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[Hoo-doo]

Yes here it is. Down on the right are the "hidden" leftovers from Tier 1 imports.

I can't remember any console that had stores brimming with consoles on day one like this. There truly seems to be no hype.

Guess that's what happens when import units were on store shelves for months already.

 

[oti]

so, I just saw a tv ad from a big retail chain here in Greece. very first for xbone I ever saw.
the announcer said "we are going to melt with xbox one!!", celebrating the xbone launch.
now this is a Greek expression for when one puts too much time in something, aka "he melted on ..."

whats the offer? If I saw correctly, its

xbone, destiny, forza, fifa, max and lococycle for 429.

Was it Germanos?

 

[GunslingerVit]

According to this thread, the XBO doesn't seem to fare quite well in the later launch countries. But then again, nobody should be surprised about this as every die hard fan already imported it from other European countries.

 

[MauroNL]

Saturn@Pietervreedeplein? Then we might have seen eachother. I'm from Utrecht but my GF lives in Tilburg

Yes, I work there

Okay so I just got back from my store. Store opened at 9.30 AM and I worked there till 3PM. Thusfar, we sold 26 Xbox One consoles, which is a lot more then I expected tbh. The split was 14 Kinectless and 12 Kinect bundles, which is also surprising as I expected it more to be 75%-25%. Only half of our pre-orders (14 total) have been picked up so I expect to sell the rest of those today. Our store is still open till 9PM tonight so we might end up with about 40 to 50 Xbox One's sold on Day 1. With a total shipment of about 60 Xbox One Day 1 bundles that's about 75% sold through on Day 1 which is quite good I guess.

We didn't sell a lot of games today though, guess most people opted for the games included in the box (Forza 5 and FIFA 15) until buying new ones. Ryse, Dead Rising, Watch Dogs and Battlefield were the top selling games.

So all in all I was not dissapointed with the launch. It's certainly no PS4 launch, but iirc the Wii U launch wasn't that great either. Now it will be interesting to see how the console will perform after all the Day 1 bundles are sold out and the new games come out. I also walked around my city to some stores and most stores are all sold out of Day 1 bundles, though some still had the Xbox One w/o games. Not sure if Microsoft just didn't deliver a lot of consoles or the demand was actually high.

 

[Micerider]

According to this thread, the XBO doesn't seem to fare quite well in the later launch countries. But then again, nobody should be surprised about this as every die hard fan already imported it from other European countries.

Yes, I wanted one, and I got it easily from the store for cheap (459 for Titanfall bundle + Wolfenstein). The console had already reached a "peak" of sales in the Tier 2 countries with the overflow from Tier 1. And the new launch doesn't really add a new incentive for purchase yet...

 

[hydrophilic attack]

The XBO might not be doing quite as badly as I thought it would here in Sweden. The Nordic Day One Edition (without Kinect) seems to be sold out at most online stores according to price comparison website prisjakt:

Then again, that may just be an indication of low stock, which could explain the lack of advertising noted by many here.

 

[p3tran]

Was it Germanos?

ela oti xero, xereis

it is kotsovolos that has been running this xbone ad on tv. I saw the same ad 3-4 more times since I posted, on skai tv.
but I spoke to a friend of mine that works for another big retail chain, and they kind of offer the same deal too.

now, destiny cd box is actually shown on that ad, along with the xbox, and was clearly the focus of the ad.
I say that because I saw the other topic with destiny perfume...
they did not show a bottle of destiny perfume here on tv. the ad is more like "tha liosoume me xbox one kai destiny"

 

[Doffen]

So apparently the Norwegian launch has been quite a mass. Not everyone got their preorder today. And some even had their bundle changed.

Also they announced 1 app that might launch this month.

 

[FeiRR]

I've just returned from shopping in a mall. My main reason to go there was to get another DS4 as my launch unit started acting strangely in BF (after under 1000 hours, I don't like that). But I was also curious how the Xbox One official launch in Polish shops turned out.

The mall has a Media Markt outlet, that German store with ridiculous prices of old games. The gaming section looks like this, no sign of Xbox One, at all.

About a second after I stopped in front of the PS4 section, a guy in a PS polo shirt spawned next to me and asked if I needed any assistance. I asked him about controllers but they only had black ones and I wanted red. He was polite but couldn't help so I left him there and went further in search of the star of the day... There! I found a small pile of consoles next to the usual PS4 heap.

That's it. No signs, no ads, not even any info in front of the shop that it's a launch day. Their promo magazine has X1 on the first page with a few games but no information whatsoever.

I went to a small console shop in the same mall. They have games and hardware for most systems, also Nintendo which bigger outlets just ignore, and older consoles for reasonable prices. I noticed that brand new, foiled X1 games there (which they had since last year) were all discounted up to 50%. They also had red DS4s and I bought one. Now it's charging, looking nicely so I can abuse it soon in Destiny.

 

[FonkyByNature]

Feels like Microsoft are not even trying. No promo, nothing. It's like they don't believe in their own product. I know Europe was never into Microsoft products but damn ! What the hell MS ?

I want a fierce competition between all 3 and not a fully dominated generation by Sony.

 

[le.phat]

Feels like Microsoft are not even trying. No promo, nothing. It's like they don't believe in their own product. I know Europe was never into Microsoft products but damn ! What the hell MS ?

I want a fierce competition between all 3 and not a fully dominated generation by Sony.

ps2 era was pretty sweet though

 

[SwiftDeath]

The XBO might not be doing quite as badly as I thought it would here in Sweden. The Nordic Day One Edition (without Kinect) seems to be sold out at most online stores according to price comparison website prisjakt:

Then again, that may just be an indication of low stock, which could explain the lack of advertising noted by many here.

One would hope so for Sweden

2013 SW Volume by country (thousand units)
Sweden
PS3 1,026
360 909
PC 736
WII 263
3DS 122
DS 81
WIU 67
PS4 37
PSV 16

Follow the quote above to compare Sweden's 360 mindshare with other Nordic countries

 

[eddfromtheriver]

Feels like Microsoft are not even trying. No promo, nothing. It's like they don't believe in their own product. I know Europe was never into Microsoft products but damn ! What the hell MS ?

I want a fierce competition between all 3 and not a fully dominated generation by Sony.

I do wish for a Sony dominated generation, PS2 era was ace. The best one by far IMHO.

 

[PeregrinSe7en]

Feels like Microsoft are not even trying. No promo, nothing. It's like they don't believe in their own product. I know Europe was never into Microsoft products but damn ! What the hell MS ?

I want a fierce competition between all 3 and not a fully dominated generation by Sony.

perhaps we need a new, more motivated competitor to Sony?

 

[T.O.P]

ps2 era was pretty sweet though

Thanks to the gamecube

 

[hydrophilic attack]

One would hope so for Sweden



Follow the quote above to compare Sweden's 360 mindshare with other Nordic countries

Yes, I know This was a followup to my previous post where I marveled at the lack of hype and advertising in Sweden, expecially considering how well the 360 did.

 

[HeartlessNobody213]

I do wish for a Sony dominated generation, PS2 era was ace. The best one by far IMHO.

Agreed. The PS2 was my favorite system and despite the fact that the GameCube didn't sell that well, it is the last Nintendo console I really enjoyed.

 

[Zatoichi's Cane]

To keep it competitive. If we don't buy the xbox1 how are MS going to know we want them to make a stronger, cheaper product than Sony next gen?

my sarcasm meter may be off...

 

[Stare-Bear]

It boggles my mind they spent 400 million on a NFL deal, but spending some cash on the launch in Europe seems to much...

 

[SwiftDeath]

Yes, I know This was a followup to my previous post where I marveled at the lack of hype and advertising in Sweden, expecially considering how well the 360 did.

Ah okay. Yeah MS seems to be acting very conservatively with their marketing in these Tier 2 countries launches it would seem. They spent something like 20M euros to market the XB1's launch in Spain and that didn't turn out too well for them. So it seems a real change of pace for MS

 

[tbm24]

It boggles my mind they spent 400 million on a NFL deal, but spending some cash on the launch in Europe seems to much...

It's equally mind boggling that people keep mentioning this NFL deal as it is an Xbox specific thing. Microsoft spends money on a lot of things.

 

[Raist]

One in Sundan and one in Carrefour, just banners. no demo machine or anything else. It's not looking good.

Carrefour is in China too? Didn't expect that.

 

[unknownstranger]

So how many launch units do you think Tier 2 will sell? For some reason I was thinking 500k this month. Now I'm doubting they will get near even half that.

 

[weeeeezy]

It boggles my mind they spent 400 million on a NFL deal, but spending some cash on the launch in Europe seems to much...

Microsoft made this deal for Xbox and Windows and their devices. That's why everyone is carrying around a surface during football matches. Also, what's the deal with everyone bringing this up? The NFL partnership is all about mindshare. Millions of viewers watch american football. They will all see Microsoft products while they watch, which is a huge win for them.

 

[Raist]

So how many launch units do you think Tier 2 will sell? For some reason I was thinking 500k this month. Now I'm doubting they will get near even half that.

How the hell did you expect half a million sales from a bunch of small markets, many of which having a history of poor xbox consoles sales on top of that?

Microsoft made this deal for Xbox and Windows and their devices. That's why everyone is carrying around a surface during football matches. Also, what's the deal with everyone bringing this up? The NFL partnership is all about mindshare. Millions of viewers watch american football. They will all see Microsoft products while they watch, which is a huge win for them.

95% of the world doesn't give a flying fuck about the NFL.

 

[PanicFreak]

Microsoft made this deal for Xbox and Windows and their devices. That's why everyone is carrying around a surface during football matches. Also, what's the deal with everyone bringing this up? The NFL partnership is all about mindshare. Millions of viewers watch american football. They will all see Microsoft products while they watch, which is a huge win for them.

To wit, I saw as many commercials for all of other Microsoft devices as I did for the Xbox during the NFL opener last night.

95% of the world doesn't give a flying fuck about the NFL.

If Microsoft sold an Xbox to all of those that did, they would sell 350 million units assuming your number is correct.... In the United States, half of the country watches the Super Bowl at the same time. It's like our own special World Cup. I bet you wouldn't bat an eye if Sony or Microsoft spent 400 million to be part of the World Cup sponsors. That's what it's like.

 

[Toemon]

How the hell did you expect half a million sales from a bunch of small markets, many of which having a history of poor xbox consoles sales on top of that?



95% of the world doesn't give a flying fuck about the NFL.

Yet NFl related games are the top selling game franchises in the world just short of fifa regardless.

 

[Parsnip]

Oh, so it's finally officially out in Finland too.
That's good I guess. Now if there only were some games on it that I would want to play.

 

[weeeeezy]

95% of the world doesn't give a flying fuck about the NFL.

That sucks. Microsoft should have consulted with you before they made this deal. Damn.

 

[Raist]

If Microsoft sold an Xbox to all of those that did, they would sell 350 million units assuming your number is correct.... In the United States, half of the country watches the Super Bowl at the same time. It's like our own special World Cup. I bet you wouldn't bat an eye if Sony or Microsoft spent 400 million to be part of the World Cup sponsors. That's what it's like.

Not everyone who cares about American football plays videogames.
And the WC is just a tiny bit more popular than the superbowl.

Yet NFl related games are the top selling game franchises in the world just short of fifa regardless.

I guess you mean for sports purely. But it's also by far the oldest sports IP with the highest number of games released.
If you take that into account, IPs like PES or WWE are far more popular.

That sucks. Microsoft should have consulted with you before they made this deal. Damn.

Judging by US sales it doesn't seem that it did much to prevent the PS:Xbox ratio to completely shift compared to last gen, when there was no NFL deal.

 

[inpHilltr8r]

I bet you wouldn't bat an eye if Sony or Microsoft spent 400 million to be part of the World Cup sponsors.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/chrissmith/2014/06/12/the-biggest-sponsors-of-brazils-2014-world-cup/

FIFA’s major partners, which reportedly pay some $25-50 million per year, are Adidas , Coca-Cola , Emirates, Hyundai Motor Group, Sony and Visa

 

[Amir0x]

95% of the world doesn't give a flying fuck about the NFL.

Well, it doesn't matter who gives a fuck about it because as we can see it's not been helping make a compelling argument for the XBO anyway. The deal has been in place, and the system is still underperforming. I think they should have spend the 400 million on a bunch of really awesome exclusive games, considering the nonsense they spend for Tomb Raider and the mess that was, 400 million would have probably went a long way toward buying one or two major noteworthy products that could have actually moved the needle. That they actually developed themselves even, maybe!

But what do I know!

 

[Chobel]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/chrissmith/2014/06/12/the-biggest-sponsors-of-brazils-2014-world-cup/

"$25-50 million per year" for 5 years is $125-250 million, that's actually cheaper than NFL deal.

 

[weeeeezy]

"$25-50 million per year" for 5 years is $125-250 million, that's actually cheaper than NFL deal.

Do we have all the details of the MS deal though? Did they simply write a check for $400 million? I suspect there's a lot more to this deal, since most of the staff will be using a surface they must have purchased that hardware from MS. They probably just threw around that $400 million number to show that it's an unprecedented deal between them but I'm sure it's not a simple cash transfer between the two.

 

[Amir0x]

"$25-50 million per year" for 5 years is $125-250 million, that's actually cheaper than NFL deal.

yeah but to be fair, the NFL deal comes with a lot more associated with it. Apps, features, etc. Seems like they paid to really get NFL integrated with XBO. If you are like a huge football nut, it makes sense to get XBO. Just seems not enough football nuts want to spend 400 for a videogame system, so strategically it wasn't very smart so far. Guess we'll see if that changes in the upcoming months but somehow I doubt it

 

[GhaleonEB]

Do we have all the details of the MS deal though? Did they simply write a check for $400 million? I suspect there's a lot more to this deal, since most of the staff will be using a surface they must have purchased that hardware from MS. They probably just threw around that $400 million number to show that it's an unprecedented deal between them but I'm sure it's not a simple cash transfer between the two.

Right. Things like discounted ad rates, Madden bundles, product placement, etc. probably all went into valuing the deal at $400m, it doesn't mean that MS is writing a $400m check. When I see the figure, I don't think of it as meaning MS plunked down $400m in NFL related transactions, but rather see it as an indication of just how US-focused their overall marketing efforts are. Especially after seeing how little is going into these tier 2 countries.

 

[oti]

This NFL deal discussion is pointless. The money's gone. They could've made a lot of cool games with that money, sure, we (and they) can't turn back time though. Or as the famous German saying goes: Hätte hätte Fahrradkette.

ela oti xero, xereis

it is kotsovolos that has been running this xbone ad on tv. I saw the same ad 3-4 more times since I posted, on skai tv.
but I spoke to a friend of mine that works for another big retail chain, and they kind of offer the same deal too.

now, destiny cd box is actually shown on that ad, along with the xbox, and was clearly the focus of the ad.
I say that because I saw the other topic with destiny perfume...
they did not show a bottle of destiny perfume here on tv. the ad is more like "tha liosoume me xbox one kai destiny"

I don't live in Greece and don't follow Greek TV too closely. I remember a lot of ads for the PS4 launch last year but haven't seen any Xbox ads. Although to be fair, I DVR Para Pente and that's kinda it.

 

[Kyougar]

Microsoft made this deal for Xbox and Windows and their devices. That's why everyone is carrying around a surface during football matches. Also, what's the deal with everyone bringing this up? The NFL partnership is all about mindshare. Millions of viewers watch american football. They will all see Microsoft products while they watch, which is a huge win for them.

And "noone" in the rest of the World is watching American football

Thats the problem with Microsoft. They only buy stuff externally or spend their Money on marketing (in the us) And not on Games.

 

[Neuromancer]

Well, it doesn't matter who gives a fuck about it because as we can see it's not been helping make a compelling argument for the XBO anyway. The deal has been in place, and the system is still underperforming. I think they should have spend the 400 million on a bunch of really awesome exclusive games, considering the nonsense they spend for Tomb Raider and the mess that was, 400 million would have probably went a long way toward buying one or two major noteworthy products that could have actually moved the needle. That they actually developed themselves even, maybe!

But what do I know!

But Surface on the sidelines... Surely that's helping

 

[Xando]

Do we have all the details of the MS deal though? Did they simply write a check for $400 million? I suspect there's a lot more to this deal, since most of the staff will be using a surface they must have purchased that hardware from MS. They probably just threw around that $400 million number to show that it's an unprecedented deal between them but I'm sure it's not a simple cash transfer between the two.

Do Americans actually give a fuck what kind of tablet they use between the games?

I watch NFL games from now and then

Spoiler

( even though the packers suck atm )

but if i hadnt read it on GAF i didnt knew that these tablets they use are surface tablets and i wouldnt really care.

 

[El-Pistolero]

They finally launch in other regions - which I still think was reasonably important to their sales, it was obviously never going to be a negative factor and they don't even bother to advertise.

So stupid.

Agreed. You would think that the less than optimal (It was good, but could have been much better) Xbox 360 deployment within the confines of old Europe would have pressed them to review their whole positioning over there. Knowing that they would not have the luxury of doing a preemptive launch should have prompted MS to be more aggressive with its approach to the european market. Alas...

 

[Nokterian]

They finally launch in other regions - which I still think was reasonably important to their sales, it was obviously never going to be a negative factor and they don't even bother to advertise.

So stupid.

Just seeing new Destiny commercials for PS4 here on the dutch tv but nothing for Xbox one...nothing.

 

[Shin-Ra]

It's equally mind boggling that people keep mentioning this NFL deal as it is an Xbox specific thing. Microsoft spends money on a lot of things.

They announced it at the Xbone unveiling, no?

 

[blakep267]

And "noone" in the rest of the World is watching American football

Thats the problem with Microsoft. They only buy stuff externally or spend their Money on marketing (in the us) And not on Games.

They have plenty of games coming out though. Just as much as the competition( funded and published games that is )

 

[thesuperfunk]

(after under 1000 hours, I don't like that).

Warranty?

 

[VinFTW]

They announced it at the Xbone unveiling, no?

Doesn't mean its exclusively for X1. Which bothers me when people say they could have spent it on games. I'm fairly certain this deal would have been made regardless of the Xbox (Surface, etc).

 

[Amir0x]

But Surface on the sidelines... Surely that's helping

is it? hehehe

 

[watership]

It boggles my mind they spent 400 million on a NFL deal, but spending some cash on the launch in Europe seems to much...

Why does the 400 million keep coming up.. most of that wasn't even about gaming.

 

[Timmay]

I do wish for a Sony dominated generation, PS2 era was ace. The best one by far IMHO.

That gen didn't rule because Sony dominated. Wishing for that is moronic. That gen was great because of all the third parties who have since died off.

 

[Steroyd]

That gen didn't rule because Sony dominated. Wishing for that is moronic. That gen was great because of all the third parties who have since died off.

It sort of goes hand in hand, if Sony wasn't popular in all markets the games that became popular may have not reached out to as large an audience prompting sequels, you can semi see the disjointment between Japaneese games in the west on Xbox versus Japaneese games on Xbox in Japan for example.