – 194,532 / NEW
02./01. [WII] Monster Hunter Tri (Capcom) – 144,316
03./00. [PSP] Tales of VS. (Bandai Namco) – 136,762 / NEW
04./02. [NDS] Dragon Quest IX (Square Enix) – 125,424
05./03. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) – 91,465
06./04. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) – 70,556
07./00. [PS2] Kamen Rider: Climax Heroes (Bandai Namco) – 51,811 / NEW
08./00. [WII] SD Gundam G Generation Wars (Bandai Namco) – 32,462 / NEW
09./00. [PS2] J-League Winning Eleven 2009: Club Championship (Konami) – 31,159 / NEW
10./00. [360] Magna Carta 2 (Banpresto) - 30,432 / NEW
11./00. [NDS] Blood of Bahamut (Square Enix) - 29,456 / NEW
12./00. [NDS] Color Changing Tingle's Balloon Trip of Love (Nintendo) – 27,789 / NEW
13./05. [NDS] Puyo Puyo 7 (Sega) - 27,678
14./10. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G PSP The Best (Capcom) - 22,028
15./09. [NDS] Welcome Home! Chibi-Robo! Happy Rich Big Cleaning! (Nintendo) - 15,600
16./12. [NDS] Penguin no Mondai X: Tenkuu no 7 Senshi (A Penguin's Troubles X: 7 Warriors of the Sky) (Konami) - 12,630
17./06. [PSP] Armored Core 3 Portable (From Software) - 11,411
18./00. [WII] EA Sports Active (Electronic Arts) - 10,110 / NEW
19./00. [NDS] BLEACH DS 4th: Flame Bringer (Sega) - 10,011 / NEW
20./13. [PSP] Boku no Natsuyasumi 4 (My Summer Vacation 4): Youth Detective Group in Seto - Me and the Secret Map (SCEI) - 9,483

Comparison:

			Famitsu		M-C	Dengeki		Avg
First Week:
[PS2] SD Gundam G GW	    196		175	    195		189
[PSP] Tales of VS.	    153		133	    137		141
[PS2] Kamen Rider	     53		 52	     52		 52
[WII] SD Gundam G GW	     33		 33	     32		 33
[PS2] WE 2009 CC	     35		 33	     31		 33
[360] Magna Carta 2	     38		<33	     30		  ?
[NDS] Blood of Bahamut	     32		<33	     29		  ?
[WII] EA Sports Active	     10		  ?	     10		  ?
[NDS] Bleach DS 4th	     10		  ?	     10		  ?

Total:
[Wii] Monster Hunter 3	    720 	657	    671		683

(in thousands)

Other Dengeki LTD:
[PS2] SD Gundam G Generation Spirits (Bandai-Namco) - 410,000
[WII] Taiko no Tatsujin Wii (Bandai-Namco) - 584,000

 

[markatisu]

Yeah, hope is fading each week now. The huge drop from week 1 to week 2 and the price collapse this close to launch give a big fat 'no' to that question. Maybe it'll make a million in JP, maybe not, but it will be nowhere near the PSP versions.

What Capcom needs to ask themselves is if it is worth it to keep on with the Wii version when the PSP version just shipped 3.5 million and the Wii version won't sell too much outside of Japan... Topping off at 1.5 million shipped with a larger development costs, and having the advantage of all the Momentum the MH franchise has gained. I think they'll be smart and keep it on the PSP (duh) but they may not do another Wii version, which we'll have to wait to see.

I just hope to have MHP3 announced at TGS or sometime before then.

GTFO you honestly do not think Capcom will milk the 700-900k MH3 Wii buyers with a game thru can easily port to the PSP.

I understand you want MH3P but wowzers

And btw how does the BIC pic change anything besides provide more proof the standalone was overordered by retailers? Interesting we have not seen a collapse for bundles or cc pro's

 

[Stumpokapow]

GoW2 isn't a bomba, though, right? It can't have had expectations in Japan much beyond 40,000.

Well Gears 1 did 75k so...

 

[Acosta]

GTFO you honestly do not think Capcom will milk the 700-900k MH3 Wii buyers with a game thru can easily port to the PSP.

:lol :lol :lol

Of course they will. And those players will buy it again, that's how this works. Since when Capcom is shy to milk anything?

 

[Segata Sanshiro]

If you can't make money off of selling 8-900,000 copies of a game, then about 95% of the PS3's library wasn't worth the effort.

Personally I think Capcom could cut a good groove here. Console version first, sell about 700k or so copies, then bring it out a bit later on PSP and harvest the cash for the version people want to play.

 

[AceBandage]

If you can't make money off of selling 8-900,000 copies of a game, then about 95% of the PS3's library wasn't worth the effort.

Personally I think Capcom could cut a good groove here. Console version first, sell about 700k or so copies, then bring it out a bit later on PSP and harvest the cash for the version people want to play.

That's exactly what they've been doing, actually. They just moved it from the PS2 to the Wii.

 

[DMeisterJ]

GTFO you honestly do not think Capcom will milk the 700-900k MH3 Wii buyers with a game thru can easily port to the PSP.

Just like Capcom is milking all the RE4: Wii owners with RE5: Wii Edition? Yeah.....

Edit:

Of course a new MH will come to the Wii in the future, but it's just that it's not a foregone conclusion that because it sold a few hundred thousand units, another one is coming.

Oh come on. Even if it doesn't break a million, its the best selling third party game for a console this gen and nothing outside of Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest is likely to beat it. A bit of perspective people?

So what? Did it sell 3.5 million copies? What does the highest selling game on a platform have to do with bringing more games to the platform...

What if the highest TP game was at 100k and it did 150k? Would that make sense to do that again (don't answer).

 

[duckroll]

DMeisterJ is being exceedingly moronic right now. Please bear with him.

 

[Cosmonaut X]

DMeisterJ is being exceedingly moronic right now. Please bear with him.

:lol

It's almost like you're his carer...