As if the hardware numbers didn’t clue you, Metal Gear Solid 4 dominated the software charts for last month here in the United States. The game sold 774,600 units, but if you combine that number with how many Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 bundles were sold (which include a copy of the game), the NPD estimates that about a million copies of MGS4 were sold last month. I guess people really wanted to know whether or not Snake and Otacon would have that dreamy ending they’ve been wanting since the end of the original Metal Gear Solid.

There are a few other easy-to-predict things in the top ten, such as Guitar Hero On Tour selling quite a few copies, as did Wii Fit and Wii Play. Battlefield: Bad Company (on 360) and Ninja Gaiden 2 both had strong sales, as did Mario Kart Wii.

But the major surprise — aside from GTA IV’s disappearance — is just how well Lego Indiana Jones sold. With the new movie being released, it was assured a good number of sales, but the Wii, PS2 and DS versions of the game combined for 822,600 copies sold, or in other words, straight cash money.

Kris Pigna over at 1UP made a good point regarding On Tour, suggesting that the game’s sales may have been much higher if the DS bundles were included in the figures. It’s worth keeping in mind, but I’m sure Activision is happy with selling 400k copies of a game that will likely have legs.

June 2008 Software Sales

1. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3) — 774,600 (Roughly 1 million including bundles)
2. Guitar Hero On Tour (DS) — 422,300
3. Ninja Gaiden II (Xbox 360) — 372,700
4. Wii Fit (Wii) — 372,700
5. Wii Play (Wii) – 359,100
6. Battlefield: Bad Company (Xbox 360) — 346,800
7. Mario Kart Wii (Wii) — 322,400
8. LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventure (Wii) — 294,500
9. LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventure (DS) — 267,800
10. LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventure (PS2) — 260,300

We knew about this ahead of time, but the release of the NPD figures for June make it slightly more tangible for everyone to see: Nintendo has taken the console lead in the United States, with the Wii outselling the Xbox 360 in June 666,700 units to 219,800. Now that it’s done that, I think it can be said that it’s now officially legal to punch anyone in the face that suggests the Wii is just a fad.

Sales for the PlayStation 3 were up almost 100% from May, selling a total of 405,500 units — no doubt thanks to the release of Metal Gear Solid 4. That’s almost twice the 360’s total, which is pretty impressive after only outselling the 360 by about 22,000 units in May.

Portable systems had pretty nice months, too. The PSP rebounded nicely with a solid 337,400 units, and the DS went absolutely crazy, selling 783,000. Graduation presents, perhaps?

June 2008 Hardware Sales (May numbers in parentheses)

• Nintendo DS – 783,000 (452,600)
• Wii – 666,700 (675,100)
• PlayStation 3 – 405,500 (208,700)
• PlayStation Portable – 337,4000 (182,300)
• Xbox 360 – 219,800 (186,600)
• PlayStation 2 – 188,800 (132,700)

Thus far, Sony’s has been the best press conference of E3 2008, hands down. Their turkey melts were delicious, as were the mini-quiches and those fruit drinks they were passing out. The wait staff was prompt and efficient, particularly around the open bar. All I had to do was say “beer,” and there’d be one in my hand within seconds. Oh yeah, and they talked about games or something like that, I think… Read the full article

The File-N-Forget Podcast returns this week as we ramp up for our upcoming E3 coverage. With Metal Gear Solid 4 now established in the market and fans going gaga over it, Ron and Shawn give their quick impressions of it along with Battlefield: Bad Company and Alone in the Dark.

Bigger questions loom however as we discuss the state of E3 and what we think might happen in years to come.

There are also Rants & Raves to make the fanboys happy.

This weeks show is available by direct download here.

As always, you can get past episodes from our podcast page at http://podcast.filefront.com, and you can send your comments, questions, suggestions, or snarky comments to podcast@filefront.com.

File-N-Forget is also available on the iTunes Music Store.

I’ve been saying it for over a year now: “The day Metal Gear Solid 4 comes out is the day I buy a PS3.” So on Thursday, June 12th, that’s exactly what I did. I even drove an hour to a Wal-Mart in a small town at 6 AM to make sure I could secure the special system bundle. Being a huge fan of the series, I wanted to savor the experience, so I waited until the weekend to start playing, when I could really devote my time to the game. In the meantime, I perused reviews praising the game for its brilliant gameplay and for fixing problems that had plagued the series from the beginning. Naturally, I was even more excited to begin playing. So imagine my dissapointment when I actually popped in the disc and found it to be more movie than game.

Read the full article

Great lineup of games for this week’s 1UP Show, with three big name games fighting for your attention. You can expect Dan Hsu to get the answers to your questions about Gears 2 directly from the face of the franchise, Cliff Bleszinski.

If that’s not your thing, then perhaps a little Battlefield: Bad Company talk will interest you? I think the general consensus is that the game’s trailers have been hilarious — who doesn’t like poking fun at Metal Gear Solid, Rainbow Six and Gears of War, after all? — but that won’t count for much if the game doesn’t live up to the franchise’s name. David Ellis and Shawn Elliott will discuss.

And finally, the newest addition to the lineup of 1UP podcasts, 1UP FM, gets a major plug during the segment featuring Atari’s Alone in the Dark.

Now make with the downloading and check out this week’s 1UP Show in the format of your choice:

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QT 640×360

Thank you, Yahtzee Croshaw. I knew I could count on you to be the guy who finally played Metal Gear Solid 4, stood up, and said “What the hell?” Reviewers everywhere have been slathering praise all over the game’s redundant story and brushing aside its ridiculously long cut scenes, but not Croshaw. This has to be the most spot-on review of MGS4 I’ve seen. It is a great game to be sure — when you’re actually allowed to play it — but yes, Kojima really needs an editor.

Via The Escapist

The trailers for Bad Company have been hilarious, particularly the ones mocking games like Metal Gear Solid, Rainbow Six, and Gears of War. The launch trailer for the game is also pretty funny. Plus, it’s got a tank chasing a golf cart, and you really can’t go wrong with that. Throw in some sarcasm, and you’re guaranteed to have a solid game trailer. That’s a little free tip for anyone out there in PR land. Having a solid marketing campaign will help sell your game, even if it isn’t the greatest thing in the world. (Which I still don’t feel like Bad Company is.)

In the days leading up to Metal Gear Solid 4’s release, the bundle featuring an 80GB PS3 along with the game was in ridiculously high demand. Websites offering pre-orders for the bundle were sold out within minutes (and in some cases, shut down entirely) and some stores held impromptu lotteries on launch day to decide who would be walking away with one of their very own. Luckily, Sony has noticed the demand and plans to ship more bundles out in early July.

“While we can’t provide specifics on inventory levels, the Metal Gear Solid 4 PlayStation 3 bundle is a limited-edition offering that’s experiencing high demand from Metal Gear and PlayStation enthusiasts,” the SCEA statement read. “We’re pleased with the strong consumer interest in the bundle and are working to ensure that additional shipments are provided to retailers.”

At this time, the 80GB bundle still seems to be one of the best deals for anyone interested in getting a PS3. Hopefully the people that missed out the first time will get a second chance at the bundle in the coming weeks.

Via GameRush

Gamers everywhere know David Hayter as the gravelly voice behind Solid Snake. But it looks like Hayter is looking to expand his role in the Metal Gear universe. Recently, he responded to fans on the IMDB message boards with this:

As for me writing the MGS movie, tell everyone on-line to write to Matt Tolmach at Sony Pictures studios in Culver City. If enough people do this, we may be back on board.

And just like that, the fans have now delivered with an online petition. To his credit, Hayter does have experience as a screenwriter, having penned the scripts for the upcoming Watchmen film and the first two X-Men movies (or as I refer to them “the good ones”). If he can keep phrase “love can bloom on the battlefield” out of it, he’s got my vote.

Via VideoGaming247