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[Miles708]

I don't think anything made by Altus can be labelled as niche anymore. Expedition 33 I grant you, but this is most certainly mainstream.

Sales are fine, but underwhelming compared to the likes of Persona 5, which is fair as the game is underwhelming compared to Persona 5.

Maybe i'm just living in the past but japanese RPGs will never stop being a niche genre in my head.
For 2 or 3 millions to be considered not a success will always be wild to me.

 

[geary]

We saw lately a lot of devs posting their sales and it's between 2-5 millions (Ex33, Metaphor, Lies of P, Silent Hill Remake. Astrobot, FF16 etc). All of them seems pretty satisfied with the numbers the reached. This pose the question of budgets and why expectation for success to be 10 millions sales or more...

 

[calico]

I agree these aren't great numbers, especially considering the reception the game received. They may have been considered acceptable when they were developing the game. It's not that easy for a new IP in a relatively niche genre to immediately do eg. 5m+, so idk if they would have been counting on that.

I do wonder just how much something like this really costs to make when they are borrowing so heavily from an existing game though. It would be unfair to call it a reskin of Persona, but they must have been able to repurpose a lot of work from those games.

P5 has one of the strongest starts of any game in any genre, but I preferred Metaphor overall. P5 became an unbearable slog for me later on. They have a lot in common, but I think the mechanical changes Metaphor made were improvements.

 

[Scrawnton]

If only there was a highly successful handheld platform where JRPGs have been proven to successfully sell on them.

If something like this existed maybe Atlus games would grow more. Just maybe.

The original SMT V sold over 1.1mil on Switch alone. And Metaphor sold 2 mil on ps4, Xbox Series, PS5 and PC... And P3R sold 2 mil on ps4, Xbox one, Xbox series, PS5 and PC.

If only there was some way for Atlus to juice up these sales....

 

[RoboFu]

I forgot I even own this. I played about 2 hours and it just didn't click with me at the time but maybe I'll try again this summer.

 

[Ebrietas]

If only there was a highly successful handheld platform where JRPGs have been proven to successfully sell on them.

If something like this existed maybe Atlus games would grow more. Just maybe.

The original SMT V sold over 1.1mil on Switch alone. And Metaphor sold 2 mil on ps4, Xbox Series, PS5 and PC... And P3R sold 2 mil on ps4, Xbox one, Xbox series, PS5 and PC.

If only there was some way for Atlus to juice up these sales....

You mean PlayStation? Which sold more than 5 million copies of Persona 5 on its own? Almost the entire growth of Atlus can be attributed to that.

Anyway these are weak numbers. Switch 2 port won't move the needle that much. You would think the GOTY spiritual follow up to P5 that launched day 1 on PC and Xbox, could muster more than 2 million by now. This really should have been their Elden Ring moment after the huge breakthrough success of P5.

 

[Critical Hit]

I'd also argue Expedition 33 at most has a comparable budget, though potentially less, and doesn't come from a team withy any JRPG pedigree like Atlus.

E33 - $50, Metaphor - $70.

 

[StereoVsn]

Maybe a controversial take, but these aren't great numbers IMO.

People are going to say it's a new IP, but are we going to pretend it wasn't riding off the hype and recent(ish) surge in popularity for Persona 5? Did SEGA & Atlus not put multiple Persona games on Game Pass prior to Metaphor's release? Did the game not have multiple showings? I even saw some commercials for it on TV, a rarity with Xbox's involvement but it was nice to see.

Considering it hit 1 million in shipments & digital sales very shortly after launch, it'd suggest sales slowed down considerably afterwards, and I imagine a lot of what's sold since have been in big sales promos. Just frankly, SEGA & Atlus gimped this IP's chances by locking all the Western marketing to Xbox, and barely ever mentioning PlayStation or Steam. And they've since double-screwed up by still not having a Switch or Switch 2 version ready. Why was a port for Switch 2's launch not a priority? Absolutely massive oversight on their part.

Those are all the reasons why I say the 2 million figure just doesn't sound all that great, because in actuality it just isn't, when you consider the choices made in promoting & releasing the game. These aren't even sold-through numbers, and while I'm sure it's had a less budget than, say, FF XVI, it isn't by some magnitudes less. I'd also argue Expedition 33 at most has a comparable budget, though potentially less, and doesn't come from a team withy any JRPG pedigree like Atlus. Yet it still managed to do 3 million (in actual sales) in way less time, while also being on Game Pass (though I strongly doubt that did much to boost sales; in fact it might've sold a bit more if not for the Game Pass inclusion).

Yes, I know. Metaphor, FF XVI, Expedition 33...these are all different games that just happen to be JRPGs (or JRPG-like in E33's case if you don't consider it an upfront JRPG). But again, coming off the glow-up of Persona 5 over the past few years, and the hype the game was getting online, of course I thought Metaphor would've done better. I figure it'd at least be around 3 million by now.

And yeah, there's a bit of pettiness here in it for me. Not even just directed at certain commentators and the media, but publishers. Somehow a game like XVI was considered a failure for doing 3.4 million (sold-in & digital sales) in a week as an exclusive on a single platform, but Metaphor is being considered a success doing 2 million sold-in after eight months while on everything besides Switch? Rebirth is a failure doing 2 million in like a week or two on one platform, but Metaphor is considered a success for less? And again, that's directed at publishers too: Square-Enix just aren't a good publisher in general. These guys called Tomb Raider a failure at 6 million sales, and after XVI's ridiculously low debut on Xbox we've heard not a word from them on it failing to meet certain targets? Did they REALLY want to hit 25K in a debut on Xbox?

But I guess a game hitting somewhat soft numbers is perfectly fine, as long as it's "pro consumer" by being on all platforms, right? Which Metaphor doesn't even satisfy, since it's still not on Switch or Switch 2.

Anyway, rant over.

IMO, Metaphor missed on both storytelling and gameplay, not to mention abysmal performance on PC. I noped out after like 15 hours (might still come back at some point), and I have never done that with an Atlus RPG. I even played through OG Raidou back in the day despite the issues. There was something missing here despite potentially very good premise and setup.

It is still better than FF XVI though .

 

[drganon]

If only there was a highly successful handheld platform where JRPGs have been proven to successfully sell on them.

If something like this existed maybe Atlus games would grow more. Just maybe.

The original SMT V sold over 1.1mil on Switch alone. And Metaphor sold 2 mil on ps4, Xbox Series, PS5 and PC... And P3R sold 2 mil on ps4, Xbox one, Xbox series, PS5 and PC.

If only there was some way for Atlus to juice up these sales....

If only Nintendo didn't make systems that were potatoes that ran non first party games like shit...

 

[Ozriel]

Maybe a controversial take, but these aren't great numbers IMO.

People are going to say it's a new IP, but are we going to pretend it wasn't riding off the hype and recent(ish) surge in popularity for Persona 5? Did SEGA & Atlus not put multiple Persona games on Game Pass prior to Metaphor's release? Did the game not have multiple showings? I even saw some commercials for it on TV, a rarity with Xbox's involvement but it was nice to see.

Considering it hit 1 million in shipments & digital sales very shortly after launch, it'd suggest sales slowed down considerably afterwards, and I imagine a lot of what's sold since have been in big sales promos. Just frankly, SEGA & Atlus gimped this IP's chances by locking all the Western marketing to Xbox, and barely ever mentioning PlayStation or Steam. And they've since double-screwed up by still not having a Switch or Switch 2 version ready. Why was a port for Switch 2's launch not a priority? Absolutely massive oversight on their part.

Those are all the reasons why I say the 2 million figure just doesn't sound all that great, because in actuality it just isn't, when you consider the choices made in promoting & releasing the game. These aren't even sold-through numbers, and while I'm sure it's had a less budget than, say, FF XVI, it isn't by some magnitudes less. I'd also argue Expedition 33 at most has a comparable budget, though potentially less, and doesn't come from a team withy any JRPG pedigree like Atlus. Yet it still managed to do 3 million (in actual sales) in way less time, while also being on Game Pass (though I strongly doubt that did much to boost sales; in fact it might've sold a bit more if not for the Game Pass inclusion).

Yes, I know. Metaphor, FF XVI, Expedition 33...these are all different games that just happen to be JRPGs (or JRPG-like in E33's case if you don't consider it an upfront JRPG). But again, coming off the glow-up of Persona 5 over the past few years, and the hype the game was getting online, of course I thought Metaphor would've done better. I figure it'd at least be around 3 million by now.

And yeah, there's a bit of pettiness here in it for me. Not even just directed at certain commentators and the media, but publishers. Somehow a game like XVI was considered a failure for doing 3.4 million (sold-in & digital sales) in a week as an exclusive on a single platform, but Metaphor is being considered a success doing 2 million sold-in after eight months while on everything besides Switch? Rebirth is a failure doing 2 million in like a week or two on one platform, but Metaphor is considered a success for less? And again, that's directed at publishers too: Square-Enix just aren't a good publisher in general. These guys called Tomb Raider a failure at 6 million sales, and after XVI's ridiculously low debut on Xbox we've heard not a word from them on it failing to meet certain targets? Did they REALLY want to hit 25K in a debut on Xbox?

But I guess a game hitting somewhat soft numbers is perfectly fine, as long as it's "pro consumer" by being on all platforms, right? Which Metaphor doesn't even satisfy, since it's still not on Switch or Switch 2.

Anyway, rant over.

Unless the world is ending this weekend, wailing about Metaphor not being on Switch 2 yet as a 'massive oversight' is quite silly. It'll sell similar numbers if it's ported in later this year.

Metaphor is also a much smaller IP than Final Fantasy, and most likely a significantly cheaper game to make.

These guys called Tomb Raider a failure at 6 million sales, and after XVI's ridiculously low debut on Xbox we've heard not a word from them on it failing to meet certain targets? Did they REALLY want to hit 25K in a debut on Xbox?

Ah, there it is.

 

[The Devil's Grocers]

I figure a lot of people are like me and said, "haven't I already played this game 3 times?"

Some people don't mind replaying various flavors of Persona 3 over and over again but it's looking like those returns are diminishing as we speak

 

[StereoVsn]

Unless the world is ending this weekend, wailing about Metaphor not being on Switch 2 yet as a 'massive oversight' is quite silly. It'll sell similar numbers if it's ported in later this year.

Metaphor is also a much smaller IP than Final Fantasy, and most likely a significantly cheaper game to make.

Yeah, I expect P3R, Metaphor and upcoming P4 Remake to go to the Switch 2, Sega just needs to space the games out a bit.

 

[Geometric-Crusher]

And they've since double-screwed up by still not having a Switch or Switch 2 version ready. Why was a port for Switch 2's launch not a priority?

I think you better settle for the idea that there will be few Sega games on the Switch 2 from now on because these guys have other plans you know SuperGame.

Spoiler

 

[Scrawnton]

If only Nintendo didn't make systems that were potatoes that ran non first party games like shit...

then sega can be happy with 2 million copies.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

I think the numbers are probably good and Atlus is happy with them. I'd also expect they made a decent profit on the game.

Considering the acclaim the game got and that it launched on all platforms, I'm surprised it's not at 3mil yet.

 

[CityHunter1981]

I loved the game. But I think these are shockingly low numbers…

Atlas was just coming from the success of Persona 5, so I was sure there was a bigger audience.

Even Silent Hill 2 Remake (which I loved even more) sold more than 2 million copies by now and that was a PS5 and PC release only and I had imagined Metaphor surely have sold more than that.

 

[nial]

I'm happy for her.

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Great numbers. Fastest selling Atlus game ever. Still a Switch 2 release and the inevitable expanded edition to come. Sega themselves said to shareholders that the game exceeded expectations.

This will be the second best selling Atlus game in their history (behind P5) when it's all said and done.

Metaphor won't be hitting 4 million by 2028 (maybe even 2029) without a Switch 2 port & an update with more definitive content.

But will also admit, people ITT saying expectations for an eventual "definitive version" might've suppressed initial sales, are correct.

I'm sure part of the reason is that different games have different budgets and hence different expectations for being considered a success.

I know that.

Doesn't mean we can't compare recent releases in the same genre, or their market performance. It also helps show how certain people in the press will change their talking points on a dime if the current ones don't serve the narrative they want to push.

Again, even before Square-Enix came out with their opinion on the early XVI sales, we had tons of games journalists and fanboys online constantly saying the 3.4 million number was "low" and a failure, and that it was because the game was a PS5 exclusive. When Square-Enix then said the game came short of their high-end targets, those same people turned it into saying the game failed to meet even their low/standard targets, another lie.

When E33 revealed their sales numbers, a lot of the same people immediately started comparing it to XVI, and pushing the same "exclusives are bad!" narrative. When Metaphor released, the way some people were talking you'd think it had revolutionized JRPGs and put XVI to shame, and they were "sure" it'd outpace XVI's sales in short order.

But now that we know the sales are in fact well behind what XVI's were even before that game got its PC port, suddenly 2 million in shipments & digital sales for a big-profile JRPG on all platforms (except Nintendo) from launch isn't worth having a conversation about? Not worth those people maybe taking back some of the ridiculous talking points they were using against XVI a few years ago? Or against Rebirth last year, for that matter?

According to my calculations, metaphor sold around a million on steam (Idk if this is mentioned or not) so atlus rpgs will definetly be steam day 1.

Very dissapointing that a AAA Goty contender just does these numbers regardless of the genre. A roster updated FIFA can do this in its first hour. You guys are a really small niche.

How did you arrive at 1 million copies sold on Steam?

I cannot, and estimates that I've found online are almost entirely based on conjecture, but I would hope that it'd go without saying that this game

would have had a lower development budget than this game, both having been created in Japan.

Not necessarily due to this Metaphor vs. FF XVI talk, but you can't simply say one game has a higher budget than another due to the graphics.

I'm sure FF16 was more expensive than Metaphor, but Metaphor wasn't a cheap game either. It had an 14 month long marketing campaign and started early development in 2016. It wasn't a particularly small team.

When you consider that FF16 sold 3 million at a full 70 dollars (not including deluxe editions) in just one week, with Sony backing the marketing campaign and even helping/(probably) partially funding development, plus probably taking a smaller storefront cut, FF16 would have made twice the revenue for Square in one week that Metaphor has made for Sega in 8 months. That should count for something in the discourse, even if Square and Sega are very different entities.

The people who were trashing on XVI and calling it a failure (and same with Rebirth) when they launched, will avoid having any serious discussion on Metaphor's comparative underperformance, because they'll just deflect to Clair Obscure: E33 instead. Even if FF & Metaphor have more in common with each other than either does with Clair Obscure.

They'll also avoid that dialog, because it'll force them to admit that SEGA/Atlus's Western marketing strategy (heavy Xbox association, almost zero PlayStation or Steam mention until like a week prior to launch) and lack of a Switch/Switch 2 version, are among the biggest reasons for that comparative underperformance.

 

[Danny22]

How did you arrive at 1 million copies sold on Steam?

3 Ways: On steam, if a game isn't review bombed, you can typically multiple number of reviews X30 to get an estimation of sales figure (methaphor has abt 35k reviews right now). You can also re confirm using steam db, go to charts, estimation figures by four websites and looking at the middle figure. You can also look at playstation review count X45-60 to get sales and minus that with overall figure, the rest would mostly be steam as Xbox sales are mostly dead (10-20 percent of PS sales). If all 3 match up, you get a good estimate. Still its all an estimation so there might be outliers.

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Unless the world is ending this weekend, wailing about Metaphor not being on Switch 2 yet as a 'massive oversight' is quite silly. It'll sell similar numbers if it's ported in later this year.

Metaphor is also a much smaller IP than Final Fantasy, and most likely a significantly cheaper game to make.

Metaphor might be a "much smaller IP" than FF (I think you're exaggerating the market presence of FF, even going back to the golden age), but it also released on the tail of Persona 5 growth. And, Persona as an IP has become Atlus's most popular brand, and arguably the most popular current RPG series between them and SEGA. It's also grown a ton over the past several years and has market relevance almost on par with modern Final Fantasy (if not already there).

You're telling me a big new JRPG from the same studio following off the growth of Persona 5, couldn't have benefited more significantly from that boost? Especially considering they share a lot of similar design ideas and style?

Ah, there it is.

What, the truth?

 

[calico]

Branding matters, this is why we get so many sequels, or 'sequels' in FF's case. I think branding carried FF16 hard. FF7 Remake trilogy is even more reliant on association with what has come before, what with the whole project being founded on and only made viable to begin with due to nostalgia.

Metaphor has only whatever benefit comes from the Atlus name and Persona association, which I suspect is negligible compared to the FF brand because most of the audience is clueless about who makes what. There is a significantly higher knowledge requirement to be aware of that connection than to associate Final Fantasy with Final Fantasy.

It's understandable that they wanted to try and establish a new IP instead of becoming ever more reliant on Persona, but I don't know how they'll be feeling about that decision now or if they'll be inclined to make the same one again in future.

 

[ChoosableOne]

I wish it had come to Game Pass before Clair Obscure — I'm not sure if I can play "old style" jrpgs anymore. Mid game smt 5 save also ruined.

 

[ProtoByte]

But will also admit, people ITT saying expectations for an eventual "definitive version" might've suppressed initial sales, are correct.

Assuming anyone's going to want to buy the "definitive" version of this mid ass game. I highly doubt it.

The people who were trashing on XVI and calling it a failure (and same with Rebirth) when they launched, will avoid having any serious discussion on Metaphor's comparative underperformance, because they'll just deflect to Clair Obscure: E33 instead. Even if FF & Metaphor have more in common with each other than either does with Clair Obscure.

They'll also avoid that dialog, because it'll force them to admit that SEGA/Atlus's Western marketing strategy (heavy Xbox association, almost zero PlayStation or Steam mention until like a week prior to launch) and lack of a Switch/Switch 2 version, are among the biggest reasons for that comparative underperformance.

I think it has more to do with that the game just wasn't that appealing. Don't forget, the initial reaction to this was somewhat mixed. There were some turned off by how much of a Persona rehash it looked like, and others who were upset that the high fantasy game that was teased in the 2016 concept art for the project was switched out for... whatever the fuck they've got going on in the final game.

As for the other platforms, people are just confusing audience fragmentation for audience expansion. Xbox made the same mistake last gen, Sony is making the same one now. For third parties like Sega, I guess doesn't matter as much - at least in the short term.

 

[RCU005]

I want to play it, but I'm fine with waiting for the complete remaster edition with all the content in a couple of years.

After Persona 5 Royal and Atlus not allowing us to upgrade. I will never buy an Atlus game at launch. In fact, they did it again with Shin Megami Tensei V!

F Atlus! If you buy at launch, you get scammed.

 

[Astray]

Maybe a controversial take, but these aren't great numbers IMO.

People are going to say it's a new IP, but are we going to pretend it wasn't riding off the hype and recent(ish) surge in popularity for Persona 5? Did SEGA & Atlus not put multiple Persona games on Game Pass prior to Metaphor's release? Did the game not have multiple showings? I even saw some commercials for it on TV, a rarity with Xbox's involvement but it was nice to see.

Considering it hit 1 million in shipments & digital sales very shortly after launch, it'd suggest sales slowed down considerably afterwards, and I imagine a lot of what's sold since have been in big sales promos. Just frankly, SEGA & Atlus gimped this IP's chances by locking all the Western marketing to Xbox, and barely ever mentioning PlayStation or Steam. And they've since double-screwed up by still not having a Switch or Switch 2 version ready. Why was a port for Switch 2's launch not a priority? Absolutely massive oversight on their part.

Those are all the reasons why I say the 2 million figure just doesn't sound all that great, because in actuality it just isn't, when you consider the choices made in promoting & releasing the game. These aren't even sold-through numbers, and while I'm sure it's had a less budget than, say, FF XVI, it isn't by some magnitudes less. I'd also argue Expedition 33 at most has a comparable budget, though potentially less, and doesn't come from a team withy any JRPG pedigree like Atlus. Yet it still managed to do 3 million (in actual sales) in way less time, while also being on Game Pass (though I strongly doubt that did much to boost sales; in fact it might've sold a bit more if not for the Game Pass inclusion).

Yes, I know. Metaphor, FF XVI, Expedition 33...these are all different games that just happen to be JRPGs (or JRPG-like in E33's case if you don't consider it an upfront JRPG). But again, coming off the glow-up of Persona 5 over the past few years, and the hype the game was getting online, of course I thought Metaphor would've done better. I figure it'd at least be around 3 million by now.

And yeah, there's a bit of pettiness here in it for me. Not even just directed at certain commentators and the media, but publishers. Somehow a game like XVI was considered a failure for doing 3.4 million (sold-in & digital sales) in a week as an exclusive on a single platform, but Metaphor is being considered a success doing 2 million sold-in after eight months while on everything besides Switch? Rebirth is a failure doing 2 million in like a week or two on one platform, but Metaphor is considered a success for less? And again, that's directed at publishers too: Square-Enix just aren't a good publisher in general. These guys called Tomb Raider a failure at 6 million sales, and after XVI's ridiculously low debut on Xbox we've heard not a word from them on it failing to meet certain targets? Did they REALLY want to hit 25K in a debut on Xbox?

But I guess a game hitting somewhat soft numbers is perfectly fine, as long as it's "pro consumer" by being on all platforms, right? Which Metaphor doesn't even satisfy, since it's still not on Switch or Switch 2.

Anyway, rant over.

Bro this is a brand-new IP being produced on a budget selling more than 2 mil in less than a year on market.

This is absolutely a success and Atlus have a new big IP they can rotate with SMTs and Personas as a result.

I'm sure FF16 was more expensive than Metaphor, but Metaphor wasn't a cheap game either. It had an 14 month long marketing campaign and started early development in 2016. It wasn't a particularly small team.

When you consider that FF16 sold 3 million at a full 70 dollars (not including deluxe editions) in just one week, with Sony backing the marketing campaign and even helping/(probably) partially funding development, plus probably taking a smaller storefront cut, FF16 would have made twice the revenue for Square in one week that Metaphor has made for Sega in 8 months. That should count for something in the discourse, even if Square and Sega are very different entities.

Marketing campaign was largely paid for by Microsoft as part of their deal, a deal that many on here questioned (even me at times). This game is almost certainly a success for them considering it's not even on big sales drops yet.

FF16's issue wasn't in its launch sales, it was in the complete and utter drop off that happened afterwards.

 

[Signalis]

Have they patched in anti-aliasing yet?

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Have they patched in anti-aliasing yet?

They haven't done anything to improve the shit tier engine with complete lack of AA and frame rate drops for no reason in the cities

I'm still amazed by how technically shit Metaphor is compared to the other 2 flagship JRPG that Fatlus released in 2024. Both P3R and SMTV:V run in native 4K resolution locked to 60 fps on PS5. Metaphor is just embarrassing by comparison

 

[yogaflame]

Congratulations. Could have been bigger since its multiplatform, but still a solid number.

 

[Gaiff]

I loved the game. But I think these are shockingly low numbers…

Atlas was just coming from the success of Persona 5, so I was sure there was a bigger audience.

Even Silent Hill 2 Remake (which I loved even more) sold more than 2 million copies by now and that was a PS5 and PC release only and I had imagined Metaphor surely have sold more than that.

I think Atlus severely underestimated how important the dating sim aspect is to the popularity of Persona. I saw people straight-up say they ain't buying because it's not a waifu simulator.

 

[Thief1987]

FF16's issue wasn't in its launch sales, it was in the complete and utter drop off that happened afterwards.

Like this game too

 

[Astray]

Like this game too

Maybe yes, but this likely made back its budget and then some already.

It's remarkably cheap for what it is tbh. Essentially a Persona reskin (imo in a good way but YMMV).

 

[Magister]

Good for a new ip. Not good for a game that may potentially become the third biggest ip for Atlus.

As always, I blame dudebros who hate anime games and would rather pew pew pew Call of Duty or play Mario Party/Kart high with their buddies.

 

[Rising_Hei]

Like many Atlus games, it deserves to sell much more. It was even localized for many languages to an excellent standard (the Spanish localization was amazing).

My ranking of some of their biggest hits:

Persona 5 Royal > Metaphor > SMT V Vengeance/Persona 5.

As for the more traditional SEGA, Infinite Wealth deserved to sell 10 m+, it was a huge improvement over Yakuza 7, and its story was different, adult and touching.

 

[YeulEmeralda]

We saw lately a lot of devs posting their sales and it's between 2-5 millions (Ex33, Metaphor, Lies of P, Silent Hill Remake. Astrobot, FF16 etc). All of them seems pretty satisfied with the numbers the reached. This pose the question of budgets and why expectation for success to be 10 millions sales or more...

It depends on your budget and dev time no? I expect Rockstar would not be satisfied with 3 million for GTA6.

 

[Gambit2483]

Would be interesting to get that breakdown by platform...

Almost willing to bet Switch 2 first month sales beat Xbox lifetime sales

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Assuming anyone's going to want to buy the "definitive" version of this mid ass game. I highly doubt it.


I think it has more to do with that the game just wasn't that appealing. Don't forget, the initial reaction to this was somewhat mixed. There were some turned off by how much of a Persona rehash it looked like, and others who were upset that the high fantasy game that was teased in the 2016 concept art for the project was switched out for... whatever the fuck they've got going on in the final game.

As for the other platforms, people are just confusing audience fragmentation for audience expansion. Xbox made the same mistake last gen, Sony is making the same one now. For third parties like Sega, I guess doesn't matter as much - at least in the short term.

I'm not gonna go as far as to say it's a mid game or anything like that.

But I agree with you that a lot of companies out here are conflating fragmentation with expansion, and that does include Sony/SIE in some ways this gen.

Bro this is a brand-new IP being produced on a budget selling more than 2 mil in less than a year on market.

This is absolutely a success and Atlus have a new big IP they can rotate with SMTs and Personas as a result.


Marketing campaign was largely paid for by Microsoft as part of their deal, a deal that many on here questioned (even me at times). This game is almost certainly a success for them considering it's not even on big sales drops yet.

FF16's issue wasn't in its launch sales, it was in the complete and utter drop off that happened afterwards.

Not saying Metaphor is a failure, just that considering all the hype coming from the media and various circles last year I thought it'd had done better at retail.

We can't deny that them skipping mention of PlayStation and Steam in the Western marketing (and not having a Switch version by now, or a Switch 2 version during the launch window) are MASSIVE oversights and mistakes on the parts of SEGA and Atlus, however.

Also talking about XVI and its drop off....well technically Metaphor's drop is somewhat comparable, so what can be said for XVI can be said here as well, IMHO.

 

[drganon]

Would be interesting to get that breakdown by platform...

Almost willing to bet Switch 2 first week sales beat Xbox lifetime sales

Fixed

 

[SamuraiEdge]

2 million is still good for this, doing enough to surely make some decent profit as well, allowing the devs to try something different away from the usual titles. Sega will get the benefit of these when at a good sale to have some reasonable marginal sales each quarter, like how Capcom has over the years. I see this becoming very helpful if they continue with similarly scoped projects if the quality remains. It was a fun JRPG.

 

[Illyria]

I loved this game. Beat the secret boss not long ago with Tycoons & P . Got all the legendary gear. Louis was a fantastic villain. The characters & world....top notch.

 

[Astray]

Not saying Metaphor is a failure, just that considering all the hype coming from the media and various circles last year I thought it'd had done better at retail.

Forum goers like us are a minority of a minority, this game's sales kinda prove it imo, it's selling well, but it's not a Wukong level of shocking success either..

We can't deny that them skipping mention of PlayStation and Steam in the Western marketing (and not having a Switch version by now, or a Switch 2 version during the launch window) are MASSIVE oversights and mistakes on the parts of SEGA and Atlus, however.

That was the part I doubted about the marketing contract tbh. But it seems like PS/Steam still have sold well despite it all so the gamble kinda paid off?

Switch 1 likely couldn't handle the game so they're probably gonna move it for Switch 2. The other thing is Sega has a ton of product that's eligible for a Switch 2 port, and they need to pace themselves to keep quarterly revenue stable and not cross-cannibalize their audiences.

Also talking about XVI and its drop off....well technically Metaphor's drop is somewhat comparable, so what can be said for XVI can be said here as well, IMHO.

XVI likely cost at least twice as much to make as Metaphor though. So it's barrier for success/fail is much higher.

I do agree with you that the game got railroaded for being an exclusive (and because Square foolishly made it into a mainline FF game instead of a spin-off).