Sure, i know that the 3DS version sold noticeably more than the Vita version indeed, but since Yokai Watch and Danball Senki was mentioned together/in coherence, i had that i mind, and i dont concider a ~45k difference to be a lot in that regards. I was thinking more of several 100ks in difference. Since the 3DS version didnt sell that much either, it shows that its more about the franchise itself rather than which platform the game is on. Yokai Watch has shown that the 3DS is more than capable of selling a lot more than 65k copies of a game that is mainly aimed toward kids.
Maybe i misunderstood your point earlier, but i read it as you ment that Level 5 basically tried to establish Danball Senki on the Vita on the same level as they tried to establish Yokai Watch on the 3DS (that Danball Senki on the Vita was going to be "the next big thing" and that Level 5 had much riding on this version), but then the game/version didnt sold that well and Level 5 decided to drop all Vita support only because of this. I agree that the sales of the Vita version of Danball Senki most likely didnt exactly spark much confidence for future projects on the Vita, but i think that they were more disappointed about the franchise sales as a whole, and not really mainly about the Vita version sales. It is afterall a PSP port, and from what i've read, they didnt exactly put a lot of work into the port (this is not a excuse, but maybe this shows that they didnt have that much high hopes for the Vita version to begin with).
I also think that Level 5 could have tried more Vita projects regardless of how Danball Senki sold, but Level 5 never had any serious support for the Vita in the first place, so i guess that they believed more in the 3DS instead overall (which was a smart move, especially seeing the huge success of Yokai Watch). They didnt drop the 3DS because the 3DS version of Danball Senki sold 65k for example, that is mainly why i think its more about the franchise instead of the platform regarding support. Personally, i think that if the Vita version of Danball Senki had sold 150k (and no PSP version existed), i think that the franchise would be dead today anyway and that Level 5 would have focused on the 3DS regardless. But who knows, only Hino has the real answer
You have to consider two things: many third parties decided to not support PSV because of its abysmal hardware sales and not spectacular software sales; and not all platforms are able to sell all games. Level-5 did not support PSV much because of those reasons; I find more surprising that Level-5 did not support PSP when it was starting to sell incredibly well, rather than not supporting PSV when it was selling really bad. Also, Level-5 has been a kid-oriented software house since many years; they do produce games that are targeted towards a wider audience, but the core of their business is multi-media franchises aimed at young people. In this sense, 3DS is the perfect platform (other than smartphones); getting rid of alternatives that have not the same userbase is nothing strange.
Also, you have to consider that Level-5 sell in Western markets as well, where its name is highly associated with Nintendo (at least on handheld). Using resources to build IPs on 3DS seemed a natural strategy, given the fact that Nintendo would have localized some of their efforts (Fantasy Life is the last example... And it is selling well in Europe).
A further reason that goes against your post is that 3DS had another entry in the LBX franchise before the porting of the second one: the porting of the first one, LBX Explosive Boost. This was basically the third version of the game previously released on PSP in 2011; and this went to sell over 200k units, and was an incredible success for Level-5 (it basically sold as much as the expansion, again on PSP). If Level-5 have not already worked on LBX on PSV (i.e. the game was planned before LBX for 3DS was even released), I am pretty sure they would never released it, opting for a multi PSP/3DS in the first place. Hence, the sole existence of LBX on PSV shows that Level-5 was going to bet on PSV as a continuation of its PSP strategy, at least for this very franchise. Then they overexploited it, but numbers on PSV were absolutely abysmal.
In sum, I do not think Level-5 should have tried more on PSV. A market for their games was not there, but elsewhere; 3DS was showing strong signs of dominance, software-wise; also, they tried to approach smartphone and PC games more seriously.
Yeah, when it hit the bomba bins. Level-5 shipped like 500k during week 1.
Maybe bomba-bin was a bit much, but Ni No Kuni DS was
already going for 30-40% off less than a month after launch.
They shipped 600k on week 1.
All of the copies of the game included the book, they took up a ton of space.
I don't remember how much it dropped in the immediate weeks, but it's very likely close to those low prices.
Bomba bins aside, the game still sold 400k units at full price:
02. / 00. [NDS] Ni no Kuni: The Ebony Wizard (Level 5) {09/12/10} - 170.548 / NEW
09. / 02. [NDS] Ni no Kuni: The Ebony Wizard (Level 5) {09/12/10} - 74.329 / 244.877 (-56%)
09. / 09. [NDS] Ni no Kuni: The Ebony Wizard (Level 5) {2010.12.09} - 84.115 / 328.992 (+13%)
07. / 09. [NDS] Ni no Kuni: The Ebony Wizard (Level 5) {2010.12.09} - 53.295 / 382.287 (-37%)
The game was indeed overshipped, but in absolute numbers it did not do badly. How many new IPs were able to reach 400k units last generation? Not so many (and some of them were again Level-5's).
it was not only the anime
manga + anime + medals + arcade
The anime helped all the other things.
Anyway, not all multi-media franchises succeed eventually. Yo-kai Watch is showing that Level-5 is able to interpret better than anyone else the kids market.
DS was far more popular than the 3DS is. Something else to keep in mind.
To be fair, 2008 DS was not much different from 2014 3DS; the same can be said for 2009 DS+DSi (DSi XL was launched in Nov. 2009).
http://gamedatamuseum.web.fc2.com/main.htm
