Support NeoGAF

[Bullet Club]

The Outer Worlds Sells 2 Million Copies, As Take-Two Questions The Subscription Model

2 million sales and counting.

Fallout: New Vegas developer Obsidian's new RPG, The Outer Worlds, has sold more than 2 million copies, parent publisher Take-Two announced during an earnings call this week.

The Outer Worlds also launched as a free game for Xbox Game Pass subscribers, but the 2 million sales figures is presumably referring to full-game sales.

On the subject of subscription services like Xbox Game Pass, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said it's an ongoing conversation at the company regarding how much the company will support programs like Xbox Game Pass and others. He said that, as a general rule, Take-Two simply wants to release games where the consumer is, and that could include subscription libraries.

At the same time, Zelnick said subscription services might be better suited for older titles as a way to give them a second lease on life. "We think subscription offerings are probably better suited to catalog but we're willing to take experimental chances when it makes sense. It's early days for all these platforms," he said.

Take-Two's biggest game, Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V, launched on Xbox Game Pass in January. The game recently crossed 120 million in sales, and it's reaching even more players now that it's free with Game Pass.

The Outer Worlds is a unique game from a development and publishing perspective. The title was announced in 2017 as one of the first titles to be published by Take-Two's indie label, Private Division. In November 2018, Microsoft acquired Obsidian, but due to the previous arrangement, Private Division remained attached as publisher of The Outer Worlds.

Going forward, however, Microsoft will seemingly publish the Outer Worlds franchise if there are indeed any sequels or franchise extensions. Microsoft's Matt Booty said he sees The Outer Worlds as an "enduring franchise" for Microsoft, so you can expect more instalments.

In other news about The Outer Worlds, Private Division has delayed the Nintendo Switch version due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The port is being developed by Virtuos, which is headquartered in Singapore and has offices across different cities in China. Private Division has also confirmed that it will release the game on a physical cartridge as well as digitally.

Source: Gamespot

 

[The Bloody-Nine]

That's surprising. I likely would have bought it but for Gamepass. In fact, this game is the reason I subscribed to GP.

 

[GeorgPrime]

That's surprising. I likely would have bought it but for Gamepass. In fact, this game is the reason I subscribed to GP.

It wasnt meant for me. I tried it out on Game Pass. After sevreal tries i just stopped playing it.

Fallout New Vegas is still their best RPG to date. The slow motion in Outer Space just gave me nothing.

 

[DanielsM]

Take-Two CEO doesn’t see the sense in game subscriptions | VGC

“There will be no winner takes all, and a bunch of losers”…

www.videogameschronicle.com

They've been saying this for some time, on and off.

No way of making money on new content, game sales is where the money comes from... revenue falls off quick.

 

[garballax]

that CEO is full of shit. what a surprise. if they truly want "to release games where the consumer is" then Outer Worlds would be on Steam.

 

[Kagero]

Services like Gamepass is a serious problem for devs

 

[Nikana]

Services like Gamepass is a serious problem for devs

How you got THAT from THAT is beyond me.

 

[ebullientprism]

2 million isnt bad I think. I really enjoyed it but you could tell it was made without the usual AAA budget.

I think with MS coughing up the dough, the sequel could be legit amazing.

 

[Airbus Jr]

How you got THAT from THAT is beyond me.

Lets not pretend this doesnt have any impact

This is a very simple logic yet some people on this forum tried to ignore

People would rather wait $5 on Gamepass than paying $60 game at releases

 

[DanielsM]

Services like Gamepass is a serious problem for devs

Not really, I mean those services will be more akin to Blockbuster (small revenue streams) for older content. Once they have enough data, depending on the numbers, some publishers could see it as a slightly good or bad. Video games will make most of the money on sales and most of the revenue will be in the first 3-6 months, generally speaking. EA Access to me is a good example of a small revenue stream, not going to have a big impact either way, but a good way of getting some additional small revenue while not sacrificing too many sales i.e. experiment.

 

[Graciaus]

I would have bought it if it was on Steam. I'm not sure how much of the $2 they'd get from the gamepass sub I bought.

 

[Nikana]

Lets not pretend this doesnt have any impact

This is a very simple logic

People would rather wait $5 on Gamepass than paying $60 game at releases

Sure...but to say its a problem for game devs...no.

It sounds more like Take Two didn't have a ton of faith in this title, and it took off, and they are not kicking themselves in the ass because they signed a deal with M$ to have it on Game Pass and they would of made more money having it not on the service. But you could also argue that Game Pass helped its exposure.

 

[Airbus Jr]

2 million isnt bad I think. I really enjoyed it but you could tell it was made without the usual AAA budget.

I think with MS coughing up the dough, the sequel could be legit amazing.

Its not a bad number but quite a dissapointment

Outer World was heralded as one of the best game last year

This game was all over IGN, Gamespot and many youtube channel

2 million sales is a litle low for this game

 

[Bkdk]

That’s solid for a mid budget title, biggest complaint is ugly female characters and no modding tools for me, hopefully they will fix it in outer worlds 2 with 1 massive seamless open world with spaceship travel/combat/exploration/side quests and loots between planets, also remove level and carrycap for everything, including perks/loot. Durability of weapons also have to be optional. I enjoyed this game the most in 2019 however it doesn’t hit all of my expectations. It’s not a game that I can sink 400+ hours in with so little end game support.

 

[ebullientprism]

Its not a bad number but quite a dissapointment

Outer World was heralded as one of the best game last year

This game was all over IGN, Gamespot or youtube channel

2 million sales is a litle low for this game

I think considering how much they spent making it and advertising it, surely even they didnt expect a juggernaut.

Regardless, I hope Obisidian get to a sequel with a proper AAA budget. This scratched a Mass Effect 1 itch for me.

 

[Airbus Jr]

I think considering how much they spent making it and advertising it, surely even they didnt expect a juggernaut.

Regardless, I hope Obisidian get to a sequel with a proper AAA budget. This scratched a Mass Effect 1 itch for me.

With all due respect it is a juggernaut game

The number of praises, media exposure , numbers of gamers talked about it this game is second to none

This game is trending everywhere in 2019 maybe only lost to Death Stranding

 

[Grinchy]

I'm extremely glad I got to play this through game pass. If I had paid any money for it, I would have been so let down.

What a shell of a real game it was.

 

[ethomaz]

Well Gamepass is really more suited to old titles.

New titles from 3rd-parties will be really harmed if they are day one on Gamepass (or any other sub model service).

MS probably will change that too in the future (they are trying to get subscribers right now) increasing the price of the sub or not launched more day one titles on the service.
The way it is today is unsustainable.

BTW the site assumes 2m is without Gamepass.

"but the 2 million sales figures is presumably referring to full-game sales"

There is no talk about if it is or not.
But I believe it is without Gamepass... the game sold really well on PS4 at UK launch for example.

 

[Raven117]

The game also wasn’t all that awesome. Let’s call a spade a spade here.

 

[BitDust]

Well Gamepass is really more suited to old titles.

New titles from 3rd-parties will be really harmed if they are day one on Gamepass (or any other sub model service).

MS probably will change that too in the future (they are trying to get subscribers right now) increasing the price of the sub or not launched more day one titles on the service.
The way it is today is unsustainable.

BTW the site assumes 2m is without Gamepass.

"but the 2 million sales figures is presumably referring to full-game sales"

There is no talk about if it is or not.
But I believe it is without Gamepass... the game sold really well on PS4 at UK launch for example.

Who would pay a subscription to only get old games? Old games are cheap everywhere, it wouldn't make any sense paying a monthly sub for that.

 

[MMaRsu]

Its not a bad number but quite a dissapointment

Outer World was heralded as one of the best game last year

This game was all over IGN, Gamespot and many youtube channel

2 million sales is a litle low for this game

So content was bought by Take 2. Presence on those websites are all paid for.

Just because we smell bullshit as gamers more often now, doesn't say shit about the game itself.

2 million sales is a lot for a Obsidian RPG.

It also wasn't really a great game, or in the same vein as Fallout (even tho it was heralded as a Fallout killer)

 

[lefty1117]

I honestly feel like the xbox game pass is too good to true and won't be sustainable long term for developers to drop their new titles into.

 

[Mriverz]

Curious how much of those 2mil came from ps

 

[Efe]

Its not a bad number but quite a dissapointment

Outer World was heralded as one of the best game last year

This game was all over IGN, Gamespot and many youtube channel

2 million sales is a litle low for this game

I think 2m is great for a game that can be played almost for free with a sub at its release date. I finished it on PC Game Pass as well btw

 

[nikolino840]

I honestly feel like the xbox game pass is too good to true and won't be sustainable long term for developers to drop their new titles into.

If Is sustaineble for indi devs and small pub why not for take two?

What Is your theory about why swery65 with the kickstarter project "the good Life" Will join gamepass day One?

 

[ethomaz]

Who would pay a subscription to only get old games? Old games are cheap everywhere, it wouldn't make any sense paying a monthly sub for that.

The same that wants BC.

You know PS Now have it own subs base.

 

[Mriverz]

If Is sustaineble for indi devs and small pub why not for take two?

What Is your theory about why swery65 with the kickstarter project "the good Life" Will join gamepass day One?

Would say the cost of a triple A or double A game compared to a indi game. Anyone have a break down on how the pie is split or how Ms pays companies for gamepass?

 

[ethomaz]

If Is sustaineble for indi devs and small pub why not for take two?

What Is your theory about why swery65 with the kickstarter project "the good Life" Will join gamepass day One?

If you have a small budget then you don't need a lot of revenue to recover from it.
In these cases (even more with Kickstart) the indie dev wants more exposure than revenue (because they have little cost to cover).

Now a Take 2 game needs to recover millions of dollars before be profitable...

Did you make the comparison without thinking about?

 

[xrnzaaas]

I think Obsidian managed to convince a lot of people who still have fond memories of New Vegas. It's probably going to be harder for the sequel to reach that number considering the disappointment after actually playing the game. Don't get me wrong, it's a decent game, but in no way not another big, complex & immersive RPG like some hoped.

 

[Mriverz]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.eurogamer.net/amp/2019-07-05-xbox-game-pass-developers

Kinda helps reading it

 

[OmaeWaMouShindiggity]

Lets not pretend this doesnt have any impact

This is a very simple logic yet some people on this forum tried to ignore

People would rather wait $5 on Gamepass than paying $60 game at releases

Then make your game good enough to buy Day 1.

I for sure am not waiting for a gamepass release of FF7 or Cyberpunk or the next GTA. I also plan on getting the next Age of Empires day one (but itll most likely release on gamepass so yay).

People still go to the movies, and some wait for it to be released on Netflix/Hulu.

 

[lefty1117]

If Is sustaineble for indi devs and small pub why not for take two?

What Is your theory about why swery65 with the kickstarter project "the good Life" Will join gamepass day One?

I guess because the indies aren't publishers, so to get reach they're going to have to go through Steam or other distribution channel. These guys may be very small operations with a handful of salaries to worry about. For larger companies with their own publishing capability that will see 100% of the revenue, it may not make sense. Do you think Ubisoft gets the equivalent of 70% or more revenue return for every customer that plays their games on gamepass? if not then it's a potential loss vs going with Steam or their own publishing arm. The counter argument is, well you'll have more overall people playing on gamepass, potentially, so only they would know if the economics truly work, but I would expect games on a subscription service to continue the DLC and RMT trends to try to recoup what they might have lost in direct sales.

 

[DanielsM]

If Is sustaineble for indi devs and small pub why not for take two?

What Is your theory about why swery65 with the kickstarter project "the good Life" Will join gamepass day One?

Who said its sustainable for indies and small publishers? I mean right now Microsoft is subsidizing all this, its a near zero revenue business. Most games make money in the first 3-6 months, they are basically near worthless after that.... the model is really no model at all.

How many subs do you think Microsoft would have to sell to pay for Red Dead Redemption 2 to be on the service on day 1... probably a billion or two.

The problem is... there is no real business model Microsoft could ever lay out on a table... video games are heavily frontloaded.... old games are not worth much.

 

[CitizenX3639]

All devs should be following this line now, and NOT signing their rights away:

5-10 million straight up- depending on the dev. and genre
The longer the exclusive to a store/ service, more $$$$
Every download 75-80% to the devs. - Actually, the stores NEED product so achieving 90%-95% is viable.

 

[CitizenX3639]

2 million, small potatoes barely will keep the lights on.

 

[pr0cs]

Good numbers considering the investment I'm sure.
Sadly the game wore out its welcome pretty fast, the combat was REALLY thin.
Doesn't mean that it doesn't have a future, with them being with Microsoft now hopefully they have lots of incentive to make a much better sequel

 

[BitDust]

The same that wants BC.

You know PS Now have it own subs base.

I got PS Now for 1 free month , played and finished GOW, then I payed another month to try Horizon zero Dawn, Infamous Second Son, Uncharted 4 and Bloodborne. The only game worth playing for me was Bloodborne and I decided to wait till I have the chance to buy and run this game directly on actual hardware and not with streaming compression. I still have a XBOXGamePass sub on PC, PS NOW is dead for me till something worth comes on that service to play at 720p. The only good thing about PS Now, at least for me, is input lag.

 

[TheStruggler]

For a game that is on 3 platforms and soon to be a 4th those sales to me are relatively low and the fact that maybe MS wants to make the next one exclusive doesnt ring well with me for a company that doesnt sell as much software as their competition especially with their glorified rental service.

 

[zeorhymer]

Outer Worlds, I think is similar to an indie title like Pillars of Eternity. They're not going to sell 5+ million copies on launch. Honestly 2 million copies is a very respectable sales figure. That CEO is pretty greedy as is. He's wanting more money and being greedy or wants more games on his stupid launcher.

 

[VertigoOA]

Don’t ever be surprised by the strength in sales numbers of western rpgs. There’s a market for them.

I’d argue that breaking a million in sales is a just a modest success these days all things considered. Especially considering how much larger the gaming population becomes with each new generation of hardware.

The amount of content, the fidelity of the presentation gamers demand for their 60$ is far more outrageous than it’s ever been.

NES and SNES games cost $60 to $75 and were designed to be completed in a single sitting before cartridge saves became a thing.

When put in perspective... now these bigger games need to sell 5 million + to be considered a success.

Just look at Fallen Order... it would’ve been a disappointment if it didn’t break 8 million in sales.

Expectations are far greater and gamers are part of the reason why. Most gamers want never ending content to their favorite games for free for fucks sake — like this shit is a friggin charity.

 

[Foamy]

With all due respect it is a juggernaut game

The number of praises, media exposure , numbers of gamers talked about it this game is second to none

This game is trending everywhere in 2019 maybe only lost to Death Stranding

And yet, it's only a mediocre game.

 

[ethomaz]

I got PS Now for 1 free month , played and finished GOW, then I payed another month to try Horizon zero Dawn, Infamous Second Son, Uncharted 4 and Bloodborne. The only game worth playing for me was Bloodborne and I decided to wait till I have the chance to buy and run this game directly on actual hardware and not with streaming compression. I still have a XBOXGamePass sub on PC, PS NOW is dead for me till something worth comes on that service to play at 720p. The only good thing about PS Now, at least for me, is input lag.

I imagine the framerate issues of Bloodborne with the input lag of Now... some bosses should be tense

 

[Vawn]

How you got THAT from THAT is beyond me.

How you didn't is beyond me.

 

[Mr Hyde]

I played Bloodborne a couple of hours on PS Now. It was terrible. Blurry and laggy. Buy a copy instead.

 

[Vawn]

I played Bloodborne a couple of hours on PS Now. It was terrible. Blurry and laggy. Buy a copy instead.

ANY game will always be worse streamed than played locally. Even as ISPs improve, streaming will forever be inferior.

People equating watching movies and playing video games via streaming must not take video games very seriously.

 

[Nikana]

How you didn't is beyond me.

Because they dont say anywhere in any capacity it hurts developers.

 

[SuperLupeRap]

Services like Gamepass is a serious problem for devs

So why are devs putting their games on the service then?

 

[SuperLupeRap]

Its not a bad number but quite a dissapointment

Outer World was heralded as one of the best game last year

This game was all over IGN, Gamespot and many youtube channel

2 million sales is a litle low for this game

How is a disappointment when Take Two themselves say it sold way above expectations ..?

 

[TeamGhobad]

do a normal release first and then release on gamepass few months later. problem solved.

 

[nikolino840]

So why are devs putting their games on the service then?

Masochism