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MCV: UK retail game sales down 8.5%YOY, console sales down almost 20%

M

Mpl90

Two copies sold? That's not a bomb guys, stop trolling!!!
I saw this posted in the NPD Thread, I thought it would be a good idea to make a thread on it.

Call of Duty, Fallout and Star Wars Battlefront must deliver if UK games retail is to turn around a difficult 2015.

According to GfK Chart-Track data, physical UK game sales are down 8.5 per cent so far this year. October was a particular disappointment, with sales slumping 24 per cent compared with 2014.

But the real challenge has been in the console space. UK stores tell MCV that console sales are down by almost 20 per cent this year.

[..]

The physical UK games market generated £50m last week, according to GfK Chart-Track, and one games store told MCV that software sales alone could hit £250m this month.
Click to expand...

Full article here - http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/retail-banks-on-blockbusters-as-sales-stumble/0159053

Spin things with "But digital!" if old.
 
R

RealityCheque

Banned
Digital has to account for some of the losses but I'd be amazed if it made up with 20% of console sales.

I'm all digital these days but I know I'm not a standard customer. I figured digital might be 10% of the market.

If its literal losses in sales then that's very interesting from the POV that the consoles themselves have been selling very well.
 
H

Hasney

Member
The article basically states that last year had bigger releases in October, so that pretty much makes sense.

His opinion echoes that of GAME CEO Martyn Gibbs, who told MCV: “If you look at the release schedule year-on-year, we had Destiny and Shadow of Mordor come out earlier in 2014. This year we have Battlefield, Call of Duty and Fallout in November, so the way we’ve expected things to phase is that September and October would be softer, and November stronger.”
Click to expand...

If November is a bugger, then things are fucked.
 
Stilton Disco

Stilton Disco

Member
October was a really shite month for releases. AssCreed and Halo are both franchises in severe decline, GH and RB failed to reignite the old rhythm game genre, and Uncharted was simply remastered old games.

Add to that the ongoing poor sales of the WiiU, decline in 3DS and 7th gen console numbers, and it's hardly a surprise everything's down.

But, yeah, digital really does help to soften the blow on that software decline, even though I doubt there's been a particularly big increase in digital sales this year compared to last year. Games sales really aren't as bad as they look.

Hopefully November really kicks things up a gear, with Fallout, COD and Battlefront, because this slump has just been awful.

Long term, we need new major IP's, and the NX to be something people actually want to buy.
 
E

Elandyll

Banned
I think it's on the back of having two major franchises (Halo and Assassin's Creed) which had disappointing launches, and three MEGA titles which are siphoning sales away towards November (COD, Fallout 4, Battlefront).

Nov sales will tell us a lot about the market situation.

A bit like Kev described it, it's a problem with an industry which has turned itself toward the Feast/ Famine model (pushing the big ones during the same window), but also what used to be called the 80/20 effect in a way.

... when 20 percent of the titles make up 80% of the quantities/ revenue, if one takes a plunge, it's a major wound instead of a hiccup.

Blackthorn said:
This article is about the state of physical retail, not the industry.
Click to expand...

In this case I think things are somewhat tied.
 
B

Blackthorn

"hello?" "this is vagina"
Stilton Disco said:
October was a really shite month for releases. AssCreed and Halo are both franchises in severe decline, GH and RB failed to reignite the old rhythm game genre, and Uncharted was simply remastered old games.

Add to that the ongoing poor sales of the WiiU, decline in 3DS and 7th gen console numbers, and it's hardly a surprise everything's down.

But, yeah, digital really does help to soften the blow on that software decline, even though I doubt there's been a particularly big increase in digital sales this year compared to last year. Games sales really aren't as bad as they look.

Hopefully November really kicks things up a gear, with Fallout, COD and Battlefront, because this slump has just been awful.

Long term, we need new major IP's, and the NX to be something people actually want to buy.
Click to expand...
This article is about the state of physical retail, not the industry - it doesn't include online retailers like Amazon.
 
D

DarthWalden

Banned
Honestly starting to thing that a lot of the people who are going to purchase a next gen consoles have already purchased it and those sales were Incredibly front loaded due to the massive gap between console releases.

Did anything even release last October? We had halo 5 and UC collection this month and we are still down 20%
 
O

Obliterator

Member
Holy shit at that hardware drop. This early in the generation that is scary. Software isn't too concerning as that's likely made up for by digital but man that hardware drop is a bit worrying
 
M

metalslimer

Member
We will see how this holidays shape up with massive titles like battlefield and fallout coming out but if things are disappointing we are probably in for a rough ride comparatively this generation. Money seems to have shifted elsewhere.
 
F

funkystudent

Member
Destiny and Watch Dogs where really big hardware movers last year.

This year we have had more good games but nothing really on that level.


Halo and AC being on the downward trend doesnt help. Destiny pushing retail out of the picture for TTK for the most part is another.


November is beastly though. Fallout and Battlefront will be huge.
 
N

napata

Member
Vashetti said:
Suppose PS4 and XB1 are doing okay, but can't make up for the decline of PS3, 360, 3DS and Wii U.
Click to expand...

Pretty sure these were all dead last year so that can't be it.

I don't think the decline is too worrisome. This generation just started off extremely strong so decline has to happen sooner than the last generation.
 
T

Tak3n

Banned
Said it before but you watch. Tablet sales will be through the roof, my wife is a teacher and she said a while back most of the talk is always about mobile games and some TF2 (go figure) of course I am not saying the UK is doomed it is just mobile/tablet mad
 
V

Vilix

Unconfirmed Member
DarkLordMalik said:
Console sales are down but are they down for PS3/360/WiiU or are they down for PS4/XBO?
Click to expand...

I would assume the article is taking into account all consoles currently on sale. People are still using their PS3s and 360s as set top boxes. They don't feel the need to upgrade as long as it does what it's suppose to do.
 
C

chromatic9

Member
I've been put off with the recent 1tb bundles, they cost too much. 2014 early 2015 had better prices on 500gb compared to todays 500gb and more attractive simple bundles. The 500gb now is mostly loaded with crap to bring it up to around £299. You have to put all that crap on ebay and pay fees which probably isn't worth your time. Yes there has been the odd deal but mostly we've gone from £200-50 to £250-300+.

I should've bought one last year or early this year. I'm hoping Nov will have more straight forward deals, less vouchers being needed and chased, less bloody points and super duper points to claim back the following month. This last week or two I've seen some retailers letting you choose your game, something which I did call for.
 
Hoho for breakfast

Hoho for breakfast

Member
DOOMED!

Or not. If console sales are shit next year I'd worry some. This year, meh. Next year you'll have system sellers like Uncharted and Zelda along with every other stupidly good looking game coming out. It's all about 2016.
 
R

Raitaro

Member
Assuming it's not just my local (= Reading) stores that have this problem, I've always wondered if the poor game sections in big supermarkets like Tesco and Asda might have something to do with games not reaching the wider (i.e. non GAME shopping) customer that might pick up a game here and there. Although that situation might actually be a result of reduced physical game sales too instead of a cause now that I think about it.

That said, compared to their quite extensive movie dvd/bluray and music cd (!) sections, having such poorly stocked and messy game sections - especially with regards to Nintendo stuff - has always seemed unfortunate and a bit sad to me ever since moving to the UK a few years ago.

Edit: not sure how these stores play a role in the decreased console sales by the way; never paid much attention to how they promote those.
 
V

Vilix

Unconfirmed Member
Hoho for breakfast said:
DOOMED!

Or not. If console sales are shit next year I'd worry some. This year, meh. Next year you'll have system sellers like Uncharted and Zelda along with every other stupidly good looking game coming out. It's all about 2016.
Click to expand...

Don't count on Zelda U being a system seller. If MK8 and Smash couldn't get people to buy a WiiU I don't think Zelda will make much difference.
 
J

jabberwocker

Banned
I think the point that alot of people miss because ps4 and xbox one are selling more quickly than their predecessors they think console sales are increasing. Here is some food for thought. The Wii sold just about as many consoles as the xbox one and the ps4 in their first two years. So the total sales of each of the console (combining Wiiu, Xbox one, and PS4) are less than the total sales of the Wii, PS3 and Xbox360 in the subsequent first two years of the console's life. Does this spell out doom and gloom. Not in the least. But something to think about.
 
N

navanman

Crown Prince of Custom Firmware
Tak3n said:
Said it before but you watch. Tablet sales will be through the roof, my wife is a teacher and she said a while back most of the talk is always about mobile games and some TF2 (go figure) of course I am not saying the UK is doomed it is just mobile/tablet mad
Click to expand...
Don't think so..
Tablet sales are falling quarter over quarter for last 2 years even for a giant like Apple.
Larger and larger phones are eating into their market share hence the push into Surface Pro & iPad Pro.

The decline of dedicated game stores in UK will be pushing more and more existing and potential future console gamers online purchasing only.
 
R

Ragona

Member
I still think it has been a fantastic year for games, with a couple of great games spread all over the year. I just wonder if:

1) the political situation in Europe keeps ppl from mindlessly spending their money currently?. Couple of people already told me they arent as enthusiastic this year due to the general mood.

2) most of the big games this year ( witcher 3, MgsV, Dying Light, Batman , Fallout 4) are big open world games, which are quite time consuming. Wonder if that keeps people from buying even more games?
 
V

viHuGi

Banned
November and December will be huge but 360 and ps3 slowing aren't helping.

Xbox One and Ps4 need to be tremendous this holiday.
 
V

viHuGi

Banned
Tak3n said:
Said it before but you watch. Tablet sales will be through the roof, my wife is a teacher and she said a while back most of the talk is always about mobile games and some TF2 (go figure) of course I am not saying the UK is doomed it is just mobile/tablet mad
Click to expand...

Tablet sales are going down like crazy these days.

Consoles are fine.
 
Bruno MB

Bruno MB

Member
Hasney said:
The article basically states that last year had bigger releases in October, so that pretty much makes sense.

If November is a bugger, then things are fucked.
Click to expand...

In November there are 3 big releases: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, Fallout 4 that is poised to be bigger than most were expecting and Star Wars: Battlefront, but last year there was Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Grand Theft Auto V (PS4 - XBO) which sold 400,000 units in its first week and Far Cry 4 along with smaller releases but still big such as Assassin's Creed: Unity or Pokémon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire.

I think that at best things will remain flat compared to the previous year.

Code: 
[B]Week 45, 2014 - 1,265,418 units / £48.5m [notable releases: Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare][/B]
Week 46, 2014 - 1,022,296 units / £36.9m [notable releases: Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Assassin's Creed: Unity]
Week 47, 2014 - 1,486,145 units / £57.4m [notable releases: Grand Theft Auto V, Far Cry 4, Dragon Age: Inquisition]
Week 48, 2014 - 1,960,751 units / £62.0m [notable releases: Pokémon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire]

[B]Week 45, 2015 - 1,216,280 units / £49.3m [notable releases: Call of Duty: Black Ops III][/B]
Week 46, 2015 - _________ units / £____m [notable releases: Fallout 4, Rise Of The Tomb Raider]
Week 47, 2015 - _________ units / £____m [notable releases: Star Wars: Battlefront]
Week 48, 2015 - _________ units / £____m [notable releases: nothing]
 
O

Obliterator

Member
viHuGi said:
Tablet sales are going down like crazy these days.

Consoles are fine.
Click to expand...

It seems like everything I read everything is going down.

PC sales are down
Tablet sales are down
Console sales are down
TV sales are down

Its like what are people buying? I guess just strictly iPhones? Because even Android phones are down.

Its like all consumer electronics are shrinking
 
S

Shin-chan

Member
I honestly can't imagine why anyone somewhat clued into game retail would go out to a brick and mortar store in the UK. They are more expensive than online retailers, and they don't give you the game a day or so early like many online stores do. if you're a day one buyer and you hear you can get the game you want earlier, you're probably going to go online and do so. There are substantial incentives to online shopping for new releases in the UK.
 
Q

Queen of Hunting

Unconfirmed Member
grand theft auto making the industry and breaking it a year later
 
K

Kyoufu

Member
UK retail has been screwed for a while. I mean, just look at GAME and other high street retailers not doing so well. It's not that the gaming market is suffering, but the online retailers booming, so consumers go online now for their shopping needs rather than GAME.
 
A

airborn

Member
British Pound strength against the Euro probably isn't helping either.

It's now cheaper to buy a new game locally than to import from the UK. That wasn't the case for the last 5 years.
 
V

viHuGi

Banned
Obliterator said:
It seems like everything I read everything is going down.

PC sales are down
Tablet sales are down
Console sales are down
TV sales are down

Its like what are people buying? I guess just strictly iPhones? Because even Android phones are down.

Its like all consumer electronics are shrinking
Click to expand...

Ps4 is killing 2014 and next year will be even bigger.
 
H

heidern

Junior Member
Obliterator said:
It seems like everything I read everything is going down.

PC sales are down
Tablet sales are down
Console sales are down
TV sales are down

Its like what are people buying? I guess just strictly iPhones? Because even Android phones are down.

Its like all consumer electronics are shrinking
Click to expand...

Combination of diminishing returns and convergence to mobile.
Also everything being free on the internet continued to increase, Youtube didn't exist till 2005. The younger generation might be increasingly conditioned against spending lots of money on media.
 
C

chromatic9

Member
I doubt it's the high streets fault. People had no problem buying a console last year, most towns and cities are surrounded with hundreds of places to buy them and online ordering to me is so prevalent for last ten years even on items such as cookers etc.

Probably pricing and just less interest in general which can easily turn around and this is just a dip after high sales on a very normal trajectory.
 
Bruno MB

Bruno MB

Member
Regarding my previous message I forgot that for GfK Chart-Track the reporting period for the month of November is from week 44 to week 47.

This way I feel that November's sales will likely be up over last year. They are currently 7.4% up by units and 16.5% up by value.

So here the correct charts, I also included October.

Code: 
[B]November, 2015[/B]

Week 44, 2015 - 716,741 units / £26.2m [notable releases: Halo 5: Guardians]
Week 45, 2015 - 1,216,280 units / £49.3m [notable releases: Call of Duty: Black Ops III]
Week 46, 2015 - _________ units / £____m [notable releases: Fallout 4, Rise Of The Tomb Raider]
Week 47, 2015 - _________ units / £____m [notable releases: Star Wars: Battlefront]

[B]November, 2014[/B]

Week 44, 2014 - 534,183 units / £16.3m [notable releases: nothing]
Week 45, 2014 - 1,265,418 units / £48.5m [notable releases: Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare]
Week 46, 2014 - 1,022,296 units / £36.9m [notable releases: Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Assassin's Creed: Unity]
Week 47, 2014 - 1,486,145 units / £57.4m [notable releases: Grand Theft Auto V, Far Cry 4, Dragon Age: Inquisition]

Code: 
[B]October, 2015[/B]

Week 43, 2015 - 434,162 units / £15.3m [notable releases: Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate]
Week 42, 2015 - 307,453 units / £10.1m [notable releases: nothing]
Week 41, 2015 - 369,581 units / £12.9m [notable releases: Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection]
Week 40, 2015 - 581,418 units / £21.9m [notable releases: Lego Dimensions]

Total - 1,692,614 units / £60.2m

[B]October, 2014[/B]

Week 43, 2014 - 438,666 units / £13.6m [notable releases: nothing]
Week 42, 2014 - 493,041 units / £16.6m [notable releases: The Evil Within, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!]
Week 41, 2014 - 449,668 units / £19.3m [notable releases: Alien: Isolation, DriveClub]
Week 40, 2014 - 761,269 units / £28.5m [notable releases: Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, Forza Horizon 2, Super Smash Bros.]

Total - 2,142,644 units / £78.0m
 
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