Console Wars VI

[Asher]

Guarantee you he has both a schoolgirl pantie fetish and is into autoerotic asphyxiation.

15 years from now, this man's portrait will be next to another article: "How one man killed gaming and marginalized the industry to gimmicky toys".

[DrSpike]

We all know you have his signed poster in your bedroom really.

[flash9286]

Has anybody been playing the 1 vs 100 beta? I haven't been able to get into the main game yet, but I have played some of the extended version of the game. It's pretty cool, I suck at it but the presentation is well done.

[Asher]

NPD May 2009

PlayStation 2 117K
PlayStation 3 131K
Xbox 360 175K
Wii 289.5K

UFC 2009 UNDISPUTED THQ Xbox 360 679.6K
Wii FIT W/ BALANCE BOARD NINTENDO OF AMERICA Wii 352.8K
EA SPORTS ACTIVE BUNDLE ELECTRONIC ARTS Wii 345.8K
UFC 2009 UNDISPUTED THQ PS3 334.4K
INFAMOUS SONY PS3 175.9K
POKEMON PLATINUM VERSION NINTENDO OF AMERICA NDS 168.9K
MARIO KART W/ WHEEL NINTENDO OF AMERICA Wii 158.3K
PUNCH OUT!! NINTENDO OF AMERICA Wii 156.9K
X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE UNCAGED ED ACTIVISION BLIZZARD Xbox 360 120.7K
Wii PLAY W/ REMOTE NINTENDO OF AMERICA Wii 109.8K


Year over year changes:

Wii 675.1K - 289.5K -57%
PS3 208.7K - 131K -37%
360 186.6K - 175K -6%

Wii continues its freefall. 360 keeps its momentum.

[Asher]

http://gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=24015

NPD: Microsoft Responds, Claims Xbox 360 'Only Console Growing' In 2009

Responding to a slow sales month as reported by NPD, in which industry revenues dropped 23 percent, Microsoft positioned its Xbox 360 as being the most robust console in 2009.

The company pointed out that Xbox 360 saw a 22 percent year-to-date increase over 2008, the only home console to do so.

Of course, it was still outsold by Wii and Nintendo DS, and on a monthly basis it dropped in May from 2008 -- but Microsoft is correct when it says its system exhibits "the most year-over-year resilience of any console" for the month. With 175,000 sales, it dropped only 6.2 percent from last May, a significantly smaller drop than any of the other systems for which NPD reported data.

Microsoft credits the success on its current $199 price point for its least expensive model, as well as on its game library and Xbox Live, which was recently announced as having exceeded 20 million active users worldwide.

As usual, the library's Metacritic scores were also trumpeted, with Microsoft counting a current-generation-leading total of 142 Xbox 360 games garnering a score of 80 or above.

This month's somewhat surprising sales blockbuster, Yuke's' UFC 2009 Undisputed, also saw its greatest success on Xbox 360, accruing 679,600 sales in only two weeks on sale.

[DrSpike]

A more accurate assessment would that the Wii continues its freefall, and the 360 continues its momentum, but overall the Wii is still winning.

[Asher]

Most people can work out who is winning because they are not arts graduates, and thus are capable of discerning which number is greater than the other.

[Asher]

Wonder what Halo 3's at now...

[DrSpike]

Most people can work out who is winning

You'd think so.

[flash9286]

More bad news for Sony.

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has warned that the publisher “might have to stop supporting Sony” platforms.

“I'm getting concerned about Sony; the PlayStation 3 is losing a bit of momentum and they don't make it easy for me to support the platform. It's expensive to develop for the console, and the Wii and the Xbox are just selling better. Games generate a better return on invested capital on the Xbox than on the PlayStation,” he told The Times.

“They have to cut the price, because if they don't, the attach rates are likely to slow,” he added. “If we are being realistic, we might have to stop supporting Sony. When we look at 2010 and 2011, we might want to consider if we support the console — and the PSP too.”

Kotick, who said recently that he was disappointed the platform holders opted not to announce console price cuts at E3, also noted that Activision had paid Sony $500 million in royalties and other goods last year, which “probably still worked out at 400 percent of the profit they made.”

http://www.edge-online.com/news/activision-ceo-%E2%80%9Cwe-might-have-to-stop-supporting-sony%E2%80%9D

[Felch]

I just noticed that everyone who joined this site in Sept 2001 is a scourge.

Oerdin, Loraziel, and you. At the very least.

This is suspicious.

[DrSpike]

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/779-The-Second-Annual-E3-Hype-Massacre

An ever funnier one than usual, amongst other things taking a poke at Natal, Wii, and the PS3 exclusives.

[Asher]

Shia LaBeouf on the Wii:

http://news.bigdownload.com/2009/06/18/interview-transformers-shia-labeouf-loves-civilization-iv/

Have you checked out the Wii Transformers game?
I haven't been able to play the Wii game because my hand is broken. I've just been playing Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. I would imagine that the Wii experience will be like...I don't mess with the Wii, to be honest with you. It's kind of an amateur console. I'm not into the Wii thing.

What's wrong with the Wii?
This is how in a simple way you can find out if it's a gamer you want to play with. Ask them if they have a Wii. If they say yes, get the f*** out of there.

Is that why you wouldn't play LEGO Star Wars with Megan Fox on the set of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen?
Correct. Who wants to play the Wii version of LEGO Star Wars. I'd rather eat glass.

Also:

What's the last game that really impressed you?
Sid Meier's Civilization.

[Nikolai]

@ a guy who hasn't been impressed by a game since 1989. What a sad life he must have.

[Asher]

Oh please, it's not like he actively lives his life believing in fictitious being and developing a belief system around it.