wow... ps2 outsells ps3

[J T]

You know, what really trips me out is that those of us that really love videogames and have played them throughout our lives, that post on message boards and blogs and read newsletters and RSS feeds, that buy the latest systems and develop insanely large collections, etc.... we are often the ones that just don't understand what makes videogames sell.

Look at this list of the top 20 console games of all time (not bundled with a system):
1. Wii Play (Wii – 22.98 million)[66]
2. Nintendogs (DS – 22.27 million, all 5 versions combined)[66]
3. Pokémon Red, Blue, and Green (Game Boy – 20.08 million approximately: 10.23 million in Japan,[44] 9.85 million in US)[19]
4. New Super Mario Bros. (DS – 18.45 million)[66]
5. Wii Fit (Wii – 18.22 million)[66]
6. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES – 18 million)[41]
7. Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day! (DS – 17.41 million)[66]
8. Pokémon Diamond and Pearl (DS – 16.81 million)[67]
9. Mario Kart Wii (Wii – 15.4 million)[66]
10. Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (PS2 – 14.89 million shipped)[95]
11. Mario Kart DS (DS – 14.61 million)[66]
12. Pokémon Gold and Silver (Game Boy Color – 14.51 million approximately: 7.6 million in US,[19] 6.91 million in Japan)[44]
13. Super Mario Land (Game Boy – 14 million)[41]
14. Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day! (DS – 13.71 million)[66]
15. Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire (GBA – 13 million)[73]
16. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2 – 12 million)[103]
17. Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen (GBA – 11.82 million)[67]
18. Super Mario 64 (N64 – 11 million)[41]
19. Gran Turismo (PS1 – 10.85 million shipped)[95][96]
20. Animal Crossing: Wild World (DS – 10.79 million),[67]

You know, I think of myself as very knowledgeable about games. I've been playing since the days of Colecovision. I was a semifinalist in the NES world champs. Yet, I've only played 5 of the top 20 selling games of all time. FIVE! I have beaten hundreds of games, but I haven't even played most of these top 20. Several of them I had never even heard of before reading the list! As you can probably guess, I've played some of the Mario games, The Gran Turismo games, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

If you look for a PC game at a place that is NOT a specialty shop. Say, you go to Target or Fred Meyer; the games you see most of will not be the games that make critic top 10 lists. No. You will see mounds of Mahjong Games, stacks of Jewel Matching Puzzle games, 50 million forms of Solitaire, and eleventy-billion cutesy cheesy packages with such syrupy sweet and cluttery cover art that you probably won't be able to look at the rack for more than 5 seconds before your eyes burn.

For some reason, this shit sells. I don't understand it. I don't understand it at all. So many of the games that sell are atrocious in my mind. We call it shovelware, but Nintendo calls it the gold mine of the casual gamer. It's the bubblegum pop of the videogame world. Anyone with a trained ear cringes, but the casual listener chews it up in big sloppy gleeful gobs. As video games continue to grow older, the financial trends just get weirder. It's so strange to know so much about videogames, and though I can probably predict which new games will become the next critical darlings, I have no idea which will sell like hotcakes.

[J T]

"The PS3 costs a ton because it's not just a video game console but a multimedia center and also you can cook bacon on it".

[the7k]

For some reason, this shit sells. I don't understand it. I don't understand it at all. So many of the games that sell are atrocious in my mind. We call it shovelware, but Nintendo calls it the gold mine of the casual gamer. It's the bubblegum pop of the videogame world. Anyone with a trained ear cringes, but the casual listener chews it up in big sloppy gleeful gobs. As video games continue to grow older, the financial trends just get weirder. It's so strange to know so much about videogames, and though I can probably predict which new games will become the next critical darlings, I have no idea which will sell like hotcakes.

The Bubblegum Pop/Casual Video Game bond is stronger than you might think.
http://www.videogamepricecharts.com/gam ... ore-bundle
The Karaoke Revolution: American Idol Encore Bundle has a list price of $60 - now, if you want to get it brand new on resale, it's $80. Hell, if you sell it used, you'll get all of your money back - and this game is over a year old. How in the hell.

[Niode]

You can get a Premium Xbox 360 console in the UK for around £160 now (and that includes a couple of chart games to boot usually, i've seen bundles that even include an extra wireless controller for free). That's including a wireless controller and 60GB HDD.

Now, let's look at blu-ray disc players. You can get a BD Player for £100-170 depending on where you look and what brand you get. I've seen Phillips BD players for about £120 in high street stores. Now, why would you buy a PS3 that costs £299 that comes with a 40GB hard drive, has very few exclusive titles that are worth playing. Let alone the £350 for the 160GB version that STILL doesn't include backwards compatibility. When a premium 360 plus a stand alone BD player costs less than a PS3 does, why would you even bother buying one?

I very rarely play my PS3 since I've completed all the decent exclusive games for the system and I don't like LBP or Killzone (or any other console FPS for that matter). Everything else I can and will play on my 360, because the games are cheaper.


Most people aren't buying the 60GB BC PS3 purely because it costs £350+ in most places. They can't justify paying more than it would cost to buy a brand new console for a used one. That just doesn't make sense.

Unless Sony drop the price it simply isn't going to sell, inherent value or not, people aren't going to stump £300 for a console, especially when said console doesn't come with any games or anything.

[Scooter]

I've been telling people for awhile that the PS3 is the Saturn of this generation.

I've been saying that for years. There are two big differences, though. Number one, the heads of SCEA aren't blocking certain genres from being localized. Number two, Sony was the undisputed winner of last generation, while Sega left a sour taste in a lot of people's mouths with the Sega CD/32x thing.

And Sony hasn't left a bad taste in anyone's mouth with the dropping of backwards compatibility?

I'm not saying the Sega's slide and Sony's slide are exactly the same for the same reasons, but it is clear that unbelievably stupid decisions on where the market it going and how invulnerable you think you are in the current market based on recent past performance is certainly familiar territory.

[the7k]

And Sony hasn't left a bad taste in anyone's mouth with the dropping of backwards compatibility?

I'm not saying the Sega's slide and Sony's slide are exactly the same for the same reasons, but it is clear that unbelievably stupid decisions on where the market it going and how invulnerable you think you are in the current market based on recent past performance is certainly familiar territory.

People wanted Sony to drop the price. So, Sony dropped the price by eliminating BC. Now people want BC. I'd say this is simply a case of "Be careful what you wish for." Lower price = lower functionality.

I still don't understand what the big deal is about PS2 BC on the PS3, especially at a place like this. I mean, we're hardcore gamers. We don't just have one system hooked into the TV like all the casual-gaming guttersnipes out there.

And if it's really that important to you, here.
Get it now if it is important to you. Everyone who has complained about BC has had plenty, and I mean PLENTY, of opportunity.

[alienjesus]

Also, in our wonderful PAL world games are also price translated that way. Americans pay 45 dollars per game, we pay 45 euro which is a lot more. It is harsh but we paid it. Now, while Wii games and PC games cost 45 Euro, all PS3 and Xbox360 games cost 65 Euro! (85 dollars!!). And you do not want to pay that much.

.

Quoted for truth, but i'd also like to bring up that here in England, we pay 40-60 POUNDS, which is even more. with the recession atm, the difference isnt quite so bad, but this time last year, 50 pounds was roughly equal to 100 dollars. Still, we dont have it as bad as the Australians. They pay like $99.99 AUS for a new release

[Briomoto]

You know, what really trips me out is that those of us that really love videogames and have played them throughout our lives, that post on message boards and blogs and read newsletters and RSS feeds, that buy the latest systems and develop insanely large collections, etc.... we are often the ones that just don't understand what makes videogames sell...

...For some reason, this shit sells. I don't understand it. I don't understand it at all. So many of the games that sell are atrocious in my mind. We call it shovelware, but Nintendo calls it the gold mine of the casual gamer. It's the bubblegum pop of the videogame world. Anyone with a trained ear cringes, but the casual listener chews it up in big sloppy gleeful gobs. As video games continue to grow older, the financial trends just get weirder. It's so strange to know so much about videogames, and though I can probably predict which new games will become the next critical darlings, I have no idea which will sell like hotcakes.

I think what we often fail to see is that video gaming is, above all, a business. And as production costs soar, it gets more and more important for publishers to identify their most profitable market segments and cater to them relentlessly. Unfortunately, retro game fans like us aren't (perhaps by definition) part of that crowd. We may own the new consoles but we also spend much of our hard-earned dough on classic games and consoles...collectable stuff...used stuff. I'm sure companies like Nintendo appreciate our business whenever we buy a new Mario or Zelda game but the truth is, we're just too damn picky. Nowadays, there are a lot more people out there that are far much easier to please.

As companies better understand who they're marketing toward (the mass of casual gamers that make up a vast majority of today's gaming universe), the easier game sales become to predict. I'd imagine that most of Nintendo's playtesters and focus groups consist of the same people that helped put those games on that all-time best seller list to begin with. So, when people like them react favorably to the concept, they'll know exactly what the "next big Wii game" will be. How convenient is it that the games they enjoy (quick fix for fun; crowd-friendly; require minimal time investment; etc.) are also really easy for them to make! If Nintendo can make a Nintendogs, Brain Age, or Wii [insert mini-game theme here] for 1/10th of the cost of a Zelda, those are some serious margins that they're not going likely to give up.

[holaback]

I've been telling people for awhile that the PS3 is the Saturn of this generation.

PS3 wishs it was the saturn of this gen

[RCBH928]

I don't think mario kart or brain age is shovel ware, but they sell cause games like Devil May Cry and Metal Gear simply too complex for the common consumer(and maybe for a lot of the younger kids who place video games).

Shovelware is Hannah Montana and Sponge Bob(on wii) which I can swear its a worse in every way than most Dreamcast games, Even N64 games including graphics. But these things sell because of the franchise.

What I don't get is how games like Balls of Fury, how does this kind of thing sell?

For Sony to lose like Sega it actually has to slip its way all the way to the PS4 death, Because if PS3 is a Saturn then PS4 is a Dreamcast