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Average U.S. Wii owner has 2.2 Wiimotes
Analyzing NPD numbers, it's come to light that those who've purchased a Wii own an average of 2.2 Wiimotes. Personally, we were content with just two Wiimotes when we got our own system. What's weird, though, is that only around 21% of the Wiimotes sold come with Wii Play, while around 34% were purchased just as the base accessory. How many Wiimotes do you own?[Via Infendo]
August NPD: The view from on high
Even in a month when hardware sales are down, Nintendo's Straight Up Success bus just keeps on rolling. Let's hope this keeps on challenging Iwata and company to avoid "doing the easy." Even the re-priced Xbox 360 couldn't compete with the Nintendo juggernaut. Nintendo Wii: 403K Nintendo DS: 383K Microsoft Xbox 360: 277K Sony PS2: 202K Sony PSP: 151K Sony PS3: 131K In software, however, the story was different. After Metroid Prime 3's moment in the spotlight, Bioshock's longer release window won out between those two. Nintendo games barely even struggled into the top five, with Wii Play and its extra controller snapping up that spot. Madden, which is its own juggernaut, dominated sales last month. To see the top ten titles, slip past the break.
NPD: Xbox 360 finally tops PlayStation 2
Here it is kiddies. Mark your calendars, write it down in your diaries: the Xbox 360 has finally managed to outsell the Playstation 2. The August NPD numbers are in, and things are really getting interesting. Spurred on no doubt by the recent price cut, the Xbox 360 sold 276,700 units during the month of August, handily beating the Playstation 2 with 202,000 units. The Xbox 360 saw just over a 100,000 unit increase over last month, which is sure to have the folks in Redmond smiling. Something else for Microsoft to smile about -- albeit more devilishly -- is that th Playstation 3 saw its sales dip to 130,000. Still, the Wii remains on top with a staggering 403,600 units sold. Meanwhile, the DS again garnered second place with 383,300 units sold. The entire breakdown looks a little something ... a-like-a this: Nintendo Wii: 403.6K (4 million total) Nintendo DS: 383.3K (12.7 million total) Microsoft Xbox 360: 276.7K (6.3 million) Sony PlayStation 2: 202K (39.1 million total) Sony PSP: 151.2K (8.3 million total) Sony PlayStation 3: 130.6K (1.75 million total) The Xbox 360 also had the number one selling game, Madden NFL 08 with 896.600 units. BioShock landed in the number three spot with 490,900 units sold.[Via Joystiq]
August NPD: Winning at losing
Okay, so the number of DS (and Wii) systems sold in August was smaller than the number sold in July. That's okay! Everything else sold fewer units this month, too, except the Xbox 360-- and 106,000 fewer of those sold than did DS Lites. As long as everyone did worse than Nintendo, we're still happy, because we're bitter, horrible people! Thanks, everyone who didn't buy one of the other systems, for making up for the people who didn't buy a DS this month! It's just not as much fun if we're not on the winning team. Nintendo Wii: 403K Nintendo DS: 383K Microsoft Xbox 360: 277K Sony PS2: 202K Sony PSP: 151K Sony PS3: 131K The DS didn't fare as well in software sales this month, with the first DS game on the list (Brain Age 2) coming in at #13. We've provided the top 20 here so you could see some DS games on the list. 1. Madden NFL 08 (Xbox 360) 2. Madden NFL 08 (PlayStation 2) 3. BioShock (Xbox 360) 4. Madden NFL 08 (PlayStation 3) 5. Wii Play (Wii) 6. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii) 7. Mario Strikers: Charged (Wii) 8. Guitar Hero 2 Bundle (PlayStation 2) 9. Mario Party 8 (Wii) 10. Guitar Hero Encore (PlayStation 2) 11. Madden NFL 08 (Xbox) 12. Madden NFL 08 (Wii) 13. Brain Age 2 (DS) 14. Two Worlds (Xbox 360) 15. Pokemon Diamond (DS) 16. High School Musical: Makin' The Cut (DS) 17. Guitar Hero 2 Bundle (Xbox 360) 18. Madden NFL 08 (PSP) 19. Pokemon Pearl (DS) 20. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 (Xbox 360)
August NPD: Madden and Wii on top, but not together
While August yields some noteworthy NPD data in terms of hardware sales, the games populating the top twenty spots in the software chart provide the most interesting commentary. Before we get to that, however, we should gaze at the gargantuan pile of cash that represents the U.S. game industry. GameDaily BIZ reports that total sales climbed to $993 million dollars, a 46% increase over the same month last year, with hardware sales alone reaching $302 million. Nintendo's Wii once again sold the most units, followed by the DS and a now cheaper Xbox 360. Microsoft had best hope the jump in sales extends to more of a protracted hover, as it seems the PS3 has already come down to Earth following its July "clearance sale." Nintendo Wii: 403.6K (4 million total) Nintendo DS: 383.3K (12.7 million total) Microsoft Xbox 360: 276.7K (6.3 million) Sony PlayStation 2: 202K (39.1 million total) Sony PSP: 151.2K (8.3 million total) Sony PlayStation 3: 130.6K (1.75 million total)
Wii is officially best-selling next-generation console
That's the word from the Financial Times, who we'll choose to trust about the finances of the times. The publication aggregated Japanese sales data from Enterbrain, U.S. sales from the NPD group, and European sales data from GfK to determine that the Wii has sold about 9 million units worldwide, versus 8.9 million units sold of its (extremely) close competitor, the Xbox 360. The PlayStation 3 has sold 3.7 million units.Of course, for maximum gloat-effectiveness, we must point out that the Xbox 360 has been out for a year longer than the Wii. A little advice for Microsoft: try selling your consoles in Japan![Thanks, Michael McGuire!]
Financial Times declares console war Wii-ner
The US NPD figures will be out tomorrow, but today the Financial Times reported that Nintendo's Wii sales have overtaken the Xbox 360 to make it the top-selling next-gen now-gen console with 9 million sold. The Xbox 360 sits at 8.9 million and the PS3 with 3.7 million. Remember, these are sold units and not those fudge-a-licious shipped numbers. Nintendo last held the top spot in the console market over ten years ago with the Super Nintendo system, before the reign of PlayStation.The data is the combination of the Japanese figures, NPD from the US and the GfK of Germany, which follows Euro sales. As a consolation prize for Sony fanboys, remember that the PS2 still owns all with over 100 million units. The piece closes by saying that the PS3's problem is price, the Xbox 360 doesn't sell in Japan and the Wii just hits the spot with a $250 price tag and strong sales in all three major markets.[Via GameDaily BIZ]
Pachter: $399 PS3 by next April, Xbox 360 rebounding in Aug. NPD
Following the Mirror's failure last month to accurately project the NPD numbers, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has given it another chance. With the NPD numbers for August expected next Thursday, Pachter went into his secret room and asked once again, "Mirror, mirror, on the wall. In August, who's the console winner of them all -- and skip ahead, don't waste my time by saying Wii and DS!""Listen Pach, can I call you Pach?" The Mirror tried to joke, knowing it had wronged Pachter, "Anyway, sorry about last month. As for August, I see around 240,000 units of the Xbox 360 sold -- up from their 170K last month. I also see the PS3 dipping below 150,000 units, but not back to the tragic pre-June levels.""Thanks Mirror!" Pachter started walking off, satisfied that it was something he could go with. But then ..."Oh, one more thing," blurted out the Mirror, "Sony will cut the price of the PS3 to $399 by next April.""You should have quit while you were ahead, but I'll go with it," said Pachter as he went upstairs to write his own report. Pachter's report says that he still believes the 80GB will get cut to $499 before Thanksgiving (minus Motorstorm) and that another $100 will be cut in early 2008. He uses the recent Sony IPO move to back up his claim. A $399 PS3 would be very sweet, especially if the games start flowing properly by next year.
MS, Nintendo, Sony all agree: July sales numbers were great!
We're always amazed by the endless optimism of public relations departments. No matter what kind of story the sales numbers tell, they can always spin it around into a much sunnier story.Nintendo was first in console sales last month and first out of the gate with their spin. In a press release they trumpeted the Wii's ability to stay on top despite "industry pricing shifts" (or, more accurately, shift -- the effect of Microsoft's price drop won't show up until the August numbers). July gave the Wii its highest weekly sales rate since December and its sixth consecutive month of topping the hardware sales charts, Nintendo was quick to point out. Nintendo also trumpeted its library of an estimated 800 Wii and DS games by the end of the year. Of course, that will include about 150 Virtual Console rehashes, but hey, who's counting? Besides Nintendo. And us.Microsoft was next, playing up the fact that the Xbox 360 has now outsold the PS3 for nine straight months despite analyst predictions to the contrary (Wii? Wii who?). Despite being second in home console sales for a while now, Microsoft stressed that the Xbox 360 still leads by a good margin in lifetime consumer spending on software, hardware and accessories. Speaking of software sales, Microsoft is mighty proud of their software attach rate of 6.2 and their habit of placing plenty of third party games in the top ten for monthly sales (20 titles so far this year, compared to one each for the Wii and PS3).Sony's reaction was posted directly to the company's official blog and talked primarily about the overall sales growth in the industry. When it comes to Sony systems, Analyst Relations Manager Mariam Sughayer says she's happy to see a 61 percent increase in PS3 sales over June, even if that still places the system in third place. It's not just the price drop, either ... Sughayer thinks consumers are buying hardware in anticipation of upcoming software like Warhawk, Heavenly Sword and Lair. Hopefully those buyers won't be put off by some of the middling early reviews for those games.
NPD: PS3 makes headway, still topped by 360
The NPD numbers for July are out, and despite many analyst's predictions, the PS3 didn't manage to outsell our beloved Xbox 360 (though the 360 did see a decrease of roughly 28K). The PS3 did manage to make some considerable headway, finally breaking 100K units in a single month, no doubt helped along by the "price reduction" Sony started last month. The Wii, surprisingly, managed to outsell the DS, which has reigned supreme for quite some time, and took the top spot in console sales. As usual though, Sony still has something to crow about, as the PSP and PS2 managed to outsell the 360 again. Nintendo Wii: 425K Nintendo DS: 405K Sony PlayStation 2: 222K Sony PSP: 214K Microsoft Xbox 360: 170K Sony PlayStation 3: 159K Nintendo GBA: 87K The Xbox 360 had the top selling game of July, NCAA Football 08, which managed to sell 397K copies. Aside from that, the 360 barely manages to scratch the charts, as the only other 360 title on the list is the Guitar Hero II bundle at number 10 with 108K copies. The big question now is what effect the 360 price cut will have on August sales, especially in the wake of the reinvigorated PS3.[Via Joystiq]
Sony pleased by recent PS3 sales climb
Sony has responded to this month's NPD reports on sales. "We were obviously very pleased to see that PS3 sales increased with 159K units sold at retail for the month of July, which puts us up 61% over June numbers." Impressive! Although the PS3 didn't outsell the Xbox 360, it got close (the Xbox 360 sold 180k).The sales increase is most likely spurred by the recent price drop, but also the upcoming library of games that will be arriving on the PS3. However, it seems unlikely that Europe will receive a price drop. In a statement to Next-Gen, the always outspoken David Reeves admitted that a price drop so early in the game would be like admitting defeat. "Had we gone down in price in July, that's three months after we launched PS3. It'd be kind of like saying, 'hey, we failed.' But we didn't. We've been selling through much more than we ever thought we would be, even in Germany. If [a price cut is] what they want to do in the US, fine... But we don't need to do it in Europe."With games like Warhawk and Heavenly Sword available in the coming weeks, it'll be interesting to see how Sony's next-gen platform fares. Until then, Sony can enjoy the still-incredible sales of PS2 hardware and software.
July NPD: Sharing the spotlight
The DS can't always be on top when it comes to sales numbers. Sometimes, we must step gracefully aside and allow someone else to share the spotlight. As long as that "someone else" is also manufactured by Nintendo, however ... then things are alllllright. Considering our trusty handheld had only one title in the top ten games sold in July -- Pokémon Diamond, which rang in at #7 -- moving another 400,000 units is pretty great. At least, it's better than those other guys, which is what really matters. Nintendo Wii: 425K Nintendo DS: 405K Sony PS2: 222K Sony PSP: 214K Microsoft Xbox 360: 170K Sony PS3: 159K Nintendo GBA: 87K We can't wait to see what happens this holiday season. We have a feeling things are going to get crazy.
July NPD numbers show Nintendo Wii at the top
It just doesn't stop! Nintendo rocks the house yet again, almost doubling its nearest competitors' consoles sold. Seriously, Nintendo did really well last month, so without further delay, let's hit up the numbers.Hardware sales for July: Nintendo Wii: 425K Nintendo DS: 405K Sony PlayStation 2: 222K Sony PSP: 214K Microsoft Xbox 360: 170K Sony PlayStation 3: 159K Nintendo GBA: 87K Software sales for July: NCAA Football 08 (Xbox 360) -- 397K Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80's (PS2) -- 339K Wii Play w/remote (Wii) -- 278K NCAA Football 08 (PS2) -- 236K Mario Party 8 (Wii) -- 177K NCAA Football 08 (PS3) -- 156K Pokémon Diamond (DS) -- 144K Transformers: The Game (PS2) -- 143K Guiitar Hero II w/guitar (PS2) -- 138K Guitar Hero II w/guitar (Xbox 360) -- 108K
July NPD: Wii climbs to the top, PS3 overcomes 100K hump
Upon first viewing the latest US video game sales data from GameDaily BIZ, we instinctively exclaimed "July NPD!" and shook our heads in dismay. "No, I never lie," replied the NPD, its anthropomorphized form struggling to escape the confines of a bad pun. "The Wii did in fact beat the DS in a month that saw overall industry sales climb to a staggering $925.5 million dollars. The PlayStation 3's clearance sale also gave it the push it needed to defeat the GBA and break through the 100,000 unit barrier, though it still trailed slightly behind the Xbox 360. So much for those analysts, eh?"And so we all laughed, cracked open a few beers and watched some American football. According the top ten in software sales (presented after the break), a good deal of gamers appreciate the sport. Despite having access to a considerably smaller user base than the PS2, the Xbox 360 version of NCAA Football 08 reigned supreme, no doubt thanks to the system's magical attach rate. Nintendo Wii: 425K Nintendo DS: 405K Sony PlayStation 2: 222K Sony PSP: 214K Microsoft Xbox 360: 170K Sony PlayStation 3: 159K Nintendo GBA: 87K
Pachter says PS3 outsold Xbox 360 in July
As a master of the occult, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has access to an astonishing amount of prescient items. He typically rotates them, most recently speaking to the mirror which he got at an estate sale from a Queen who apparently took a nasty fall. Pachter went up to the mirror and asked, "Mirror, mirror, on the wall. In July, who's the console winner of them all?"The Mirror replied, "Why the Nintendo Wii and DS, of course."Miffed at the information given by his impulse purchase, Pachter replies, "You better tell me something I don't already know or I'm shipping you by freight to Pidgeon!"In a moment of sheer panic the Mirror blurts out, "NPD will report the PS3 beat the Xbox 360 in sales for July."Pachter believes that for the month of July, which will be official from NPD on Aug. 23, that the DS (450,000 units) and Wii (330,000) dominated sales in North America. Although, for the first time ever, the PS3 will show sales of 160,000 units, while the Xbox 360 will have 115,000. This would also mean that the PS3 will have doubled sales since announcing their 60GB clearance sale last month. He goes on to say that the Xbox warranty issue was a speed bump for Microsoft as "as consumers struggled with the meaning of the 'three red rings of death' issue." He believes that the price cut and apparent fix of the design flaw will rebound Xbox 360 sales.
NPD survey says gamers unaware of their console's capabilities
To most Joystiq readers, Blu-ray is synonymous with the PlayStation 3. According to a recent survey from the NPD Group (via ars technica), however, that connection isn't as widely known. In fact, the results show that just 40% of those who owned a PS3 knew it had a Blu-ray drive. Really?Even more bizarre, the report states that just 50% of the gamers surveyed knew the PS3 had high definition graphics. That's, of course, a relative victory over Xbox 360, whose high definition prowess was only known by 30% of the survey takers. The survey was reportedly a culmination of 6,260 responses from console owners aged six to 44. Who are these people, though? We're still confused by the PS3 / Blu-ray (dis)connection, given that the Blu-ray logo is placed prominently on the front of the box, in every commercial and advertisement, on the console itself. How did those other 60% miss that? Curious about Nintendo's ability to inform the public, we conducted our survey today. It turns out only 35% of the Joystiq staff (and 70% of the NWF staff) knew the Wii had motion controls.[Via PS3 Fanboy]
60% of PlayStation 3 owners are oblivious of Blu-ray
According to a new study by the NPD Group, only 40% of PlayStation 3 owners are aware that their console plays Blu-ray discs. This is after almost 18 months of PS3/Blu-ray advertisements and announcements, not to mention significant branding of Blu-ray on PlayStation 3 products.It's rather unsettling to think of so many people not realizing a significant portion of their console's potential due to lack of awareness. It's tough to see what Sony could do different though. It may just be one of those things where it takes some time before awareness of Blu-ray hits critical mass.So, you guys are aware that the PS3 plays Blu-ray movies ... right?
Is Wii fever wearing off?
Here in the armchair analyst era, every slight change in sales trends seems to have become reason for panic, or at least in-depth discussion. Thus, when Gamasutra released the above chart as part of their NPD analysis, the rumblings began. Are Wii sales dropping off? Is there some truth in Dave Perry's recent doom-saying about the future of the Wii? Here's our question: can we really discern anything other than current sales numbers from this chart? For a variety of reasons, we'll say no. This sales chart takes only that very thing into account: sales. While it's a great analytical tool for tracking said sales, we would caution anyone from drawing too many conclusions about market trends from hardware sales only. From this, of course, certain things can be extrapolated; US sales of anything and everything tend to drop in the pre-tax day period, but consoles are still riding a holiday wave of demand in January and February. In months when a particular console surges, there was probably a hotly-desired game driving those sales. But all of that is guesswork if we're only working with pure sales numbers -- in order to truly analyze what's going on, we have to look at a variety of factors.
Parsing the Xbox 360 NPD and post-E3 data [update]
Microsoft has posted its commentary on the latest NPD numbers and some post-E3 facts. For those that missed the latest NPD numbers on Joystiq, the Xbox 360 managed to sell 198,400 units in June, handily beating the PS3's 98,500. Of course, the 360 itself was trumped by the Wii (381.8K), DS (561.9)K, PS2 (270.7K), and the PSP (290.1K). Still, in the world of only two consoles -- the world in which both Sony and Microsoft purportedly live -- the 360 is tops. Much more legitimately impressive is the Xbox 360's incredible attach rate. Currently the average number of games sold per console is 6.1, with the number of accessories sitting at 3.2. Microsoft also notes that the Xbox 360 has sold 20.1 million games since the Wii and PS3 launch. Games are where the money is, so in this respect the 360 is doing well.
June NPD: Nintendo continues to power the industry
Another month means another win for Nintendo. Really, we're not sure what else to say. At this point, we think the only way we could turn this around from a more-of-the-same announcement is if we could convince Reggie to tap dance on a platform made from the fragments of defeated consoles. So, without further ado, let us reveal the specifics of Nintendo's victory. Hint: they sold more than the other guys. Again. Nintendo DS: 561.9k Nintendo Wii: 381.8k Sony PSP: 290.1k Sony PS2: 270.7k Microsoft Xbox 360: 198.4k Sony PS3: 98.5k The other guys do seem to be holding their own in sales, however. Everyone may still be scrabbling for Wii remotes with Wii Play, and we continue to be a Pokémon nation, but a few other titles continue to dominate the middle spots. We're okay with that. We like variety, even if the sales charts don't reflect that. They do seem an awful lot like last month's, eh? Mario Party 8 (Wii) Wii Play w/remote (Wii) Pokémon Diamond (DS) Pokémon Pearl (DS) Forza Motorsport 2 (Xbox 360) Guitar Hero II w/guitar (PS2) Guitar Hero II w/guitar (Xbox 360) Pokémon Battle Revolution (Wii) Resident Evil 4 (Wii) The Darkness (Xbox 360) [Thanks, TrojanDan!]
