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[Mael]

considering how good Zumba, Just Dance, etc, are selling on Wii I can agree.

Nintendo should have expanded after they started swimming in money, they couldn't afford two support 200 million installed based of DS and Wii with only 4000 employee.

and now 3DS and Wii U are added to the bunch, so ...

They did jackshit with their resources anyway.
They barely supported the DS with their own internal resources at some point and they decided to do Other M, Galaxy 2 and god knows what else while the rest of the teams were twiddling their thumbs when it was clear that none of these products would sustain the Wii.
For crying out loud, they're the ones who decided to support their ship with Wii Music and Animal Crossing while taking their time with WSR and NSMB! They don't have their priorities right that's for sure.

Mario games and Animal Crossing are 'hardcore' games?! Mario has NEVER been hardcore, even their strange titles such as Mario vs Donkeykong puzzle game on DS are million sellers.

The problem is that 3DS is not inherently a different type of product that DS, it is merely an iteration of 3DS and doesn't offer new type of gameplay as DS did, and not even that, it now has to compete with loads of iphones and androids and ipads.

because of this, making new IPs that are different in nature, rather that only content, from DS is not easy.

The other problem is that at this point and with this price, 3DS is not a viable solution to attract masses based on nintendo dogs style of games.

No one gives a shit about 'hardcore'. However these games are their core product, you don't expand with products aimed at your core.
Nintendogs was one their strongest core brand, now in the toilet because of how they handled their product lines. They made the most unappealing product they could since the virtual boy and the market reaction is really not surprising.
Btw I wouldn't pin the blame on competition considering how well the DS was holding its ground when the iphone exploded.

So if CoD becomes exclusives to Wii U, it wouldn't help it sell? since you know, back then it didn't sell much.

If it's only CoD it's stupid to think it could hold the platform alone. Then again NSMBW certainly was the only thing holding the Wii for much of last year.

 

[SmokyDave]

wow @ 360 numbers.

I can't understand what's so good about the system. Can't find a reason to own it.

Do you play... videogames?

If so, there are plenty of reasons to own one.

 

[Mael]

Then the answer to "Why hasn't Nintendo followed up the success of NSMB Wii?" is "They already have."

But they clearly did not, Miyamoto did multiple interviews saying how we'll get 2D Mario along 3D Mario from now on. And what do they do just after that? Pull a 3D Mario with the unstated goal of making 2D Mario irrelevant!

I think you may be under-appreciating the effect of the changed, fixed perspective, as well as of the 3D effect itself in helping the user judge distances. Of course, we'll have to see how the game performs at release.

SO that then means that the game is unlpayable for a part of the userbase which can't see the 3D effets...which is dumb to begin with.

I don't think it's fair to judge an entire game's design by a single tech demo.

Considering how crap their e3 was, I'm happily throwing this one under the bus along the others.

You've got to remember that the Wii is dying whether Nintendo likes it or not. If they truly had an interesting idea with a lot of sales potential, why waste it on the Wii when they can release it for the Wii U to build momentum for that console? Consider Wii Relax: even if Nintendo is able to refine it to the degree that they'd prefer, there's no way that that piece of software is ever seeing release on the Wii. There's simply no point to it.

The Wii is dying because they allowed it to die. They did nothing to stop the trend anyway, they're even responsible for the nose dive in late 2008->2009.
Take it on the side of the customer for once :
You bought a Wii for the cool possibilities it could offer and the new gameplay and all you're greeted with (appart from the Wii line) are NSMBW, Mario Kart and a bunch of games you didn't buy on GC anyway (since you didn't buy a GC to begin with).
Why would you buy a new hardware from a manufacturer that never follow through on their promises anyway?
They should have released that Zelda game 2 years ago as it is, they should have made something interesting with WM+ but they really did nothing at all.

 

[Jocchan]

The Super Mario game is following the NSMB's lead in the same way that Galaxy is following sidescroller Mario. It didn't work then, that won't change.
If 2D Mario people couldn't be swayed by Galaxy 2, they won't move for Super Mario 3DS.

I think you're misjudging Super Mario 3DS a bit. Despite the artstyle more similar to Galaxy, it's basically NSMB with some depth on the Z axis. That's a completely different beast from 3D Mario games. That's not to say it will move similar numbers to NSMB, of course.

 

[Mael]

I think you're misjudging Super Mario 3DS a bit. Despite the artstyle more similar to Galaxy, it's basically NSMB with some depth on the Z axis. That's a completely different beast from 3D Mario games. That's not to say it will move similar numbers to NSMB, of course.

For me I'd say that's even worse, they're pulling a Metroid Other M then!
You successfully made sure I'll never touch it with a ten foot pole, congratulation!

 

[antiquegamer]

As has been stated count less times the 360s MS gave during their Windows 7 promo counted towards the NPD figure.

So this have been officially stated by NPD ? If you have link to where they stated that this is part of the number please post them.

 

[subversus]

Do you play... videogames?

If so, there are plenty of reasons to own one.

I own PS3 and PC. Yes, I play videogames.

 

[creamsugar]

dsIII ~80k (360>ps3)

 

[walking fiend]

They did jackshit with their resources anyway.
They barely supported the DS with their own internal resources at some point and they decided to do Other M, Galaxy 2 and god knows what else while the rest of the teams were twiddling their thumbs when it was clear that none of these products would sustain the Wii.
For crying out loud, they're the ones who decided to support their ship with Wii Music and Animal Crossing while taking their time with WSR and NSMB! They don't have their priorities right that's for sure.

can't agree with the arguments you made to support your point, but I agree with the conclusion.

No one gives a shit about 'hardcore'. However these games are their core product, you don't expand with products aimed at your core.

my biggest problem with how they are pushing the system, at best it will attract Nintendo core gamers, which anyway would have jumped on the system sooner or later. They could at least have focused on some of their more different IPs (Kid Icarus, StarFox, Zelda, Metroid, etc)

Nintendogs was one their strongest core brand, now in the toilet because of how they handled their product lines. They made the most unappealing product they could since the virtual boy and the market reaction is really not surprising. Btw I wouldn't pin the blame on competition considering how well the DS was holding its ground when the iphone exploded.

DS is considerably cheaper than competition, DS Lite is only 100$ (when it was more expensive, competition was more expensive). And gaming on iPhone and Android didn't explode with iPhone itself.

If it's only CoD it's stupid to think it could hold the platform alone. Then again NSMBW certainly was the only thing holding the Wii for much of last year.

Their backlog in less than 6 months will include:

- Nintendo Dogs+Cats
- Pilot Wings
- Zelda OoT
- StarFox 64
- Kid Icarus
- Animal Crossing
- Mario Kart
- Super Mario
- Super Pokemon Scramble
- Animal Crossing

+ loads of eShop content.

+ Whole DS backlog

that is not including 3rd party games at all.


---
I can't believe people commenting on Super Mario 3DS not being 2D. Have them watched even 1 trailer?!

 

[Speedymanic]

So this have been officially stated by NPD ? If you have link to where they stated that this is part of the number please post them.

Pretty sure the source is Pachter.

“Good point by @NicolasVerge, the 507k Xbox figure included all of the ‘free’ 360s given away under the Windows 7 PC promotion”

http://gamingeverything.com/?p=6456

 

[NemesisPrime]

Do you play... videogames?

If so, there are plenty of reasons to own one.

QFT...

I think he is in the wrong hobby. Stamp collecting would probably be better.

360 is an absolute gem of a console system and I am not surprised it is doing so well atm. One of my top 3 consoles ever.

 

[Jocchan]

For me I'd say that's even worse, they're pulling a Metroid Other M then!
You successfully made sure I'll never touch it with a ten foot pole, congratulation!

How is it pulling a Metroid other M, by any stretch of imagination?

 

[NEO0MJ]

That Shadow of the Damned news sucks. Really want to know how much it sold.
Kinda disappointed by Zelda and infamous 2 sales, considering how big Zelda is and how infamous 2 was released early June.

 

[szaromir]

I own PS3 and PC. Yes, I play videogames.

And yet you're going for the cheapest and easiest way of trolling possible. At least be a little bit more subtle.

As for Nintendo, it'll be interesting where they go from now on. They seem to lack long term vision now, but maybe it'll all work out for them.

 

[NEO0MJ]

I can't believe people commenting on Super Mario 3DS not being 2D. Have them watched even 1 trailer?!

It's not a traditional 2D game. In my opinion it falls into the same category as Crash.

 

[walking fiend]

Why would you buy a new hardware from a manufacturer that never follow through on their promises anyway?

They did with the DS. And they are making one their most important games ever (Zelda SS) Motion+ only. They simply didn't believe themselves that relying too much on motion control, considering how much of it was waggle without motion+, was a good idea to make games.

Wii U interface is more inclined to DS than Wii, since it can be used in much more games without being forced into them, it will be much easier for 3rd parties too.

It's not a traditional 2D game. In my opinion it falls into the same category as Crash.

Mario 3D games are much more 3D than Crash, Crash is essentially a 2D game compared to SMG or 64; and such is it's comparison to Jak & Daxter.

It is much like the situation with Metroid: Other M, it is practically a 2D game set in a 3D world.

 

[Mael]

can't agree with the arguments you made to support your point, but I agree with the conclusion.

Well at least we agree on something

my biggest problem with how they are pushing the system, at best it will attract Nintendo core gamers, which anyway would have jumped on the system sooner or later. They could at least have focused on some of their more different IPs (Kid Icarus, StarFox, Zelda, Metroid, etc)

Well yeah, but the fun part is that their biggest IP are being (miss)used now, from Mario to Mario Kart and Wiisports/Nintendogs. I don't think they could do better to try and attract customers(appart from releasing a not shit hardware for 3DS I mean)

DS is considerably cheaper than competition, DS Lite is only 100$ (when it was more expensive, competition was more expensive). And gaming on iPhone and Android didn't explode with iPhone itself.

DS is holding fine actually and price is not the matter considering it hold its price for so long. And there was that report showing that in 2009, psp lost nearly all market share to the iphone, now I know psp was never doing that well but it certainly represented a sizable part of the market.

Their backlog in less than 6 months will include:

- Nintendo Dogs+Cats
- Pilot Wings
- Zelda OoT
- StarFox 64
- Kid Icarus
- Animal Crossing
- Mario Kart
- Super Mario
- Super Pokemon Scramble
- Animal Crossing

+ loads of eShop content.

+ Whole DS backlog

that is not including 3rd party games at all.
---

Nintendogs + cats reception clearly shows that their former expanded customers are not returning
pilotwings is lacking to say the least
the rest are n64 ports for crying out loud
Kid Icarus I didn't follow,
Animal Crossing which can suffer the Nintendogs fate
Mario Kart where they showed a total disregard to the theme of Mario Kart still their strongest release
Pokemon Scramble I have no idea
and 3D Mario that doesn't move masses

I can't believe people commenting on Super Mario 3DS not being 2D. Have them watched even 1 trailer?!

It is NOT 2D Mario by any stretch of the imagination, the game is considerably slower than it should be and well it's really not 2D sidescroller at all.

How is it pulling a Metroid other M, by any stretch of imagination?

Making a 3D game like a 2D game was one of the stated goal of Other M....and also one of the biggest problem with that turd.

They did with the DS. And they are making one their most important games ever (Zelda SS) Motion+ only. They simply didn't believe themselves that relying too much on motion control, considering how much of it was waggle without motion+, was a good idea to make games.

On DS that's why it didn't fell off a cliff like Wii did.
And they knew they were releasing WM+ in 2009, so they clearly had enough time to make games for it, they could have included functionalities in Galaxy 2, Sins Punishments2, Other M even. They didn't and now their only game worth playing that they did anything with it is Zelda which isn't even there 3 years after!

Wii U interface is more inclined to DS than Wii, since it can be used in much more games without being forced into them, it will be much easier for 3rd parties too.

Yeah considering how crappy western 3rd parties were on DS...I'm not sure that's a good sign at all.

 

[Jocchan]

Making a 3D game like a 2D game was one of the stated goal of Other M....and also one of the biggest problem with that turd.

There's plenty of ways to make a game halfway between 2D and 3D. Other M has nothing to do with this.

 

[Mael]

There's plenty of ways to make a game halfway between 2D and 3D. Other M has nothing to do with this.

No I'm saying that if it use the lame excuse of fixed camera + 8 controls like it's the 90's again on the playstation it'll be worthless.

 

[walking fiend]

It is NOT 2D Mario by any stretch of the imagination, the game is considerably slower than it should be and well it's really not 2D sidescroller at all.

it is, because the game progression is linear, unlike SMG or 64. Unlike these 2, Super Mario 3D is not a complicated game to figure out the progression.

Nintendogs + cats reception clearly shows that their former expanded customers are not returning
pilotwings is lacking to say the least
the rest are n64 ports for crying out loud
Kid Icarus I didn't follow,
Animal Crossing which can suffer the Nintendogs fate
Mario Kart where they showed a total disregard to the theme of Mario Kart still their strongest release
Pokemon Scramble I have no idea
and 3D Mario that doesn't move masses

DS is not selling 400K now because it has system sellers, because it has an incredibly solid library of games (at a very good price). 3DS library and services will be arguably very solid by then to justify the price jump from DS to 3DS.

No I'm saying that if it use the lame excuse of fixed camera + 8 controls like it's the 90's again on the playstation it'll be worthless.

other M failed for so many reasons, but most of it had to do with execution of them, rather than concept.

Yeah considering how crappy western 3rd parties were on DS...I'm not sure that's a good sign at all.

They didn't support handheld to begin with, DS was so in contrast with the games they made, specially in terms of lacking analogs and raw power.

 

[SmokyDave]

I own PS3 and PC. Yes, I play videogames.

I'm genuinely surprised if you can't find enough software to justify owning a 360. XBLA alone has a hatful of genuinely great exclusives.

I don't 'like' owning a 360, I'll be honest. All the adverts, the avatar bullshit, paid online etc.. but the software library is so strong, I can't imagine not owning one. Saying all that, I don't feel the need to own any Nintendo consoles or handhelds (even though all the same arguments are applicable) so I guess we all have our own 'thing'. I can find reasons to buy Nintendo stuff but those reasons aren't good enough for me to open my wallet.

 

[Mael]

it is, because the game progression is linear, unlike SMG or 64. Unlike these 2, Super Mario 3D is not a complicated game to figure out the progression.

Except that's exactly what SMG2 did....
There's even a map like SMB3!

DS is not selling 400K now because it has system sellers, because it has an incredibly solid library of games (at a very good price). 3DS library and services will be arguably very solid by then to justify the price jump from DS to 3DS.

Huh, no 3DS will not have a solid library by then, actually it's making the DS look more appealing because the library is better, have better features (such as a non shit batterylife) and is now even cheaper.

other M failed for so many reasons, but most of it had to do with execution of them, rather than concept.

I'd say both but that's maybe just me.

They didn't support handheld to begin with, DS was so in contrast with the games they made, specially in terms of lacking analogs and raw power.

Even then when you look at their output it's not something that could have made any difference anyway.

 

[walking fiend]

I'm genuinely surprised if you can't find enough software to justify owning a 360. XBLA alone has a hatful of genuinely great exclusives.

I don't 'like' owning a 360, I'll be honest. All the adverts, the avatar bullshit, paid online etc.. but the software library is so strong, I can't imagine not owning one. Saying all that, I don't feel the need to own any Nintendo consoles or handhelds (even though all the same arguments are applicable) so I guess we all have our own 'thing'.

You don't have enough time to play all the good games, there are pretty every type of game you may imagine on PS3+PC (Beside kinect/wii stuff), so instead of playing very good game X on 360, he just buys very good game Y on PS3/PC.

 

[Speedymanic]

I'm genuinely surprised if you can't find enough software to justify owning a 360. XBLA alone has a hatful of genuinely great exclusives.

I don't 'like' owning a 360, I'll be honest. All the adverts, the avatar bullshit, paid online etc.. but the software library is so strong, I can't imagine not owning one. Saying all that, I don't feel the need to own any Nintendo consoles or handhelds (even though all the same arguments are applicable) so I guess we all have our own 'thing'. I can find reasons to buy Nintendo stuff but those reasons aren't good enough for me to open my wallet.

The adverts aren't that bad over here. Set up a US account and check out how bad it is over there.

I was shocked at how bad it is in comparison.

 

[Mael]

I'm genuinely surprised if you can't find enough software to justify owning a 360. XBLA alone has a hatful of genuinely great exclusives.

I don't 'like' owning a 360, I'll be honest. All the adverts, the avatar bullshit, paid online etc.. but the software library is so strong, I can't imagine not owning one. Saying all that, I don't feel the need to own any Nintendo consoles or handhelds (even though all the same arguments are applicable) so I guess we all have our own 'thing'. I can find reasons to buy Nintendo stuff but those reasons aren't good enough for me to open my wallet.

Why would I buy a system only for the downloadable contents that I'll never own anyway?
Might as well rent the system if I only intend to rent the games.

 

[szaromir]

You don't have enough time to play all the good games, there are pretty every type of game you may imagine on PS3+PC (Beside kinect/wii stuff), so instead of playing very good game X on 360, he just buys very good game Y on PS3/PC.

360 is selling mostly to people who have neither a PS3 nor a gaming PC. They choose 360 to be their primary gaming system and as a standalone platform it has a very strong line-up. People here act like 360 purchasers literally have nothing to play on it.

 

[MoonsaultSlayer]

Didn't a lot of people threaten to pick up a 360 because of the psn breach? Well there you go.

 

[walking fiend]

Except that's exactly what SMG2 did....
There's even a map like SMB3!

No. SMG2 had a (partially) linear world, but not linear levels.

Huh, no 3DS will not have a solid library by then, actually it's making the DS look more appealing because the library is better, have better features (such as a non shit batterylife) and is now even cheaper.

How is DS library better than 3DS when it supports all the DS games? The only better feature DS has, is its battery (which 3DS isn't much worse when used in 2D for DS games anyway) . It does not have eShop, is not 3D, is not going to support 3DS games, lacks the analog, doesn't have apps (Netflix), does not have unified friend list or spotpass or streetpass, has a much worse browser, etc.

I'd say both but that's maybe just me.

it is a 2D game in essence, it is just you if you believe it is a prime game. and Crash worked, so will Super Mario 3DS, if executed well. SM3DS will also have the benefit of being 3D which will make jumping much easier, I believe.

Even then when you look at their output it's not something that could have made any difference anyway.

I don't get it?

 

[Takao]

Didn't a lot of people threaten to pick up a 360 because of the psn breach? Well there you go.

But PSN came back early June...

 

[gerg]

But they clearly did not, Miyamoto did multiple interviews saying how we'll get 2D Mario along 3D Mario from now on. And what do they do just after that? Pull a 3D Mario with the unstated goal of making 2D Mario irrelevant!

I'm not sure how this relates to what I said.

SO that then means that the game is unlpayable for a part of the userbase which can't see the 3D effets...which is dumb to begin with.

Like how NSMB Wii is unplayable for people with one hand? Yes, some part of the userbase will probably be unable to enjoy the 3D effects of the new Super Mario title, but not only is this true for the 3DS as a whole, but that part of the audience is most likely a small minority.

Furthermore, enhancing the game for the 3D effect does not necessarily mean making it unplayable when viewed in 2D.

Considering how crap their e3 was, I'm happily throwing this one under the bus along the others.

Right, because the Wii U is launching this holiday season.

Seriously, you're throwing logic and reason under a bus here as well.

The Wii is dying because they allowed it to die. They did nothing to stop the trend anyway, they're even responsible for the nose dive in late 2008->2009.

This may all be fair and true, but pragmatically you need to consider the situation in, say, 2010 in regards to a new project. At that point, no matter whose fault or blame it is, putting a major title on the Wii would be a waste.

They should have released that Zelda game 2 years ago as it is, they should have made something interesting with WM+ but they really did nothing at all.

20 million+ consumers did think that Nintendo made something interesting with the Motion Plus attachment.

 

[Amir0x]

what a surprise Zelda didn't help 3DS at all. I am so shocked!

Just as I've always said: ports and remakes are not system sellers.

 

[walking fiend]

what a surprise Zelda didn't help 3DS at all. I am so shocked!

Just as I've always said: ports and remakes are not system sellers.

this mistake again.

It helped it a lot. You shouldn't compare it to the last month, you should compare it to the projected sale of this month if it continued its trend in the last months (because it is currently in an unstable situation and only few months after launch). It helped not to fall flat on its face.

 

[I NEED SCISSORS]

Does NPD track used sales too?

 

[zomgbbqftw]

I read somewhere that Pachter said the 360 figures include the free ones given to students who bought Dell/HP laptops and without them sales would be around 400k. Is this confirmed, because it makes the 507k seem much less impressive...

 

[SmokyDave]

The adverts aren't that bad over here. Set up a US account and check out how bad it is over there.

I was shocked at how bad it is in comparison.

Since I whipped my network cable out I have no ads and have a single row of useful grey boxes instead. Feels good man. Obviously I have to plug in occasionally for updates etc..

Why would I buy a system only for the downloadable contents that I'll never own anyway?
Might as well rent the system if I only intend to rent the games.

Because it's the only way to play the games and some of them are phenomenal. I've been bitten on the arse by the DRM as well but I can say the same for my PS3 (during PSN outage), DSi (Transferring stuff pre-3DS) and PC (Niggles here 'n' there). Only the Apple app store seems to give me no DRM grief whatsoever.

It's the future whether we like it or not. Might as well cherry pick the best bits.

 

[Opus Angelorum]

400+ would still be impressive for the time of year and lack of software releases.

 

[Nirolak]

Does NPD track used sales too?

They do, but they don't report the numbers.

 

[antiquegamer]

Pretty sure the source is Pachter.

http://gamingeverything.com/?p=6456

I can't get that site to open at my work ... so if that's the case why all the butthurt.

In any case, they still sold it which for them is probably better than doing $100 rebate for PC this way they get more 360 out there and cost them less than doing cash back or cash rebate.

 

[Saty]

Can we have creamsugar's posts included in the OP?

 

[SmokyDave]

I can't get that site to open at my work ... so if that's the case why all the butthurt.

In any case, they still sold it which for them is probably better than doing $100 rebate for PC this way they get more 360 out there and cost them less than doing cash back or cash rebate.

Here is the relevant bit:

“Good point by @NicolasVerge, the 507k Xbox figure included all of the ‘free’ 360s given away under the Windows 7 PC promotion”

No idea who Nicolas Verge is though.

 

[BowieZ]

1. Price too high, huge profit margin, sales below expectation. Word of mouth advertising.

2. Price lowered, decent profit margin, sales explode. Normal advertising.

I don't quite see the doom or dilemma. Nintendo simply has to drop the price when it feels the pinch.

They seem content right now.

 

[subversus]

And yet you're going for the cheapest and easiest way of trolling possible. At least be a little bit more subtle.

As for Nintendo, it'll be interesting where they go from now on. They seem to lack long term vision now, but maybe it'll all work out for them.

I wanted to buy Xbox 3 times but I always seat and think about money spent/value and I can't justify buying the system for 3 games (Bayonetta, Gears, Trials). As there are currently no games which could explain such sales spike I wonder why people buy it so willingly. Because I fail to understand what makes Xbox better than PS3 other than games. I'm not trolling, I just can't understand consumer's logic. Is it marketed heavily in US? Is it cheaper?

 

[[Nintex]]

I think you're misjudging Super Mario 3DS a bit. Despite the artstyle more similar to Galaxy, it's basically NSMB with some depth on the Z axis. That's a completely different beast from 3D Mario games. That's not to say it will move similar numbers to NSMB, of course.

I've played Mario 3DS and it certainly is fun but piss easy at the same time. The levels are small and limited and one of the editors of the site I write for complained that he was moving too slow. He finished all 4 levels without using the 'run' button just walking around and jumping. I did some long jumps which made me skip half the level at times. In any case it felt like a low budget game, nothing like the Galaxies and not as challenging as New Super Mario Bros. Wii. I think 'My first Mario' would be the best term.

 

[Spiegel]

1. Price too high, huge profit margin, sales below expectation. Word of mouth advertising.

2. Price lowered, decent profit margin, sales explode. Normal advertising.

I don't quite see the doom or dilemma. Nintendo simply has to drop the price when it feels the pinch.

They seem content right now.

No, Nintendo expected to ship 4M by the end of March. 3 months later and they have sold less than 3M most likely.

 

[Kusagari]

I wanted to buy Xbox 3 times but I always seat and think about money spent/value and I can't justify buying the system for 3 games (Bayonetta, Gears, Trials). As there are currently no games which could explain such sales spike I wonder why people buy it so willingly. Because I fail to understand what makes Xbox better than PS3 other than games. I'm not trolling, I just can't understand consumer's logic. Is it marketed heavily in US? Is it cheaper?

Live. If your friends play online in the U.S., there's a 99.9% chance they do so on Live.

 

[BowieZ]

No, Nintendo expected to ship 4M by the end of March. 3 months later and they most likely have sold less than 3M.

Didn't they try and stockpile and ship 4M, not sell-through?

Either way, the only misstep is the high expectation possibly freaking out some shareholders.

Internally I don't think failing to meet exceedingly lofty expectations during off season is cause for concern.

 

[subversus]

Live. If your friends play online in the U.S., there's a 99.9% chance they do so on Live.

Hm, that might be the reason. It's like Facebook, if your friends are there, you should too.

 

[BoilersFan23]

I wanted to buy Xbox 3 times but I always seat and think about money spent/value and I can't justify buying the system for 3 games (Bayonetta, Gears, Trials). As there are currently no games which could explain such sales spike I wonder why people buy it so willingly. Because I fail to understand what makes Xbox better than PS3 other than games. I'm not trolling, I just can't understand consumer's logic. Is it marketed heavily in US? Is it cheaper?

I look at it this way. Microsoft's marketing in the US is pretty big, and it just comes down to many peoples' friends own a 360, so they feel the need to own one too (so they can play games with them). That's pretty much the main reason why people I know get 360 over PS3.

For the casual crowd, Kinect has taken them in.

 

[Cygnus X-1]

Impressed by X360. Microsoft really made a great home system with lot of value. Amazed also by Ocarina of Time. 13-years-old game selling 300k in two weeks is a lot.

 

[Jocchan]

I've played Mario 3DS and it certainly is fun but piss easy at the same time. The levels are small and limited and one of the editors of the site I write for complained that he was moving too slow. He finished all 4 levels without using the 'run' button just walking around and jumping. I did some long jumps which made me skip half the level at times. In any case it felt like a low budget game, nothing like the Galaxies and not as challenging as New Super Mario Bros. Wii. I think 'My first Mario' would be the best term.

Well, that's very disappointing.