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[Rated-Rsuperstar]

How did Vice City Stories do?

It's well over a million, possibly 2 million worldwide.

 

[Sharp]

I would guess better than CW

It's one of the few million-sellers on the PSP.

 

[Chumly]

I saw that someone posted Madworld numbers...any chance of getting SF4 number?

I wouldnt get your hopes up. Usually games that are leaked are first month numbers that people want to know about. Second month numbers are hard to come by if its outside the top 10/20. If SF4 is in the top 20 we would have a range of what it at the very minimum sold though.

 

[mysticstylez]

If there is one benefit of Chinatown Wars selling so low, is that hopefully R* realizes that they can sell more copies of a GTA game on PSP. Then we get San Andreas Stories!!!

 

[AranhaHunter]

If there is one benefit of Chinatown Wars selling so low, is that hopefully R* realizes that they can sell more copies of a GTA game on PSP. Then we get San Andreas Stories!!!

E3. Believe.

 

[Chumly]

How did Vice City Stories do?

~150k first month i think during christmas season.

 

[DevelopmentArrested]

If there is one benefit of Chinatown Wars selling so low, is that hopefully R* realizes that they can sell more copies of a GTA game on PSP. Then we get San Andreas Stories!!!

You'd take a port of a 5 year old game with nubby controls over a brand new one? okay...
I don't think San Andreas holds up as much as you might think.

 

[Stoney Mason]

Sony PR for the NPD.

Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) continues to deliver premium entertainment content and experiences, kicking off 2009 with the PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3) blockbuster exclusive Killzone® 2 on February 27. With more than 1 million copies sold worldwide and a truly "only on PlayStation" experience, the hit game has garnered the biggest initial success at retail of any first-party PS3 title to date, and will continue to drive incentive for hardware sales throughout the year. MLB® 09 THE Show™ is also garnering tremendous reception by gaming media and sports fans alike, with a recent New York Times review stating, "at its heart [MLB® 09 THE Show] is the most organic, rhythmically accurate and natural simulation of any team sport." Approximately 1 in every 3 PS3 titles achieve Metacritic scores of 80 or higher, which affirms PlayStation's proven track record in delivering rich and relevant entertainment content. SCEA is staged for yet another breakout fiscal year with a broad range of highly anticipated PS3 exclusives, including inFamous, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves™, MAG™, Heavy Rain, God of War® III, and Rachet & Clank® Future: A Crack in Time.

SCEA is also seeing positive internal sales momentum for PlayStation®2 (PS2) hardware sales for April and as the most played game console last year, the PS2 system continues to serve as a great choice for family entertainment, with its new $99.99 price point and ability to play back DVDs and CDs. Offering an unmatched library of nearly 1,900 games in North America, PS2 owners will see new additions such as MLB® 09 THE Show™ and MotorStorm®: Arctic Edge as well as major franchise titles from SCEA's publishing partners, including Ghostbusters: The Video Game and Guitar Hero Metallica come to the platform this fiscal year.

Portable entertainment continues to gain tremendous momentum across the industry and the PSP® system is poised for its most exciting and diverse line up yet. SCEA has planned an unprecedented line up of games and content from publishing partners including Square Enix, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and popular first party franchises to hit the PSP platform, such as LittleBigPlanet and MotorStorm. Also, to commemorate the debut of the Rock Band franchise on the PSP platform later this year, SCEA will be releasing a limited edition Rock Band branded entertainment pack at the launch of Rock Band™ Unplugged. In addition to a stellar line up this fiscal year, PSP users will have new freedom in how they access their on-the-go content, with the test case digital-only distribution of Patapon 2 release on May 5.

PlayStation Network continues to expand its service to over 55 countries around the globe connecting more than 20 million registered users to each other and to a variety of digital entertainment options, including the revolutionary PlayStation Home service which accounts for more than 5 million users worldwide. PlayStation Network's game library includes more than 180 downloadable games with extensive range of games from Ragdoll Kung Fu and Flower to growing selections from publishing partners, such as Wheel of Fortune and Noby Noby Boy. With the addition of NBC Universal content to PlayStation Network's video delivery service, consumers today have access to more than 1,700 movies and 5,700 television episodes from every major motion picture studio, including new movie releases such as Wanted and Role Models. The top ranked downloaded game in March was Flower and the top downloaded movie was Twilight.

PlayStation is synonymous with superior entertainment and SCEA is on pace to deliver on that promise once again.

1UP story on Killzone Sales

1UP News

NPD Fallout: Killzone 2 Sales Deceptively Low in March
Late February release gives Sony's AAA title a disadvantage on charts.
By Steve Watts, 04/16/2009


At first glance, the March NPD numbers seem unpleasant for the sales of Killzone 2. After debuting in fifth place of the software charts last month and slipping to seventh this month, one could get a gloomy picture of the PlayStation 3's killer app. But it's important to remember that the game was released on February 27, giving it only two days of sales for that month. Since game sales are front-loaded near their release dates and fall off considerably afterwards, a more accurate estimate of its first month sales would come from combining the February and March numbers. This brings the game up to 619,000 copies sold so far in the U.S. If placed that way in the March charts, this puts it in fourth place, just behind Halo Wars at 639,000.
Looking through this perspective, the sales for Killzone 2 seem much more positive, but there was still reason to expect higher numbers. Before the game was released, it was widely reported that European pre-orders for the game had reached 1.1 million. Oddly, tonight Sony announced (via Kotaku) that the game has sold over one million copies worldwide. It's a great milestone for the game and most publishers are happy to reach the million mark, but considering the pre-order numbers something seems off.
We know that about 600,000 of those million sales came from the U.S., so the remaining 400,000 in Europe isn't even half the pre-orders reported for that territory. It's possible that the early reports were mistaken, and instead referring to worldwide pre-orders. But that would mean that the game sold almost no copies that weren't pre-ordered. Alternately, those who chose not to pick up their pre-order copies could have been offset by regular purchasers. Still, maintaining a near-exact number seems strange.
Finally, last month we speculated on whether the game was a system seller for the PlayStation 3. We pointed out that it was hard to tell based on limited data, and there was valid reason for either conclusion. In light of the new March NPDs, it seems that the game didn't give Sony a significant bump for sales of its lead console.
All hardware sales dropped between February and March at around the same rate (with the exception of the Nintendo DS, which barely dropped at all). It's possible that the sales of Killzone 2 helped the PS3 from dropping further, and it's also possible that some sales lagged for a few days late in March due to price drop rumors. But as far as we can tell, neither factor made a large dent in the PS3 sales one way or another. Sony and Guerrilla are committed to supporting the game with downloadable content and the online community may give this game a long tail. We've contacted Sony for comment, so we'll let you know how they respond.

 

[EDarkness]

I think Platinum just have bad luck when it comes to games. Some cool ideas that just don't have mass market appeal. Let's hope their next game does better.

That said, perhaps the realities of this gen is coming into play....

I wish Nintendo would have made the Wii a bit beefier. So many problems could have been solved if that was the case.

 

[Fredescu]

Reviews and install base mean nothing for sales. Okami would have done much better on the PS2 otherwise.

Those two alone are no guarantees. The three in combination though, could you manufacture better circumstances if you tried? I'm sure there are a fair amount of people who bought one for Brain Age or something, but at some point the size of the install base has to transcend demographics right? Clearly not in this case. I'm not saying it should have done GTA4 numbers, or hell even Killzone 2 numbers, but to not be surprised by 90k is a little strange is it not?

 

[DevelopmentArrested]

I'm sorry to nitpick but who is hotly anticipating MAG exactly?

 

[Volcynika]

I think Platinum just have bad luck when it comes to games. Some cool ideas that just don't have mass market appeal. Let's hope their next game does better.

That said, perhaps the realities of this gen is coming into play....

I wish Nintendo would have made the Wii a bit beefier. So many problems could have been solved if that was the case.

I don't have too high of hopes for Bayonetta, but I'll enjoy it anyways!

 

[liuelson]

I would think the numbers will get worse. Many economists predict escalating unemployment throughout the year, and I don't see economic anxiety being alleviated any time soon. I suspect console sales will get worse and worse.

The only thing I can see is if there are major software releases or new marketing strategies. Wii Sports Resort? Marketing the value of consoles compared to other entertainment options?

 

[Barrett2]

I'm sorry to nitpick but who is hotly anticipating MAG exactly?

I think it could be pretty awesome, but im' not holding my breath.

 

[Musashi Wins!]

As far as my past Killzone whipping Halo Wars statement, yes, I unabashedly thought it would. Console RTS are gross. And despite the backpedaling going on now, everyone agreed with me then. I love the game, but for what it is and what it was supposed to be, it bombed. Anyone pretending otherwise is doing just that. And it's a great game, it should have sold more, but apparently not much does on PS3.

I can't believe people are saying Madworld sales were hurt because it was B/W. Jesus, it would have looked far worse if it wasn't. God Hand is a far better game and probably sold less.

 

[markatisu]

So now some are comparing LTD of GTA PSP to first month GTA DS... this thread gets more unreal. GTA PSP did about 2x the DS during a holiday season, it's not like It sold all it's copies then

 

[mysticstylez]

You'd take a port of a 5 year old game with nubby controls over a brand new one? okay...
I don't think San Andreas holds up as much as you might think.

Seeing that I played GTA3 and Vice City to death on PS2 with only one analog stick really being used, I've had no problem adjust to the PSP's controls for the "Stories"games. I also still play San Andreas to this day.

 

[Magik]

WTF @ GTA:CW

WTF DS owners? It's such a good game and yet it can only do 90k.

Madworld numbers are definitely way lower than I had expected. It basically explains why the game all of a sudden has dropped in price in the past two weeks.

I can see GTA:CW having long legs, but Madworld... I don't know.

 

[EazyB]

Tough break for Sony. I was expecting better from Killzone 2 but now it's obvious that it can't compete with the heavy hitters like Halo, Gears, and CoD. Sony really needs an excluse shooter that can do so. And the PS3 hardware sales... yuck. Nothing on the horizon has a chance of boosting these save a price drop. Sony's got to do something.

Good sales for Halo Wars, I sorta thought the Halo name could push it to 1 million but that was me being optimistic. It'll probably end somewhere past 1 million before it's all said and done. I can't wait till the flood of trade-ins begines though; nab me a copy.

And once again, well done Capcom, at least one japanese third party knows what to do.

 

[damisa]

So does anyone else have a nagging feeling that something is wrong with the hardware numbers?

The week to week drops are just too big and too consistent. I don't remember anyone ever claiming that Easter could provide a 33% boost to hardware sales before this.

And if it was the recession then why would all platforms be hit the same way?

That was my first thought too. Wasn't February NPD delayed? It's almost like February=5 weeks and March=4weeks.

 

[legend166]

But GTA isn't a traditional family friendly Nintendo game. Its audience is hardcore gamers who rely on the hype / marketing cycle to inform purchase decisions.

Do you know of other hardcore DS games that sold poorly in the first month but ended up having long legs? I think you are too quickly dismissing who the GTA audience is, as opposed to who the Mario Kart audience is.

And you seem to be dismissing the fact that every GTA game ever released has had crazy legs.

 

[Sharp]

So now some are comparing LTD of GTA PSP to first month GTA DS... this thread gets more unreal. GTA PSP did about 2x the DS during a holiday season, it's not like It sold all it's copies then

Yes, but the PSP had a much, much lower install base at the time and in any case isn't really known for selling software. Neither is true of the DS. I'm not saying it won't sell well, for the record--I think it will probably have excellent legs, as games with good word of mouth tend to. I just expected more first month.

 

[Narcosis]

Hey, does anyone know yet if NPD is counting DSi and DSLite as separate skus in the next NPD or can we expect some massive group number lumped together?

 

[markatisu]

Hey, does anyone know yet if NPD is counting DSi and DSLite as separate skus in the next NPD or can we expect some massive group number lumped together?

NPD said last week they will be lumped together

 

[Rated-Rsuperstar]

You'd take a port of a 5 year old game with nubby controls over a brand new one? okay...
I don't think San Andreas holds up as much as you might think.

Who knows. By the time a San Andreas stories comes out we could have a dual analog psp. And I'm sure R* Leeds would innovate like they did with CTW.

 

[grandjedi6]

Huge franchise + huge install base + platforms best reviews = ... an unsuprising 88k? Is 200k really too much to ask from that combination?

A huge install base is meaningless if that install base if comprised of people who don't care about said huge franchise. Would you expect Wiifit to be a multimillion seller if it was released on the 360?

 

[viciouskillersquirrel]

I wish Nintendo would have made the Wii a bit beefier. So many problems could have been solved if that was the case.

And introduced a whole slew of others. While I do think the Wii would have been the undisputed generational leader regardless, a $400 Wii would run counter to Nintendo's aims and simply shrunk the size of the overall console market.

Those two alone are no guarantees. The three in combination though, could you manufacture better circumstances if you tried? I'm sure there are a fair amount of people who bought one for Brain Age or something, but at some point the size of the install base has to transcend demographics right? Clearly not in this case. I'm not saying it should have done GTA4 numbers, or hell even Killzone 2 numbers, but to not be surprised by 90k is a little strange is it not?

Honestly, I think the demographic that buys GTA games is there, but this demographic was turned off by the game's top-down 2D perspective. I am of the firm belief that this is mostly because they suck.

 

[Barrett2]

So now some are comparing LTD of GTA PSP to first month GTA DS... this thread gets more unreal. GTA PSP did about 2x the DS during a holiday season, it's not like It sold all it's copies then

But GTA PSP also released in 2005, when the PSP had a miniscule install base compared to the DS. GTA:CW still sold horrifically bad, I would argue, given the install base of the system. If GTA PSP can sell twice as good during its first month with like 1/40th the install base, I don't see how that is anything other than a horrible condemnation of GTA:CW's success.

And you seem to be dismissing the fact that every GTA game ever released has had crazy legs.

So? None of those were on the DS. Once again, the fact that the PSP GTA sold better its first month than the DS GTA, even though it had a miniscule install base; doesn't that really tell you all you need to know about the DS audience?

Am I crazy, or something? I find these arguments in support of CW's alleged success to be totally incoherent.

 

[MikeE21286]

Wait, the PS3 is still at fucking $400? Damn, I know Sony can't really afford a price drop right now but that's wayyyyyy too high for this economy.

Yeah, but the argument against it is that even $100 price drop might not make a big enough increase in sales to justify the drop...

 

[Sharp]

Yeah, but the argument against it is that even $100 price drop might not make a big enough increase in sales to justify the drop...

Oh, it definitely wouldn't, Sony is in just as bad shape right now as most other electronics manufacturer. I just didn't realize it was still that expensive.

 

[Arpharmd B]

I think Platinum just have bad luck when it comes to games. Some cool ideas that just don't have mass market appeal. Let's hope their next game does better.

That said, perhaps the realities of this gen is coming into play....

I wish Nintendo would have made the Wii a bit beefier. So many problems could have been solved if that was the case.

Bayonetta is going to bomb, and bomb hard.

Sad thing is, Madworld has wayyyy more appeal than Bayonetta. It deserves to sell way better. Dunno what they were thinking putting it on Wii, honestly.

I'll be there day 1 on Bayonetta though. Fuck waiting entire weeks for a pricedrop. And I say that with a sad, sad sarcasm.

But the thing is, Platinum just needs a publisher that understands they make niche, super hardcore games and that to maximize profits, you should be on the systems with the right audience (duh). If Sega was smart they'd have Madworld, at the very least, on XBLA and PSN later this year.

 

[Stoney Mason]

But GTA PSP also released in 2005, when the PSP had a miniscule install base compared to the DS. GTA:CW still sold horrifically bad, I would argue, given the install base of the system. If GTA PSP can sell twice as good during its first month with like 1/40th the install base, I don't see how that is anything other than a horrible condemnation of GTA:CW's success.



So? None of those were on the DS. Once again, the fact that the PSP GTA sold better its first month than the DS GTA, even though it had a miniscule install base; doesn't that really tell you all you need to know about the DS audience?

I give the DS and Wii maximum credit but I don't see those sales of CW as anything but a failure. We'll see in the future where it ends up sales wise.

 

[mysticstylez]

So now some are comparing LTD of GTA PSP to first month GTA DS... this thread gets more unreal. GTA PSP did about 2x the DS during a holiday season, it's not like It sold all it's copies then

One game was released less than a year into the system launch (LCS), and one game was released almost 5 years into the systems lifespan (CW) albeit with a much much much higher installed base.

 

[ElyrionX]

The damage control by the Sony fanboys over the KZ2 sales in this thread is just stupid.

600k in sales is good for most games but this isn't most games we're talking about. This is Killzone 2 which has been hyped even before the PS3 launched and has been in development for such a long period of time. Relative to expectations, KZ2 most definitely did bombed.

Those Halo Wars numbers sure are surprising. I was expecting it to bomb harder than KZ2.

Anyway, when was Guitar Hero Metallica released? Was it scoped into the time period for this NPD?

 

[ElyrionX]

Bayonetta is going to bomb, and bomb hard.

Sad thing is, Madworld has wayyyy more appeal than Bayonetta. It deserves to sell way better. Dunno what they were thinking putting it on Wii, honestly.

I'll be there day 1 on Bayonetta though. Fuck waiting entire weeks for a pricedrop. And I say that with a sad, sad sarcasm.

But the thing is, Platinum just needs a publisher that understands they make niche, super hardcore games and that to maximize profits, you should be on the systems with the right audience (duh). If Sega was smart they'd have Madworld, at the very least, on XBLA and PSN later this year.

See, you answered your own question. Sega is anything but smart, sadly.

 

[Arpharmd B]

Anyway, when was Guitar Hero Metallica released? Was it scoped into the time period for this NPD?

Yes, it was mentioned earlier it's #11. 360 version.

 

[chubigans]

The damage control by the Sony fanboys over the KZ2 sales in this thread is just stupid.

600k in sales is good for most games but this isn't most games we're talking about. This is Killzone 2 which has been hyped even before the PS3 launched and has been in development for such a long period of time. Relative to expectations, KZ2 most definitely did bombed.

Those Halo Wars numbers are sure surprising. I was expecting it to bomb harder than KZ2.

le sigh...

 

[Zhuk]

HALOWNED!!

Spoiler

sorry had to do it

Been going through more NPD predictions, a lot of people were expecting at least a million copies for March for KZ2, yet were doubting Halo Wars ability to compete with it and were already calling it a flop.

I'm happy for Ensemble, as they made a great game as their swansong and deserved the recognition.

 

[Opiate]

Fred's argument seems the most concise and reasonable here to me.

The DS has the largest install base of any system this generation. The game received the best reviews of any game ever released on the system. The franchise it is tied to is one of if not the biggest franchise in gaming.

Selling 88k is poor in this context. I really don't think that should be arguable.

 

[Barrett2]

The damage control by the Sony fanboys over the KZ2 sales in this thread is just stupid.

600k in sales is good for most games but this isn't most games we're talking about. This is Killzone 2 which has been hyped even before the PS3 launched and has been in development for such a long period of time. Relative to expectations, KZ2 most definitely did bombed.

What do you mean? Im' sure if you said one year ago KZ2 "might" sell a million units in North America the year it was released, the KZ2 defense force would have completely agreed with that reasonable statement.

Once again; most hyped game of generation for the system + exclusive FPS + one of the most expensive games ever made + long and well chronicled development cycle. Does this sound like the kind of game that 'succeeds' by 'possibly' selling a million games in NA the year of its release? Come on...

 

[pakkit]

ITT people that were flaming Wii's output suddenly see poor sales and latch on, urging publishers to port Wii's titles to HD consoles.

It's a sad state of affairs. I find the people suggesting that MadWorld would have sold 500k to be really hilarious, although I guess the ridiculousness is completely warranted given how many times loony Wii fans have played the "HD-title woud have sold 10 times better on Wii."

Also, the people asking for digital downloads of MadWorld are especially funny. The games sold pretty low in its first month on the charts (although, not really all that low) for a 50 dollar price point. And yet you all are suggesting the SEGA spend the money to port it over and remarket it and sell it for between 15 to 10 dollars? It makes no sense.

 

[outunderthestars]

thought was interesting from the sony PR:

"Portable entertainment continues to gain tremendous momentum across the industry and the PSP® system is poised for its most exciting and diverse line up yet. SCEA has planned an unprecedented line up of games and content from publishing partners including Square Enix, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and popular first party franchises to hit the PSP platform, such as LittleBigPlanet and MotorStorm."


What do they mean by "content?" Why mention games and content separately?

 

[Grecco]

When is the last time a current gen 49.99 dollar title showed up on XBL?

 

[GodofWine]

The damage control by the Sony fanboys over the KZ2 sales in this thread is just stupid.

600k in sales is good for most games but this isn't most games we're talking about. This is Killzone 2 which has been hyped even before the PS3 launched and has been in development for such a long period of time. Relative to expectations, KZ2 most definitely did bombed.

Those Halo Wars numbers sure are surprising. I was expecting it to bomb harder than KZ2.

Anyway, when was Guitar Hero Metallica released? Was it scoped into the time period for this NPD?

As a PS3 Owner, and a KZ2 owner, I'll agree with you on that.

 

[Arpharmd B]

See, you answered your own question. Sega is anything but smart, sadly.

Hell I think most people on this board would be more than willing to drop 60$ on a full retail, 1080p version of the game. No need to even upgrade any of the assets.

 

[grandjedi6]

thought was interesting from the sony PR:

"Portable entertainment continues to gain tremendous momentum across the industry and the PSP® system is poised for its most exciting and diverse line up yet. SCEA has planned an unprecedented line up of games and content from publishing partners including Square Enix, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and popular first party franchises to hit the PSP platform, such as LittleBigPlanet and MotorStorm."


What do they mean by "content?" Why mention games and content separately?

Catchall PR phrase. I wouldn't read too much into it imo.

 

[Rated-Rsuperstar]

When is the last time a current gen 49.99 dollar title showed up on XBL?

Well it's a great time to start.

 

[Grecco]

Well it's a great time to start.

Its never happening. Beats me why people always bring it up though

 

[Dirtbag]

Wow at that 1up story on Kz2 sales.
So either Sony intentionally lied about Killzone pre-order numbers for Europe, or that demo destroyed killzone 2 to the sum of 650k+ sales. Shady.

 

[basik]

any sales #'s for the Wanted game? I knew it wasnt gonna hit the top 10. that movie sucked.