Wii software outsells 360 software in US Dec 2007. Schild suicides.

[Azazel]

Wii software outsells 360 software in December - NPD
Xbox 360 software dominance comes to an end in the US.

IGN has revealed the software tie-ratios for all current-gen consoles in the US for December 2007 as tracked by US numbers company NPD, and in a surprising revelation the Wii leads the pack. In December in the US, 8.11 Wii games were sold for every new console, 7.76 Xbox 360 games were sold for every Xbox 360 console sold, and 5.04 games were sold for every PlayStation 3 hardware sale.

Tie-ratios are a relatively useless figure without context, as they are just that, a ratio, and depend on absolute numbers to mean anything. But since we know the hardware sales for December (as also reported by NPD), absolute software sales can be calculated easily.

This means that total software sales for December in the US were 10,948,500 Wii games, 9,777,600 Xbox 360 games and 4,019,904 PS3 games. The Wii number does not include the bundled Wii Sports, but does include Wii Play sales. Many people don't consider Wii Play a full game purchase, so removing its December sales from the total leaves the Wii still ahead at 9,868,500 games sold. Considering the Wii is still almost two million consoles behind the Xbox 360 in install base in the US, this is quite an achievement.

IGN also revealed the lifetime tie-ratios of the three consoles, 7.0 for Xbox 360, 4.64 for Wii, and 4.26 for the PlayStation 3. As expected the Xbox 360 still leads on that count, as tie-ratos increase over a console's lifespan since more owners have had the console for longer and thus have had more chance to buy games. This means that as of December 31st 2007 63,873,600 Xbox 360 games had been sold, 34,194,016 Wii games had been sold or 30,074,016 if not counting Wii Play (neither figure counts Wii Sports), and 13,844,148 PS3 games had been sold. At the same point in the Xbox 360's life as the PS3 and Wii are at now (31 December 2006) it had a 5.1 tie-ratio and had sold 4.5 million consoles, and therefore had sold 22,950,000 games.

A surprising result. Unfortunately it would be almost impossible to attain worldwide software sales outside of shipments.

http://www.palgn.com.au/article.php?id=10165&sid=9f546114a1c33869787e6593b501b07e&title=Wii+software+outsells+360+software+in+December+-+NPD
http://au.wii.ign.com/articles/847/847472p1.html

[schild]

I can't actually say I'm surprised. Microsoft blew their wad in November. The PS3 still costs too much for poor people. Mom is still buying Wiis because she's a retarded ass clown and it's the new Monopoly.

Also, since you didn't link exact numbers, I just have to look at this:

Very strong sales of titles like Super Mario Galaxy, Wii Play, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, Guitar Hero III and more contributed to Wii's high tie ratio.

Nintendo, Nintendo Controller, Nintendo, annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd Guitar Hero.

Color me absolutely not surprised.

[WindupAtheist]

Many people don't consider Wii Play a full game purchase, so removing its December sales from the total leaves the Wii still ahead at 9,868,500 games sold. Considering the Wii is still almost two million consoles behind the Xbox 360 in install base in the US, this is quite an achievement.

[schild]

Many people don't consider Wii Play a full game purchase, so removing its December sales from the total leaves the Wii still ahead at 9,868,500 games sold. Considering the Wii is still almost two million consoles behind the Xbox 360 in install base in the US, this is quite an achievement.

I read the post incorrectly since normally Velorath and I track down hard numbers so it doesn't require "real" reading. As such, I had to put filler. Wii Play with no punctuation was all I could come up with.

[schild]

Here we are:

Top 10 SW Sales
360 CALL OF DUTY 4: MODERN WARFARE ACTIVISION (CORP) NOV 2007 MATURE (M) *1 1.47 million
WII SUPER MARIO GALAXY NINTENDO OF AMERICA NOV 2007 EVERYONE (E) 2 1.40 million
PS2 GUITAR HERO III: LEGENDS OF ROCK ACTIVISION (CORP) OCT 2007 TEEN (T) *3 1.25 million
WII PLAY W/ REMOTE NINTENDO OF AMERICA FEB 2007 EVERYONE (E) 4 1.08 million
360 ASSASSIN'S CREED UBISOFT NOV 2007 MATURE (M) *5 893.7 K
360 HALO 3 MICROSOFT (CORP) SEP 2007 MATURE (M) *6 742.7 K
NDS BRAIN AGE 2: MORE TRAINING IN MINUTES A NINTENDO OF AMERICA AUG 2007 EVERYONE (E) 7 659.5 K
PS2 MADDEN NFL 08 ELECTRONIC ARTS AUG 2007 EVERYONE (E) 8 655.2 K
360 GUITAR HERO III: LEGENDS OF ROCK ACTIVISION (CORP) OCT 2007 TEEN (T) 9 624.6 K
WII MARIO AND SONIC: OLYMPIC GAMES SEGA OF AMERICA NOV 2007 EVERYONE (E) 10 613.0 K

Still looks right for a top 10 these days.

[Murgos]

Isn't the 40 gig PS3 dropping to $299 this week?

[schild]

Rumor.

Somewhat believable though as they're going to phase out the 80GB for a new high-end sku (at the same price as the current 80gb).

[Velorath]

Isn't the 40 gig PS3 dropping to $299 this week?

That was just a rumor as far as I know.

As for Wii software sales... the Wii has a lot of budget titles, plus a lot of places are still selling Wii's in bundles where you're forced to get 4 or 5 shitty games with the thing.

[HaemishM]

The Wii also doesn't have a good strong set of third-party software, which is why most of those top-selling titles are Nintendo titles. I keep waiting for some of these developers to get the stick out of their ass and face the reality that the market for those games is going to be as big as the 360 market if not larger, but meh. Developers are hard-headed fucktards sometimes.

[schild]

The market for gamer's games on the Wii is smaller than the PS3s.

Every third party developer knows it. And Suda 51 proved it. Hence the reason he moved to the more expensive next-gen development for his next title.

[HaemishM]

Suda51 is hardly proof. Even if No More Heroes was No More Jedi's, Suda's game design style is in no way a mainstream type of design. Killer 7 proved that.

[schild]

Actually, Suda51 is pretty good proof. Hardcore gamers are so starved on the Wii, they're buying non-games.

Basically, if you're not Capcom or Nintendo, that system may as well be dead already.

Maybe Square-Enix will change things. Too bad Crystal Chronicles sucks as a series.

[Rasix]

As for Wii software sales... the Wii has a lot of budget titles.

This I have seen in action.  My mom randomly bought my nephews games, most based on how cheap they were.  She did seem a little crestfallen when I mentioned one of the games she bought was the lowest ranked game ever on Gamespot.  For what it's worth, my nephews got at least 5 games for Christmas alone.  Spoiled little brats.

Hardcore gamers are so starved on the Wii, they're buying non-games.

I don't see that from the sales figures.  Sales figures there seem to be showing Wii owners buying the top rated game for the system (and franchise darling), an extra remote, and some cutesy, kiddie franchise game.   

360 sales numbers are nice. 

 

[schild]

I don't see that from the sales figures.  Sales figures there seem to be showing Wii owners buying the top rated game for the system (and franchise darling), an extra remote, and some cutesy, kiddie franchise game.   

I was speaking mostly about the Japanese.

[HaemishM]

Those are US numbers in the original post.

[schild]

No More Heroes came out last week. It's...

You know what. Nevermind.

You totally missed my point.

[Tale]

A cricket game would be the Wii's killer app. Is anybody making one?

There was a campaign for a while, but it has died (website gone). Fans even made an ad to sell the concept. Surely you can all see why the wiimote and this game belong together.

[HaemishM]

No More Heroes came out last week. It's...

You know what. Nevermind.

You totally missed my point.

Which point? That the Japanese markets don't matter, especially when the original post was all about the US numbers alone and not the Japanese? That No More Heroes proved in one week (for which we don't have sales figures) that somehow the Wii isn't a suitable place for "gamer's games?" That hardcore gamers are buying non-games (Wii Fit? Not sure what you mean by non-games)? I really did miss your point.

[schild]

I really did miss your point.

I know.

[Margalis]

Schild's point is best summarized by a small child lying on it's back waving it's arms and legs.

If gamers on the Wii are desperate for "gamer's games" then logically they should be snatching up No More Heroes in droves.

[Jain Zar]

I don't see that from the sales figures.  Sales figures there seem to be showing Wii owners buying the top rated game for the system (and franchise darling), an extra remote, and some cutesy, kiddie franchise game.   

I was speaking mostly about the Japanese.

Yeah but the Japanese "hardcore gamer demographic" is full of very creepy and scary people.

Japan doesn't count anymore.

Bring over the 200-1000 creative and cool people from there and the rest of the little island nation can go back to being creepy, wierd, and living like a bunch of sardines.

Suda made a game few people actually liked.  Is it any wonder his follow up might not explode off the fucking shelves?

If even GOOD developers like Lord British, DW Bradley, and Red Lynx can have off days should folks line up out of the gate for an iffy proposition?

Hell, I can easily be considered hardcore gamer (western kind, not the creepy Japan or Weeaboo kind) and I doubt I will get No More Heroes till it hits the budget racks.
(Of course one of my decisions to improve my life involves buying most of my games at budget price points so I don't count.  Financial responsibility is BAD or something.)

Most of my Wii games are Nintendo too.  Its not my fault most third party developers are technofappers who helped kill PC gaming with ever increasing system requirements in the face of all evidence that top of the line is fucking RARE and can't be bothered to work on such a lesser machine even though Resident Evil 0, Remake, 4, Soul Calibur 2, and the Rogue Squadron games prove you can make some gorgeous games on it.

Instead they all want to make games for the overpriced SKU fuckery of the PS3 (which isn't really selling), or the 360 which would be good provided it wasn't put together with dried snot and chewed up bubblegum.
(Oh wait, I could swear Schild blamed the breaking 360s on idiot consumers who just don't know how to take care of a piece of electronics..  Something else ya have been COMPLETELY   about.)

Developers made some coin on the NES and SNES.  They should stop being dipshits and leave the shitty games to EA.

[Margalis]

I don't see No More Heroes selling well on any system.

Gamasutra has a good interview with David Jaffe up. In it he says that American audiences increasingly want realism. I've noticed this for years, in Japan the top games are often crazy and imaginitive but in the US the top games are sports games and WW2 shooters.

The "hardcore" and "casual" distinction has got to go. No More Heroes is not "hardcore", it's a game for afficianados. The kind of game the old DieHard GameFan would have splooged over.

[Jain Zar]

I don't see No More Heroes selling well on any system.

Gamasutra has a good interview with David Jaffe up. In it he says that American audiences increasingly want realism. I've noticed this for years, in Japan the top games are often crazy and imaginitive but in the US the top games are sports games and WW2 shooters.

The "hardcore" and "casual" distinction has got to go. No More Heroes is not "hardcore", it's a game for afficianados. The kind of game the old DieHard GameFan would have splooged over.

They spooged over the pack in game to the Atari Jaguar though.  They were a bit.. ahh.. umm..  yeah.

[schild]

Unsigned code can now be run on the Wii through a memory card exploit.

Dreamcast 2.0? Maybe.

[Velorath]

The "hardcore" and "casual" distinction has got to go. No More Heroes is not "hardcore", it's a game for afficianados. The kind of game the old DieHard GameFan would have splooged over.

I don't think the distinction needs to go, it's just being misused here.  No More Heroes isn't a hardcore game.  It's a niche game, and would only appeal to a small audience regardless of what system it was released on.

[Margalis]

I don't think "hardcore" has any real meaning, especially since the definition of "casual" has changed dramatically. 5 years ago "casual" might have meant a guy who played Mario Kart with his frat bros while drunk, now it means a 50 year old mom playing a flash game.

[stray]

If that's casual, I don't think that's necessarily what the Wii is drawing either. It's kids and their families, as well as party/boardgame types. Casual to be sure, but they've been kind of a forgotten factor for the past several years.

[Velorath]

I don't think "hardcore" has any real meaning, especially since the definition of "casual" has changed dramatically. 5 years ago "casual" might have meant a guy who played Mario Kart with his frat bros while drunk, now it means a 50 year old mom playing a flash game.

The 50 year old mom playing a flash game tends to get lumped into a catagory these days many people refer to as non-gamers (a bit of a misnomer obviously, but I guess people seem to like the term better than something like Ultra-casual).

[Azazel]

Schild's point is best summarized by a small child lying on it's back waving it's arms and legs.

If gamers on the Wii are desperate for "gamer's games" then logically they should be snatching up No More Heroes in droves.

I think I can safely call myself a gamer at this point in my life. I have no intention of ever buying No More Heroes on any platform.

[SurfD]

Rumor.

Somewhat believable though as they're going to phase out the 80GB for a new high-end sku (at the same price as the current 80gb).

Wait, does this mean there is going to be a NEW backwards compatable high end sku for PS3, or should i go out and grab an 80gb model right now due to potential fear that i will never see another backwards compatable model again?

[Surlyboi]

I don't think "hardcore" has any real meaning, especially since the definition of "casual" has changed dramatically. 5 years ago "casual" might have meant a guy who played Mario Kart with his frat bros while drunk, now it means a 50 year old mom playing a flash game.

The 50 year old mom playing a flash game tends to get lumped into a catagory these days many people refer to as non-gamers (a bit of a misnomer obviously, but I guess people seem to like the term better than something like Ultra-casual).

I am also a gamer and don't see myself picking up NMH any time soon, regardless of what Epic Fail Schild or anyone else says.

[Yegolev]

No More Jedi's

Illegal use of apostrophe.

Why does this sales information spark controversy?

I bought No More Heroes because PURPLE COINS MAKE HULK ANGRY!  HULK SMASH!!!

[schild]

Rumor.

Somewhat believable though as they're going to phase out the 80GB for a new high-end sku (at the same price as the current 80gb).

Wait, does this mean there is going to be a NEW backwards compatable high end sku for PS3, or should i go out and grab an 80gb model right now due to potential fear that i will never see another backwards compatable model again?

Sony is hiring backwards compatibility engineers in Japan right now. Eventually, I expect a firmware update. Far as I know, the 40GB ones still have the memory card utilities on them which would lead me to believe they would eventually become BC.

[Azazel]

Rumor.

Somewhat believable though as they're going to phase out the 80GB for a new high-end sku (at the same price as the current 80gb).

Wait, does this mean there is going to be a NEW backwards compatable high end sku for PS3, or should i go out and grab an 80gb model right now due to potential fear that i will never see another backwards compatable model again?

hmm.. BC making a return? Maybe I'll hold off on buying that cheap PS3 and instead wait that year for the return of BC and price drops... When's word on this due? (or likely?)

The 40gb units don't have the flash card readers.

[schild]

Who knows. I was just putting that out there.