Video game industry thread: no, Shiggy's still not dead. Damn April Fool's.

cloudeagle

Hi! Welcome to the sales thread. Here we talk about how games have sold, marketing, PR comments, the nuts and bolts of game making, analysis of analysts and all kinds of other business-related stuff. Occasionally we make poop jokes. But not boob jokes. We like to keep it classy, dawg.

Here's a summary of what you missed since last time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMSHvgaUWc8

And now, February's info. Yes, game sales are combined across systems now. Yes, we aren't getting concrete console sales now. Yes, it sucks.

Software:

1.) Call of Duty: Black Ops (Activision Blizzard: 360, PS3, WII, NDS, PC) [Now the best selling game in the U.S. ever]
2.) Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (Capcom: 360, PS3) - 790.2K
3.) Just Dance 2 (Ubisoft: Wii) - 554K
4.) NBA 2K11 (Take-Two: 360, PS3, PSP, WII, PS2, PC)
5.) Dead Space 2 (EA: 360, PS3, PC)
6.) Zumba Fitness: Join the Party (Majesco: WII, 360, PS3)
7.) Bulletstorm (EA: 360, PS3, PC) - 285.6K
8.) Killzone 3 (Sony: PS3) - 279.9K
9.) Michael Jackson The Experience (Ubisoft: WII, DS, PSP)
10.) Mario Sports Mix (Nintendo: WII)

Hardware:

Xbox 360: 535,000 (+27%) [Top Console, 360's Best Non-Holiday Month Ever]
Wii: 454,000 (+14%)
PS3: 403,000 (+12%)

Cade

That Futurama clip is so well suited for this.

cloudeagle

I keep thinking I'll replace it with something else, but Morbo just never gets old.

Henroid

I'm still confused at Sony's latest ad. If that becomes a running theme, I'm going to quit. I dunno what I'm quitting, but jeeze.

UncleSporky

I think instead of the thumb thing they should've gone with mocking the touch control, Kevin Butler style.

Yeah, it'd be a bit dissonant with the NGP, but at least they'd have something of a good point there. Forget trying to play games with a non-tactile joystick, play for real!

Dragkonias

...I still don't get Sony. Everytime you think they learned from their mistakes they show you how wrong you are.

darleysam

As soon as I get to work tomorrow, i'm rating this thread 1 star.

Opty

In regards to the monitizing games talk from the last thread, didn't Blizzard indicate they wanted to have an in-game store of some sort for user-made mods? Whatever happened to that?

cloudeagle

Henroid wrote: »

I'm still confused at Sony's latest ad. If that becomes a running theme, I'm going to quit. I dunno what I'm quitting, but jeeze.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO5VJz4q66I&feature=player_embedded

Kevin Butler, assistant to the regional manager of thumb removal.

Normally I'd say "surely this won't run in the U.S.," but the first thumb bit did in a very big way.

Cade

Thankfully with Ken moving back up the chain of command soon they shall be able to enact discipline and we'll have good ads!

Spoit

Wow, did the last thread actually reach 100 for once before putting the new one up? It's been months since that happened :P

Santa Claustrophobia

I rate this thread a 2.6.

Couscous

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/33539/THQ_Stock_Price_Down_25_Amid_Poor_Reviews_For_Homefront_Release.php

Nasdaq traders exchanged 6.9 million shares of THQ stock -- more than four times the daily average -- in a day that saw the stock's price drop nearly 26 percent to $4.40 per share, though a small portion of that decrease has been reversed in after hour trading as of this writing.

The volatility follows a 7 percent rise on Monday to a close a $5.94 per share, a trend that seems to have been stopped by a several lukewarm reviews for alternate history first-person shooter Homefront, which hits stores today.

The game currently has an average score of 72 on popular review aggregator MetaCritic. All the reviews below this average were posted online today, while the eight highest reviews for the title -- all of which earned the game an adjusted score of 85 or higher -- were posted in the four days prior to release.

Earlier this month, THQ revealed Homefront was the most pre-ordered title in the company's history, attracting over 200,000 early purchasers.

But sales for some other THQ releases have not been as strong recently. An analyst note from Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachter shows the company's Wii-based uDraw tablet, which was a major hit over the holidays, sold just 26,000 units in February, according to NPD. In addition, colorful platformer De Blob 2 sold "well below" an expected 75,000 units for the month, Pachter said.

Today's drop puts THQ stock at its lowest level since November 2010, when it briefly saw a surge to a recent high of $6.41 per share. The stock remains well off from a 52-week high of $8.27, reached in April 2010, and a historic high of $36.16 achieved in 2007.

Mmmmm, schadenfreude.

Dragkonias

Santa Claustrophobia wrote: »

I rate this thread a 2.6.

...Don't you post in this thread!?

Go back to your corporate masters!

Jobless Anarchist

I think the ad is a very good cautionary tale of never ever taking a ladyboy robot with you to your hotel room.
Especially when you're intoxicated.

Santa Claustrophobia

Dragkonias wrote: »

Santa Claustrophobia wrote: »

I rate this thread a 2.6.

...Don't you post in this thread!?

Go back to your corporate masters!

You want a better rating? Then you're just gonna have to entice me.

Couscous

Santa Claustrophobia wrote: »

I rate this thread a 2.6.

How dare you break the review embargo for scores of less than 9.0.

Cantido

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqcn_TPu4qQ

Turkey

The Dragon Age 2 stuff is making me want to buy it now, instead of waiting for the GOTY. The only issue I had with the original was the combat, and I liked how it worked in the demo.

Couscous

Some of the review blurbs are hilarious.
http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/homefront/critic-reviews

One of the most unique shooters I've ever played, driven by an ingenious and surprisingly well-fleshed out plot and a dark and dreary, realistic setting. But it also controls and feels like a typical shooter, looks like a game that's several years old, and most importantly, has an inexcusably brief campaign.

North Korea, a country of 25 million starved souls, takes over Japan and North Korea, crosses the Pacific, and then invades over the USA. So realistic.

Its faults are many, but they're magnified by the obvious comparison: this isn't an alternative to COD, but a game in thrall to it. [Apr 2011, p.84]

This probably sums up the reviews.

Fencingsax

Don't forget China, what with it's insignificant economy and population!

darleysam

Turkey wrote: »

The Dragon Age 2 stuff is making me want to buy it now, instead of waiting for the GOTY. The only issue I had with the original was the combat, and I liked how it worked in the demo.

Haven't you heard? The internet is up in arms!

Undead Scottsman

Couscous wrote: »

Some of the review blurbs are hilarious.
http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/homefront/critic-reviews

One of the most unique shooters I've ever played, driven by an ingenious and surprisingly well-fleshed out plot and a dark and dreary, realistic setting. But it also controls and feels like a typical shooter, looks like a game that's several years old, and most importantly, has an inexcusably brief campaign.

North Korea, a country of 25 million starved souls, takes over Japan and North Korea, crosses the Pacific, and then invades over the USA. So realistic.

Its faults are many, but they're magnified by the obvious comparison: this isn't an alternative to COD, but a game in thrall to it. [Apr 2011, p.84]

This probably sums up the reviews.

I like how North Korea is becoming the next big bad whipping boy for the industry. Are we REALLY that starved for an enemy we have to make North Korea out to be anything more than a starving country ruled by a wackjob despot with a couple of nukes?

I mean, shit, if you're going to just make random shit up, go with future nazi's. Nazi's rose to power again, this time in "made-up country" (so as not to offend the germans) and now they need their asses kicked again.

AZChristopher

I find it sad that a stock could drop that much in price over metacritic.

I also feel a little stupid for not looking into that as this game was never going to average higher than 80.

chiasaur11

Undead Scottsman wrote: »

Couscous wrote: »

Some of the review blurbs are hilarious.
http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/homefront/critic-reviews

One of the most unique shooters I've ever played, driven by an ingenious and surprisingly well-fleshed out plot and a dark and dreary, realistic setting. But it also controls and feels like a typical shooter, looks like a game that's several years old, and most importantly, has an inexcusably brief campaign.

North Korea, a country of 25 million starved souls, takes over Japan and North Korea, crosses the Pacific, and then invades over the USA. So realistic.

Its faults are many, but they're magnified by the obvious comparison: this isn't an alternative to COD, but a game in thrall to it. [Apr 2011, p.84]

This probably sums up the reviews.

I like how North Korea is becoming the next big bad whipping boy for the industry. Are we REALLY that starved for an enemy we have to make North Korea out to be anything more than a starving country ruled by a wackjob despot with a couple of nukes?

I mean, shit, if you're going to just make random shit up, go with future nazi's. Nazi's rose to power again, this time in "made-up country" (so as not to offend the germans) and now they need their asses kicked again.

Batarians.

In the future, at least 30% of all games should let you kill Batarians.

AZChristopher

North Korean is better than Country from the Desert #15.

Cade

AZChristopher wrote: »

I find it sad that a stock could drop that much in price over metacritic.

I also feel a little stupid for not looking into that as this game was never going to average higher than 80.

Eventually they will find something else to replace metacritic with, I only it's a process that isn't so broken. Sadly when it comes to reviews and many things in the industry broken is pretty much the norm.

Maybe one day they will find a better way.

Yeah I doubt it too.

Undead Scottsman

AZChristopher wrote: »

North Korean is better than Country from the Desert #15.

Is it really though? I mean, North Korea? Really?

Turkey

Germans, Arabs, Russians, Koreans...when are we getting someone from the western hemisphere as the bad guys?

Rakai

darleysam wrote: »

Turkey wrote: »

The Dragon Age 2 stuff is making me want to buy it now, instead of waiting for the GOTY. The only issue I had with the original was the combat, and I liked how it worked in the demo.

Haven't you heard? The internet is up in arms!

I kind of wonder how the whole thing started. I mean, who bothers to check who writes every single user review? The whole thing made me think of the Simpsons episode where Kent swears on the air.


"You mean there are losers who spend all day browsing the internet looking for stuff to complain about? Who'd be lame enough to do that?"


*GASP* "A Dragon Age user review done by a Bioware Employee!"


"Daddy what are you doing?"


"Imploring people I never met to pressure a publisher with better things to do to punish a man who meant no harm for something nobody even saw, that's what I'm doing!"

PolloDiablo

Yeah, but once it's exposed it deserves to be looked into. It's kind of a blatant ethical violation.

Dragkonias

Turkey wrote: »

Germans, Arabs, Russians, Koreans...when are we getting someone from the western hemisphere as the bad guys?

Well...I mean...all we've got over here is...Canada and Mexico...I guess South America...

They're not foreign enough for our ire.

Cade

Turkey wrote: »

Germans, Arabs, Russians, Koreans...when are we getting someone from the western hemisphere as the bad guys?

Red Dead Redemption?

If you played it you kind of know what I mean

Fizban140

PolloDiablo wrote: »

Yeah, but once it's exposed it deserves to be looked into. It's kind of a blatant ethical violation.

Ethical? What in the fuck, developers can't have opinions?

chiasaur11

Dragkonias wrote: »

Turkey wrote: »

Germans, Arabs, Russians, Koreans...when are we getting someone from the western hemisphere as the bad guys?

Well...I mean...all we've got over here is...Canada and Mexico...I guess South America...

They're not foreign enough for our ire.

Canada, maybe?

With their filthy alien sex simulators and their quirky comics turned into box office bombs, boy it gets my blood a boiling.

AZChristopher

Undead Scottsman wrote: »

AZChristopher wrote: »

North Korean is better than Country from the Desert #15.

Is it really though? I mean, North Korea? Really?

Axis of evil and all that.

Besides I don't play games for realism and N. Korea is more plausible than Canada.

Santa Claustrophobia

PolloDiablo wrote: »

Yeah, but once it's exposed it deserves to be looked into. It's kind of a blatant ethical violation.

Violation of what, exactly?

Granted it's unethical, but what kind of result to you expect? Have the employee tarred and feathered for his transgression? Fire him? For posting a positive review? What mythical line did this poor sod cross by doing this?

Sheep

The story behind Homefront is actually pretty cool. What happens when Korea unifies, they vote the Communists into power, the US economy continues to tank, and eventually Korea invades.

The_Scarab

Undead Scottsman wrote: »

Couscous wrote: »

Some of the review blurbs are hilarious.
http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/homefront/critic-reviews

One of the most unique shooters I've ever played, driven by an ingenious and surprisingly well-fleshed out plot and a dark and dreary, realistic setting. But it also controls and feels like a typical shooter, looks like a game that's several years old, and most importantly, has an inexcusably brief campaign.

North Korea, a country of 25 million starved souls, takes over Japan and North Korea, crosses the Pacific, and then invades over the USA. So realistic.

Its faults are many, but they're magnified by the obvious comparison: this isn't an alternative to COD, but a game in thrall to it. [Apr 2011, p.84]

This probably sums up the reviews.

I like how North Korea is becoming the next big bad whipping boy for the industry. Are we REALLY that starved for an enemy we have to make North Korea out to be anything more than a starving country ruled by a wackjob despot with a couple of nukes?

I mean, shit, if you're going to just make random shit up, go with future nazi's. Nazi's rose to power again, this time in "made-up country" (so as not to offend the germans) and now they need their asses kicked again.

North Korea has one of the largest militaries of any nation.

Four times the number of military personnel as America, and nearly half of their entire population either active or reservist.

They have comparable quantities of fighters, of ships and tanks. And have a fervent semi-religious doctrine bordering on mass sociopathy.

What I'm saying is that it is not inconceivable that they could, if they wanted, fuck shit up.

AZChristopher

I was wondering how we made it through 10 pages in the thread today. Now I know, we had to argue about DA2.

Dragkonias

AZChristopher wrote: »

I was wondering how we made it through 10 pages in the thread today. Now I know, we had to argue about DA2.

Sad thing is...we weren't even really arguing about DA2 so much as whether user reviews are hot or not.

It was determined that they're not.