I’m at a loss to really explain what happened in April; if you’re anything other than a Nintendo fan, you’re not going to be pleased with the hardware sales figures. Not a single system other than Nintendo’s duo managed to crack 200,000 units for the month of April in the US, according to the NPD Group.
April 2008 Hardware Sales (March numbers in parentheses):
Nintendo Wii - 714,200 (721,000)
Nintendo DS - 414,800 (698,000)
PlayStation Portable - 192,700 (297,000)
Xbox 360 - 188,000 (262,000)
PlayStation 3 - 187,100 (257,000)
PlayStation 2 - 124,400 (216,000)
Talk about a 50-50 split for the PS3 and 360 here in the US; just 900 units separated the two systems. Oddly enough, the rankings turned out to be exactly the same as in March, which is, in a way, good if you’re in the market for a Wii as Michael Pachter’s prediction that the Wii shortage would be resolving itself seems to have come true. Nearly 1.5 million consoles sold in two months means the system is out there in fairly large quantities.
Unfortunately, my archrival’s other predictions weren’t quite so accurate. The 360 and PS3 sold roughly 90k and 100k less, respectively, than he thought. But really, who would have thought the numbers would be so low this month?
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There’s only two flavors of new content on the PlayStation Store for PC — an echochrome theme and, even better, a demo of Secret Agent Clank. We got word earlier today that the game has gone gold, so this will give you a sneak peek at what you can expect from Clank’s PSP game. The demo contains the first level from the game, so if you’ve got a problem with repetition, you might want to skip the demo and just pick the game up on June 17.
After getting very little information on the upcoming Hellboy game, we can finally see the actual gameplay. The game is actually based on the hit comic book series by Mike Mignola. Personally, I love the comic, so this trailer both thrills and terrifies me. On the one hand, it looks like they did a pretty good job of adapting Mignola’s style into the graphics. On the other hand though, this looks like your typical, run-of-the-mill beat ‘em up. I don’t know what else they would’ve done, but you’d think they could add something to spice up the derivative action a little.
Sony’s financial results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008 have revealed that Sony sold 9.24 million PlayStation 3 systems worldwide, up from 5.63 million in the previous fiscal year. The PlayStation Portable also had a solid year, selling 13.9 million units, which is 4.36 million more than last year.
The PlayStation 2 was just barely surpassed by the PSP though; the seven year old system managed to sell an amazing 13.73 million consoles. That’s down 980,000 from the previous year, but it doesn’t detract from how incredible it is that the system is selling better than the PS3 despite its age.
Additionally, the PlayStation 2’s install base has reached 154 million units, according to GI.biz.
The ten year plan seems to be in full effect with the PlayStation 2, but we’ll have to see just how much longer this momentum can continue to carry it.
Square Enix today announced that Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII will be released across all PAL territories on June 20th for the PSP.With cool visuals, full 16:9 widescreen presentation, an engaging battle system, and additional gameplay challenges not included in the original Japanese version, fans and newcomers alike can experience the world from an all-new perspective. As an added incentive to pre-order, a special edition version of the game, with hardback artwork book and slipcase is available exclusively with selected online retailers while stocks last.
For more information about Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, check out our previous posts; meanwhile, our European brethren can get details on how to pre-order by clicking here.
It’s that time of the year, where we get to review financial results for the previous fiscal year. Sony has reported its results for the year ending on March 31, 2008, and it was generally good news as both revenues and profits were up from last year. Net income rose to $3.51 billion, which is almost 300% last year’s $1.2 billion. Much of the success can be attributed to the electronics division; those stupid Bravia ads must be working, because they posted record sales and operating income along with CyberShot cameras, reports GI.biz.
The videogame division also saw significant improvement, with sales increasing 26.3% over last year to $12.2 billion, closing the losses from $2.21 billion down to $1.18 billion. Sony claims this is thanks to lower production costs of the PS3 and a strong performance by the PSP, particularly in Japan.
The PlayStation 2 continuing to sell extremely well at $129 probably ain’t hurtin’, either.
Important Note: The chart you see above has no relevance to this story. But, it is, irrefutably, a chart. And this sort of story deserves a chart of some sort.
Recently, a demo for LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures was released for the PC and it left console owners hoping for a version to hit their systems soon. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is not going to happen.
According to Eurogamer, an Activision representative told the site that a console demo is not in the works or will there be one at all. So, if you are reading this, that means you have access to a PC, which means that you can still play a demo and that should give you an idea if you want it for your console, so try not to be so glum about it.
You can get the demo by clicking on the badge below.
LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures takes the fun and creative construction of LEGO and combines it with the wits, daring and non-stop action from the original cinematic adventures “Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark”, “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”.
To top it off, 1Up has posted some fun screens for it today, and to view them just hit the thumbnails below. The game is expected to be released on June 3rd for the PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, DS, Xbox-360 and Wii.
Atlus has announced that the new PSP title, R-Type Command, is now available for purchase in North America. This new entry in the series will feature some turn-based strategy elements in addition to the side-scrolling shooter action. Those who purchase the game will also receive a limited edition figurine at select retailers while supplies last. So if you’re a big R-Type fan, now would the time to run out a grab your copy.
Chances are that you’ve never heard of Carpenter’s Story. It’s a charming action/platformer that’s certainly worth checking out, if for no reason other than to see what it looks like in motion. There’s nothing on the PlayStation Store, but PSP Fanboy has hosted the download and has instructions for how to transfer it to your PSP here.
Welcome to the latest edition of Pachter Predicts, where Wedbush Morgan analyst and my sworn adversary Michael Pachter makes his predictions for the past month’s console sales here in the United States. For the second straight month, Pachter has predicted that the PlayStation 3 outsold the Xbox 360. (Although last month his prediction turned out wrong, as the 360 had a 5,000 unit edge over the PS3.)
Here are his predictions, with last month’s numbers in parentheses:
If Pachter turns out to be right, it looks like the 360 and PS3 won’t have seen a major boost in sales as many have thought they would. He attributes his predicted higher sales of the DS and Wii to their greater availability.
As for Grand Theft Auto IV, he expects it to have sold 3.3 million units in its first six days in the US alone, and also notes that he expects 20 games to have cracked the 100,000 unit mark in April, compared with only nine last year.
Those of you who still find yourself looking for a Wii, Pachter thinks that situation might be soon resolving itself: “We believe that Nintendo has diverted a significant portion of its available supply to Europe since April 2007, as the weakening dollar has made US sales less profitable for the company… We expect the supply situation will begin to improve over the next several months. We expect a surge in supply in the US for Wii Fit’s May 21 launch here, and believe we could see as many as 900,000 Wii units show up at retail this month (May).”
Honestly, there’s nothing you’re going to learn in this story that the title couldn’t tell you. The only piece of content on the PlayStation Store for PC is a demo of SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 2, which you can also download through your PlayStation 3 and send to your PSP. You can’t go wrong with a portable demo, but if SOCOM isn’t really you’re thing, I guess you’re just SOL this week, PSP owners.
Codemasters has secured the exclusive video game rights to Formula One in a worldwide licensing agreement with Formula One Administration Ltd. In turn, the developer/publisher will create a new generation of the multi-million selling Formula One game franchise across multiple consoles, handhelds and PC.
Here are some “gushing” quotes pulled from the press release:
“FORMULA 1 is ambitious in expanding its reach with more circuits planned beyond recent additions in the Middle East and China. It is also ambitious in expanding its reach via technology. The digital communities that computer and video gaming creates will play a key role in further growing the FORMULA 1 audience and connecting them globally,” said Rod Cousens, chief executive officer, Codemasters.
“As a world-leading creator of driving games, this alliance with FORMULA 1 is the jewel in Codemasters’ racing crown and creates an undisputed segment champion. FORMULA 1 has gone with the best, the segment leader. It has gone to the home of the EGO Engine for quality; it has gone to the company that can host FORMULA 1 Online, to the company that is streaking away from the pack.”
“Codemasters’ success and recent innovations in the racing game space makes the company more than appropriately tuned for the challenge,” said Chris Deering, chairman, Codemasters.“The combination of FORMULA 1’s new momentum of expansion and Codemasters’ contemporary technology and past experience is the breaking of a new dawn for the sport, on the track and on the HD game screen.”
This deal will provide Codemasters with rights to feature all Grand Prix circuits, Formula One teams, cars, and driver likenesses. In addition, the FIA Formula One World Championship games will be developed using the evolution of the EGO Game Technology Engine, Codemasters’ cross-platform middleware technology. The EGO Engine is currently being deployed in the creation of Race Driver: GRID, the latest in Codemasters Studio’s international circuit-based racing series which will be released on May 30th.
The first FIA Formula One World Championship game is set to launch in 2009.
Those of you who employ the Skype support on PSP will be happy to know that the one piece Skype headset, originally scheduled for release last month, has finally been released. You’ll no longer need the two separate pieces that were used previously, but that convenience will cost you $30 — $10 more than Amazon originally had the headset listed at back in March.
$30 is too rich for my blood, considering I don’t really use Skype very often (at least on my PSP) and I don’t play PSP games online enough to justify wanting to really talk to anyone else. Bring on the cheap third-party alternatives!
As a kid, I remember loving anything that could glow in the dark. It defied all logic, and yet you could hold it in your hand — what was cooler? Soon, you’ll be able to make your PlayStation Portable glow in the dark with a simple replacement cover.
There are a variety of colors available of the XCM-developed mod, which will be available for pre-order from a variety of websites listed at the XCM site.
I can’t imagine what it would actually be like to play with a glowing system in the dark, but the mere novelty of it seems like enough incentive.
Poor Harvey Dent. His campaign against crime ended when crime boss Sal “Boss” Maroni threw sulfuric acid in Dent’s face, horribly scarring and discoloring his left hand and the left half of his face. Tormented by his hideous reflection, he becomes not only a shadow of his former self, but a demented villain and changes his name to Two Face. This crazed former attorney uses the toss of his coin to decide whether he acts for good or evil in any situation. Unfortunately, the coin rarely lands on good.
While this may sound like a dire plotline, we can pretty much guess that it will be more light hearted if not down right comical when portrayed in the new LEGO Batman game where a stampede of notorious criminals have busted out of Arkham Asylum (the place where Gotham City houses only the shadiest of characters).
It’s up to the famed Caped Crusader to sweep Gotham clean of criminal activity using everything at his disposal, including crime-fighting vehicles as well as several baddie-bashing gadgets.
LEGO Batman is expected to be released in September on multiple platforms. You can view more of the new screens featuring Two Face and others by clicking here.
The ongoing PlayStation Day conference in Europe has brought about a number of announcements, including word from SCEE’s David Reeves that PlayStation 3 has officially sold more than the Xbox 360 has in Europe, depsite the tremendous head start Microsoft had.
“I am delighted to be able announce today that we have sold more PlayStation 3s throughout Europe than Xbox 360 - even though they launched sixteen months before PS3,” he said. More than 5 million consoles have been sold, according to Reeves. He expressed his excitement that the PS3 had accomplished this feat in a similar time frame that the PS2 did, even with the PS3’s much higher price.
“We are particularly proud of this as it has been achieved in a similar time frame as PlayStation 2 which retailed, if you remember, at a significantly lower price,” he said.
While Reeves pointed to the PS3 outselling the 360 since October 2007 (a period which includes the 360’s latest price cut), he made no mention of the Wii, which we all know has been putting both Sony and Microsoft to shame. So it’s not particularly surprising for that to be the case. He did, however, reveal some other numbers regarding Sony’s other platforms. In Europe, the PSP has sold 12 million units, and the PS2, 48 million. He said, “These numbers are a testament to the strength of the PlayStation brand throughout our region, the ever-increasing number of titles being launched, the rich content on offer and its appeal to different demographics and cultures.”
Things are certainly looking up for Sony in Europe, but with Japan a complete failure for Microsoft, don’t expect to see Microsoft sit idly by.
The long awaited MC Escher-inspired puzzle-platformer, echochrome, is set to release tomorrow on the PlayStation Store tomorrow for both PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable. Each version features 56 unique levels and will cost $9.99.
We’ve written our fair share about it, and if you checked out 1UP’s recent preview and import video review (above), you should know that this game is a must-buy for owners of either of Sony’s systems.
I’m glad the game ended up being a downloadable game versus retail, as there’s simply no way that the game could have been priced at $10 in stores. And at this price, it’s not going to be too expensive to pick up both versions of the game.
So who else will be getting the game tomorrow, and for what system(s)?
Atlus has announced a new bonus for people who pre-order the upcoming PSP title, R-Type Command, at certain retailers. Pre-ordering the game will get you a special figurine of the R-9 in the game, while supplies last. As you can see, the figurine is really detailed and should make a fine addition to any R-Type fan’s desk. So if you want the figure, you’ll have to pre-order R-Type Command from either Amazon, GameStop, Game Crazy, or EB Canada.
Ah, nothing like waking up to a new review from Zero Punctuation. This week, Yahtzee turns his reviewing eye towards the new PSP title, God of War: Chains of Olympus. As it turns out, this is one of those few occasions where he actually seems to like the game. In fact, his only major complaints seem to be related to the design of the PSP itself. Not that any of that stops him from skewering some of the more ridiculous aspects of the game.
Recently, a demo for LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures was 
Welcome to the latest edition of Pachter Predicts, where Wedbush Morgan analyst and my sworn adversary Michael Pachter makes his predictions for the past month’s console sales here in the United States. For the 
Codemasters has secured the exclusive video game rights to Formula One in a worldwide licensing agreement with Formula One Administration Ltd. In turn, the developer/publisher will create a new generation of the multi-million selling Formula One game franchise across multiple consoles, handhelds and PC.
