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[Chris1964]

I think the difference is the titles are actually hitting the shelves now compared to in 2008/09.

Of course the price drop and redesign helped.

The impression that PS3 had not big third party support the previous two years is wrong. 2010 isn't suddenly the year that everyone develops for PS3 while the previous years didn't. Support was and remains strong. If there wasn't the price cut I doubt PS3 would do half of the numbers it did after the slim launch.

 

[spwolf]

The impression that PS3 had not big third party support the previous two years is wrong. 2010 isn't suddenly the year that everyone develops for PS3 while the previous years didn't. Support was and remains strong. If there wasn't the price cut I doubt PS3 would do half of the numbers it did after the slim launch.

sure, it is combination of everything, as i already said... but there are probably some decisions going to be made based on last 3 months that will make it even stronger.

which still does not change the fact that Wii will sell like crazy as long as there are games for it.

 

[gerg]

sure, it is combination of everything, as i already said... but there are probably some decisions going to be made based on last 3 months that will make it even stronger.

Which would involve which franchises, in particular, moving from the Wii to the PS3?

 

[spwolf]

Which would involve which franchises, in particular, moving from the Wii to the PS3?

are there any left other than mh3? what i thought about was new developments, there were a lot of smaller mature titles for wii that did not do that well... if their development was to start today, they probably would not have been made for wii.

i have no doubt that wii will continue to be (global) market leader regardless of competitor price, as long as they can keep putting out the games that their customers want to buy. Even if PS3 was $250 this holiday, i dont think it would have matched Wii sales... force is strong with that one.

 

[gerg]

what i thought about was new developments, there were a lot of smaller mature titles for wii that did not do that well... if their development was to start today, they probably would not have been made for wii.

Not only is the number of "smaller mature titles" that have been developed for the Wii incredibly low when compared to those of the 360 or the PS3 (I presume you are referring to titles like the RE on-rails shooters, and DS:E), but almost all of these titles share IPs with series that have received larger entries on the PS3 and 360s themselves. So, no, I don't think that their disappearance represents a large shift away from the Wii.

If we're getting to the point of looking for the less noticeable and important tiles, then I think we're changing our definition of "significant change of development from the Wii to the PS3" so much that it essentially becomes meaningless.

Bear in mind, I don't doubt that some titles may change development, but with the current state of affairs as they are I don't see the significance of this.

 

[m.i.s.]

When will NDS reach the next big milestone of 30 million LTD?

Anyone want to have a guesstimate / do some quick sums?

 

[Chris1964]

are there any left other than mh3? what i thought about was new developments, there were a lot of smaller mature titles for wii that did not do that well... if their development was to start today, they probably would not have been made for wii.

i have no doubt that wii will continue to be (global) market leader regardless of competitor price, as long as they can keep putting out the games that their customers want to buy. Even if PS3 was $250 this holiday, i dont think it would have matched Wii sales... force is strong with that one.

Aha. So you don't know but you suppose that if the development of a small ''mature'' title was about to start today it would move immediately to PS3. Of course there are other franchises on Wii but Monster Hunter 3 is the only big one and somehow I don't see it moving to PS3.

The big question this year is DS. It is the market leader, it sells a lot of software and you would expect it to have the major support. But it's not that way. The only big publisher that sees DS as its primary system is Level 5. Even Square Enix has nothing (announced) after DQ VI. Is there anyone who can explain this? (and please don't start with DS 2). No one wants to develop for Wii but what's the excuse with DS?

 

[Chris1964]

When will NDS reach the next big milestone of 30 million LTD?

Anyone want to have a guesstimate / do some quick sums?

End of March

 

[gerg]

The big question this year is DS. It is the market leader, it sells a lot of software and you would expect it to have the major support. But it's not that way. The only big publisher that sees DS as its primary system is Level 5. Even Square Enix has nothing (announced) after DQ VI. Is there anyone who can explain this? (and please don't start with DS 2). No one wants to develop for Wii but what's the excuse with DS?

Why not?

If the DS2 does receive a late 2010 or early 2011 release, now would be the time that you would expect third-party development for the platform to be underway.

 

[Chris1964]

Why not?

If the DS2 does receive a late 2010 or early 2011 release, now would be the time that you would expect third-party development for the platform to be underway.

No way. PSP 2 is possible to come earlier than DS 2. Why does PSP get all that support today?

 

[gerg]

No way.

You'll have to take charlequin up on that one.

PSP 2 is possible to come earlier than DS 2. Why does PSP get all that support today?

Out of curiosity, what new games have been announced for late 2010 for the PSP recently?

Bear in mind, a lot of the titles that are being released for the PSP this year may be the result of the system's resurgence during 2008, as well as Sony's attempt to bolster development for the system alongside the launch of the PSP go.

 

[Kurosaki Ichigo]

No way. PSP 2 is possible to come earlier than DS 2. Why does PSP get all that support today?

PSP doesn't get all support at all, we're just looking at 3 months as in we know barely nothing from April onwards.

And its not like PSP got the support from DS, since its mostly franchises/teams that have worked on PSP before to very good results, hence their commitment. Phantasy Star Portable -> Phantasy Star Portable 2, GvsG -> GvsG Next Plus, MultiRaid 1 -> MultiRaid 2, Gundam Battle something -> Gundam Assasult, MGS Portable Ops -> MGS Peace Walker, CC7 & Dissidia -> KH BBS, Kenka Banchou 3 -> Kenka Banchou 4, Tekken 5 DR -> Tekken 6, lots of ADV ports, lots of anime games, Falcom dedication, Acquire dedication...

Its the usual stuff, just a bit closer than usual. There's nothing to say, hey look PSP is stealing the DS, PS3, Wii whatever support...PSP is getting just more PSP-like support.

Now why DS support in Q1 is lower than usual, well, maybe just development cycles, not wanting to hit near DQVI, dunno. I'd say its unlikely it'll remain this way all year.

 

[Chris1964]

You'll have to take charlequin up on that one.

I'll take everyone up on this one. Wii falls in sales, Wii HD is coming, DS continues its strong sales, DS 2 is coming. Either way Nintendo must always be the first. Typical Nintendo. Never before the market leader was the first to launch a new system, what's the reason now? (and especially with DS)

Out of curiosity, what new games have been announced for late 2010 for the PSP recently?

Bear in mind, a lot of the titles that are being released for the PSP this year may be the result of the system's resurgence during 2008, as well as Sony's attempt to bolster development for the system alongside the launch of the PSP go.

New PSP games are announced all the time, but even at the impossible scenario that DS 2 was coming early next year would DS be dead at the moment DS 2 launched?

 

[Chris1964]

PSP doesn't get all support at all, we're just looking at 3 months as in we know barely nothing from April onwards.

I didn't say that PSP gets all the support but it gets all that support comparing to DS.
We know what's coming for PSP after April but we don't have the release dates

[PSP] Final Fantasy Agito XIII (Square Enix)
[PSP] The 3rd Birthday (Square Enix)
[PSP] The Little Battlers (Level 5)
[PSP] Ushiro (Level 5) (?)
[PSP] Monster Hunter Diary: Pokapoka Ailu Village (Capcom)
[PSP] Resident Evil Portable (Capcom)
[PSP] Last Ranker (Capcom)
[PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 3 (Capcom) (?)

I'd say these are some very strong releases and most of them 2010.

 

[duckroll]

I didn't say that PSP gets all the support but it gets all that support comparing to DS.
We know what's coming for PSP after April but we don't have the release dates

[PSP] Final Fantasy Agito XIII (Square Enix)
[PSP] The 3rd Birthday (Square Enix)
[PSP] The Little Battlers (Level 5)
[PSP] Ushiro (Level 5) (?)
[PSP] Monster Hunter Diary: Pokapoka Ailu Village (Capcom)
[PSP] Resident Evil Portable (Capcom)
[PSP] Last Ranker (Capcom)
[PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 3 (Capcom) (?)

I'd say these are some very strong releases and most of them 2010.

Ushiro is most definitely not 2010, or even 2011. Level 5 is starting to run into the classic S-E problem of having more announced titles than development staff, so we'll probably see it on the backburner for a while. I expect that Little Battlers and Ninokuni will be the only new Level 5 IPs we see in 2010.

What I feel is interesting is how even a low-tier developer like Image Epoch is releasing 2 new PSP games in 2010, with no more DS titles announced. It's a little bit weird, but maybe it's just the way their development cycles have ended up?

 

[Nirolak]

Ushiro is most definitely not 2010, or even 2011. Level 5 is starting to run into the classic S-E problem of having more announced titles than development staff, so we'll probably see it on the backburner for a while. I expect that Little Battlers and Ninokuni will be the only new Level 5 IPs we see in 2010.

What I feel is interesting is how even a low-tier developer like Image Epoch is releasing 2 new PSP games in 2010, with no more DS titles announced. It's a little bit weird, but maybe it's just the way their development cycles have ended up?

Well, Sony did imply that the results of their PSP support efforts would extend into 2010. Perhaps some of the Japanese publishers decided to make a few more PSP titles to take advantage of the support?

I mean, Last Ranker seems to be marketed as being developed by both Capcom and Image Epoch. I wonder if Capcom was actually the one to initiate the idea.

 

[Jonnyram]

Ushiro is most definitely not 2010, or even 2011. Level 5 is starting to run into the classic S-E problem of having more announced titles than development staff, so we'll probably see it on the backburner for a while. I expect that Little Battlers and Ninokuni will be the only new Level 5 IPs we see in 2010.

You'll be surprised at how much Level-5 has expanded in the last couple of years. I think their releases will be pouring out soon.

 

[Kurosaki Ichigo]

I didn't say that PSP gets all the support but it gets all that support comparing to DS.
We know what's coming for PSP after April but we don't have the release dates

I'd say these are some very strong releases and most of them 2010.

Sure they are big but what I say is that the support there is the PSP usual one, its not the reason for the DS one to be lower. Where did DS Q1 support go? Dunno, but it didn't go to PSP Q1. PSP Q1 is made of PSP support, it didn't steal DS one.

 

[Stumpokapow]

I'll take everyone up on this one. Wii falls in sales, Wii HD is coming, DS continues its strong sales, DS 2 is coming. Either way Nintendo must always be the first. Typical Nintendo.

I think this part of the response assigns too much victimhood to Nintendo. I mean, you seem to have a beef with people suggesting Wii HD is going to come... but both Sony and Microsoft have basically said "we're relaunching our systems with motion controls". Now, I suspect that's subject to some sort of third pillar bet hedging, but it's not like everyone here is saying ":bow Microsoft :bow Sony u guys erul nintenblowz needs Wii HD grafix 2 b taken srsly!!!".

DS2 is even less controversial. The DS has been out for five an a half years. They've done 4 models of it and there's no clear path for a 5th. I outlined my case for DS2 in another thread, but I don't think it's grounded in me holding Nintendo to a different standard than anyone else.

Never before the market leader was the first to launch a new system, what's the reason now?

Of course, here you're discussing, I don't know, 2 or 3 data points?

The NES->SNES transition didn't involve any competition, so that's not a data point. The GB->GBC->GBA transition didn't involve any competition, so that's not a data point. The DS launched at the exact same time as the PSP, so that's not a data point.

The SNES->N64 transition Nintendo went last, but I don't believe they saw either Sega or Sony as serious competition. The PSX also took something around 3 years to sell its first 10 million units worldwide, so why would you take it as serious competition at that point? The PS1 -> PS2 transition, Sony went second of four but they went ahead of Nintendo, who, again, were their only serious competition. In fact, if anything I think the Dreamcast exceeded expectations, honestly.

As for the PS3, I'm not sure Sony considered anyone competition, but if they did they had targeted a Spring 2006 launch, which would have put them a few months before Nintendo and a few months after Microsoft, and they announced their console at the exact same time Nintendo announced theirs.

So it's not like history has a graveyard of people who went first. In reality, I believe only the PS1 -> PS2 and PS2 -> PS3 transitions are examples of market leaders launching new systems mindful of the competition, and both of those transitions have mixed readings.

 

[gerg]

I'll take everyone up on this one. Wii falls in sales, Wii HD is coming, DS continues its strong sales, DS 2 is coming. Either way Nintendo must always be the first. Typical Nintendo. Never before the market leader was the first to launch a new system, what's the reason now? (and especially with DS)

IIRC, this was discussed in the thread regarding Iwata's comments about the next-gen DS: that is, companies always aim to launch successors at around the apex of their predecessors. This has been true of the DS in regards to the GBA, the PS2 in regards to the PS1, and the PS3 in regards to the PS2.

I know this doesn't deal with your comments about the market-leader rarely being the first to release a new console, but I don't think we should fall into the trap of believing that, as it has never happened before, it can't happen now. Rather, we should examine the various specific reasons that Nintendo might have for launching their next-gen handheld first, and for this we may reference the fact that they have exhausted quite a lot of the potential software that they could release for the DS.

Moreover, why does Nintendo care about the time of the PSP2's launch in the first place?

New PSP games are announced all the time, but even at the impossible scenario that DS 2 was coming early next year would DS be dead at the moment DS 2 launched?

Probably not.

But, announcing a successor is very much a self-fulfilling prophecy of when the predecessor's sales will tail-off. This is because by announcing a new console alone you immediately lessen the value to a consumer of buying the old console; people decide to wait, and you receive fewer sales.

I don't think you can know for sure when a system's sales will reach their apex; inevitably there will be the tension between squeezing your current system for all its worth, and releasing your next system in a competitive manner.

 

[duckroll]

You'll be surprised at how much Level-5 has expanded in the last couple of years. I think their releases will be pouring out soon.

I'm perfectly aware of how much Level 5 has expanded, that doesn't change the fact that they're announcing 4-5 titles every year, without being able to release all of them before announcing more the next year. This has happened two years in a row now. Hino himself officially said at the 2009 Vision event that Inazuma Eleven Break and Ushiro are being put on the back burner because they have to prioritize games which are more "ready" first. They have fixed teams committed to releasing one Layton game every year, and given the success of Inazuma Eleven 2, the next game can't be that far behind either.

Notice I said "new IPs", which does not include a new I11 and Layton game for 2010, which is more or less expected. I honestly don't see them releasing more than Ninokuni and Little Battlers as new IPs in 2010, and I'm doubtful that White Knight Chronicles 2 will be out by the end of 2010, although it's possible. Fantasy Life is not developed by Level 5, but Brownie Brown, so maaaaaybe that'll make it out, but I'm betting on it being pushed back too.

Considering all that, I expect even MORE titles to be announced at 2010 Vision, even though they still have Inazuma 11 Break and Ushiro announced for 2 years running and not released, as well as a Ninokuni console port specifically mentioned multiple times. That's exactly what I mean when I say they're running in to the S-E problem, it's not that they're a small developer by any means, but that they have larger ambitions than their realistic output will allow per year.

I mean, Last Ranker seems to be marketed as being developed by both Capcom and Image Epoch. I wonder if Capcom was actually the one to initiate the idea.

No, it's all Image Epoch. It was a proposal Mikage and Niinou came up with to pitch to Capcom.

 

[Nirolak]

On the note of relevant third party Wii titles, it seems that the next Taiko might be coming with a new peripheral. That or Namco might be launching another drumming series for the Wii. It would probably make sense to rename the game though if they're using more than Taiko drums.

They don't seem to understand that Taiko is already successful in Japan, but that's a bit beside the point.

Move over Taiko no Tatsujin! Namco Bandai is working on another drum game, one that doesn’t require a plastic drum.

A patent filed by Namco Bandai with Pac-Man Championship Edition Executive Producer, Nobutaka Nakajima, as the inventor outlines a drum game with Wii remote drumstick shells. OK, the patent doesn’t single the Wii out, but it requires a remote shaped controller with an accelerometer. In other words, this game system is designed for a Wii remote.

After you insert two remotes into Namco Bandai patent pending drumstick shells you can use a desk or any flat surface like a drum. Don’t worry, your remotes are safe from percussion damage. The shells have a stick that absorbs the shock. Aside from the unique controller, this drum game plays more or less like any other music game — you hit moving notes on beat.

(Lots of Patent Images)

Well, there is a key difference. The type of drum sound made depends on the drumstick angle on impact. Hit it straight down for a tom drum sound. Tilt the controller left and you have a snare drum. A bunch of motions, sounds, and sketches for the controller are shown in these diagrams.

(Lots of Patent Images)

Rock Band contender? Probably not, but Namco Bandai may be able to break into the music genre overseas with this game.

Source: http://www.siliconera.com/2010/01/08/namco-bandai-developing-a-new-kind-of-drumming-game/

Requiring two Wii remotes for the game is kind of surprising, but then again, I imagine a lot of people have two.

No, it's all Image Epoch. It was a proposal Mikage and Niinou came up with to pitch to Capcom.

Well there goes that theory. Thanks for the information.

 

[duckroll]

I hope Last Ranker is a mid-2010 release or later, because if not, it's totally going to tank given the current vibe right now. Awareness for the game is pretty much non-existent for the game, and even though it was playable at Jump Festa, I haven't seen a single demo impression online. Not a good sign at all.

 

[Road]

Dengeki sales Dec. 21 - 27, 2009:

01. / 02. [WII] New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Nintendo) - 512,621 / 2,409,710
02. / 00. [NDS] The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (Nintendo) - 303,552 / NEW
03. / 03. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) - 217,178 / 2,276,414
04. / 01. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 190,183 / 1,645,688
05. / 04. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 112,956 / 1,318,380
06. / 08. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) - 77,647 / 1,576,705
07. / 05. [WII] PokePark Wii: Pikachu no Daibouken (Pokemon) - 74,211 / 272,505
08. / 07. [NDS] Pokemon Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 70,005 / 1,778,412
09. / 12. [WII] Taiko no Tatusjin Wii: Dodoon to 2 Yome! (Bandai Namco Games) - 65,444 / 194,948
10. / 06. [NDS] Layton Kyouju to Majin no Fue (Level 5) - 64,632 / 545,943

Other software:
[NDS] The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (Nintendo) - FW: 298,000 / LTD: 919,000

- Wii Top 5 as of Dec. 27th:

1. [WII] Wii Fit (Nintendo) - 3,470,000
2. [WII] Wii Sports (Nintendo) - 3,440,000
3. [WII] Wii Play (Nintendo) - 2,810,000
4. [WII] Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo) - 2,478,000
5. [WII] New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Nintendo) - 2,410,000

Hardware |  This Week |  Last Week |    YTD     |    LTD
------------------------------------------------------------
NDS      |    212.622 |    184.089 |  3.986.613 | 28.964.704
PSP      |    114.556 |     85.526 |  2.240.074 | 13.389.392
Wii      |    214.432 |    196.007 |  1.962.393 |  9.545.436
PS3      |    113.617 |    243.814 |  1.782.555 |  4.484.698
360      |      7.809 |      8.024 |    357.472 |  1.208.655
PS2      |      4.053 |      2.829 |            |
------------------------------------------------------------   
Total    |    667.089 |    720.289 |

http://news.dengeki.com/elem/000/000/226/226702/

 

[Stumpokapow]

But, announcing a successor is very much a self-fulfilling prophecy of when the predecessor's sales will tail-off. This is because by announcing a new console alone you immediately lessen the value to a consumer of buying the old console; people decide to wait, and you receive fewer sales.

I wouldn't put it that way. When you announce a new console, you have three main phases:
1) Sales begin to taper naturally, last major hit titles come out.
2) System transitions to "value offering". Too poor to buy our new shit? Buy our old shit, it's all margin for us anyway! Software support reflects purchasing demographic. Sales slowly decline.
3) Sales evaporate, console discontinued, software support limited to token movie games, pachinko crap, annualized title downports.

It's a pretty graceful decline unless, like NoA with the GBA or Microsoft worldwide with the OG XBOX, you swing the axe prematurely and actually prevent the graceful decline for strategic reasons.

 

[gerg]

It's a pretty graceful decline unless, like NoA with the GBA or Microsoft worldwide with the OG XBOX, you swing the axe prematurely and actually prevent the graceful decline for strategic reasons.

Fair enough.

Although, I didn't mean to say anything about how the sales will slow down (I probably shouldn't have written "when"), but simply that by announcing a new console invariably some portion of the potential audience will hold off from purchasing the old console.

Anecdotal case in point: me. I was very much interested in a DSi XL, but probably won't buy it now if the new DS launches before the end of the year.

 

[Vinnk]

Went to a few stores today (a department store, a game/manga store and one of the chain game stores). NSMBwii was sold out. Didn't talk to any staff today so I can only assume one of 2 things:

1. The got more stock in and already sold out.

2. Small towns like mine did not get a restock yet. They just sent all the copies to big cities.

Either way, it is quite a hard game to come by around here.

I will try to go to one of the shops where I have friends on staff and see if I can find out some more info.

Big push is starting for DQVI not only at the game store but also at the 7-11 stores. I hope S-E dosen't burn them again and change the release date.

 

[Road]

Dengeki Sales, Dec. 28 - Jan 03:

01. / 01. [WII] New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Nintendo) - 317,511 / 2,727,221
02. / 03. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) - 169,937 / 2,446,351
03. / 04. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 115,222 / 1,760,910
04. / 02. [NDS] The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (Nintendo) - 113,853 / 417,405
05. / 05. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 104,022 / 1,422,402
06. / 06. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) - 77,561 / 1,654,266
07. / 14. [PSP] Phantasy Star Portable 2 (Sega) - 48,954 / 514,676
08. / 10. [NDS] Layton Kyouju to Majin no Fue (Level 5) - 43,758 / 589,701
09. / 08. [NDS] Pokemon Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 43,556 / 1,821,968
10. / 19. [WII] Momotarou Dentetsu 2010: Sengoku Ishin no Hero Daishuugou! no Maki (Hudson) - 40,667 / 182,742
11. / 09. [WII] Taiko no Tatusjin Wii: Dodoon to 2 Yome! (Bandai Namco Games) - 39,378 / 234,326
12. / 07. [WII] PokePark Wii: Pikachu no Daibouken (Pokemon) - 37,283 / 309,788
13. / 16. [PSP] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 37,094 / 161,028
14. / 23. [WII] Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo) - 34,663 / 2,513,000
15. / 11. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold (Pokemon) - 34,133 / ?
16. / 29. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (PSP the Best) (Capcom) - 31,450 / 51,335
17. / 22. [PSP] Kidou Senshi Gundam: Gundam Vs. Gundam Next Plus (Bandai Namco Games) - 30,033 / 384,586
18. / 12. [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Kyoui no Shinryakusha - Blizzard (Level 5) - 28,253 / ?
19. / 13. [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Kyoui no Shinryakusha - Fire (Level 5) - 27,484 / ?
20. / 15. [NDS] Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Nintendo) - 26,942 / ?

Other software LTD:
[WII] Wii Fit (Nintendo) - 3,472,000
[WII] Wii Play (Nintendo) - 2,817,000
[NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 3,505,000

Hardware |  This Week |  Last Week |    YTD     |    LTD
------------------------------------------------------------
NDS      |    174.780 |    212.622 |    174.780 | 29.139.484
PSP      |    135.916 |    114.556 |    135.916 | 13.525.308
Wii      |    175.191 |    214.432 |    175.191 |  9.720.627
PS3      |    113.276 |    113.617 |    113.276 |  4.597.974
360      |      9.667 |      7.809 |      9.667 |  1.218.322
PS2      |      4.597 |      4.053 |      4.597 |
------------------------------------------------------------   
Total    |    613.427 |    667.089 |

- Holiday period ranking (2009-11-02 ~ 2010-01-03):

1. [WII] New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Nintendo) - 2,730,000
2. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 1,760,000
3. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) - 930,000
4. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 680,000
5. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 640,000

- Holiday period market analysis, year over year:

-- Hardware down 3.0% to 73.9 billion yen;
-- Software up 2.6% to 104.7 billion yen;
-- Total up 0.2% to 178.6 billion yen;

-- Wii sales, 48.6 billion yen (+21.4%):
---- hardware: 18.1 billion yen (+8.7%);
---- software: 30.5 billion yen (+30.4%);

-- PS3 sales, 48.8 billion yen (+101.3%):
---- hardware: 22.2 billion yen (+88.6%);
---- software: 26.6 billion yen (+113.4%);

http://ascii.jp/elem/000/000/488/488371/
http://news.dengeki.com/elem/000/000/226/226702/
http://research.ascii.jp/elem/000/000/035/35100/index.html

 

[Spiegel]

Dengeki PS sales Dec. 14 - 20, 2009:

01. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 1,455,505 / 1,455,505
02. [PSP] Phantasy Star Portable 2 (Sega) - 51,268 / 415,522
03. [PSP] Queen's Blade (Namco Bandai) - 50,526 / 50,526
04. [PSP] Gundam VS. Gundam NEXT PLUS (Namco Bandai) - 32,506 / 323,531
05. [PSP] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 32,411 / 81,178
06. [PS3] Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (Square Enix) - 27,375 / 130,885
07. [PSP] Naruto Shippuden Narutimate 3 (Namco Bandai) - 27,271 / 107,612
08. [PS2] Winning Eleven 2010 (KONAMI) - 16,806 / 49,100
09. [PS3] Winning Eleven 2010 (KONAMI) - 15,469 / 370,911
10. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G PSP the Best (Capcom) - 9,511 / 1,080,715

http://dps.dengeki.com/2009/12/28/p8992/


Dengeki PS sales Dec. 21 - 27, 2009:

01. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 190,183 / 1,645,688
02. [PSP] Phantasy Star Portable 2 (Sega) - 50,200 / 465,722
03. [PSP] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 42,756 / 123,934
04. [PSP] Naruto Shippuden Narutimate 3 (Namco Bandai) - 32,445 / 140,057
05. [PSP] Gundam VS. Gundam NEXT PLUS (Namco Bandai) - 31,022 / 354,553
06. [PSP] Lucky ☆ Star Net Idol Master (Kadokawa) - 27,558 / 27,558
07. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G PSP the Best (Capcom) - 19,885 / 19,885
08. [PS3] Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (Square Enix) - 18,424 / 149,309
09. [PS3] Winning Eleven 2010 (KONAMI) - 17,727 / 388,638
10. [PSP] Assassin's Creed Bloodlines (Ubisoft) - 15,422 / 15,422



Dengeki PS sales Dec. 28 - Jan. 3, 2009:

01. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 115,222 / 1,760,910
02. [PSP] Phantasy Star Portable 2 (Sega) - 48,954 / 514,676
03. [PSP] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 37,094 / 161,028
04. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G PSP the Best (Capcom) - 31,450 / 51,335
05. [PSP] Gundam VS. Gundam NEXT PLUS (Namco Bandai) - 30,033 / 384,586
06. [PS3] Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (Square Enix) - 24,527 / 173,836
07. [PSP] Naruto Shippuden Narutimate 3 (Namco Bandai) - 22,890 / 162,947
08. [PS3] Winning Eleven 2010 (KONAMI) - 19,182 / 407,820
09. [PSP] Gran Turismo (SCE) - 18,983 / 288,516
10. [PS2] Winning Eleven 2010 (KONAMI) - 12,872 / 77,200

http://dps.dengeki.com/2010/01/08/p9353/

 

[gogogow]

Great sales for PSP2 and holy shit at MHP2G the best of the best edition

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

I expect a massive hardware bump for the Ps3 when GT5 arrives.

I don't think Wii has anything of that caliber for this year.

Even if hardware made for an even playing field between Wii and PS3 games, Super Mario Galaxy didn't sell that much less than Gran Turismo 4.

The impression that PS3 had not big third party support the previous two years is wrong. 2010 isn't suddenly the year that everyone develops for PS3 while the previous years didn't. Support was and remains strong. If there wasn't the price cut I doubt PS3 would do half of the numbers it did after the slim launch.

Well, the release of a game bigger than PS3's previous #1, #2, and #3 games combined couldn't have hurt.

I think the notion that Nintendo could bust out SMG2, Other M, and Zelda Wii in rapid succession leaves a lot of people incredulous, but I don't think it's entirely inconceivable.

Yeah. I mean, just last gen they released SMS, Wind Waker, and Metroid Prime within an 8 month span.

 

[gogogow]

Even if hardware made for an even playing field between Wii and PS3 games, Super Mario Galaxy didn't sell that much less than Gran Turismo 4.

The difference is that GT5 is the first full-fledged GT being released for the PS3 and SMG2 isn't (although there will be some overlap because of GT5P).

 

[Road]

http://dps.dengeki.com/2010/01/08/p9353/

Dengeki 2009 Top 5 (2008-12-28 ~ 2009-12-27):

1. [NDS] Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies (Square Enix) - 4,110,000
2. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 3,430,000
3. [WII] New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Nintendo) - 2,410,000
4. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) - 2,280,000
5. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) - 1,650,000

 

[danielijohnson]

I know it's been beaten to death, but Duckroll has highlighted just how little Sony cares about the Go as a platform. If they took it seriously, at all, they would have worked out a deal with a 3rd party or even just themselves to have a major PSP release come out as a PSN/digital-exclusive for the PSP, either unavailable on UMD or at least a timed exclusive (coming to UMD later).

It's a joke.

Honestly, if the Go is any indication, the PSP2 will STILL have some sort of physical, proprietary format.

 

[JoshuaJSlone]

Well, the release of a game bigger than PS3's previous #1, #2, and #3 games combined couldn't have hurt.

Saying this made me wonder something; did Square Enix just become the top publisher on PS3 with one giant move? As it turns out, not quite yet, but they have jumped into an exclusive club. Between Modern Warfare Best, Modern Warfare 2, and Final Fantasy XIII they're over 2 million on PS3, something only Konami and Namco Bandai could previously claim.

 

[spwolf]

I know it's been beaten to death, but Duckroll has highlighted just how little Sony cares about the Go as a platform. If they took it seriously, at all, they would have worked out a deal with a 3rd party or even just themselves to have a major PSP release come out as a PSN/digital-exclusive for the PSP, either unavailable on UMD or at least a timed exclusive (coming to UMD later).

.

so showing care means sticking 50m of your users in the back? Somehow that does not sound well...

 

[spwolf]

The difference is that GT5 is the first full-fledged GT being released for the PS3 and SMG2 isn't (although there will be some overlap because of GT5P).

Well GT5P did sell some consoles... as i recall bundle was quite popular.

What does the massive sales for the budle actually mean? I dont think we know what to expect from regular PS3 sales in march, let alone bundles.

 

[ElFly]

so showing care means sticking 50m of your users in the back? Somehow that does not sound well...

Regular PSPs can't buy games off PSN?

 

[danielijohnson]

so showing care means sticking 50m of your users in the back? Somehow that does not sound well...

Except regular PSPs can download perfectly fine from PSN...?

By your logic the release of the GO itself is backstabbing, so yeah they obviously don't care.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

No way. PSP 2 is possible to come earlier than DS 2. Why does PSP get all that support today?

Deep in the bowels of Sony, there is a room that contains little jars with the testicles of Japanese 3rd party developers. 3rd parties in Japan know what it may mean to leave Sony. Most don't want to risk it.

 

[duckroll]

It makes zero sense for any major game to be a PSN "exclusive" at all. If it's a big enough title, then the last thing you want is to cut off the retail channel and limit your sales. It's just bad business. Sony can't even convince all third party publishers to put all their games on PSN day and date with the retail releases, so....

There has actually been a PSN exclusive JP game release though. It's Disgaea Infinite - a budget priced visual novel adventure using the Infinite Loop gameplay system, but featuring Disgaea themed story and characters.

 

[danielijohnson]

It makes zero sense for any major game to be a PSN "exclusive" at all. If it's a big enough title, then the last thing you want is to cut off the retail channel and limit your sales. It's just bad business. Sony can't even convince all third party publishers to put all their games on PSN day and date with the retail releases, so....

There has actually been a PSN exclusive JP game release though. It's Disgaea Infinite - a budget priced visual novel adventure using the Infinite Loop gameplay system, but featuring Disgaea themed story and characters.

I'm not saying it makes sense. I'm saying that if they took the PSPGo, which itself makes absolutely zero sense, seriously that they would attempt to aggressively nurture a market for it. That's obviously not the case. It is a failure on all accounts.

 

[charlequin]

Is there anyone who can explain this? (and please don't start with DS 2).

Errr... why not? By far the most likely explanation I can see for companies like S-E that have given strong support to the DS throughout its lifespan seeing a decreased output for the system is preparation for a successor system.

...actually, who are we even seeing pull back on the DS besides Square-Enix? Capcom and Konami have always been crappy on it. Atlus has a game coming out in two months.

I'll take everyone up on this one. Wii falls in sales, Wii HD is coming, DS continues its strong sales, DS 2 is coming. Either way Nintendo must always be the first. Typical Nintendo. Never before the market leader was the first to launch a new system, what's the reason now? (and especially with DS)

I've expounded on this at length in other threads where it's arguably somewhat more on-topic, but the tl;dr version is that Nintendo has to balance the DS' continued strong sales (which would push them towards just keeping the DS alive forever) against the launch dates of the PSP2 (which won't be later than 2011) and the Wii-2 (which won't be later than 2012) and the potential to get close to saturation on potential software releases and hardware sales.

I'm not saying they're gonna put it out right away, but a DS2 planned for Q1-2 2011 could already be resulting in publishers like S-E moving over some of their potential planned releases.

 

[The_lascar]

Capcom and Konami have always been crappy on it.

Ace Attorney: 500k
Ace Attorney 4: 620k
Megaman Starforce: 590k

 

[°°ToMmY°°]

Except regular PSPs can download perfectly fine from PSN...?

By your logic the release of the GO itself is backstabbing, so yeah they obviously don't care.

if PSPs can download it just fine what's the point in releasing it through DD only? how would that push PSPgo. you're just talking out of your ass.

 

[AniHawk]

Ace Attorney: 500k
Ace Attorney 4: 620k
Megaman Starforce: 590k

I think he means level of support, not so much the sales the games received.

 

[ethelred]

I don't see the Sega game that crossed a million or M64DS!

The list is missing Final Fantasy III, too, just from skimming it offhand.

Hino himself officially said at the 2009 Vision event that Inazuma Eleven Break and Ushiro are being put on the back burner because they have to prioritize games which are more "ready" first. They have fixed teams committed to releasing one Layton game every year, and given the success of Inazuma Eleven 2, the next game can't be that far behind either.

Notice I said "new IPs", which does not include a new I11 and Layton game for 2010, which is more or less expected. I honestly don't see them releasing more than Ninokuni and Little Battlers as new IPs in 2010, and I'm doubtful that White Knight Chronicles 2 will be out by the end of 2010, although it's possible. Fantasy Life is not developed by Level 5, but Brownie Brown, so maaaaaybe that'll make it out, but I'm betting on it being pushed back too.

I agree that there's little question we'll see an Inazuma Eleven 3 in 2010 given that the second game is, like, a week away from being a million-seller (and already is in Hino's eyes since that's how many retailers have purchased). And I agree we probably won't see Ushiro (sadly) or Break this year, either, given how Hino specifically commented on them being pushed back because of the number of projects being worked on. I do think we'll see Fantasy Life, though, just because so much of the groundwork on that game was already completed for Layton 4.

If I had to guess, I'd say early-to-mid year releases for Ninokuni and Lttle Battlers followed by Inazuma Eleven 3, Layton 5, and Fantasy Life in the second half of the year.

Sure they are big but what I say is that the support there is the PSP usual one, its not the reason for the DS one to be lower. Where did DS Q1 support go? Dunno, but it didn't go to PSP Q1. PSP Q1 is made of PSP support, it didn't steal DS one.

Well, it did steal some DS support, though. As noted, Square Enix was mostly focused on the DS for a good long while, but now it has a higher number of (announced) projects for the PSP for 2010, and most of them are pretty significant projects as well. Square has released 9 DS games a year for the past three years, and this year all we know of so far is DQ6 and Lufia... right? I can't think of anything else. That's a pretty big drop.

And as Ducky noted, Image Epoch was primarily a DS developer, but they've now shifted over to the PSP with two games already announced for it this year. MMV seems to have been doing more stuff on the PSP than the DS as well recently, too (going from the back half of '09 forward). There aren't a lot of Sega projects announced for the DS right now, where they had been pretty prominent on the system for a while -- but Valkyrie of the Battlefield 2 is coming soon, and we can bet there'll be a Phantasy Star Portable 3 and probably some other games as well.

Errr... why not? By far the most likely explanation I can see for companies like S-E that have given strong support to the DS throughout its lifespan seeing a decreased output for the system is preparation for a successor system.

...actually, who are we even seeing pull back on the DS besides Square-Enix? Capcom and Konami have always been crappy on it. Atlus has a game coming out in two months.

Actually, counterintuitively, Capcom's efforts on the DS seem to be higher lately, with Ghost Trick and Okamiden coming in addition to the Ace Attorney and Mega Man games that have pretty much been the staples of their yearly releases.

 

[Chris1964]

I think this part of the response assigns too much victimhood to Nintendo. I mean, you seem to have a beef with people suggesting Wii HD is going to come... but both Sony and Microsoft have basically said "we're relaunching our systems with motion controls". Now, I suspect that's subject to some sort of third pillar bet hedging, but it's not like everyone here is saying ":bow Microsoft :bow Sony u guys erul nintenblowz needs Wii HD grafix 2 b taken srsly!!!".

Sony also said the same thing with PSP Go, that it would be a relaunch of the system. Nintendo believed that 64DD would be a revolution that would turn the market in favor of them. Because companies have plans this doesn't mean they will come true. Nintendo will launch Wii HD in order to face Wand and Natal and after 1 (barely 2) years it will launch Wii 2? This whole Wii HD situation is simular to 32X in a way and I believe Nintendo is smarter than Sega.

DS2 is even less controversial. The DS has been out for five an a half years. They've done 4 models of it and there's no clear path for a 5th. I outlined my case for DS2 in another thread, but I don't think it's grounded in me holding Nintendo to a different standard than anyone else.

Of course, here you're discussing, I don't know, 2 or 3 data points?

The NES->SNES transition didn't involve any competition, so that's not a data point. The GB->GBC->GBA transition didn't involve any competition, so that's not a data point. The DS launched at the exact same time as the PSP, so that's not a data point.

The SNES->N64 transition Nintendo went last, but I don't believe they saw either Sega or Sony as serious competition. The PSX also took something around 3 years to sell its first 10 million units worldwide, so why would you take it as serious competition at that point? The PS1 -> PS2 transition, Sony went second of four but they went ahead of Nintendo, who, again, were their only serious competition. In fact, if anything I think the Dreamcast exceeded expectations, honestly.

As for the PS3, I'm not sure Sony considered anyone competition, but if they did they had targeted a Spring 2006 launch, which would have put them a few months before Nintendo and a few months after Microsoft, and they announced their console at the exact same time Nintendo announced theirs.

So it's not like history has a graveyard of people who went first. In reality, I believe only the PS1 -> PS2 and PS2 -> PS3 transitions are examples of market leaders launching new systems mindful of the competition, and both of those transitions have mixed readings.

Bottom line from what you say is that market leader is never the first, one way or the other, and every time Nintendo is the last. Who guarantees Nintendo that they will be market leaders again next negeration and why would they be hurry to be the first this time? Are they gonna take all the third party support with this move? But more important is if Nintendo is so sure that they will have the multi-million sellers they have now with Wii and DS. Why should they kill the systems, that sell like nothing Nintendo has produced before, before their time when they make so much money for them?

 

[Rolf NB]

I know it's been beaten to death, but Duckroll has highlighted just how little Sony cares about the Go as a platform. If they took it seriously, at all, they would have worked out a deal with a 3rd party or even just themselves to have a major PSP release come out as a PSN/digital-exclusive for the PSP, either unavailable on UMD or at least a timed exclusive (coming to UMD later).

It's a joke.

Honestly, if the Go is any indication, the PSP2 will STILL have some sort of physical, proprietary format.

I fully expect another spinning little plastic disc of the optical conviction, but without the caddy this time around. A slot-in drive on a handheld would be awesome, wouldn't it?

 

[noobie]

Where are first day numbers ?? or they are also closed.? sorry if i m the ignorant one here. :$