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PS3 hardware tops Japanese sales charts
So we've previously reported on how the launch of Metal Gear Solid 4 spurred PlayStation 3 hardware sales in Japan, but now we're bringing in the news that the PS3 is back on top of the charts. According to Media Create numbers, the PS3 sold 75K+ (a slightly different calculation from the previous Enterbrain numbers at 77K+). 1. PlayStation 3: 75,3112. PlayStation Portable: 64,6753. Nintendo Wii: 45,5644. Nintendo DS: 39,2015. PlayStation 2: 7,2976. Xbox 360: 2,163The PS3 was the one to finally knock the PSP out of the prime position. The PSP has had success for the past several months, continuously taking the number one spot and crushing everything else. The question now is: Can the PS3 keep the momentum up and keep things going? Or, will the PSP return to its rule over Japan?
Player vs. Everything: Choking on graphics
I managed to get my hands on an Age of Conan beta key this morning, so off I went to excitedly download the client. I'm a big fan of Robert E. Howard's original pulps, and I've been looking forward to the grim and gritty world of Hyboria for a while now. Most of what I've read about it so far has been very positive (with a few notable exceptions due to some of the design choices). Our own write-up of the overall beta experience from Michael Zenke was very encouraging with regard to the combat, gameplay, and feel of the world. Overall, it seems like there's a lot to be excited about. There's just one glaring issue that everyone seems to be having: the graphics are choking their machines. This isn't a new phenomenon. It seems like every new game on the market in the last few years wants to beat our poor, 1-3 year old computers into lifeless heaps of rubbish with their outlandish and ridiculous system requirements. Even World of Warcraft, a game celebrated for its accessibility and ability to be run on older machines, wasn't that way at launch (though it was substantially better than its major competitors at the time, EverQuest 2 and City of Heroes). However, this strategy of supercharged visuals has made things hard for a number of games. Vanguard in particular suffered a lot of criticism for having ridiculous system requirements when it launched, and that's just one example. Given that people would like to actually be able to play these games, why on earth do game designers insist on shoving next-gen graphics down our throats when the vast majority of us have last-gen machines (or worse)?
NPD: March sales put Xbox 360 in passenger seat
After falling to third place in hardware sales for the months of January and February, Microsoft's Xbox 360 inched out the PlayStation 3 to land in their familiar second place spot behind the Nintendo Wii. After dropping 9.3% in sales versus February 2008, the PlayStation 3 ended the month selling 257,000 units against Microsoft's 262,000 units for a small gain of 2.8%.With the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto IV console sales are expected to rise and the data from the next few months should indicate how the market will trend well into the Summer as the Rockstar title gains steam at retail.- Wii: 721K 289K (40%) - DS: 698K 110.4K (15.8%) - PSP: 297K 53.9K (18.1%) - Xbox 360: 262K 7.4K (2.8%) - PS3: 257K 23.8K (9.3%)- PS2: 216K 135.8K (62.9%)[via Joystiq]
Brawl effect: Wii outsells PS3 4-to-1 in Japan
Wii outsold PlayStation 3 nearly 4-to-1 in Japan during the four weeks ending on February 24, reports Japanese magazine publisher Enterbrain. What else is new? Actually, it's a 'real' game, for once, that appears to be driving the ongoing sales surge. Super Smash Bros. Brawl has managed to move 1.33 million units since its January 31 release, no doubt contributing to sales of 331,627 Wii consoles during the period tracked. In comparison, PS3 conjured up a mere 89,131 units sold.Additionally, Nintendo managed to unload nearly as many Balance Boards as it did Wiis, with Wii Fit selling 309,311 units to become the (distant) second best-selling 'game' during the four-week period. As for Xbox 360...? Put it this way: Wii outsold the poor thing more than 23-to-1. Damn, yo.
EA thinks PS3 will outsell Xbox 360 this year
If you've been following the goings on at Electronic Arts in regards to the PlayStation 3, you're likely come away a bit perplexed. It seems that one minute, EA is disappointed with Sony's console, and the other minute they're praising it. Well, it looks like EA woke up on the right side of the bed this morning as it's still saying some pretty nice things about the PS3.EA recently released estimates on how it believes this year's hardware sales will shape up in North America and Europe, and while it thinks the Wii will outsell everything, it pushed the PS3 past the Xbox 360, claiming a respectable second place. In total, EA says the PS3 will push 9.5 to 11 million units compared to only 6 to 8 million from the Xbox 360.Moreover, according to EA's estimates, the PS3 will dominate the Xbox 360 in Europe, with the PS3 selling between 5 and 6 million units, and the Xbox 360 managing a paltry 1.5 to 2.5 million. We should all keep in mind, however, that these are just estimates and should by no means be taken as fact. But we did hear that some top EA execs had the Giants over the Patriots in the Super Bowl, so who knows?
1.2 million PS3s sold in Europe over Christmas
Get your calculators ready, it's time for some big numbers again. Well, one big number in particular - and it's one that is cropping up for the second time, recently. 1.2 million PS3s were sold during the last five weeks of 2007 in Europe, keeping in line with US sales for the same period. This is a record number of PS3 sales in the region, brought on by a combination of a price drop and the holiday season. Kaz seems confident that Sony will make its target of 11 million units shipped worldwide by the end of March, depending on "how aggressively dealers buy PS3 inventory." It's heartening to see sales getting ever higher and it certainly bodes well for the PS3 as we go deeper into 2008. With more great software releases on the horizon (as well as the possibility of a new, white, 40GB model) this could turn out to be quite a year for the PS3.
PS3 Black Friday sales increase 245% compared to last year
We had a hunch Sony was going to hit a home run during this year's Black Friday, and we were right. Sony announced that the sales of the PS3 skyrocketed 245 percent compared to the day last year. Additionally, PlayStation brand units increased 178 percent last week, which translated in a 154 percent sales dollar increase. If you needed even more staggering numbers, Sony also announced that since Nov. 2, sales have increased by almost 300 percent at the top 10 retailers in North America.In layman's terms, this all means Sony has made a helluva lotta money. It seems Sony's concoction of a new marketing campaign; newer, cheaper hardware and some great exclusive titles have been a recipe for success, and we don't see why it will slow down anytime soon.
PS3 outsells Wii again in Japan
Last week, the PlayStation 3 turned heads throughout the industry when it outsold the Wii in Japan, pushing 65,000 units. It appears the the tidal wave that is the newly introduced 40GB PS3 doesn't appear to be slowing down much as it outsold Nintendo's console for the second week in a row.While the total number dipped to 53,000 systems, it still outsold its foe by almost 20,000 units as the Wii only managed 36,000 sales.After going through such a rough inaugural year with the PS3, it's interesting to see the turnaround Sony's managed with its console. Battling through bad press, over-priced systems and a lack of compelling games, it appears the PlayStation 3 has finally turned the corner and is now everything we expected it to be. Now, can it go for the trifecta?[Via MCV]
360 predicted to outsell PS3 2 to 1 this holiday
Using the super factual NPD software sales numbers, various market indicators and a pinch of black magic, the analysts over at simExchange released their predictions for the holiday video game hardware sales. And 360 sales are predicted to be fantastic.SimExchange is estimating that, from now through the end of the year, Xbox 360 hardware sales will double that of the Playstation 3, moving 2 million consoles compared to the PS3's 1 million. And those estimates even take into account the PS3's recent price drop. W00t! But the holidays won't be completely Xbox green this year, because the Wii juggernaut is expected to take home the blue ribbon with sales estimates hovering around the 3 million mark. But if you're a firm believer of the "next-gen" war being between the Xbox 360 and PS3 then you can safely claim victory ... or at least claim analyst numbers victory.
Forget E3, the DS wins everything else
While it may not have seemed like the DS was top priority -- or much of a priority at all, next to the Wii -- at last week's E3, the handheld continues to wreak sales havoc in Japan. Can anything stop the DS there? It continues, week after week, to lead sales by an embarrassing margin. For the week ending July 8, the DS led the Wii by more than 60,000 units sold, and the handheld boasted three of the top five game titles as well. There's no need to shame the other systems by talking about their sales, but some other handheld took the third slot in hardware.Will the DS ever reach these epic levels of success in the US? It looks like the Wii may have more of a chance at that over here, but either way, Nintendo's continuing success is nothing to sneeze at.
PS3 sells million in PAL region
The PlayStation 3 has reached platinum in the PAL region, having sold one million units since its launch ten weeks ago, GameSpot reports. That report would put the console as faster selling than the PS2 and PSP. The top-selling games were Resistance: Fall of Man (600,000) and Motorstorm (500,000).It is not clear if the data represents units sold to the consumer or units sold to retail chains (i.e. units shipped). The PAL region covers Europe and Australia. Sony's latest console also broke records at the UK launch, becoming the fastest-selling home console ever for the country with 165,000 units reportedly sold during its launch weekend beginning March 23.The numbers are impressive for Sony, and serve as good news for the company that has lost market share since the last generation, but it probably won't deter calls for a price drop anytime soon.[Image Context, "as graceful as a walrus falling upward with an anvil as parachute"]
PS3 sales spike on Amazon after SGD '07 event
Apparently the plethora of triple-A title announcements and jaw-dropping screen shots from SGD '07 drew up a fervor of PS3 interest for UK customers. Amazon.co.uk listed the PS3 as the coveted "most popular item." In comparison, the Xbox 360 Premium console is listed at number six, with the DS Lite "Black" at number five and the Nintendo Wii at number eight. With all the excitement over the last few days, it's good to see the PS3 install base growing with some praise and much-needed attention. So, have you hugged your PS3 today? [Via Gamespot forums]
Japanese Hardware Sales: April 23 - 29
You love it as much as we love giving it, so here's our latest outing into the world of Japanese hardware sales. This month, you'll notice some things have changed up a bit. Like nothing. On the bright side, PS3 sales have increased. Sure, the increase is very small, but when you're dealing with small numbers to begin with, every little bit just seems a tad more significant. Without further ado, the numbers. DS Lite: 255,971 Wii: 102,522 PSP: 33,860 PS3: 12,791 PS2: 12,584 XBox 360: 3,162 What's this? The PS3 outsells the PS2? It's happened once before, we recall, but this may mean people are finally starting to phase out the old and save up for the new. Maybe not. It's tough to tell by a couple of weeklong charts. We'll keep you posted on sales as soon as the researchers give us the data.
How about some random hardware sales numbers?
We're not giving this an official title, because we've heard time and again how unreliable VGChartz is when it comes to hardware sales. Regardless, it'll at least give you a ballpark range of the US hardware sales for the week ending April 29th. PS3 fanboys beware, the numbers, as usual, aren't that good. DS: 168,541 Wii: 100,222 360: 54,331 PSP: 47,275 PS3: 25,240 These numbers haven't shifted all that much from the site's previous week estimations, but no matter how you try to spin this, the numbers for the PS3 are still low. But there are 300 million people in the US... if these numbers hold, all we've got to do is wait about 1,000 weeks, right?! We kid, of course. That's a really, really long time. Games are coming and, for some reason, all come out around Fall. Some developer should realize "hey, Summer is an untapped market -- people beg for games. Maybe we should release a decent title at that time". I'd buy it.
Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft hop on the NPD merry-go-round
Following yesterday's explosive release of the March NPD video game sales results, both Sony and Nintendo have predictably constructed and delivered finely worded press statements celebrating their astoundingly magnificent results. There's plenty of fun to be had on the merry-go-round, but spinning too much may lead to uncontrollable nausea and projectile vomiting. In the interest of shielding you from an unexpected Technicolor yawn, we've decided to slow things down a bit. "Nintendo stays number one," declares the house of Miyamoto, rightly referring to the unstoppable DS. "Nintendo once again claimed the top two spots among the best-selling new video game systems in America in March, according to independent sales data gathered by the NPD Group." Hang on, weren't the top two spots shared by the DS and the PlayStation 2? Oh, the top two spots among the new video game systems, they say. Sorry PS2 pal, you only claim a spot among the old video game systems. An added bonus: Using this wording, Nintendo could claim the top two spots among new systems even if the the PS2 and original Xbox were to somehow become the best sellers for the month."Innovation is compelling both current gamers and new gamers to experience a new way to play. Nintendo is bringing gaming back to the masses," says Nintendo president and habitual posterior kicker, Reggie Fils-Aime. Ah yes, "the masses," they're the ones to blame for a critical Wii shortage. Remember, Wii systems are selling as fast as Nintendo can possibly crank them out. The 41% drop in sales since January, coupled with the promise here of "increased production" following the end of a successful financial year... isn't suspicious at all.
December NPD: hardware sales push industry to new heights
The latest numbers escaping from poorly guarded NPD holding cells indicate that the gaming industry enjoyed a 27.8% sales increase in the month most closely associated with holidays and reckless spending. Strong hardware sales in December helped push the industry up to an annual $12.5 billion, a sizable increase compared to last year's $10.5 billion.Contrary to the figures cited in a CNBC report earlier this month, the console winner of Christmas 2006 was not the Xbox 360, but the Playstation 2. Unsurprisingly, the Nintendo DS reigned supreme in the portable arena, as well as in overall sales.NPD console sales for December 2006 DS: 1.6 million (9.2 million life-to-date) PlayStation 2: 1.4 million (37.1 million life-to-date) Xbox 360: 1.1 million (4.5 million life-to-date) PSP: 953.2k (6.7 million life-to-date) Game Boy Advance: 850.7k (35.1 million life-to-date) Wii: 604.2k (1.1 million life-to-date) PS3: 490.7k (687.3k life-to-date) The top-selling game for December was Microsoft's Gears of War, followed closely by Guitar Hero II. Rounding out the top five are Madden NFL '07 (PS2) and both versions of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Interestingly, the waggle-free version of Link's latest adventure sold around 13,000 more copies. Check out the full Gamedaily Biz article for further details, numbers and invaluable fanboy ammunition.
November NPD: revised data reveals current install bases
Earlier this month, a whole slew of numbers escaped from the NPD's inadequate holding facilities and viciously assaulted gamers with all sorts of sales tallies and percentages. Having discovered an error in their historical data, the analytical group has seen fit to unleash the numbers again, though an important one is now somewhat smaller and thus, less dangerous. It was previously reported that year-to-date sales had risen 25% in November, when in fact, they had only risen by 16% (putting the industry at $8.76 billion). Please calm yourselves, we're as crushed by this dramatic reversal as you are. Far more intriguing, however, is the now rectified install base data for consoles in the US. Be sure to use this information the next time you have a prolonged, ultimately pointless argument on the sleazy gaming forum of your choice: PS2: 35.8 million GBA: 34.3 million DS: 7.6 million PSP: 5.7 million Xbox 360: 3.4 million Wii: 476 thousand PS3: 197 thousand The full report on GameDaily BIZ also notes that Microsoft sold 42 thousand HD-DVD drives for the 360 -- that's only 1.24% of the total install base.
NPD October: DS leading the upsurge in gaming
American hardware sales from October from the NPD group indicate that the trend continues -- video game sales are up, revenue is up, and if this continues, it's going to be a banner year for game sales. With two console launches less than a week away, we're pretty sure the industry will hit that grace note that triggers the confetti, but the victory can't be hung on just the release of the next gen systems. No, shocking as it may be to some, the Nintendo DS is at the heart of this year's rocketing game sales. And for October, we're even happy to share the love with the guys who are usually our mortal enemies -- the PSP fanboys. Last month, a full quarter of the top one hundred games in the U.S. were portable games. When it came to systems, the show was all the DS, with 360,000 units sold in the U.S. for the month. The PS2 pulled out a strong second with 235,000, and oh! Look! Even the GBA moved more than the poor ol' PSP: 169,000 to 130,000. That was a short-lived sense of camaraderie, but that's okay. We're pretty sure they're going to tell us that we're only on top because of Pokemon anyway ....
Sony rep: No PSP price drop this year
If you were waiting for a PSP price drop to come in the near future, you should stop now because it doesn't look like one will come in time for Christmas this year. "We don't necessarily see the need to cut the price," John Koller, a product manager at Sony Computer Entertainment, told Reuters. "We need to offer broader value and introduce new consumers to what the PSP can do."He went on to say there will be near 110 new games by the end of the year and that since the PSP is a diverse system, with the ability to play games, download video and enjoy media, its does not compare directly to the other handheld systems.Wow, it sounds as if Mr. Koller is trying to distance the PSP from competing with the DS, which might not be a bad idea considering the current situation in Japan. Also, Sony better get cracking if they plan on shipping that many games because there are only about 85 days until the end of the year. Sony has promised us some pretty incredible things over the years that never came to fruition, and I'm afraid this may be another broken promise.[Via DCEmu]
Japanese hardware sales, 4 September - 10 September: completely wiidiculous edition
Shocking reports from Japan indicate that Nintendo's entry into the next-gen console wars (with Xbox 360 and Japan itself being the only combatants thus far) has shown absolutely no progress in the closely monitored sales ranking. - DS Lite: 113,831 115,108 (50.28%)- PSP: 29,141 1,642 (5.97%)- PS2: 19,882 2,821 (12.43%)- GBA SP: 2,104 647 (23.52%)- Game Boy Micro: 1,801 10 (0.56%)- Xbox 360: 1,094 156 (12.48%)- DS Phat: 1,058 738 (230.63%)- Gamecube: 696 159 (18.60%)- GBA: 13 9 (40.91%)- Xbox: 5 5 (infinite%)- Wii: 0 0 (0%)Esteemed analyst, Excelsior Bluffington, pointed out that "the Wii has shown little to no sales growth in the past few weeks. It's even been bested by the Xbox, and people only buy that thing to mess with the charts. Judging by my elaborate series of pie charts and lucid, LSD-induced dreams, it becomes painfully clear that the Wii will only see a marked improvement sometime in December."A local psychoanalyst was quick to refute these claims, however, calling Bluffington a "delusional psychopath." With experts in conflict, we felt it best to enquire directly with Nintendo president, Satoru Iwata. His entirely cryptic response suggested that "Nintendo hasn't launched the system yet, you freaking [sic] imbeciles." A likely story. A likely story indeed. [Source: Media Create]
