Japan Sales Thread *renamed

[22psi]

http://eg.nttpub.co.jp/ranking.html

01 PS2 Bandai-Namco .hack//G.U. Vol. 3 - 136790 / 136790
02 NDS Nintendo Wario: The Seven - 91249 / 91249
03 PS2 Sega Shining Force EXA - 72306 / 72306
04 WII Nintendo Wii Sports - 57418 / 851535
05 WII Nintendo Wii Play - 45724 / 764813
06 PS2 Flight-Plan Dragon Shadow Spell - 40541 / 40541
07 360 Microsoft Gears of War - 33212 / 33212
08 NDS Atlus Etrian Odyssey - 32511 / 32511
09 NDS Nintendo Common Knowledge Training - 31735 / 1130647
10 NDS Nintendo More Brain Age - 29626 / 3868279
11 NDS Nintendo New Super Mario Brothers
12 NDS Nintendo Animal Crossing Wild World
13 WII Nintendo Excite Truck
14 PSP Konami Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops
15 NDS MTO Tea Dog's Room DS 2
16 NDS Nintendo Mario Kart DS
17 NDS Pokemon Pokemon Diamond
18 NDS Nintendo English Training
19 NDS IE Institute Kanji Brain Test 2M
20 NDS Nintendo 1000 Recipes
21 NDS Pokemon Pokemon Pearl
22 NDS Spike IQ Supply
23 NDS Nintendo Brain Training
24 WII Nintendo Wario Ware Smooth Moves
25 PS2 Sega Yakuza
26 WII Nintendo The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
27 NDS Rocket Co. Kanji Test
28 NDS Nintendo Kirby Squeek Squad
29 PSP Capcom Monster Hunter Portable
30 NDS Sega Love+Berry

NDS - 18
Wii - 5
PS2 - 4
PSP - 2
360 - 1

 

[Skrying]

ps3 - 0

 

[Hardknock]

http://eg.nttpub.co.jp/ranking.html

01 PS2 Bandai-Namco .hack//G.U. Vol. 3 - 136790 / 136790
02 NDS Nintendo Wario: The Seven - 91249 / 91249
03 PS2 Sega Shining Force EXA - 72306 / 72306
04 WII Nintendo Wii Sports - 57418 / 851535
05 WII Nintendo Wii Play - 45724 / 764813
06 PS2 Flight-Plan Dragon Shadow Spell - 40541 / 40541
07 360 Microsoft Gears of War - 33212 / 33212
08 NDS Atlus Etrian Odyssey - 32511 / 32511
09 NDS Nintendo Common Knowledge Training - 31735 / 1130647
10 NDS Nintendo More Brain Age - 29626 / 3868279
11 NDS Nintendo New Super Mario Brothers
12 NDS Nintendo Animal Crossing Wild World
13 WII Nintendo Excite Truck
14 PSP Konami Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops
15 NDS MTO Tea Dog's Room DS 2
16 NDS Nintendo Mario Kart DS
17 NDS Pokemon Pokemon Diamond
18 NDS Nintendo English Training
19 NDS IE Institute Kanji Brain Test 2M
20 NDS Nintendo 1000 Recipes
21 NDS Pokemon Pokemon Pearl
22 NDS Spike IQ Supply
23 NDS Nintendo Brain Training
24 WII Nintendo Wario Ware Smooth Moves
25 PS2 Sega Yakuza
26 WII Nintendo The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
27 NDS Rocket Co. Kanji Test
28 NDS Nintendo Kirby Squeek Squad
29 PSP Capcom Monster Hunter Portable
30 NDS Sega Love+Berry

NDS - 18
Wii - 5
PS2 - 4
PSP - 2
360 - 1

this is crazy because ps3 has twice the install base of 360 and GOW is a Z rated game with limited supply. could things be looking up for 360? why is the ps3's software sales so low?

 

[Skrying]

My thought as well. I just find is extremely ironic that you pointed out the Xbox 360s 1 game only yet the real news story there (the NDS is not a surprise, its been that way for months now) is that the PS3 has 0, thats none, z-e-r-o on the top 30 list in Japan. Where as pointed above its already doubled that of the 360 and as a whole is much better received. So what gives with such lackluster software sales?

 

[Carl B]

I don't think there's too much to read into here; it's natural that Gears of War should enjoy some good sales on its first week in retail - afterall I'm sure among the limited number of XBox owners in Japan, Halo had to be among one of the more established titles.

Why no PS3 titles are among the bestselling for the week I think is obvious enough; the question then becomes will Gears of War stay on the list for a second week. To do a Gears vs PS3 comparison it would be more appropriate to dig up the game sales from the PS3 launch and see where those ranked. I myself honestly have no idea. I don't think it outlandish however to believe that a number of PS3 games even from the launch likely have (and will) exceed whatever Gears of War manages to do in Japan during its life there.

 

[Hardknock]

The PS3 sold how many systems at launch? That wouldn't be a fair comparision at all.

 

[Carl B]

Well, nor is it fair I think to compare the sales of an excellent title on its debut (however niche the system) vs sales of the morass that makes up the present PS3 offerings on a week to week basis. I'm just saying, I think that Gears ranking on the list is good news for 360, but at the same time I think that people saying "where's PS3???" is a little disengenuous. We know why PS3's not up there, but if people demand that these numbers be used as a comparison, well all I'm saying is I can use the weekly numbers myself in such a way that makes PS3 come out on top.

Fair, not fair... none of it's fair. If I wasn't reading PS3 - 0 in a semi-triumphant tone, I wouldn't be posting any of this at all.

I guess part of it stems from the interpretation of the OP. If Skyring interpreted 22psi's post as ridiculing the 360, then I think his response is justified. I myself read it as: '360 breaks onto the Top 30,' and thus took it as a positive for 360. Only 22psi knows the truth as to how it was intended I guess.

 

[Skrying]

Fair, not fair... none of it's fair. If I wasn't reading PS3 - 0 in a semi-triumphant tone, I wouldn't be posting any of this at all.

I guess part of it stems from the interpretation of the OP. If Skyring interpreted 22psi's post as ridiculing the 360, then I think his response is justified. I myself read it as: '360 breaks onto the Top 30,' and thus took it as a positive for 360. Only 22psi knows the truth as to how it was intended I guess.

Triumphant of what? I come into this section of Beyond3D mainly for the humor of it. The fact is that at this point in time considering the PS3 sales that you WOULD expect at least one game in the top 30 of Japan. Apparently the reason though is so blatant that its far and above my head. I guess the fact that the 360 has sold next to nothing in its time since release in Japan that seeing a title in their is good, but what's so important about it? I firmly believe that MS should really just call Japan awash and forget it. They're not going to gain any ground unless they manage to pick up every popular Japanese game and then make it an exclusive to their system, it just won't happen in this generation, and quite possible never (as I also believe home consoles have just about run their course in Japan).

I find the lack of even one game on the list that appears on the PS3 to be rather shocking. I would expect the system to have sold enough by now that it would have at least one regular game each week in the top 30. So, if you could be so kind I would like to be informed on the obvious reason as to why there is no PS3 game in the top 30.

 

[rounin]

For what its worth, the PS3 owners could be exploring older generation games and such. After all, its backwards compatibility works fine.

 

[Carl B]

I find the lack of even one game on the list that appears on the PS3 to be rather shocking. I would expect the system to have sold enough by now that it would have at least one regular game each week in the top 30. So, if you could be so kind I would like to be informed on the obvious reason as to why there is no PS3 game in the top 30.

Because everyone that bought a PS3 near launch has already purchased all of the PS3 games they are presently interested in? It's not like there's a lot of movement in the game offerings at the moment; we're talking about the same titles available now as were available two months ago. When Virtua Fighter 5 comes to the console (in two weeks), I think you'll see the PS3 ranking you're looking for.

 

[thatdude90210]

For what its worth, the PS3 owners could be exploring older generation games and such. After all, its backwards compatibility works fine.

It could also be a double edge sword. Since people with PS3 are buying PS2 games, what's to stop developers from just making PS2 games. You get PS2 owners & PS3 owners at the same time, can't do that making just PS3 games.

 

[Skrying]

Because everyone that bought a PS3 near launch has already purchased all of the PS3 games they are presently interested in? It's not like there's a lot of movement in the game offerings at the moment; we're talking about the same titles available now as were available two months ago. When Virtua Fighter 5 comes to the console (in two weeks), I think you'll see the PS3 ranking you're looking for.

So no one has bought anymore PS3s since launch? I would assume that by the time you get down to the 30th stop you're talking about maybe 10,000 (possibly less) units sold. Which I would expect to be about right for the PS3 in Japan, or maybe I'm completely wrong.

For what its worth, the PS3 owners could be exploring older generation games and such. After all, its backwards compatibility works fine.

I'd say that's rather ridiculous considering: 1.) Penetration rate of the PS2. 2.) The PS3 is expensive and cater to the "hardcore" gamer and therefore I would be almost willing to bet around 99% of those in Japan owning one also own a PS2.

 

[Carl B]

So no one has bought anymore PS3s since launch? I would assume that by the time you get down to the 30th stop you're talking about maybe 10,000 (possibly less) units sold. Which I would expect to be about right for the PS3 in Japan, or maybe I'm completely wrong.

Legend of Zelda is almost off the list at 26; if it were off completely, what would you be saying about that titles potential in Japan? Sometimes, it's just best to judge the titles that *are* on the list, rather than those that aren't. If ~30,000 PS3's are selling a week (do we have the hardware numbers for the week yet?), any single title with a 33% attach rate at sale (to meet your 10,000 criteria) would be a shocking achievement. I don't understand how you can disparage that logic.

Give it two weeks Skyring. As the A-list releases come, you'll see the associated A-list rankings show up here. I don't think anyone in Japan is running back to the store to pick up that copy of Genji they forgot, know what I mean? The reasons for why the 360 installed base would pick up Gears though is obvious; as 'must have' titles release on PS3, they to will reflect a sales boost.

 

[Skrying]

Legend of Zelda is almost off the list at 26; if it were off completely, what would you be saying about that titles potential in Japan? Sometimes, it's just best to judge the titles that *are* on the list, rather than those that aren't. If ~30,000 PS3's are selling a week (do we have the hardware numbers for the week yet?), any single title with a 33% attach rate at sale (to meet your 10,000 criteria) would be a shocking achievement. I don't understand how you can disparage that logic.

Give it two weeks Skyring. As the A-list releases come, you'll see the associated A-list rankings show up here. I don't think anyone in Japan is running back to the store to pick up that copy of Genji they forgot, know what I mean? The reasons for why the 360 installed base would pick up Gears though is obvious; as 'must have' titles release on PS3, they to will reflect a sales boost.

I'll wait, we'll see.

 

[Hardknock]

I'm still not totally comfortable with that logic. The Wii launched at the same time as the PS3 and has had virtually no new software releases aswell and you still see several titles in the top 30. The PS3 not having a single one is shocking for a recently released platform. And I'm sure it's not only us that are alarmed, 3rd party publishers have to be aswell. What is the attach rate of software for the PS3 in japan? At launch it was at 0.8 I believe, has that increased at all?

 

[Carl B]

The difference is though that the Wii launched with titles that are exemplars of what the system itself is about. *If* one were to own a Wii, would Wii sports and/or Wii Play not be seen as pretty quintesential titles with regard to the experience? Certainly whenever I play it, it's Wii Sports that gets played. Personally that's why I think they rank above Zelda this week; because if you own a Wii, you basically have to have at least one of these to get that frenetic Wii experience.

PS3 for its part has no such definitive titles for itself at the moment. Virtua Fighter 5 will be the first such title for Japan.

 

[bRoNx]

Well, what games are available for PS3 owners to choose from? (No, not a rhetorical question - I honestly don't know!)

 

[Carl B]

Looking at the previous weeks doesn't seem to put the software sales in any better light. I don't disagree with what VF5 might do, but I would be lying if I didn't say I was somewhat surprised at the previous lists with the PS3 not actually having a title in the top 30 week in and week out, sometimes going weeks before another title would appear.

That's just it though, 'other titles appearing.' The library is just extremely anemic at the moment. But VF5 is one of the games some people will have bought this console for, and I expect it to be reflected in sales.

 

[Capeta]

Triumphant of what? I come into this section of Beyond3D mainly for the humor of it. The fact is that at this point in time considering the PS3 sales that you WOULD expect at least one game in the top 30 of Japan. Apparently the reason though is so blatant that its far and above my head. I guess the fact that the 360 has sold next to nothing in its time since release in Japan that seeing a title in their is good, but what's so important about it? I firmly believe that MS should really just call Japan awash and forget it. They're not going to gain any ground unless they manage to pick up every popular Japanese game and then make it an exclusive to their system, it just won't happen in this generation, and quite possible never (as I also believe home consoles have just about run their course in Japan).

I find the lack of even one game on the list that appears on the PS3 to be rather shocking. I would expect the system to have sold enough by now that it would have at least one regular game each week in the top 30. So, if you could be so kind I would like to be informed on the obvious reason as to why there is no PS3 game in the top 30.

I agree with everything said above. We are talking about top30 here not top10 or even top20. With PS3 larger install base over X360 I would think there would be at least one game in the top30.

Because everyone that bought a PS3 near launch has already purchased all of the PS3 games they are presently interested in? It's not like there's a lot of movement in the game offerings at the moment; we're talking about the same titles available now as were available two months ago.

Or it could be that they spent all of their money on PS3 and have nothing left for games.

 

[Carl B]

I agree with everything said above. We are talking about top30 here not top10 or even top20. With PS3 larger install base over X360 I would think there would be at least one game in the top30.

That logic is based on what though exactly?

Before the PS3 launched, 360 had an infinitely large lead over the PS3 in install base, can we agree? I'd be interested to know how many 360 games appeared on the Top 30 list in that year it had to itself, and how long they lingered. There's a fallacy being commited here in comparing the first week sales of an exceptional title such as Gears of War to the ongoing sales of the mediocre titles presently available on the PS3. The install base is doubled, but at the same time it's only ~300k more in absolute terms.

This is a forum of educated people; let's try to reflect that in our analysis of these numbers.