"terpfen 12.7.2006 at 01:24:19 AM
"It seemed logical to begin with, delaying the Gamecube Zelda to push Wii Zelda's sales,"

I think "underhanded" is the word you're looking for, not "logical.""

-Depends on your point of view.

"shippoyasha 12.6.2006 at 09:12:41 PM
Ew. Red Steel actually sold in Japan? I feel sick."

"ttfp 12.10.2006 at 09:15:23 AM
Why on earth did Ubisoft even bother releasing Red Steel in Japan? I don't think FPS games will ever catch on over there..."

-It had a solid premise, and the "script" does no dishonor to Japanese culture. I suppose they could nitpick over the details of the swords not sounding like true katanas, but some people do like the game even if the controls are... abhorrent.

God, what I would do for post formatting on GAF.

"Granted, I have plenty of money and TIME PLANNED TO GET THE CONSOLES."

"...you rarely buy games for a console you don't own yet OR PLAN ON GETTING IN A VERY SHORT TIMEFRAME."

I didn't say it wouldn't happen. But it's not going to happen very often. I know it did happen here, but I think that was primarily because some people heard in advance they'd have a hard time getting Zelda, so they got the Wii in one place and Zelda in another. There were at least two people at my EB where I got my Wii that said they were going to the Walmart across the street to get Zelda after they got the Wii at EB.

My point being - you rarely buy games for a console you don't own yet _or plan on getting in a very short timeframe_.

Cutriss, not to say you're wrong... but I actually have the Wii Zelda and no Wii. That's what I get for preordering the game way back when it wasn't even announced for the wii, and then switching it over to it... and not having enough money to get a Wii -_-;

"It seemed logical to begin with, delaying the Gamecube Zelda to push Wii Zelda's sales,"

I think "underhanded" is the word you're looking for, not "logical."

True dae.

I think Pixy may have hit it hard on the nose. We'll find out in a few weeks.

`pixy. i completely forgot of that.

True about Zelda.

Massively popular games in America are Zelda, Mario, Final Fantasy, Halo, GTA.

In japan, Zelda isnt massively popular so its not expectedm to break a million, Wind Waker didnt so I would expect TP to.

Hey.. this means that there will be Wii games on the DS Top Ten Sales List?

Blasphemy.

eggman:

What level of credibility do you have to make the statement, "No, they shipped that many"? I assume that was in reference to the 400,000 that was estimated before the official numbers came out. So I ask you, how in the world could you say that as if you knew it to be true?

The internet is such a strange thing. It gives the electrical engineer a PhD in nuclear chemistry, the hamburger flipper jurisdiction over the world nuclear crisis, and the prototypical success story the blog to whine about how terrible his life is. Just so you know, i_like_pizza is code for "I am the pope." I will be going by "Potentate" from now on, though, so keep that in mind. :|

That'd still be the SNES, actually.

631,480 units of software sold in the two day period of a system's debut is quite impressive. I'm happy to see that Nintendo had a successful Japanese launch with Wii, and hope that all goes well this Thursday through Saturday.

350,000 Wii units sold approximately, and a 1.8 to 1 ratio of software to hardware is really good. That's actually double of what PS3 had in its Japanese launch.

I wonder if one of those three Nintendo Wii titles will be #1 for overall software sales or will it be Love and Berry for the DS.

Either way, great going Big N.
Paul Gale
1up.com

dragon dash you are forgetting mario.

neko 225 dollars to be exact.

Wii Sports is indeed sold separately in Japan. The Wii is also about $40-50 USD cheaper there, I think.

Since they're tracking wii sports seperately, does that mean that it wasn't bundled with the wii in Japan? I'm confused...

Decemebr 2-3, jeez more time needs to be given than this. Time is a good healer and while I understand it will take developers time to get to grips with Wii and what to create for it, it really is a test for western developers especially.

While many might slate Red Steel, Ubisoft only stand to benefit while from the experience with Wii. Other western developers I feel are holding off Wii to push PS3 instead or are holding off Wii til things warm up.

On a more positive note I feel WVC will be the saving grace of Wii til actual Wii games pick up pace.

One of the reasons that I feel the DS is doing so well is because of the lack of western games on it. The japanese just seem to have that creative edge that's required. So while some may say Wii may suffer from lack of third party games it could still go either way. We've yet to see a lot of small developer Wii games. Give it time.

I suggest we wait until new year when the u.k/euro results are in along with the u.s ones.

uhh drumlord i think i found a bug in your comment submit thing.

i am using Opera browser for this page. and when i hit the submit button everything does as it should. but if i leave the page alone for a minute or so, it will do its "animation" like flash(being pulled sown ect) again and submit it once again.

thought i let you know.

The fact that Famitsu published a different number than what is listed above is a sign that nothing is really concrete right now also.

I meant "sold 370,000 or whatever" not shipped in that comment I made.

No, they shipped that many. That's the key. They've already shipped and sold 400,000 to retailers around Japan so just like how Sony does, Nintendo can say that. It isn't lying.

Also, shipping 370,000 or whatever out of that is really good simply because there are always going to be some areas where the demographic is different and so the system doesn't work right or a store gets them that doesn't get visited very often. These systems slip through the cracks. I know it happened with the US launch too because I walked into a Target in Wisconsin and found 6 Wiis just sitting there 3 days after launch day.

"It's a sign of the muthaf***ing apocalypse.

Neko has positive 5 karma."

IIRC, he's gotten that and above (like 11 or more) a few times before.

First off, does 400,000 mean exactly 400,000? I haven't yet heard anyone examine the possibility that Nintendo might have been a little bit short. Also, I haven't seen an official announcement that said, "We will have exactly 400,000 consoles available at the Japanese launch." That's a very real possibility, and I'm shocked to see so many people say, "It didn't sell out." First off, you have no basis in saying that, as every single report has been that the Wii sold out in minutes. Secondly, you assume that 400,000 was a number set in stone, and that it was exact. There's just no sense in that.

Also, saying that Zelda sales have wildly taled since OoT is insanely misleading. What would be more accurate would be to say that OoT saw a massive sales spike in the Zelda series. The original Zelda was bundled for a time, so part of its sales might be a little bit misleading in comparison to other consoles, but even still, it sold about 6.5 million. Ocarina is the only Zelda title to have broken 7 million. In fact, no other Zelda game besides the two aforementioned games have even broken 5 million. Wind Waker has broken 4 million. You call that tailing off? There is absolutely no reason to think that.

It's a sign of the muthaf***ing apocalypse.

Neko has positive 5 karma.

Anyway, on topic, i think its safe to say its too soon to still call anything alive or dead. The Japanese are notorious for their passing of most 3rd party titles that aren't big name franchises now (such as FF, DQ, DMC, DOA, e.t.c) Zelda not selling phenominally just means that A) not a lot of units of it were available (something that is slowly being confirmed) and B) It isn't as big of a system mover in Japan as it is in the US, something most of us knew already. I believe once we see Nintendogs Wii and Cooking Mama Wii and Big Brain Academy Wii and what will most likely be the most addictive thing since bread Animal Crossing Wii we will see a big upswing.

Bluelander: Dude. Stop trying to think for the trolls, they don't have issues spouting their garbage even when we DON'T want to hear it. We don't need a mediator. Again, it's too soon.

*Looks forward to seeing how the PAL launch will go*

Wow, nekofrog actually got trolled.

neko (and everyone that rated bluelander down), you should re-read what he said. He was not saying those things. He said that the morons on the Internet were saying those things. Since he referred to those guys as morons, it stands to reason he's not comparing with them.

As for the sales disparity, Media Create's PS3 numbers didn't match up with Famitsu's EnterBrain numbers, and EnterBrain's were right on the money with 80K, so if we put some stock in EnterBrain again, we have 370K. Which Nintendo could have rounded up to 400K. I'm not sure why they'd do that, but it's a valid explanation.

Third party sales will improve after the first week, once people have played the games they already have. How many people buy third party games *at launch*? You know the first-party titles are dependable and you want to have the best experience you can when you open the system. Hence why so many people bought Wii Sports and Hajimete no Wii. Expect the third party sales to go up a good amount next week, specifically for Pangya Golf, Elebits, and Ennichi no Tatsujin. I find it laughable that Ubisoft actually published Red Steel in Japan.

Twilight Princess isn't so hot upfront. Put a few hours into it and you'll be so very very happy you did. I had no problem with Wind Waker other than the abrupt ending and length of the game, but if you hated Wind Waker, TP is an absolutely incredible apology for the game.

The Shootout At Impa Corral is awesome, awesome, awesome.

Famitsu Wii Sales Numbers

Wii hardware - 371936

Wii Sports - 176880
Play Wii - 171888
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - 145068
WarioWare: Smooth Moves - 63086
Super Swing Golf - 12673
Ennichi noTatsujin - 10192
SD Gundam Scad Hammers - 9801
Red Steel - 8823
Tamagotch - 6994
Elebits - 6505

Terpfen: Except, we're talking about Japan numbers here, not US numbers.

Bluelander:

It's nice for you to discount any and every argument that comes not in Nintendo's favor, but to be doing so, you'd be ignoring the facts completely.

1. "Zelda isn't fun any more and it flopped in Japan".

No one said Zelda isn't fun anymore. Find me somewhere on GAF where someone said that. What we HAVE been saying is that, contrary to what fanboys think, it's not the "hot ticket" in Japan that it is in the US. Similar to Metroid.

2. "350,000 units sold in Japan, and 400,000 were put up for sale on store shelves. Wii isn't as popular as Nintendo had hoped."

350,000 out of 400,000 is somewhat of an anomaly, as the PS3 completely sold out. But again, you're making stuff up to frame the arguments of what you believe to be a troll, while ignoring the REAL argument at hand.

3. "Third party titles are selling horribly, meaning that PS3 will get all the third party support and Sony will become the market leader once again."

History repeats itself. When the N64 was in development, most people were banking on it to be the top console, in line with the NES (and less so than the SNES, which only had half market share). When people realized that the machine was difficult to squeeze results out of, and that sales just were not there, third parties left in droves for the PS1.

If third party titles continue the Nintendo console trend of flopping every which way, third party support will not return (and any that did, will leave once again for Sony, the known cash cow).

4. "It's over, Nintendo is finished."

A common Nintendo-fanboy quote used to disparage anyone who might actually propose some form of thought-out argument as to why everything isn't all rosy for Nintendo 100% of the time.

It's time for you to get new talking points.

I approached the Wii launch with great enthusiasm. But now that the euphoria has passed, I'm slightly concerned. It would seem that developers (outside of Nintendo) aren't really sure what to do with the system. I expect for the first year, we're going to see mostly mini-game games, and they're not going to be all that good.

That being said, I'm perfectly willing to give the Wii a year before it really takes off. If the Wii mirrors the DS then it'll take a good year before developers figure out what to do with the system and then it'll blast off just like the DS did.

wellness: It's a bunch of minigames. http://www.gamesarefun.com/news.php?newsid=7254

The third party sales are so far below the top games because they aren't that popular.

I mean you can love Trama Center and Monkey Ball to death, but they have never exactly set most people on fire. SD Gundam and Tamagotchi are old, they still may sell but a lot of people probably won't pick up a new system for them.

I do wonder is Ennichi no Tatsujin, a spin off of Namco's drum game?

I guess seeing how the first two titles in the list are almost half the cost of Zelda, no wonder people would be more apt to pick those up after shelling out $$$ for the console itself. Zelda managed best out of all the regularly priced games, so that speaks for itself, naturally. There's no way sales are going to stay at 140,000 for the game anyway. Wait until either time has passed and people are willing to spend more money on games, or there becomes more of a userbase. Besides, people have to take in account that many people are going to be receiving them as gifts, which they will then buy games for. Also factor in how many Gamecube copies are going to be sold. It's not looking to terribly grim for Zelda.

I haven't followed sales that much, but at least on Wind Waker, it's true that it was not the most amazing seller for the system. Mario Party 4 and Tales of Symphonia had a bigger impact, if I can recall...

I'm also a little concerned about the 350,000 figure. If there were actually 400,000 available, then claims that the system sold out immediately are false.

And yes, the third party game sales are fairly disappointing. Hopefully they remain steady for the next few weeks.

For examples of games that are "wildly popular" in Japan:

Pokemon, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest.

msz>

Zelda has never been "wildly popular". Ocarina of Time was the best selling game in the series, and after that, the sales dropped like a rock for each Zelda game.

You assume though that not all systems go to retail. Some might end up as personal gifts, some as donations to promotions, some to repair systems that may be faulty or damaged, some given away, ect.

So the Wii outsold PS3 and 360 in a day?

I guess this means DS Lite wont be number 1 :( Oh well, at least it's being replaced by something worthy :)

It's so wrong when some s*** like Crayon Shin-Chan, Tamagotchi and Ennichi no Tatsujin sell more than Trauma Center. :|

that's a pretty f***in high attach rate

That's pretty interesting. I didn't expect Wii Sports to sell that well. ^_^ And that's a decent tie ratio. Now I just have to wait for Wii Play and Wario Ware to come out here and I'm set. :D

Nintendo's greatest asset lately has been their awesome 1st and 2nd party games which have driven the DS to the forefront. However, it takes more than 1st and 2nd party games to make a good console. Look at the GC: Metroid, Mario, Zelda, Smash Bros, and all the other good titles were not enough to make it succeed.

For the curious,

Necronesia (Spike): 7140 yen
Bleach Wii (Sega): 7140 yen
Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo): 6800 yen
Red Steel (Ubisoft): 6800 yen
Sengoku Musou Wave (aka Samurai Spirits, Koei): 6090 yen
Furu Furu Paaku (Taito): 6090 yen
GT Pro Series (MTO): 6090 yen
Elebits (Konami): 6090 yen
Caduceus Z (aka Trauma Center, Atlus): 6090 yen
Swing Golf Panya (Tecmo): 6090 yen
Wing Island (Hudson): 6090 yen
SD Gundam (Bandai Namco): 6090 yen
Crayon Shin Chan (Banpresto): 6090 yen
Odoru Made in Wario (aka Wario Ware, Nintendo): 5800 yen
Pokemon Battle Revolution (Pokemon): 5800 yen
Ennichi no Tatsujin (Bandai Namco): 5040 yen
Mahjong Taikai Wii (Koei): 5040 yen
Hajimete no Wii (Nintendo): 4800 yen
Wii Sports (Nintendo): 4800 yen

Source: IGN

http://wii.ign.com/articles/740/740747p1.html