Console Wars - the revenge

[DinoDoc]

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3166234

We've known for a while that Super Smash Bros. Brawl is a force to be reckoned with, but we're just now discovering how much of one it truly is. Reuters reports (via Joystiq) that the title has sold one million copies in just 11 days, faster than any other Wii game in Japan to date.
The title handily beat out its closest competitors, both of which are also first-party Nintendo releases. Wii Fit took seven weeks to reach the same mark, and Wii Sports (which isn't a pack-in in Japan) took 11 weeks. The previous Smash game, Super Smash Bros. Melee, remains the top selling GameCube game of all time, so it stands to reason that Brawl will see similar success when it hits the states this March.

[Asher]

Colour me surprised, but what kind of idiot didn't expect SSBM to shatter Wii sales records given the fact that there's historically been utter **** selection for the Wii, and its userbase is very large now compared to before?

I have no doubt it'll be the top selling Wii game worldwide, I am not aware of anyone who did. I am amused by the shock-and-awe reactions by Nintendo fanboys that it's doing so well in JAPAN.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Asher
Think we found out why supply is short -- MS is basically retiring all current stock and launching a new SKU (or more) soon.

360 Arcade, Elite, Premium, and Pro discontinued on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Console-20GB-Drive/dp/B000UQAUWW/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1203121066&sr=8-2

The Wifi adapter is also discontinued...

Looks like we'll get a new SKU or two are GDC.

Some speculation is the new SKU was to include HD DVD, but of course that's been scrapped at the last minute. Which explains why the old units have stopped being shipped (leading to shortages) with no replacements, they're re-tooling.

Interesting news - though mine is holding out for now.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Asher
Colour me surprised, but what kind of idiot didn't expect SSBM to shatter Wii sales records given the fact that there's historically been utter **** selection for the Wii, and its userbase is very large now compared to before?

I have no doubt it'll be the top selling Wii game worldwide, I am not aware of anyone who did. I am amused by the shock-and-awe reactions by Nintendo fanboys that it's doing so well in JAPAN.

Touched a nerve?

[Kuciwalker]

Colour me surprised, but what kind of idiot didn't expect SSBM to shatter Wii sales records given the fact that there's historically been utter **** selection for the Wii, and its userbase is very large now compared to before?

I don't think anyone expected SSBM to shatter Wii sales records.

[Asher]

Are you serious?

No one expected the best selling GCN game to break Wii sales records even though it'll come out 1.5 years after the Wii's release with a massive install base?

[DrSpike]

I have to say how impressed I am that Asher has managed to turn this unambiguously good news for the Wii into a point for attack.

Really, well played.

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by Asher
Colour me surprised, but what kind of idiot didn't expect SSBM to shatter Wii sales records given the fact that there's historically been utter **** selection for the Wii, and its userbase is very large now compared to before?

I have no doubt it'll be the top selling Wii game worldwide, I am not aware of anyone who did. I am amused by the shock-and-awe reactions by Nintendo fanboys that it's doing so well in JAPAN.

He posted a news article without any N waving commentary whatsoever.

Why get so ruffled by that?

Spoiler:

good catch K

[Agathon]

Had to laugh. Only now is it apparent to some what a mistake not including HD in the XBox was.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Asher
Are you serious?

No one expected the best selling GCN game to break Wii sales records even though it'll come out 1.5 years after the Wii's release with a massive install base?

but i thought, I thought, that the install base was all little old ladies in nursing homes. Do THEY like SSMB?

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by Agathon
Had to laugh. Only now is it apparent to some what a mistake not including HD in the XBox was.

How in the world could the 360 have launched with a built in hd-dvd drive in 2005?

[flash9286]

This may be a stupid question, but what did Microsoft have to gain by HD-DVD winning the format war. I know they supported it over blu-ray, but how did they stand to profit for HD-DVD other than the fact that they released an add on for the 360.

[Asher]

Originally posted by flash9286
This may be a stupid question, but what did Microsoft have to gain by HD-DVD winning the format war. I know they supported it over blu-ray, but how did they stand to profit for HD-DVD other than the fact that they released an add on for the 360.

They supported HD DVD to complicate life for Sony, who was using Bluray as an advantage of their console.

[Asher]

Originally posted by asleepathewheel


How in the world could the 360 have launched with a built in hd-dvd drive in 2005?

It wouldn't have. In Aggie's world the 360 would've launched side by side with the PS3, which of course is a stupid thing to say -- the reason the 360 is #1 is because it didn't wait as long as the PS3 did due to Bluray.

Don't know why Aggie ls laughing. He doesn't seem to know what's going on.

I've no idea why he thinks this is a very bad thing for the 360. MS didn't integrate HD DVD into the 360. Now that the war is resolved, once Bluray readers can read DVDs at 12x, MS can integrate Bluray into the 360 as well...or release it as an add on whenever they want. Bluray's victory doesn't mean the 360 should've been delayed 1+ years to get it as well, as MS' marketshare dominance illustrates...

[Asher]

Originally posted by lord of the mark


but i thought, I thought, that the install base was all little old ladies in nursing homes. Do THEY like SSMB?

No, but given that of the gamer fans of the Wii, the vast majority of them tend to be Nintendo & SSB fans, the fact that this will become the best selling Wii game is a surprise to no one.

You didn't seem to think this through -- the fact that it'll be the best selling Wii game doesn't mean it'll be the best selling video game, nor does it mean that a massive proportion of the Wii gamer base are not non-traditional gaming demographics.

It'll be a diamond in the rough, as it were...

If you'd care to look and see which games actually sell on the Wii, you'll see 1 publisher stands out among the crowd. Something like 45% of all software sold on the Wii is Nintendo software, which is absurdly high compared to MS and Sony which have far healtier and more diverse software ecosystems.