Pachter: NBA Elite 11 delay to cost EA 1.1 million sales this year; NBA Jam no savior
In a recent investor communique, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter noted his belief that Electronic Arts would lose 1.1 million sales due to NBA Elite 11's delay and reduced the company's holiday quarter earnings estimate by $60 million. Also, because the sports sim will miss the beginning of basketball season with its 2011 release, he predicts that by the end of the company's fiscal year next March, Elite 11 will have only sold around 500,000 units -- if it doesn't succumb to the "possibility of being canceled."
Pachter's note briefly mentions the standalone versions of NBA Jam as "not a true substitute," so we followed up with the analyst extraordinaire to find out why he believes EA's other NBA game can't make up the difference.
"The standalone versions on PS3 and 360 might sell well, but I question whether they will be priced as $60 games, when the company had previously said it was giving them away with NBA Elite." He continued, "More likely, they'll be discounted to $50 or lower, and gamers will still balk at the price, given that it was going to be bundled with NBA Elite -- and likely will be, if the latter game ever comes out. So I'd say another 200,000 units, maybe."
As for the Wii version, he explained that the game was coming out anyway for the console, so the lack of NBA Elite may give it a "very small" bump of 100,000 units.
