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Greenberg: Crackdown 2 coming first half of 2010
On Major Nelson's weekly podcast -- with a host left laughing and teary-eyed due to the Xbox head's dental-related lisp -- Aaron Greenberg did some NPD boasting before ruminating on the first half of 2010. After pointing out Mass Effect 2, Splinter Cell Conviction, and Alan Wake, he confirmed Crackdown 2 as part of Microsoft's list of "triple-A, exclusive" titles heading to the Xbox 360 during "the first half of the year." "Those are just the exclusives, that doesn't include Final Fantasy ... there's no way we had a first half of the year like that last year," Greenberg added. The back end of the upcoming year is no slouch either in his eyes, with Halo Reach and Fable 3 said to be on schedule for launch in the Fall. Considering the first Crackdown's February release date, we're hoping for a similarly timed release of the sequel (just in time for its third birthday!). We've followed up with Greenberg and will update this post if we hear more. %Gallery-78857%
Microsoft's Greenberg depicts theoretical November without MW2 as 'very different'
It's no secret that the Xbox 360 received the lion's share of Modern Warfare 2 purchases during last month's retail blitz and Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg certainly knows it, telling us not too long ago that it was the "best November ever" for the console. So when G4TV recently asked Greenberg how a theoretical November 2009 without Modern Warfare 2 launching would have looked for the company in terms of console sales, we weren't shocked to see the Xbox exec say, "November without Modern Warfare 2 would have looked very different." Besides the MW2-branded Xbox 360's effect on overall console sales ("hundreds of thousands," he claims), Greenberg guesses "we would have probably sold less consoles ... to be honest." In his eyes, MW2's launch was "an event" that convinced consumers to purchase the game over not just other games, but also over "buying an iPod or instead of going to a movie." Considering the game got its own branded drink -- though not the branded drink -- we think it's clear that the game has nearly reached Independence Day status.
Xbox's Aaron Greenberg talks 'best-ever November in Xbox 360 history'
After two months of trailing the PS3 in monthly NPD sales – thanks in no small part to the success of the PS3 Slim – the Xbox 360 has taken the lead once again. And Microsoft was quick to offer spokesman Aaron Greenberg for a chat, to explain why they're calling this November the "best-ever November in Xbox 360 history." "In the month of November, consumers spent more money at retail on Xbox 360 than they did on the Wii or the PS3," Greenberg tells Joystiq. "If you look at total consumer spend across hardware, software, and accessories, it was $838 million. And if you look at software games, specifically third-party software games, we sold more games than the PS3 and the Wii combined." This emphasis on the entire "ecosystem" – including console sales, and software and accessories – is behind Microsoft's "best-ever" claim. In fact, though the Xbox 360 did sell over 100K more units than the PlayStation 3, console sales were down 2% year-over-year. "We're essentially flat, year over year. It's down 2%, technically, if you just look at hardware sales," Greenberg admits. Whether the Wii was on top or whether Microsoft's November sales are the best in the console's history, all comes down to a question of focus. "What scoreboard are you using?" Greenberg asks.
Forza 3 sales surpass 1m units; premium DLC released
[Paul J. Taylor] Since its late October launch, Forza 3 has sped into over 1 million homes worldwide, marking a commercial milestone for Turn 10's critically acclaimed racer. In conjunction with today's release of the game's second and now premium DLC car pack (the first one's always free, ain't it?), dubbed "Hot Holidays," Microsoft has tallied up some Forza 3 stats. According to the publisher, players have so far tracked 6.6 million hours and 590 million collective miles -- no word on flats or oil changes. Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg tweets that "more than 4M [million] auction bids" have lead to "$18.7 billion" virtual dollars spent (we have to imagine at least a billion went to that gorgeous coop pictured above). Of course, Microsoft has its eye on the real dollars, offering today's 10-car pack for 400 ($5). The full list of cars is posted after the break. Additionally, a second premium pack has been confirmed for January 12, and -- wouldn't you know it -- that date coincides with the kick-off of the Detroit International Auto Show. You think that was planned? %Gallery-79869%
Greenberg: 360 sales more than double over Black Friday
According to Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg, Xbox 360 sales saw a serious increase thanks to the post-Thanksgiving shopping madness known as Black Friday. While Greenberg doesn't disclose specific numbers, he notes in a recent tweet that Black Friday granted the Xbox 360 its "biggest sales week of the year," with Microsoft selling over twice as many units than the previous week. That certainly sounds like a lot, though the average weekly sales in October -- based on NPD figures -- were slightly above 60,000 units. Assuming November's weekly average was similar, Microsoft certainly didn't come close to topping Sony's impressive Black Friday total of 440,000 PS3 consoles. And let's not forget Nintendo's Black Friday success: 550,000 Wii consoles and DS / DSi sales in excess of one million units. Rest assured we will break down the exact November numbers once the NPDs shake out later this month. [Via Gamasutra]
CE-Oh no he didn't! Part LXIV: Microsoft's Greenberg says Xbox will outsell PS3 for 'entire generation'
Didn't think Microsoft exec Aaron Greenberg could top himself after saying that Hulu on 360 was like "asking out a really hot chick on a date?" Well, think again, 'cause Greenberg recently sat down with GameInformer for a fairly wide ranging interview, and he took the opportunity to toss a few bombs in Sony's direction. The biggest of those is that he's "confident" that the Xbox 360 will "not only outsell PS3 for the full calendar year, but for this entire generation" -- adding that it's "similar to a game of baseball, it is not about just winning one inning, but instead being able to win the game by consistently delivering across all nine innings." Greenberg also went on to say that Sony's expected good showing in the September sales numbers is merely a "short term bump," and that "it is not a real concern to us." Hit up the link below for the complete interview, which also includes talk of the Zune HD, Xbox Live, and Microsoft's plans for the holiday season.[Via PC World]
Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg touts holiday exclusives, 360 sales growth in down economy
Namedropping exclusives from Halo 3: ODST to Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City to Shadow Complex, as well as reaffirming Microsoft's "year-to-date growth in console sales compared to last year," Microsoft's director of product management Aaron Greenberg sounds extremely confident in the Xbox 360 (that's his job, right?). Thankfully, he's not always above admitting when his competitors are going to win. "When NPD releases September sales later today, we fully expect PlayStation 3 will come in as the console with the most units sold for the month," he tells Game Informer in a recent interview. Unsurprisingly, though, he's sanguine on the prospect of Microsoft's console beating out Sony's. "We remain confident that Xbox 360 will not only outsell PS3 for the full calendar year, but for this entire generation." His confidence wanes though when asked about beating Apple with the Zune HD, offering only, "Our strategy has always been to completely focus on delivering the best games and entertainment experience in the living room and not get distracted by anything else." Gotta know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em, right?[Image credit: gamerscore]
Greenberg: Price drops affect sales for a few months
Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg told GI.biz that he doesn't expect the recent price drops on Xbox 360 and PS3 hardware to change sales trends permanently. "I don't believe the price cuts that both companies have made will impact the market dynamics too dramatically in the long term," he said. "We typically see a month or two of lifts and share adjustments, but then things tend to settle back to roughly the established market ranking. We do, however, expect that these new lower prices will bring in more consumers that were potentially a bit resistant to the previous pricing in place."And, of course, these statements come before the rumored Wii price drop, which may reduce even the temporary lifts experienced by the other consoles. Luckily, we suppose, that period will run right into the holidays, when everything sees dramatic sales increases.
Xbox's Aaron Greenberg: Hulu on 360 like "asking out a really hot chick on a date"
Hey, our main dudes over at Joystiq sat down with Xbox's Aaron Greenberg recently, and there are some great bits of info in the interview. Aaron says the big Xbox price cut has been planned for months, so it's "just a coincidence" that it happened right on top of the PS3 Slim -- and he also says he's an avid Joystiq reader, so if Redmond had wanted to get the jump on Sony, they'd have been prepared. Other nuggets: the $99 WiFi adapter isn't coming down in price, the Netflix relationship is going well, and getting Hulu or Amazon Unbox on the 360 is like "asking out a really hot chick on a date, they don't all say yes." Yeah, it's a pretty great interview -- hit the read link for the whole thing.
Interview: Xbox's Aaron Greenberg on the $300 Elite and all things Xbox
Last night, just hours before the price cut announcement went out, we had a chance to talk with Aaron Greenberg – the often outspoken Director of Product Management at Xbox – about the new $300 Elite console, the company's Fall lineup in the absence of Splinter Cell Conviction, Netflix "exclusivity" (whatever that means), the (still!) outrageous price of the WiFi adapter, and whether we're ever going to see Hulu or Groups/Clan support in Xbox Live (those are two of our favorite questions for Aaron). Read on for the complete interview: Joystiq: Hey Aaron – so what do you have for us today? Aaron Greenberg: So this may shock you, but effective on Friday we are dropping the price of our Xbox 360 Elite console by $100, dropping that down to $299. At the same time, we are also reducing the price of the Xbox 360 Pro or Premium 60 gig SKU down to $249 -- that will be effective while supplies last. And this will essentially set us up as we head into holiday with a two SKU setup: the $199 white Arcade SKU and then the $299 120 gig Elite black console. The Elite price is effective Friday? Yes. The price drop goes into effect at retail on Friday. So of course we're totally surprised and had no idea this was coming, so any questions that might indicate I was prepared you should just take as good guessing on our part I think. Right, exactly. So you don't read your own site or anything I guess?
Greenberg: 360 only console outpacing 2008 sales, Xbox Live sales up 73%
If you want some console war fightin' words, you can always count on Aaron Greenberg, Xbox group product manager. Speaking to Gamasutra, Greenberg noted that, out of the three major consoles, the Xbox 360 is the only one that has managed to outpace 2008 sales for the first six months of 2009. "Our console sales for the first half of the year actually grew 20 percent from January to June versus the same six months last year," said Greenberg. In addition, paid downloads on Xbox Live have seen a 73 percent jump from June 2008 through June 2009.Speaking of Sony and the PlayStation 3, which saw significantly lower numbers in this month's NPD report, Greenberg says the company made a mistake in not targeting core gamers from the beginning. "I think for Sony, what in many ways kind of threw them off that strategy was what happened with the PS2 and the DVD player phenomenon. They kind of expected that to happen with the PS3 and the Blu-ray." He adds that Sony's current focus on core games is "probably the right thing for them to do."Hit the source link for more facts, figures and oh no he didn't.
Microsoft denies new Natal-based console, as a new 3D rumor surfaces
Microsoft has responded to the rumor of a new Natal-focused Xbox 360 successor, with two separate sources denying the existence of the new console to Eurogamer. One unnamed source at MS told Eurogamer ""Don't believe nonsense on the internet is all I'll say. We'll do the right thing for Natal." Aaron Greenberg responded in a calmer manner, saying "I think part of the excitement about this announcement is that in many ways we are delivering a next generation experience this generation. With that said, I can confirm that Natal will run on Xbox 360 so no new console investment will be necessary."Conspiracy theorists should note that both of these denials leave the door wide open for the rumor to actually be true. No new console investment will be "necessary" for Natal -- but it certainly could be an option, and there's always the possibility of Natal technology being built into the next console. And "the right thing for Natal" could certainly be "building a whole console around it." Releasing it as a standalone doesn't preclude the release of a later console with it built in.Meanwhile, TeamXbox claims to have inside information about plans for the next Xbox console, specifically that Microsoft will not launch it in 2010 because the company is planning to include stereoscopic 3D functionality in full HD, and is waiting for the proliferation of televisions that support that technology.%Gallery-65582%[Via Engadget]
Oh, Aaron Greenberg: PS3 'hemorrhaging at retail,' GTA IV DLC would have beaten Killzone 2 at retail
Citing February NPD numbers against those in the past couple of years -- and Microsoft's own, mysterious Xbox Live numbers on GTA IV's exclusive downloadable expansion -- Xbox 360 product management director Aaron Greenberg did quite a bit of chest pounding to Gamasutra's Chris Remo yesterday. Broaching the subject of competitors head on, Greenberg says, "What we hear from our partners is that it's not just PS3, it's also PS2 down 62 percent year over year. With that business declining, and with the PS3 business declining, it's been described to me as hemorrhaging at retail right now, and it just keeps getting worse."Moving right along to the subject of Killzone 2 -- a game released on the 27th of a 28 day month -- Greenberg compares the title to the aforementioned GTA IV mystery numbers, "If that content was sold at retail, it would be one of the best sellers across all platforms. It would have outsold Killzone 2." Considering GTA IV's astronomical sales numbers, if even half of the game's owners have the 360 iteration and a quarter of those people bought the expansion, that's over 1.5 million downloads. Still, without hard numbers to back up his statements, Greenberg's words amount to little more than our monthly rendezvous with executive smack talking. Update: SCEA responds to February NPD numbers on Joystiq PlayStation. "We have no doubt [Killzone 2] will deliver a next gen experience and will be responsible for driving hardware sales throughout the year."
Greenberg blasts back at Hirai for 'longevity' jab
It's charming to see that no matter how high up you are on the gamer ladder, you can still be goaded into a flame war. Sony Computer Entertainment boss Kaz Hirai discounted the Xbox 360's longevity and chance at market dominance yesterday, and now Xbox boss Aaron Greenberg has rushed right into the fray, saying, "That complacent attitude is out of touch with where the industry and consumer is today." You say out of touch, Aaron, we say "big thinking."But, still unmollified, he told The Bitbag, "I can't imagine any scenario where the PS3 can catch up with us. In fact, even if you doubled the current PS3 sales and Xbox 360 remained flat, they couldn't close the gap until 2014."Meanwhile, Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Amie reportedly made an ear trumpet out of $100 bills and shouted, "What? Can you two speak up?" Though the involved parties emitted nary a chuckle, we thought it was a hoot.
Greenberg: Consumer spending up 84% on Xbox Live last year, success in Europe
Aaron Greenberg, director of product management at Xbox, stated in a recent interview that the company saw consumer spending on Xbox Live grow by 84% last year. Speaking with G4, Greenberg noted that (as was announced during E3) Live had achieved a billion dollars in sales over three years. He calls it the "silent phenomenon" because NPD doesn't report it, retailers don't discuss it -- but third-party partners have seen the earnings.Greenberg continued to point out that the company's last major push took place in Europe last year, when it "overinvested" and did "launch level marketing." He believes that after starting the year neck and neck with its competitor, the Xbox 360 now has a million unit lead on the PS3 in the region. [Via MCV, CasualGaming.biz]
Greenberg talks up MS strategy, 2009 lineup
In an interview with G4TV, Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg had quite a lot to say about the Xbox 360's performance in 2008 as well as what's in store for the future. Greenberg began by trumpeting the 2008 numbers that were released last week, also noting high sales for Gears of War 2, Call of Duty: World at War and Left 4 Dead. He then clarified that the Xbox 360 has at least a 1 million unit lead over the PS3 in Europe (by install base, not sales). When asked about the runaway success of the Wii, Greenberg stated that the two machines offered different experiences and that he saw no reason why both couldn't successful. "I look at retail outlets and car companies and airlines... you know there's more than one," said Greenberg, adding, "I think what we're finding is that there are two platforms that are clearly having success." Greenberg also reiterated his belief that Sony will have to reduce the price of the PS3 "sooner, rather than later" if the company wishes to remain competitive.Perhaps most tantalizingly, Greenberg spoke to Microsofts still nebulous lineup for 2009. He noted that while 2009 is "a big year for Halo fans" thanks to Halo Wars and Halo 3: ODST, Microsoft still has plenty up its digital sleeve. Greenberg said that Microsoft prefers to "under promise and over deliver," explaining that the company likes to save announcements until a product is close to launch. He cites the NXE as an example, saying that the company kept it under wraps -- well, mostly -- until E3 2008, which preceded the November launch in the same year.And before you ask, no, he didn't drop any hints as to what said projects might be. Our guess: Alan Wake and Duke Nukem Forever will both launch this year exclusively on Xbox 360 ... on the same day.[Via VideoGamer.com]
CES 2009: Joystiq's interview with Xbox's Aaron Greenberg
Xbox director Aaron Greenberg was nice enough to sit down with us at CES this week, where we talked about everything from NXE to to You Don't Know Jack and Xbox Live clubs. Here are the highlights:Were you surprised how successful the NXE has been, especially in regards to the 33 percent increase in the average size of friends' lists?I think the increased friends was a surprise, I think the increase in downloads was a big surprise. A lot of people said "Wow, you guys added all this new content to the service," and we're like "Actually, it's been there the whole time," with the exception of maybe Netflix. We just made what was there easier to find.Has the success of Avatars prompted you to think about other applications for them more? So games is absolutely the right place to start. But people have been asking us for more accessories, unlockable content from games, there's lots of stuff that has to be done. But right now it's primarily focused on game integration.
CES 2009: Expect more regular updates to 360
With Xbox Live Primetime and Netflix movie sharing both in the works, we had to wonder if we were going to have to wait for a biannual update to get them, or if they'd be doled out piecemeal. When we asked Xbox director Aaron Greenberg today, he wasn't talking specific update timing, but he did say small updates should be more common. "Some of the benefits of the design of the new interface is that we can add new channels, new content, new features on a more regular basis," he said. "It doesn't mean we won't group a bunch of these and do a big rollout, but I think you will see us do more regular updates and roll things out on a more regular basis."
Microsoft exec predicts Sony will be forced to cut PS3 prices
After a couple weeks in which the 360 posted better sales numbers than the PS3 and it was revealed that Sony inadvertently funded Microsoft's next-gen development efforts, you'd think Microsoft execs would be getting a little cocky, but it sounds instead like they're expecting a renewed offensive from Sony based on price. That's direct from the 360's director of product management Aaron Greenberg, who told Edge that MS "absolutely expects" a PS3 price cut in the next few months, and that the team is "frankly surprised it's taken this long." Of course, we've been hearing tons of PS3 pricing speculation from all corners lately with no change to that $399 MSRP, so we'll see how it goes.[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
MS predicts a Playstation 3 price cut 'soon'
With a 28 million Xbox 360 base and keeping a sales lead over the Playstation 3, Microsoft knows that the worldwide console price cuts they enacted in 2008 have been a key component to their strategy. Something that Sony has yet to do with PS3, which Microsoft exec Aaron Greenberg finds surprising. "We absolutely expect the PS3 price drop to happen in the next couple of months," Greenberg told Edge. "We're frankly surprised it's taken this long... I would expect they'd have to move on price, sooner than later, for sure." Color us surprised as well.Continuing into 2009, Microsoft is well aware that Sony will become more aggressive in their PS3 pricing which, truth be told, is still an expensive piece of hardware for the casual market. Greenberg is right though, it's truly odd to see Sony staying firm on their pricing structure, especially with how things are playing out in the industry.[Via Eurogamer]
