American hardware sales from October from the NPD group indicate that the trend continues -- video game sales are up, revenue is up, and if this continues, it's going to be a banner year for game sales. With two console launches less than a week away, we're pretty sure the industry will hit that grace note that triggers the confetti, but the victory can't be hung on just the release of the next gen systems. No, shocking as it may be to some, the Nintendo DS is at the heart of this year's rocketing game sales. And for October, we're even happy to share the love with the guys who are usually our mortal enemies -- the PSP fanboys. Last month, a full quarter of the top one hundred games in the U.S. were portable games.When it came to systems, the show was all the DS, with 360,000 units sold in the U.S. for the month. The PS2 pulled out a strong second with 235,000, and oh! Look! Even the GBA moved more than the poor ol' PSP: 169,000 to 130,000. That was a short-lived sense of camaraderie, but that's okay. We're pretty sure they're going to tell us that we're only on top because of Pokemon anyway ....
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-13-2006 @ 11:36AM
Fox said...
Another great month for the DS, in all regions of the world. Good to see the GBA still hanging in their too. The SP is truly one of the greatest handhelds ever made, and deserves another good holiday.
It just makes me laugh how some people try to say its Pokemon; I wonder what fueled astronomical sales before Pokemon, ah right, stupid Mario rehashes! But to them another GTA or another Socum is just awesome and heralded as a brilliant release...it really is ironic.
With all due respect,
Fox
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11-13-2006 @ 12:32PM
Ol said...
Good point Fox.
Let's just hope that the gameplay (DS) vs graphics (PSP) war turns out the same in the home console market.
It's been said before, but the least graphically superior console is always the most popular. What makes me laugh is that when you criticise the PS2 for having inferior graphics, fanboys will always say: "Yeah, but it has the more choice of games."
Now that the PS3 has the 'best' graphics, they'll suddenly be shouting about how wonderful the graphics are, even if the games are poor.
The console wars are very odd aren't they?!
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11-14-2006 @ 11:42AM
pixelator said...
Except that it's not simply graphics (PSP) vs. gameplay (DS).
IGN latest round of reviews for PSP:
9.0+ = 4
8.0-8.9 = 13
IGN latest round of reviews for the DS:
9.0+ = 1
8.0-8.9 = 5
Metacritic 'Upcoming & Recent' ratings for PSP:
90+ = 0
80+ = 10
Total: 90+
Metacritic 'Upcoming & Recent' ratings for DS:
90+ = 0
80+ = 5 (one of which is the 4th ed. of Nintendogs)
Also, NPD as has been said many times, doesn't handle online sales. When polled, Best Buy had this Top 10 list for 10/29-11/04 (note the PSP vs. DS shocker):
1). Madden NFL 07 PS2
2). Final Fantasy XII PS2
3). Madden NFL 07 XBOX
4). GTA: Vice City Stories PSP
5). Brain Age: Train Your Brain DS
6). Madden NFL 07 PSP
7). Marvel Ultimate Alliance 360
8). Marvel Ultimate Alliance PS2
9). Need for Speed Carbon PS2
10). New Super Mario Bros. DS
Lastly, I'm constantly thrilled with the amazingly short memories and hypocrisy of the Nintendo fanatics. Much was made about how the Gamecube was the graphically superior system over the PS2 back in the day (and since then, too). But now? Graphics suddenly don't matter - not only that, but it's a sure sign your games must SUCK if you even mention how good the graphics are. Hilarious.
"the least graphically superior console is always the most popular"
This was not always the case. Genesis had arguably inferior overall potential as it lacked Mode 7 and variable tile palettes. The TG-16 was behind the Genesis/SNES power/graphics curve. PS1 games that focused on texture mapping looked better than some N64 games... Etc.
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11-14-2006 @ 1:33PM
cameraguy said...
agree 100% with fox
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11-14-2006 @ 2:20PM
Fox said...
*sigh*
Pixelator, you really need to get a life other than trolling DS fanboy.
First off, the latest reviews from IGN don't prove a dang thing, so the PSP has had some higher scoring games over the past few weeks? So what? Most of them are games I wouldn't touch with a ten foot poll, regardless if some guy over at IGN stamped an 8.5 on it.
Go to Game Rankings for the top ten on each system. As you will see, the DS has a higher average score. Not that it matters though, the games garnering high scores for the PSP are mostly sports or racing games and GTA and not what I am interested in at all. Though if you prefer games like GTA, or Smack Down, that's your preference.
Second of all, I gotta love how you try to discredit NPD by declaring lack of online. If anything that is sparing the PSP a further butt-kicking. Look at Amazon.com's top video games. Not a single PSP game in the top 50, and over 10 for the DS. I think Amazon is probably a better place to look for comparison than Best Buy. But I'll play your Best Buy game, Vice City is a BRAND NEW game and only just managed to top Brain Age, a game that has been out since June? Hardly anything to celebrate about, honestly.
Third of all, it is only idiots that went on about superior graphics for the Game Cube as a reason it is better. If I have ever argued for the Game Cube, it has been its fun and enjoyable games that will stand the test of time, not because it can produce visuals that out pace the PS2.
"Graphics suddenly don't matter"
Graphics do and have mattered. If MK came to the show looking absolutely terrible, it would detract from the over all experience significantly. But graphics should NEVER be the main pull of a game, in some games, graphics don't matter. For instance, Brain Age is a game that uses little graphics at all, does it affect anything? Of course not. If you spend $50 dollars just because it looks pretty then that's pathetic and shallow.
The bottom line, Pixelator, is that you aren't proving anything. I really don't care that Madden #6,754 got an 8.0 from IGN. I don't care that Partners in Time got a 9.0 from IGN, or that MK got a 9.5; that doesn't matter to me, because I would enjoy the game regardless. The fact is, that regardless of scores for PSP games, I am not interested in another GTA, or another Socum. That's why the PSP library gets my derision, and that's why I like the DSes, because I am interested in more classics like Mario games, I am interested in Star Fox Command, I am interested in Advance Wars, I am interested in Partners in time and Meteos and tons of other games that greet critical acclaim and are pure fun and enjoyable. That's what I am interested in, and the DS is the perfect system for it.
And lastly, why do you feel the need to defend the PSP at every turn on DS fanboy, pixelator?
With all due respect,
Fox
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11-14-2006 @ 4:13PM
Alisha Karabinus said...
Not everyone hailed the GameCube's graphics, either. I know I was not alone in NOT preferring the style of many GC games, but some of the best games (like Eternal Darkness, which I loved) looked... not great. I didn't care, because it was fun (if flawed). If a game is fun, it transcends other flaws. Why do you think people still play games that are ten-twenty years old? I promise you it's not for the graphics.
And sometimes the graphics are great, but there are other problems. For me, I thought the Dreamcast games looked fabulous, but all I really got to do was look because after five minutes with that enormous controller, I was ready to check in and beg for carpal tunnel treatment.
I'm sure pixelator is going to say something about how meaningless anecdotal evidence is, and hey, it is. But when it comes to opinions, I have only mine to work with. And I say this: I have played both the PSP and the DS, I have owned both, and I prefer the DS. The PSP is gorgeous, it's stunning, it's powerful, and yet the only game I ever enjoyed on it was Lumines. So I stopped playing it in favor of the DS.
As for reviews... Fox raises a good point. If the game doesn't appeal to a particular individual, that individual is not likely to care what the scores are. Example (and we'll even use a DS game): Mario Hoops got some fantastic reviews. Me, I'm not much for sports games at all, even if they've got the Mario cast. In fact, I'm not gonna run out and buy every Mario Whatever title, either. But I tried it. In my opinion, the control scheme was subpar and I found it clunky. Some reviews said that, too. But guess what? When I was playing it, I wasn't thinking about any of the reviews, good or bad. I was thinking about MY experience playing THAT particular title.
Reviews are a decent yardstick, but in the end, they are as meaningless as anecdotal evidence.
Graphics don't matter.
Console wars don't matter.
Fanboys don't matter.
We hang around and talk and argue because we enjoy the hobby and we have our favorites. It's fun to talk about games, almost as much fun as it is to play games. But in the end, it doesn't matter what you read, what you hear, what you see... you're going to go home and load up whatever game is making you happy at the moment, and while you're playing it, you're not going to think about what's being said here or there or what the latest reviewer wrote on IGN. You're going to be thinking about the next kill, or score, or your points, or where the power ups are
So why don't you go do that? You seem like you could use a little fun, pixelator.
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11-15-2006 @ 8:25AM
Fox said...
Brilliant comment Alisha, definitely star-worthy.
With all due respect,
Fox
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