The Official "Console War" and Video Game Thread

[hemanrep]

Has Square said anything about this or Last Remnant for the 360?? I know they like to focus on one game at a time but it seems like ages since we heard any new info or screenshots

White Knight Chronicles is being developed by Level 5 and being published by Sony which means it's a PS3 exclusive. I don't remember any new info coming out on the since TGS, but Level 5 made the last DQ on the PS2 so I'm left to believe it will be at least as good as that game. From the videos I've seen, it looks REALLY good.

Last Remnant is coming to the 360 and PS3 using the Unreal Engine...I believe it's the first Square game to use the engine. I think it's more of an action RPG...akin to Zelda. I could be wrong on that though.

I think once Square has finalized the Crystal Tools (formerly known as the White Engine), they'll be able to push out more titles. They haven't really done much this generation, but I expect that to change once FFXIII comes out. And, I still think they will be a big supporter of the PS3 regardless of the sales. Sony is still the leader in Japan when it comes to HD consoles, so I'm sure most of their resources are focused on that system.

Kingdom Hearts on PS3 or Wii will definitely make me a happy gamer.

[markatisu]

The April NPD sales for the US come out tommorrow so I can post updated info then. But trust me the PS3 's only saving grace is the EU and the fact the 360 is dead in Japan. The PS3 has been molested in the US regardless how anyone wants to spin it and in JP it comes in as default #2 loosing to the Wii at a rate as high as 6 to 1 per week. Right now the PS3 is tracking behind the Gamecube in the US and JP, thanks in large part to Sony's ridiculous idea that the PS2 would just die.

The PS3 won't win ever unless the Wii dies and moves to a new console, the best Sony can expect is a STRONG second thanks to the EU, and that is even suspect.

If certain people want to talk sales age we can get real, if you want spin then at least make the spin somewhat real.

Tomorrow will show that regardless of almost 4 million in US sales the bump in hardware for the 360 and PS3 is extremely small, not what you want because it means only the "core" is buying

[hemanrep]

The one thing that keeps me from being overly confident about the PS3 is the fact that the market has yet to fully embrace the Blu-Ray format. I know it's still early and that the movie studios pledged support for it, but I've read numerous articles and listened to podcasts stating that sales of Blu-Ray players not including the PS3 have dropped rather than increased. Either Sony and its partners lower the cost of Blu-Ray players or it'll just be yet another failed format for Sony.

I know that excluding PS3s takes away a huge percent of the Blu-Ray players, but I think in order for the format to actually be the successor to DVD, other hardware companies need to be able to sell their players as well.

The growth rate of the 360 userbase has kind of been stagnant. I'm sure GTA IV will spike it, but I don't think Ninja Gaiden 2 is going to be a system seller like MGS4 will be.

In the end, the only things I'm surprised by (sales-wise) is that the Wii has such a large margin from both the PS3 and 360. I mean, the userbase is twice the size of the PS3 base. It's crazy to think that Nintendo can sustain the growth rate, but I'm afraid to doubt the success of the Wii right now.

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/52692

[VaderLives]

I thought this was great.

I stopped at wal mart yesterday to see if they got any more dark knight stuff (need to find the damn joker) and while i was scoping out the toys someone came over the loudspeaker and made an announcement that they just got a shipment of wiis in stock.

By the time I made it from the action figure isle to the electronics department the wiis were GONE. And yet there were 6 PS3s sitting on the shelf visibly gathering dust.

[markatisu]

You are correct, Ninja Gaiden on the 360 and PS3 was nothing to write home about sales wise and the sequel will only sell to its core, thus not bringing any new console owners in any force as MGS4 will.

Though watch to see if the MGS4 bump is sustained after June-July, if its not then that means the PS3 won't have brought many new people over from the PS2 and that is bad for them.

[Skullface]

PS3 firmware version 2.35 is up and running............

[markatisu]

Any idea what it adds??

[hemanrep]

Any idea what it adds??

Just a stability update for some games...

[Adora]

Can anyone help with this question? I've looked a bit in this thread, but I really don't have time to look through 194 pages to see if it's answered here.

Just bought a 40G PS3 and a copy of Grand Turismo. Have the standard controller that came with the console and a second Logitech controller. One controller will work with the came, but if you try to do a 2 person battle the other controller will not do anything once the race starts. We feel like we've tried everything and are having no luck getting them both to work at the same time. What are we doing wrong?? Thanks for any advice.

[IronAvatar]

Can anyone help with this question? I've looked a bit in this thread, but I really don't have time to look through 194 pages to see if it's answered here.

Good lord! This thread isn't about helping people, it's about us all shouting at each other and riduculing each persons choice of console and opinions. Help indeed!

Just bought a 40G PS3 and a copy of Grand Turismo. Have the standard controller that came with the console and a second Logitech controller. One controller will work with the came, but if you try to do a 2 person battle the other controller will not do anything once the race starts. We feel like we've tried everything and are having no luck getting them both to work at the same time. What are we doing wrong?? Thanks for any advice.

I think you have to set the type of controller used by the other player if it's a wheel controller. Have you tried looking in the options menu?

I haven't used a wheel controller with GT Prologue as of yet, but try looking in controller options menu (also...it might be an idea to read the manual ). Let us know how you get on!

[markatisu]

there are a few things you can try

if its USB controller, try plugging it in after the game starts
check the options menu and see if its setup correctly

Does the 2nd controller work on other games or in the P1 slot?

[Adora]

Good lord! This thread isn't about helping people, it's about us all shouting at each other and riduculing each persons choice of console and opinions. Help indeed!




I think you have to set the type of controller used by the other player if it's a wheel controller. Have you tried looking in the options menu?

I haven't used a wheel controller with GT Prologue as of yet, but try looking in controller options menu (also...it might be an idea to read the manual ). Let us know how you get on!

We have tried the PS3 manual, online searches, the online manual of the game, etc etc. No luck. I guess we just aren't looking in the right place of these things.

there are a few things you can try

if its USB controller, try plugging it in after the game starts
check the options menu and see if its setup correctly

Does the 2nd controller work on other games or in the P1 slot?

I'm at my wits end and so is my husband. I should probably get him in here to add to the discussion since he's the one setting it up, but it's not a wheel controller. It's a Logitech wireless controller (looks like a black xbox 360 controller.) It has a usb receiver that you plug in the console. It will work when you are selecting a car and such, but when the race begins, it's a no-go. The car just sits there. All the settings show up under the controller set up. It's a mystery to me. This is the only 1/2 player game we have. Actually, it's the only PS3 game we have at all.
Thanks for the responses!

[markatisu]

So to sum up if you plug the logitech one into slot 1 and the sixaxis (included) controller into slot 2 the 2nd player does not work? I know the sixaxis is wireless but try connecting it into the 2nd slot with the USB cable

We have the wireless PS3 logitech controller with the fans and I know it sometimes has issues in Puzzle Fighter.

Adora, is your PS3 on the net and signed into the Playstation Network? If it is I can share Puzzle Fighter with you and you can see if its the controller

[Adora]

So to sum up if you plug the logitech one into slot 1 and the sixaxis (included) controller into slot 2 the 2nd player does not work? I know the sixaxis is wireless but try connecting it into the 2nd slot with the USB cable

We have the wireless PS3 logitech controller with the fans and I know it sometimes has issues in Puzzle Fighter.

Adora, is your PS3 on the net and signed into the Playstation Network? If it is I can share Puzzle Fighter with you and you can see if its the controller

Thanks Mark! I'll get my hubby to check this out. We just got it yesterday, so we are still learning about it. The xbox360 and wii interfaces seemed much easier to set up and start playing.

[markatisu]

Thanks Mark! I'll get my hubby to check this out. We just got it yesterday, so we are still learning about it. The xbox360 and wii interfaces seemed much easier to set up and start playing.

yeah quite a few of us have had controller issues with the PS3, its due to a variety of reasons involving bluetooth and USB mostly.

Hopefully we can help you out because GT5P is a great game

[Skullface]

When the PSN store updates today, PSP owners can check out the new demo for Secret Agent Clank!

http://psp.ign.com/articles/874/874251p1.html

[Adora]

yeah quite a few of us have had controller issues with the PS3, its due to a variety of reasons involving bluetooth and USB mostly.

Hopefully we can help you out because GT5P is a great game

Still no luck. Went to the Logitech forums and found someone else with the same problem. Left a reply in hopes one of their specialists will answer. One of the people said that the PS3 thinks it's a wheel and that's why it won't work. I'm ready to chuck in in the garbage myself. Taking it back to the store would be wiser though.

[markatisu]

Still no luck. Went to the Logitech forums and found someone else with the same problem. Left a reply in hopes one of their specialists will answer. One of the people said that the PS3 thinks it's a wheel and that's why it won't work. I'm ready to chuck in in the garbage myself. Taking it back to the store would be wiser though.

Thats weird, if you can take the controller back I would and get one of the Sony made ones (The Sixaxis or the Dual Shock 3)

Its $10-15 more than the Logitechs but since its bluetooth enabled out of the box it will work a lot better

Now onto the sales, and if you dislike Nintendo or think the Wii is a fad then please skip this post


April US NPD Hardware Sales

1. Wii : 714.2K (Wii is now about 500-650k behind the US 360 Total sales)
2. Nintendo DS : 414.8K
3. PSP : 192.7K
4. Xbox 360 : 188.0K
5. PlayStation 3 : 187.1K
6. PlayStation 2 : 124.4K

April US NPD Game Sales (GTA IV barely defeats Mario Kart Wii)

1. 360 GTA IV 1.85m (Includes Special Editions)
2. Wii Mario Kart w/ wheel 1.12m
3. PS3 GTA IV 1.00m (Includes Special Editions)
4. Wii Play 360K
5. Wii Super Smash Bros. Brawl 326K (Surpassed 3 million in US)
6. PS3 Gran Turismo 5: Prologue 224K (Does not include PSN download purchases)
7. DS Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness 202K
8. DS Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time 202K
9. Wii Guitar Hero III 152K (Surpassed 2 million in US)
10. 360 Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 141K

Points of interest

• Despite GTAIV Massive $$$$ Launch, console sales for HD down over last 2 months, Blu-Ray winning have 0% effect on PS3
• Mario Kart Wii almost defeated the 360 GTAIV
• PSP games disappear from Top 10 again
• Wii sales for April set new high, Wii Fit for May should increase to almost 1 million which has never happened before
• Wii selling at a rate of 3.7-4 to 1 vs the PS3 and 360
• The Wii will surpass the 360 in the US next month (and therefore be the universal #1 as it leads in every other country) if it can sell similar to the last two months, otherwise it will happen in June
• Regardless of "console wars", the video game industry is booming with $1.23 billion in sales, another record month

Also as a side note in case anyone cares, the Wii Balance Board in JP is about 50,000 away from surpassing the entire PS3 userbase in JP. So next week there will be more Wii Balance Board owners then PS3 owners, Media Create declared 1 in 3 users is buying the add-on. The trend is being followed in the EU, we will have to see how it hits when its released on Sunday/Monday in the US.

For frame of reference for those who don't know what they are talking about, here are the US Lifetime Hardware Sales (aka install bases)

360 - 10 million
Wii - 9.5 million
PS3 - 4.2 million

[PJMania]

360 - 10 million
Wii - 9.5 million
PS3 - 4.2 million

PS3 isn't doing quite as badly against the 360 here as I thought. I thought it was closer to 30% of the total of 360s in the US as opposed to almost half of the total amount of 360s sold. I don't see it happening in the next year, or even the year after that, but it looks like the PS3 has a CHANCE at passing the 360 at some point in its lifetime in the US. That of course depends upon games being released for it.

One of the things about total 360 sales that I think was brought up already, is it possible that those numbers also include the RRoD replacements? If that's the case then the Wii would really already be #1 universally.

[markatisu]

PS3 isn't doing quite as badly against the 360 here as I thought. I thought it was closer to 30% of the total of 360s in the US as opposed to almost half of the total amount of 360s sold. I don't see it happening in the next year, or even the year after that, but it looks like the PS3 has a CHANCE at passing the 360 at some point in its lifetime in the US. That of course depends upon games being released for it.

PS3 has had a pretty good year in 2008, its having far better sales than in 2007. The problem for it is that it has been tying or coming just short of the 360, two times this year it actually sold a small bit more but that was it.

You cannot take over a previous position unless you start outselling the competition and the PS3 is not doing that (yet)

May NPD sales should show the effects of GTAIV and Blu-Ray on whether the PS3 has any momentum in anticipation for the MGS4 bundle/release

Sony has got to start moving its PS2 owners to the PS3 or gaining converts from the 360, otherwise it will continue to sit behind the 360 effectively splitting the market with them 50/50

Of course in the "HD" war Sony has nothing to worry about, it outsells the 360 in Japan at a rate of 6-8 to 1 weekly (similar to how much the Wii outsells the PS3 in JP)

Sony and Nintendo are selling steady amounts in 3 regions (US/EU/JP), MS is only selling in the US and some in the EU (mostly UK, the remainder of the EU is heavily in favor of the Wii/PS3 combo)

Japan is about 10%-20% of the total worldwide market but MS utter failure in that region is killing it as it allows the Wii and PS3 to gain worldwide by 200-700k a month on its 1 year lead.

One of the things about total 360 sales that I think was brought up already, is it possible that those numbers also include the RRoD replacements? If that's the case then the Wii would really already be #1 universally.

No these numbers are purely based on NPD sales, not shipped, not internal from Microsoft. Its all "sales" only

There has been some current investigating and rumors that MS is repairing RROD consoles and reselling them in the market as "new" but that has not been proven or taken into account

For all purposes the number listed about is solely new consoles out of the store

In the end its all moot anyway in the grand scheme of things since the Wii is already worldwide #1 (and has been since last November) thanks to Japan and the EU, its just a waiting game for it to surpass the 360 in the US which it will do in either May or June thanks to Wii Fit and continued strong sales the Wii Zapper (almost 1.5-2m) Mario Galaxy (3.7-4.5m), Mario Kart Wii (1.1-1.5m) and Super Smash Bros Brawl (3m+)

And of course what that means is with almost 25 million sold and an expected 20 million more by the end of 2008, we Wii owners will still continue to get mini games and shovelware or games that look like they belong on the PSX instead of the original Gamecube, and look nothing like AAA quality 3rd party efforts

[Oceanwalker]

Does all this sales jibba jabber really matter? I mean, seriously, the PS3 is a high end machine. Not everyone will buy it because of it's price point. It's a given. From the looks of it, it is still moving a solid 180,000 units a month which may not be the numbers the Wii is doing at its price point but still a solid base that is growing.

Now, if the PS3 wasn't selling at all we'd have issues.

[vaderSW1]

This seems as good a place as any to pose this question: what's the deal with EVERY place being sold out of Nintendo Wii's CONSTANTLY?! Is it that Nintendo can't keep up with the demand? I mean, I had NO problems acquiring a XBox360 or a PS3 when they came out. I just can't seem to find any place at all (other than e-bay) that has them in stock. Is Nintendo just not manufacturing enough of these things?

[hemanrep]

This seems as good a place as any to pose this question: what's the deal with EVERY place being sold out of Nintendo Wii's CONSTANTLY?! Is it that Nintendo can't keep up with the demand? I mean, I had NO problems acquiring a XBox360 or a PS3 when they came out. I just can't seem to find any place at all (other than e-bay) that has them in stock. Is Nintendo just not manufacturing enough of these things?

Nintendo was shipping 1.8M units a month until this month or last month. They announced they were upping it to like 2.4 or around there starting this month I believe. So it's not that they aren't manufacturing enough, it's that the demand is just so high.

Expect it to be like that for the entire year. I think Wii Fit is going to crush sales expectations ten fold and it's going to be a title (had to pause because I was about to call it a game) that will sell through to Christmas. It'll be like Wii Play except that it actually has substance.

To sell almost 800k consoles in April is NOT normal for the gaming industry. I'm pretty sure it was selling 300-400k around this time last year and it was still scarce in stores. That's two times more. The Wii is a monster...for Microsoft to say it's #1 (that's what their PR says...they don't count the Wii because it's not HD) is ridiculous.

I thought this was funny...but soooo true:

[IronAvatar]

*sigh* Ok....I'm going to hold off on my usual anti-Nintendo rants, because it's pointless. They've won this round, and that's not going to change.

I know gamers see this as a great thing, which is fair enough. But as somebody who wants to go indie on console, for me, the massive number of Wii owners is not enough to make me want to do something with WiiWare or even think about having to deal with Nintendo.

If I make a game and it sells badly on say, the PSN, then I only have myself to blame for its failure. That's a risk I'm willing to take, because it's completely up to me to make it work. Unfortunately, from what I'm hearing, Nintendo are still acting like a playground bully on the WiiWare front and no amount of potential profit will counter the money I actually loose because of Nintendo's tactics.

*sigh* I have to confess....it really grates on my nerves to see Nintendo doing so well. I can't help but feel that console development has taken a step back by 10 years, if only because now the major platform seller behaves in such a draconian way. I know many of you say that the freedom that Sony game developers has ruined the games industry, but really; is the way Nintendo behaving towards developers getting any better results?

We're starting to see a massive improvement in the quality of 3rd party PS3 titles this year, can we honestly the same about the Wii?

You'll have to excuse me while I go and try to digest these sour grapes

[markatisu]

Does all this sales jibba jabber really matter? I mean, seriously, the PS3 is a high end machine. Not everyone will buy it because of it's price point. It's a given. From the looks of it, it is still moving a solid 180,000 units a month which may not be the numbers the Wii is doing at its price point but still a solid base that is growing.

Now, if the PS3 wasn't selling at all we'd have issues.

It does matter in the fact that moving 180k is not solid when you are in a competition with two other companies, what you posted above is almost verbatim to what Nintendo was saying when the Gamecube was getting thrashed by the PS2 and the Xbox, only difference is Nintendo was turning a massive profit on the Gamecube.

You are essentially saying "Its OK because its selling something, even if its coming in last place...some sales are better than no sales", Sony is not happy with the PS3 performance and thankfully MS is messing up so bad Sony is going to be able to salvage a horrendous 2007, but trust me the #1 hardware maker for the last 2 generations is not jumping for joy they are squeaking by in the US.

Look if the PS3 were to continue on its current trend it would split the "HD" market with the 360, that does nobody any good as everything would begin to be multiplatform and there would be no difference between the 360 and the PS3 which is unfair to Sony because the PS3 is a much higher performing piece of hardware.

It would be just like how the Wii is getting PSP and PS2 ports when it is 2-3x more powerful and should be receiving games on par with a steroided Gamecube or slightly powered up Xbox. Wii owners should be expecting almost every game to look like or better then Mario Galaxy, Resident Evil 4, and Zelda Twilight Princess, PS3 owners should not be accepting ports of 360 games that have bad framerate, glitches, and poor AI just because the 360 cant handle what the PS3 can....its all the same mentality.

The PS3 is selling, its just not selling at PSX or PS2 or even PSP levels and thats is a problem for Sony.

I know gamers see this as a great thing, which is fair enough. But as somebody who wants to go indie on console, for me, the massive number of Wii owners is not enough to make me want to do something with WiiWare or even think about having to deal with Nintendo.

Its interesting you say that when several indie developers have actually said the opposite about Wii Ware in comparison to XBL where they claim Microsoft is heavy handed. Also the profit margin is reportedly bigger on Wii Ware then either XBL or PSN, are you saying they are acting similar to how they handle DS games (which I think you complained about). Just trying to put things into perspective since we never get to hear the inner workings of this kind of stuff.

I think PSN is probably the most open of the 3 online services, not heard much for or against it from anyone (not sure why either)

We're starting to see a massive improvement in the quality of 3rd party PS3 titles this year, can we honestly the same about the Wii?

But yet it still sells in record numbers, thats the depressing part

Also keep in mind this "massive improvement" is not accompanied with sales, did you know that no PS3 title (3rd party or other) has sold more than 300k in Japan, thats how bad the situation for developers is. Where you are is much better to 3rd parties and Sony in general (thankfully you guys had the common sense to buy Uncharted!)

But the US is similar, in the 2 years Sony has had the PS3 out it has had two million sellers outside of Resistance and Motostorm, that was Call of Duty 4 and Grand Theft Auto IV, Assassins Creed may or may not have crossed that magic point by now but its unclear. Almost all of their AAA big titles flopped, Uncharted/Ratchet and Clank/Heavenly Sword/Lair....bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb anywhere outside the EU

And the trend may not be changing, note GT5P up there in US sales with a healthy 200-300k, if it does not place next month with another 200-300k then it will struggle to do any better than those I just mentioned and that is a darn shame!

You can make the best games but if they dont sell then unfortunetly they become no better than the shovelware that does sell on the Wii, gaming wise that sucks but business wise thats what matters when greenlighting and funding new games.