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[Opiate]

So I wanted to address this belief because I've seen it more often on the board in recent days. Historically, it's very hard to argue that some particular exclusives have sold a lot of consoles. GTAIII on PS2 is an example; Wii Sports is an example; Nintendogs is an example. These are very hard to argue against meaningfully.

Of course, there are also things like 24: the game or Captain Rainbow which almost certainly did not sell consoles.

So the lesson here should be something that was obvious: sometimes, exclusives sell systems. Sometimes they do not. We can almost certainly make the same observation about multiplatform games: sometimes they sell systems. Sometimes they do not. The only complication with multiplatform games is that their system-selling potential may be spread across multiple platforms; for instance, a PS4/Xbox One game may effectively sell 100,000 systems, but that may be 50,000 PS4s and 50,000 Xboxes.

If exclusives don't seem to be moving consoles right now, it's not because exclusives suddenly lost the power to sell systems; it's because the exclusive games being released just aren't big movers. I'm quite sure that if something like GTAIII dropped exclusively on Xbox One today, that would significantly alter the shape of the generation. It isn't that this cannot possibly happen; it's just that it hasn't happened, which is an important distinction.

 

[Oppo]

Yeah. When 3rd party exclusives were much more common, this was evident.

GTA3 was like the biggest "get" ever.

As dumb and simple as it sounds: GAMES sell systems. If that game has limited availability, it's a boon for the platforms it is available on. We just see a lot more cross platform stuff these days.

 

[Log4Girlz]

It takes a special experience to effectively draw people to a console. And what that experience needs to be exactly is incredibly difficult to predict.

 

[ThePeoplesBureau]

Word of mouth sells consoles.

 

[bomblord1]

Not sure about actual market data but I guess I have to ask the question why would someone buy a console for a game they can play on a console they already have?

Maybe that line of thinking is just me.

Taking it a step further I think exclusive features should also push consoles. AKA this one has 1080p on this game and other consoles don't. Or this one supports X feature while the other doesn't.

 

[Opiate]

Yeah. When 3rd party exclusives were much more common, this was evident.

GTA3 was like the biggest "get" ever.

Part of the reason why GTA3 happened on PS2 (but has not happened on PS4) is that this process is really hard to predict.

It's not obvious what the next big franchise will be; it's nearly impossible to predict. As such, when there are fewer exclusives, there's simply a much smaller chance that the next big franchise will be exclusive. If the PS4 (for instance) was getting ~1,000 exclusive games like the PS2 got, it would have a much higher chance of hitting the GTA jackpot. As it stands, that number looks to be an order of magnitude smaller.

 

[Ovek]

I won't be buying a Xbone for the next Tomb Raider game. Sooo theres that.

 

[GribbleGrunger]

I can't agree. Exclusives do sell consoles and I have no idea why people think they don't. Bundles are made for a good reason and not just for fun.

 

[Eolz]

I completely agree with you OP, and don't really see what could be added to that.

 

[Occam]

Libraries sell systems. Knowing that many good and diverse first party titles are going to come to a console and that it will be supported for many years, that's what sells a console.

 

[Messofanego]

I'm just laughing at why 24: The Game was a PS2 exclusive.

 

[McDougles]

Exclusives don't sell PS4 consoles

Spoiler

(yet)

.

Because of the hardware gaps this generation, it will be interesting to see how much power exclusives have going forward.

 

[Jawmuncher]

I can't agree. Exclusives do sell consoles and I have no idea why people think they don't.

Yeah I like this more.

 

[10k]

Agreed. They do differentiate consoles from their competitors though. And it comes down to preference then on what exclusives you don't want to miss out on.

 

[scsa]

Exclusives used to sell consoles in the PS2 era. These days a critical factor is "most of my friends have that xyz console", so for online gaming, that xyz is considered over any other.

Also, price. Case in point xbone pre and post the price cut.

Exclusives matter for making people stick to the platform now, the impact on selling new boxes is lesser.

 

[Opiate]

Libraries sell systems.

Right, this should be obvious, but it apparently isn't.

 

[Oppo]

Part of the reason why GTA3 happened on PS2 (but has not happened on PS4) is that this process is really hard to predict.

It's not obvious what the next big franchise will be; it's nearly impossible to predict. As such, when there are fewer exclusives, there's simply a much smaller chance that the next big franchise will be exclusive. If the PS4 (for instance) was getting ~1,000 exclusive games like the PS2 got, it would have a much higher chance of hitting the GTA jackpot. As it stands, that number looks to be an order of magnitude smaller.

Yeah.

This is why I think Sony is leaning hard on indies. Who could have predicted Minecraft? And, who cares if you have 100 other indie games that tank or do poorly, as long as you "caught" that one superstar?

 

[RulkezX]

So what was the last exclusive that moved significant hardware?

I feel that exclusives that shift hardware or define a generation are the exception, rather than the rule.

 

[Giriath_89]

Some games decide which console(s) people buy.

Fewer sell consoles to people who aren't otherwise interested.

 

[Birgitte2004]

When I say "exclusives don't sell consoles" what I'm actually saying is "exclusives don't exclusively sell consoles".

And I don't think I'm alone in that.

When I look at a console generation like the 360 and PS3, and see 80 million sold for both, while I admit that some of that 160 million was due to exclusives, I believe the majority was not. If they were, exclusives would sell better.

 

[shaowebb]

I own a PC and Wii U because between the two I get almost everything coming to next gen and current gen. Its going to take exclusives to make me spend several hundred on any console at this point because I get the lion's share of whatever releases.

I know I definitely bought the Wii U for exclusives. Heck...all my consoles I bought for particular stuff. I followed Culdcept to the 360, the DS I got for Scribblenauts back in the day, got the Xbox because of DOA3 having Brad Wong who was incredible, got the PS2 for the wealth of RPG titles I had been missing in my gaming libraries, etc etc.

I follow games. Not consoles. Because games ARE the experience. Thats what sales systems for me.

 

[Leafhopper]

I can't agree. Exclusives do sell consoles and I have no idea why people think they don't. Bundles are made for a good reason and not just for fun.

I wouldn't own a WiiU currently if Smash didn't finally push me over the edge to buying one. However I want more than 1 game and I think that's what this thread is about.

I'm just laughing at why 24: The Game was a PS2 exclusive.

It was? Why would you make a licensed game exclusive?

 

[Piston Hyundai]

Well made exclusives with mass appeal sell consoles.

 

[nynt9]

I think most exclusives don't sell consoles. Only very high profile ones like Halo. And by "selling consoles", I mean in a mass market manner. Sure, many people will buy a PS4 for Bloodborne, but I don't think it will make for a significant bump in sales.

The WiiU is the exclusive machine. If exclusives sold systems, it would be doing a lot better.

 

[Flappy]

The last one I can remember is Gears of War on the 360.

That game pretty much saved that console.

 

[MagnesD3]

Idk every console I get is for exclusives.

 

[Opiate]

Exclusives used to sell consoles in the PS2 era. These days a critical factor is "most of my friends have that xyz console", so for online gaming, that xyz is considered over any other.

Also, price. case in point xbone pre and post the price cut.

They also sold consoles in the Wii era. Or do you thin Wii Sports, Wii Fit, and Nintendogs were all minor events?

I think what we're seeing is this: the exclusives out right now aren't selling a lot of consoles. That doesn't mean exclusives suddenly lost the power to sell systems; it just means the particular exclusives we have right now aren't it.

If something of the magnitude of Wii Sports were released for PS4 right now, I'm sure that would alter the trajectory of the generation significantly. It just hasn't happened.

 

[Stallion Dan]

A bunch of exclusives sell consoles.

 

[SovanJedi]

Surely it's no one thing, but a combination of great factors? Price, features/versatility, gimmicks with huge appeal, exclusives and a large library of enjoyable games all combine to sell a system. The NES, SNES, PS1 and PS2 had all of these things. The Wii started off with most of these, but the library turned to absolute crap and people went off it once the gimmick lost its huge appeal. The PS3 had features/versatility and exclusives, then large library and price followed. The DS had almost all of these from the start, then the exclusives arrived, then after that the large library followed.

People who point to one thing and one thing alone selling a system are misguided. I doubt GTA3 would have propelled the PS2 to victory if the PS2 was much more expensive than the Xbox and Gamecube, didn't let you watch DVD movies and had a small library of just Phoenix Games titles.

 

[Fbh]

Well, as OP says it really depends on the exclusive. I'm sure stuff like Titanfall influenced some people to get an X1 while I doubt Knack was the reason many people got a Ps4.

I think the mistake people make by saying exclusives don't sell consoles is that they expect people to go:
"I will buy a Ps4 because of this ONE exclusive game"
When I fact I think most people just look at the console as a whole, including all factors like price, hardware, number of friends with the same system and exclusives (all of them, not just one game)

I don't think they are the biggest selling factor of consoles but I'm quite sure no console maker can afford to stop making exclusives.
If tomorrow Sony announces that they are cancelling all exclusives (The Order, Bloodborne, Uncharted, Tomorrow Children, etc, etc) and that the Ps4 will now be a 100% third party focused system, I'm quite sure it would have a BIG impact on sales

 

[Turners]

I for sure didnt bought a WiiU for Watch Dogs or Ninja Gaiden 3. It was for the exclusives, so I might have to disagree with the people that think exclusives dont sell consoles.

Now if its on the PS4 and Xbox One. Then maybe the difference in resolution or getting the better game might influence me in buying the PS4. Still I have to think about the exclusices too. If I was a fan of Halo and Gears, then yeah I might have chosen the XO on top of the PS4.

So in other words, it all depends on the appeal of what the consumer wants, needs and feels comfortable with.

 

[Kysen]

I own a wiiu and the only first party title I have for it is mk8 which came bundled. Bayonetta being exclusive is the only reason I own the console. Last Nintendo console I owned was a GC for a week.

 

[FZW]

Games sell consoles.... 3rd party games are the backbone of a consoles library but exclusives gives it identity.

You need both.

 

[Leependi]

I think exclusives absolutely do sell consoles, but only the big, AAA ones. Stuff like Uncharted and Naughty Dog in general sell Playstations, Halo for Xbox and Zelda, Mario and Pokémon for Nintendo.

 

[Duplolas]

I wish I could buy a xbone that only plays Halo for a cheaper price than a xbone that plays everything else.

I need a Halo Box.

 

[ChaosXVI]

So what was the last exclusive that moved significant hardware?

I feel that exclusives that shift hardware or define a generation are the exception, rather than the rule.

The last one that comes to mind for me was Wii Sports. Literally millions upon millions of Wii's were sold just because of that game. I can't think of anything since that truly captured the masses like that and was exclusive to one platform.

I suppose you could say it doesn't count, since it was bundled with the console in most regions, but seems valid to me.

 

[Opiate]

Well, as OP says it really depends on the exclusive. I'm sure stuff like Titanfall influenced some people to get an X1 while I doubt Knack was the reason many people got a Ps4.

Exactly.

Looking at exclusives: Wii Sports sold systems. Clock Tower 3 (for PS2) did not. It depends on the games.

Similarly looking at multiplatform games, Call of Duty sells systems. Broforce is probably not selling a lot of PS4s, even though it's also multiplatform.

It depends on the game. The magic isn't in the game being exclusive, or in the game being multiplatform; the magic is in "people want this game."

 

[kinoki]

While exclusives certainly sold me on the PS4 I'd argue that in the majority market the exclusives are just icing on the cake. The general market are buying FIFA, Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty for all their money's worth. There are well-informed consumers who are savvy enough to understand the concept of exclusivity in games and those are the community builders consoles need to build a foundation.

So far, with the exclusives released and announced for PS4 and XBO, I see nothing that could be the next big thing. I'm most likely wrong in that assumption, though. There will be something that is the next big thing.

 

[Cthulhu_Steev]

Sometimes exclusives sell some consoles, but mostly

Libraries sell systems.

It's that.

 

[JP]

It's usually exclusives that sell consoles to me. I'd have no reason to buy a Xbox one if it wasn't for Sunset Overdrive and Crackdown and I only play exclusives on our Wii U...it's been that way with Nintendo for years It's a little different with our PS4 because it wasn't a single exclusive that sold the console as there seems to be loads coming to it that I really want.

 

[blakep267]

I think exclusives sell consoles if

1) the consumer is a big fan of the game ex. Halo or gears or Nintendo stuff

2) systems have 99% of the same library

If a person only wants to play madden, Cod, Ac then prove and friends drive the purchase


Also I think my statements apply more to the general audience and not anyone here.

 

[GribbleGrunger]

I wouldn't own a WiiU currently if Smash didn't finally push me over the edge to buying one. However I want more than 1 game and I think that's what this thread is about.

No, I think it's pretty clear cut. You bought a console because of an exclusive. I know of many people that are going to buy a PS4 because of an exclusive in February and many more who are going to buy a PS4 because of an exclusive in March. I am, and always have been, confused by this argument. It's wrong.

 

[Mine01]

I got a wii u for zelda, smash, xenoblade and bayo 2.

I got a xbone for forza, halo and scalebound.

I'll get a ps4 for bloodborne.

So yea, in my case exclusives absolutely sold the console for me.

 

[eot]

I might buy a PS4 for Bloodborne so I disagree.

 

[shandy706]

Halo was a big system seller and really is one of the key reasons Microsoft managed to break into the gaming space. The original Xbox probably would have been dead in the water and we may have never seen a 360 without Halo.


I personally have come to enjoy the Forza series (Horizon included), so those games being exclusive sells me hardware.

Also, an Epic 3D Zelda and a new 3D (64/Galaxies) style Mario will both help to eventually sell me a Wii U. Although, I'm a bit worried about jumping in on the Wii U before I see how this new Zelda turns out.

On Sony's side of the fence, I enjoy MLB The Show (it's why I initially bought a Vita) and I am also a fan of Uncharted.



As a PC gamer, exclusives HAVE to sell a system to me. I'm not buying them just for 3rd party games.

 

[Conkerkid11]

Exactly, fbh.

Wii Sports sold systems. Clock Tower 3 (for PS2) did not. It depends on the exclusive.

Similarly, Call of Duty sells systems. Broforce is probably not selling a lot of PS4s, even though it's multiplatform.

It depends on the game. The magic isn't in the game being exclusive, or in the game being multiplatform; the magic is in "people want this game."

Wii Sports sold with systems. What sold Wiis was the promise of the future of interactive gaming.

 

[Dragonborn]

So far Destiny, a multiplat, was the game that sold the most consoles (for PS4 in this case), moreso than any exclusive for either PS4 or Xbox 1.

Even if the X1 got a GTA like game, I still wouldn't see it doing as great as you think. GTA3 was huge because it was amazing and it was also on the PS2 which was selling like crazy already.

 

[Doctor_Thomas]

It was? Why would you make a licensed game exclusive?

SCE Cambridge made it. No idea how it happened though.

 

[Durante]

Of course they do, why else would anyone (including me!) buy a Wii U

 

[justsomeguy]

Thanks for starting this thread. It's been driving me bonkers that people keep trotting out "exclusives don't sell consoles" as a cast-iron fact.

Personally exclusives decide what console I go for, even though I primarily play 3rd party games.

e.g. I wanted "A Titanfall Box" so I bought an Xbox One. Plus I knew I'd want to play Halo & Forza.

Once I'd decided that, my internal dialogue was, "Is it worth buying a PS4 just for the extra pixels on 3rd party games?" - and the answer for me was, "no - I'd rather put that £ towards upgrading my PC in the future".