The first four months of console sales.

Joebob · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:03

I saw this over at kotaku and thought it was really interesting.

kotaku said:
I present to you the NPD numbers of console sales in the U.S. for the first four months the consoles were in stores. Looks like the Wii isn't being held back, it's just selling like a mofo. And wow, Xbox, I had no idea.

Link to full article

It looks like the GameCube the Xbox and even the Dreamcast all beat the PS2 last gen, and the N64 outsold the PS1 within the same launch period too. There's a software sales chart if you follow the link

It just goes to show that you can't rely too heavily upon launch figures to see how healthy a consoles market is.

wedgie · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:09

The Xbox is the only thing I find surprising in that chart.

AngeluiMorte · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:11

Looked at the full article Im amazed at how poorly the PS1 sold and the Wii just seems to be pounding the competition

wedgie · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:18

The PS1 was extremely expensive at launch.

It's eventual success was helped by the fact that the Saturn was even more ridiculously overpriced.

AngeluiMorte · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:24

Would be kinda interesting to compare all the launch prices of the consoles, I wonder if the PS3 might not be the most expensive.

wedgie · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:34

It isn't.

It's a little hard to compare anyway with inflation. The PS1 was £299 iirc back in 1995. That's expensive even today, but back then it was outrageous. I think the Saturn was £399, at least at first.

The most expensive console was some Pioneer Laser disc machine (Don't know the exact model) It never came out over here I don't think, but the question of the most expensive console ever at launch was asked on the EGM podcast a while back, with the answer being the Pioneer system which was released at $970 :eek:

There have been other expensive consoles as well, the Amiga CD32 was expensive iirc, and 3DO had a short lived console as well.

EDIT

Here it is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_LaserActive

Joebob · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:38

jeeeez - the size of that thing :eek:

Kreeeee · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:39

Sales figures in the US. The XBox was very popular there because they are rather insular and much prefer a product made by their own companies rather than japanese ones.

XPE · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:49

Also i thought after the first week of slow sales they knocked off $100 from the console.

Wyrdo · 5 Apr 2007 at 08:51

XPE said:
Also i thought after the first week of slow sales they knocked off $100 from the console.

From the Xbox? They did that here too and gave the early adopters a gift of two games and a controller to make up for it.

Kreeeee · 5 Apr 2007 at 09:02

Nintendo really seem to have hit the mark haven't they? And yet little fanboys still squeal about them making thr wrong decisions :rolleyes:

I expected the Wii to do far worse in the US because of their general minset towards gaming (Typically they want games like GTA and Halo). Bravo Nintendo.

Tunney · 5 Apr 2007 at 09:14

If you take into account inflation, the PS1 was at least as expensive as the PS3 is now.

dannyjo22 · 5 Apr 2007 at 09:19

Kreeeee said:
Nintendo really seem to have hit the mark haven't they? And yet little fanboys still squeal about them making thr wrong decisions .

The only wrong decisions they have made is the games which are poor and verry little coming. Hardly the most innovative of console if all people seem to be waiting for is another Mario rehash or yet another version of mario kart. Or surprise suprise mario tennis.

All the games I feel I may be interested in like TW golf and the fishing game get panned for a poor control system.

The Wii has done well to maintain the hype off the back of a decent sports game. Other than that its the console that will be sold 2nd hand more than the others when the stocks are high enough.

I was looking on gamespot and Ign the other day at all the Wii game ratings, they are very poor. Controllers great on nintendo games but I ant remember a worse console game line up even 4 or 5 months after launch. But oh no we can trade Mii's. Woooooo

Bigpig · 5 Apr 2007 at 09:19

Gona come down to Software plain and simple. With titles such as MGS/GT/FF in its barn. also replaceing the Top hardware guy with the best Software guy, Shows you What Sony Gameplan will be.

GarethDW · 5 Apr 2007 at 10:47

Ack, we block access to that site where I work... must remember to check this out tonight when I get home.

Mr Latte · 5 Apr 2007 at 22:07

wedgie22 said:
The Xbox is the only thing I find surprising in that chart.

Not really when you consider the hype HALO had.

Nintendo has been KING in america for a long time, i remember even the old 8 bit NES sold more than the Sega Genesis even well after 2 years of the 16bit Sega console launched.

Unfortunately as with N64 Gamecube andd Wii software quanity and varity always seems to lack on a Nintendo sytem but they are great innovaters of software and hardware.

360 should have its biggest year yet PS3 is the hardest to judge but i think ts safe tsay out of the current 3 next gen machines Sony will sell the least this year.

Usel · 5 Apr 2007 at 22:43

Not just surprised at the console sales but also the software sales.

For every console sold xbox, xbox 360 and gamecube sold 4/5 games.

nintenjo · 5 Apr 2007 at 23:47

dannyjo22 said:
The only wrong decisions they have made is the games which are poor and verry little coming. Hardly the most innovative of console if all people seem to be waiting for is another Mario rehash or yet another version of mario kart. Or surprise suprise mario tennis.

All the games I feel I may be interested in like TW golf and the fishing game get panned for a poor control system.

The Wii has done well to maintain the hype off the back of a decent sports game. Other than that its the console that will be sold 2nd hand more than the others when the stocks are high enough.

I was looking on gamespot and Ign the other day at all the Wii game ratings, they are very poor. Controllers great on nintendo games but I ant remember a worse console game line up even 4 or 5 months after launch. But oh no we can trade Mii's. Woooooo

Danny you sound so bitter

Cheer up mate and have a pint on me..

wedgie · 6 Apr 2007 at 20:01

Mr Latte said:
Not really when you consider the hype HALO had.

Was the PS2 not hyped up before release? Not the games but the system itself. Same goes for the 360 and all the other consoles, albiet possibly to a lesser extent.

Maybe you don't find it surprising, but I certainly do and I think a lot of people would be surprised by that chart.

If the question was asked of the top two sellers over the first 4 months in America, not many would put the Xbox in there I don't think.

Kreeeee · 6 Apr 2007 at 20:34

wedgie22 said:
If the question was asked of the top two sellers over the first 4 months in America, not many would put the Xbox in there I don't think.

I thought it was widely know that was the case? Americans love american systems.