Yeah, those two franchises make up 5 of the top 8 games sold in the US of all time. But that doesn't mean consoles sales can't be impacted by other games during the holiday season especially since pgr4 is in the racing genre and SC5 is a stealth 3rd person action game.
Million unit sellers on xb360 so far:
- Thread starter TheChefO
- Start date
Yeah, those two franchises make up 5 of the top 8 games sold in the US of all time. But that doesn't mean consoles sales can't be impacted by other games during the holiday season especially since pgr4 is in the racing genre and SC5 is a stealth 3rd person action game.
That's right. But he doesn't know the instantaneous sales data, does he?
scooby_dooby
Legend
Why don't you email vgcharts.org and ask...
Again, let me reiterate that MS's objective should not be to move software units, but to move hardware units. And you can't move hardware in January like you can in November and December. For proof, go look at the NPD numbers for 2006/2007 or any year going back as far as they keep track.
I'm open to proof (not sure how you'd get it, though), but otherwise, we're just countering opinion with opinion.
MS has complete control over Halo 3 and PGR 4, two of the 4 games in question. And having control over when Halo 3 launches means you have significant influence over the surrounding 2 months of X360 releases.
This is not a new theory. Look at how they decide when movies hit screens. They know that a good but not excellent effort can get drowned by a really popular movie.
I understand and partially agree with your point that holding some software for dry spells can combat dry seasons but the main point I want to emphasize is that Mfst has little control over most of the games that are popular enough to combat a dry season and sell systems. The publishers that do have control want to sell where demand is maximum. I don't know how popular PGR is but since it is the flagship racing game for the 360 it must make some impact but Halo is the only true killer app/seller there is for them (though Gears may follow). Everything else is up to the other parties who lick their chops during the last two months o' the year.
Your bringing up of the movie theater market does not apply to games. The mt industry is a service industry with a window of an average of 3 months to view products. Video games are commodities without any time window. Of course there are the weeks when the game is hot but after that window they don't disappear.
scooby_dooby
Legend
Yep, I'm countering your opinion with mine. And I must say...mine makes much more sense
But seriously, I think the point stands that regardless of competition, those games will sell more in the holiday season than they will in the following spring, with the added benefit of moving systems. These aren't low-profile titles, they're very popular franchises that have huge followings, it would be different if we were discussing a new IP or 3rd party titles that would fly under the radar, but both SC5 and PGR4 are going to sell huge numbers, regardless of Halo or GTA being out.
Nov/Dec is the equivalent of 6months of HW sales during the rest of the year, so I think MS would be smart not to delay these games, and sell as many systems as possible. With some pricedrops they could be looking at the biggest holiday season in years.
I agree. MS is totally loaded this year.
But it isn't just 4 titles. They have a slew of titles coming in late Spring/Summer with Mass Effect, Bioshock, and FM2 from the 1st party published titles. Mass Effect may be one of the biggest games of the year and the other two are not slouches. You can toss Blue Dragon in there this summer as well in the West.
And just looking at a genre like FPS it sounds like it is going to be crazy. Halo 3, Shadowrun, Bioshock are all exclusive. Then you toss in Quake Wars, Battlefield Bad Company, Brother in Arms 3, Medal of Honor Airborn, The Darkness, Half-Life Orange, Kane and Lynch, Army of Two, Star Wars Battlefronts, Fuel Wars and who knows what else and it is an absolute mess!
While it is true that the racing genre is less competitive and Splinter Cell is a strong brand with a faithful following and not a lot of competition it is relevant to consider MS's job is also to ensure great pacing for titles throughout the year. They have done a poor job at this and is something Sony always seems to do well on their platforms. MS is improving, but getting a couple great titles out in every month of the year would be great. It also prevents some titles from getting lost in the fury of HUGE titles.
I could see PGR4 eating into FM2 though (and vice versa). e.g. If I buy a 360 I don't see myself getting Halo 3 + PGR4 + FM2.
True to a degree, but Spring does offer a LOT less competition while leaving people hungry for new titles. Less competition means more media spotlight.
This helped Oblivion, GRAW, and Lost Planet all break 1M copies during this slow time of year.
While each game is variable I think there is a good arguement for some games to let slide to the beginning of the year.
SC5, if up to its own lofty standards, probably could weather the Halo/GTA storm and stand out from all the similar other titles. PGR4 would be competing against FM2 and I don't think that is good. The titles that could use a slide are a lot of the FPS like Shadowrun. Others like Quake Wars and HL2 Orange really missed their window in H1 to really build up huge really nice sales. Basically the only FPS I see not being harmed by Halo 3 is BFBC and that is because it is a very established franchise (4M copies of BF1942 were sold) that is standing out technically at the front of the class. Everything else is either not as well known in the console market, a little too niche, or not stepping out enough to overcome the shadows of other games. This is my opinion of course, but I have a hard time seeing a game like BiA3 -- which I expect to be great -- to get the attention it deserves in the Fall. It is a proven franchise with ok sales in a niche gameplay with competition in the genre theme. Being the BEST FPS in Winter 2008 -- as people tire of Halo 3 some -- could do wonders for sales compared to being one of the best also rans against the two headed GTA-Halo monster.
We will see though. I feel bad for all the devs with 2007 titles! Good time for gamers though.