Support NeoGAF

[donny2112]

Looking at these sales again, the market seems to have completely polarized to titles that are the absolute best of the best.

Iwata in late 2008/early 2009, IIRC.

 

[Nirolak]

Hey, that's exactly what I was trying to say a few posts back. Except I believe it won't just be this fall, but until the next gen finally arrives.

But you put it much more succinctly. :lol

Oh I definitely agree with you that it will likely extend all the way until the next generation.

I can only imagine how ravaged some companies will become if there aren't new consoles until 2015 like some people are suggesting.

Iwata in late 2008/early 2009, IIRC.

Yeah, he is definitely right.

I believe that we definitely saw this in 2009 in Japan. It just seems to have taken until now for it to effect North America.

 

[Salami Inferno]

Wow, red dead sold better than i expected.

 

[Mooreberg]

Not surprised with a number of 360/PS3 games bombing that were released far too close together. Red Dead was obviously going to drawn in the most people. I don't know what the hell publishers are thinking with some of the release date timing, and this is a trend that seems to getting worse.

Or perhaps its getting better if like to pick games up at substantial discounts. :lol

 

[DiscoJer]

I really don't understand what people think Sony should do with the PSP.

Just destroy all remaining stock, stop making games for it, etc?

Why, exactly? It's still selling 60k a month, which isn't much, but it's still 60k of something more than nothing.

And while software sales aren't great, there was a story on Siliconera about Disgaea 2 on the PSP selling 36,000 copies since it launched. Which isn't great mind you, but it was about twice as much as the Phantom Brave Wii port did. So clearly 40,000 people buy PSP RPGs. Which is enough to keep it around for a while longer.

 

[Gravijah]

Why, exactly? It's still selling 60k a month, which isn't much, but it's still 60k of something more than nothing.

Please don't say this. It's really dumb.

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Anyone else starting to think that the industry has backed itself into a really nasty corner? The 360 is in its 5th year, the PS3 in its 4th. This is typically the period when things start ramping up for the next generation. The 'core' gaming community starts winding down at this point in the cycle, because they are getting bored with the rehashes of the same stuff that they've already been playing for a few years now, and they are getting antsy for some new experiences on new and improved hardware.

But the industry is in no position whatsoever to stick with the traditional cycle. MS and Sony have no interest at all in taking on billions of losses upfront again to try to bring bleeding-edge tech to the masses. And even if they scaled back their ambitions and went with a more typical upgrade path, the publishers don't have a chance in hell of taking on even bigger budgets than the ones they are already losing fortunes trying to maintain.

Which leaves the status-quo for several more years. But which runs the real risk of more and more gamers sitting on the sidelines in boredom until the next gen finally does come around. There will certainly still be many very successful titles released. The Halos, Call of Dutys, Gran Turismos, should all be fine. But with the status-quo, we will see A WHOLE LOT of lesser titles struggle mightily.

Kinect and Move are the temporary solutions that MS and Sony have come up with to try to alleviate the problem. Those products may or may not find their own success, but they certainly won't do much of anything to help boost the traditional 'core' portion of the industry.

This is why Nintendo is going to completely dominate the upcoming generation. Iwata must be doing backflips in his office.

Though I'd like to add that there is nothing stopping Microsoft and SONY from bringing competent "next generation" tech to a consumer friendly price and making a profit. Nintendo does this with nearly every one of their consoles. The sold exceptions being the Wii and DS because they were speced very low. Being that they would have been launching 5 years down the road I couldn't see why Microsoft or SONY couldn't launch profitable cutting edge systems. Remember the 360 was just badly designed and the PS3 launched with a $500 disc drive.

And Capcom is thanking their lucky stars that they have MHP3 coming this year to save their asses. They have been churning out one high-budget mega-flop after another lately. Bionic Commando and Dark Void. Now Lost Planet 2, which was initially expected to sell 3.7 million units, and was likely budgeted with those expectations in mind. And they still have Dead Rising coming as well. Ugly.

They started out so well but screwed up by not having their games internally developed. That was a big selling point for Capcom this generation, they were the only third party publisher that still brought the goods without cuting corners. That was their "magic" and they just screwed up big time. Monster Hunter 3 sold better in North America then the games you listed, who would have guessed that?

I really don't understand what people think Sony should do with the PSP.

Just destroy all remaining stock, stop making games for it, etc?

Why, exactly? It's still selling 60k a month, which isn't much, but it's still 60k of something more than nothing.

And while software sales aren't great, there was a story on Siliconera about Disgaea 2 on the PSP selling 36,000 copies since it launched. Which isn't great mind you, but it was about twice as much as the Phantom Brave Wii port did. So clearly 40,000 people buy PSP RPGs. Which is enough to keep it around for a while longer.

notsureifserious.jpg

 

[Dalthien]

Oh I definitely agree with you that it will likely extend all the way until the next generation.

I can only imagine how ravaged some companies will become if there aren't new consoles until 2015 like some people are suggesting.

Yeah, 3rd-parties have really put themselves in a 'damned if you do - damned if you don't' situation.

They keep with the status-quo, in a market which more and more looks to be supporting only the cream of the crop, at the expense of everything else - and which has already been a financial wasteland for most of them.

Or they push for an early start to next gen, which brings with it even more inflated budgets and development times, when they are still struggling massively to get the current budgets under control.

Neither scenario looks promising at all.

 

[Lonely1]

I really don't understand what people think Sony should do with the PSP.

Drop the price?

 

[Hellsing321]

I really don't understand what people think Sony should do with the PSP.

Just destroy all remaining stock, stop making games for it, etc?

Why, exactly? It's still selling 60k a month, which isn't much, but it's still 60k of something more than nothing.

And while software sales aren't great, there was a story on Siliconera about Disgaea 2 on the PSP selling 36,000 copies since it launched. Which isn't great mind you, but it was about twice as much as the Phantom Brave Wii port did. So clearly 40,000 people buy PSP RPGs. Which is enough to keep it around for a while longer.

The real question isn't what they should with the PSP, but what are they going to do about the PSP2? They have backed themselves into a corner with the brand, with their terrible marketing and abysmal support of the system.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

I really don't understand what people think Sony should do with the PSP.

Just destroy all remaining stock, stop making games for it, etc?

Oh, no one's saying that.

They should milk this for all its worth.

What people are saying is there is nothing after this for the PSP brand. Support for this system will dry up, a new system (unless it is massively hidden and has been in Sony and developers' hands for a year) will be unable to grab a foothold, and it's almost become more expensive to refresh the hardware than to not.

Let it die of old age. But it is dying.

 

[Nirolak]

I really don't understand what people think Sony should do with the PSP.

Just destroy all remaining stock, stop making games for it, etc?

Why, exactly? It's still selling 60k a month, which isn't much, but it's still 60k of something more than nothing.

And while software sales aren't great, there was a story on Siliconera about Disgaea 2 on the PSP selling 36,000 copies since it launched. Which isn't great mind you, but it was about twice as much as the Phantom Brave Wii port did. So clearly 40,000 people buy PSP RPGs. Which is enough to keep it around for a while longer.

The easiest way to understand the main issue with the PSP is to read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opportunity_Cost

Sony is currently sinking a lot of money into the system which would most likely be spent better elsewhere.

It's definitely still worth keeping it going in Japan, but that's also going to get a lot less rosy once the 3DS comes out and really gets going.

Obviously people don't think they should just bail out and stop selling it today, but actively spending large chunks of money on it in Western regions doesn't seem like a great idea.

 

[WasteLand Soldier]

Blur and Split/Second both bombed because they're 30fps racers. Those are crimes against gaming, and I am glad to see both developers sacrificed so that others may learn from their mistakes.

no they bombed because its stupid trying to sell these games at $60. if they are $40 2 weeks after why the fuck not just launch at $40? assholes. not every game is a $60 game.

 

[Gravijah]

The easiest way to understand the main issue with the PSP is to read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opportunity_Cost

Sony is currently sinking a lot of money into the system which would most likely be spent better elsewhere.

It's definitely still worth keeping it going in Japan, but that's also going to get a lot less rosy once the 3DS comes out and really gets going.

Obviously people don't think they should just bail out and stop selling it, but actively spending large chunks of money on it in Western regions doesn't seem like a great idea.

I wonder if the 3DS is going to eat more into the DSi or DSi XLs sales... I mean, which version of the the DS is going to stick around when the 3DS comes out?

 

[Little Green Yoda]

Tell me what exactly you think would be a good idea for Sony's handhelds going forward. The PSP is dead/dying everywhere, and it's positioned itself terribly for a successor.

Is the handheld market all that different from the console market when it comes to generational transition? I mean, we all know with each new generation of consoles, the slate is wiped clean, so to speak. Though I guess having the current market leader beat you to the following generation does you no favors.

 

[Nirolak]

I wonder if the 3DS is going to eat more into the DSi or DSi XLs sales... I mean, which version of the the DS is going to stick around when the 3DS comes out?

Well, if we're talking about Japan specifically, I imagine both the DSi and DSi XL will be left on the market since they're still selling alright and do target slightly different consumers.

As for the U.S., even the DS Lite still sells quite well here, so I imagine all three will be left on the market and phased one at a time as they stop selling.

 

[Gravijah]

Is the handheld market all that different from the console market when it comes to generational transition? I mean, we all know with each new generation of consoles, the slate is wiped clean, so to speak. Though I guess having the current market leader beat you to the following generation does you no favors.

Usually, being successful the prior generation gives you an advantage unless you make large mistakes.

 

[Regulus Tera]

Was the reason for why we don't get PS2 numbers anymore ever revealed?

 

[Hellsing321]

Is the handheld market all that different from the console market when it comes to generational transition? I mean, we all know with each new generation of consoles, the slate is wiped clean, so to speak. Though I guess having the current market leader beat you to the following generation does you no favors.

Every time we've had a "changing of the guard", so to speak, it was because the market leader made huge mistakes that the competitors capitalized on. Nintendo is doing everything right with the 3DS (Right now).

 

[Mooreberg]

no they bombed because its stupid trying to sell these games at $60. if they are $40 2 weeks after why the fuck not just launch at $40? assholes. not every game is a $60 game.

This. Plus games that can't stay in the Xbox Live top ten probably shouldn't be seeing base-splitting paid DLC. It makes no sense.

 

[Gravijah]

COUGH COUGH N64 PS3 COUGH COUGH

Huh, just realized both Sony and Nintendo made large mistakes on their third home consoles.

 

[Chris R]

Was the reason for why we don't get PS2 numbers anymore ever revealed?

Sony didn't want to embarrass the PSP IT HAS FEELINGS YOU GUYS, STOP MAKING FUN OF IT :< :< :<

I'd really like to play RDR but I'm going to have to wait until I can find it for under $20. Ruining the PS3 version like they did makes me sad. I thought they would have tried to make it equal after the uproar that surrounded GTAIV. Would prefer to play it on my PS3, but I'm basically forced to get it for the 360 now.

 

[Regulus Tera]

Sony didn't want to embarrass the PSP IT HAS FEELINGS YOU GUYS, STOP MAKING FUN OF IT :< :< :<

In jest, but at this point I wouldn't doubt this theory.

 

[mckmas8808]

I wouldn't be surprised if the failure of the Kinect/Move bump up the next gen... but there's no way they were planning on those things to be the "second half" of this generation, right?
Well, this is an NPD thread.

How do you know the Move or Kinect won't do well? Can you at least wait to see the results first?

I know, I just saw some people saying Sony should drop out of the handheld game a few posts up.

Yeah I said that. I think the PSP was successful, but I don't Sony should use their limited money on a PSP2. I'd like for them to spend it on a PS4 for a 2013 or 2014 release.

 

[Gravijah]

How do you know the Move or Kinect won't do well? Can you at least wait to see the results first?

I just don't see hardware add ons for distant 2nd and 3rd place systems being very successful... At least not as successful as Sony and Microsoft are (publicly?) expecting.

 

[Busaiku]

As for the U.S., even the DS Lite still sells quite well here, so I imagine all three will be left on the market and phased one at a time as they stop selling.

It took over 2 years for GBA to truly "end" over here, DS definitely still has quite some time left.
Heck, Nintendo still hasn't hit $100 yet.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

Nintendo actively had to kill the GBA to let the DS take off.

I suspect they might do something similar this transition.

 

[Gravijah]

I'm mostly curious about which version of the DS the consumers will continue buying. For some reason, I see the DS Lite sales staying strong.

 

[Little Green Yoda]

It took over 2 years for GBA to truly "end" over here, DS definitely still has quite some time left.
Heck, Nintendo still hasn't hit $100 yet.

You know, it's pretty damn amazing that the DS has been out almost 6 years and we still haven't seen any price drops.

 

[Gamer @ Heart]

You know, it's pretty damn amazing that the DS has been out almost 6 years and we still haven't seen any price drops.

Just one from 150 to 129 when the lite came out.

 

[szaromir]

Just one from 150 to 129 when the lite came out.

True, but the averega price of the sold DS systems has actually increased above $149.

 

[shintoki]

Two things.

1. Brand. Both in Mario himself and in Mario Kart (a long standing franchise known for quality).

2. Brilliant marketing that makes the games appeal to a huge variety of gamers (something that Modnation almost got, but that S/S and Blur actually shunned).

Being fair, it seems like Modnation just got the Sony faithful on board and not many others.

I think we all knew Blur was a bomb once the 20$ price drops started to happen, and an actual manufacture coupon came out for 20$ off. :lol Pity because the game is fantastic

 

[mckmas8808]

I just don't see hardware add ons for distant 2nd and 3rd place systems being very successful... At least not as successful as Sony and Microsoft are (publicly?) expecting.

With Sony it's hard to say exactly what they expect from MOVE.

 

[Nirolak]

With Sony it's hard to say exactly what they expect from MOVE.

Well, I've decided to agree with Opiate and Charlequin's bar of success for Kinect and Move.

"Correlates to an increase in hardware sales over last year."

Maintaining last year's hardware sales could be considered at least a minor success as well, since that would serve their goal of prolonging the generation.

 

[Gravijah]

Well, I've decided to agree with Opiate and Charlequin's bar of success for Kinect and Move.

"Correlates to an increase in hardware sales over last year."

Maintaining last year's hardware sales could be considered at least a minor success as well, since that would serve their goal of prolonging the generation.

This has me curious... Could the 3DS eat into home console sales?

 

[REMEMBER CITADEL]

Wow, is that link to the PSP ad an actual ad?

That was truly insulting and pathetic.

Oh yeah.

 

[Penguin]

Being fair, it seems like Modnation just got the Sony faithful on board and not many others.

I think we all knew Blur was a bomb once the 20$ price drops started to happen, and an actual manufacture coupon came out for 20$ off. :lol Pity because the game is fantastic

I also don't think Modnation design is very appealing, but that's a personal opinion.

And I'll try again since no one answered (that I saw), but how did Sega All-Star Racing do?

 

[Beth Cyra]

With Sony it's hard to say exactly what they expect from MOVE.

Well it is clear they want it to get along and live happily with it's older brother, Wii Mote. Remember no need to bash each others tech.

 

[Nirolak]

This has me curious... Could the 3DS eat into home console sales?

It's certainly possible as the DS and PSP devastated home console sales in Japan.

However, since Microsoft and Sony still largely sell to the Western core gamer, Nintendo will have to successfully get Western core games that people want to buy on the 3DS for this to happen.

 

[AgentOtaku]

No Lost Planet 2 makes me pretty sad.
But even though I love the franchise with all my heart, I won't be complete oblivious to just how much it has niche appeal at this point. As said in the LP2, despite any initial idea of LP2 being more western-centric early on, it's ultmately a sequel designed purely for it's existing fanbase.

 

[Diatribe1974]

Next month should produce some interesting NPD numbers.

 

[Future]

Cant hate these numbers. Quality games look like they sold well (Red Dead, Galaxy).

The other new games this month werent that strong. Alan Wake is a polarizing title. Blur and Split Second are not Burnout level. Lost Planet 2 was a better idea than the execution

PSP...:lol. Again, no surprises. Easy to forget this thing exists, I dont see Sony pushing anything PSP involved. Dont even know where stores like Best Buy stock it..I never notice it when casually browsing the ideas (cant miss the DS though)

 

[Gravijah]

It's certainly possible as the DS and PSP devastated home console sales in Japan.

However, since Microsoft and Sony still largely sell to the Western core gamer, Nintendo will have to successfully get Western core games that people want to buy on the 3DS for this to happen.

Things are just so vastly different these days... would you not say most people buying PS3s and 360s these days are the same people who would be a 3DS? "Casual", though I hate that term, it gets the point across.

 

[Nirolak]

Things are just so vastly different these days... would you not say most people buying PS3s and 360s these days are the same people who would be a 3DS? "Casual", though I hate that term, it gets the point across.

Well, I would use a third term to describe the people buying the 360 and PS3 at this point.

I would say that they're "mainstream" consumers. They don't buy games like Wii Fit and Wii Sports, but they don't buy titles like Bayonetta or Alan Wake either. What they really buy are things like Call of Duty, Halo, Madden, and the other really big titles that come along and grab their attention. I would say they were also a large chunk of the people buying titles like Guitar Hero and Rock Band on the 360 and PS3.

Their main block to buying consoles would likely be price or that they are just now of the age where they are interested in the games on these consoles.

 

[a Master Ninja]

No Lost Planet 2 makes me pretty sad.
But even though I love the franchise with all my heart, I won't be complete oblivious to just how much it has niche appeal at this point. As said in the LP2, despite any initial idea of LP2 being more western-centric early on, it's ultmately a sequel designed purely for it's existing fanbase.

I bought LP2, played through it with a friend (post patch), and enjoyed it for what it was. I can't help but think if they could have copied the drop-in drop-out structure of Left4Dead they would have had a shot at approaching the breakout success of LP1. L4D does not have a compelling singleplayer, but the "painless to get in and out of, play any level you want" multiplayer has kept the franchise in the Xbox Live top 10 since it debuted.

 

[Gravijah]

Well, I would use a third term to describe the people buying the 360 and PS3 at this point.

I would say that they're "mainstream" consumers. They don't buy games like Wii Fit and Wii Sports, but they don't buy titles like Bayonetta or Alan Wake either. What they really buy are things like Call of Duty, Halo, Madden, and the other really big titles that come along and grab their attention. I would say they were also a large chunk of the people buying titles like Guitar Hero and Rock Band on the 360 and PS3.

Their main block to buying consoles would likely be price or that they are just now of the age where they are interested in the games on these consoles.

Yes, I agree with all of that. The Sales-Ager in me is making it harder to wait for the 3DS than the 3DS itself, and I haven't been this excited for a console since the DS.

 

[Brashnir]

Madden sales should do fine this year (albeit they may be slightly depressed over years past).
Next year's Madden, though... with a season-long lockout looming?
Madden should take the year off in 2011.

If anything a strike/lockout will help Madden sales. Can't watch real NFL? Play virtual NFL.

 

[Nirolak]

If anything a strike/lockout will help Madden sales. Can't watch real NFL? Play virtual NFL.

Since they actually redesigned the entire playbook system, if those changes are actually good, word of mouth should help them a lot even if the thing starts off selling slower.

It actually worked for them to an extent last year, where it started slower on 360/PS3, but ended up selling a fair bit more year over year on those systems once people noticed it was actually improved.

 

[topramen]

So Capcom's string of good luck seems to be in trouble. They had a period where they could do no wrong critically or commercially

Dead Rising
Lost Planet
Street Fighter 4
Resident Evil 5
RE4: wii
RE:Umbrella
Monster Hunter portable


then:
Bionic Commando
Dark Void
Lost Planet 2
Darkside Chronicles.


I think all performed way under expectations. Sure Super Street Fighter 4 did okay, but what happens if Dead Rising Bombs? Capcom comes out of this generation with what they went into it with - Resident Evil and Street Fighter. hopefully MvC and MH3P get things cooking again.

 

[vireland]

Yeah, after not seeing it in the weekly Live top-20, I was prepared for the worst; at this point I'm happy to see it crack the top-10. Granted, that's revising expectations from pre-release.

I'm getting bad vibes from MS regarding a sequel. They decided not to put their full marketing effort on it for whatever reason, which I'm afraid may foreshadow their long-term intent. Really, really hope I'm wrong. One of my favorite games this gen.

Agreed. Alan Wake was an unexpectedly cool experience. Killed Heavy Rain, IMO. At least the acting was in the same universe as what was happening on-screen, unlike HR.

Really enjoyed, looking forward to the DLC as well.

Marketing for AW really fell down, though. My notion of what the game would be was almost completely wrong based on the PR I casually followed out there before it launched. It was WAY better than I expected.