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NPD July 2018: Octopath Traveler #1, Switch Best Selling Console
- Thread starter Deleted member 249
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The thirst is very real.
If they play their cards right they can probably pull a BotW and make MP4 the 1st real mainstream Metroid hit.
It's surprising to see the game actually get that sort of recognition when we only have a logo to go for it.
We only know 1 team member working on it for sure too.
Like WTF
Isn't Sony and Amazon still having some sort of dispute for product sales?
lol, MatPiscatella didnt know this happened to you. Can't say I'm surprised though, given twitter
Edit: the amazon stuff is likely a result of that discount thing being cancelled no? People trying to get those last pre orders in
Edit: the amazon stuff is likely a result of that discount thing being cancelled no? People trying to get those last pre orders in
Still on this I see... In any case. Moreso than it's console nature, the Joy-Con are the Switch's secret weapon to distinguish itself from Smartphones, they allow the console to do experiences phones can't do. Seriously how many phones can you think of come with two detachable candy-colored motion controllers that you can share with a friend for multiplayer games, or attach them to other contraptions for new and different experiences. You can dismiss Labo as just "Cardboard and Mini games" (which is laughably ignorant of what it actually is), but nobody can do it the way the Switch does it.
Seriously, people underestimate just how much of an advantage the Joy-Con actually give the Switch compared to other mobile devices. I'd like to see a phone do something like ARMS or Wii Sports.
This is why I think they should let the DS era games go, but phones can't replicate Wii Sports, Nintendo really should give that another try. Even 1-2 Switch sold fairly well and that game doesn't even seem very good.
I'm not arguing it was just as successful - just that it did about as well as could've been expected. Arguing that NSMB lost its pull given the circumstances seems odd; there was no one to sell it to.
It's a motion controller ... no one is flipping out over the Joycon because it's something new and amazing.
Quite frankly it's a *strength* for the Switch IMO that it's *not* associated with casual gaming.
That will pay dividends as the platform ages and doesn't get pigeon holed as a shovelware based frivilous gaming platform. It won't be subject to the wild ups and downs when trends like Wii Fit (or Labo) come crashing down.
I get why Nintendo keeps trying it, but ultimately it will be for the best that are forced to sell the Switch as a more conventional gaming platform.
In the long term the foundation for this system will be much more solid and it will also IMO pay dividends with attach ratio of software. Mario Odyssey is going to trounce Mario Galaxy's sales, BoTW is going to demolish Twilight Princess, Smash Ultimate will likely easily top Smash Brawl, etc. etc. They are better off going down this road in the long run.
If Prime 4 really sells well I will cry buckets of tears.
Please port Samus Returns to Switch btw. I almost finished it but have since dropped it and that has nothing to do with how damn much I love the game.
But I want a Switch version that gives the game the justice it deserves.
Please port Samus Returns to Switch btw. I almost finished it but have since dropped it and that has nothing to do with how damn much I love the game.
But I want a Switch version that gives the game the justice it deserves.
99% of the people I chat with on Twitter couldn't be nicer or more pleasant. I'm blessed. Lots of great people are interested in what we do and are awesome.
But then there's that other 1% lol.
But then there's that other 1% lol.
I would assume stuff like MP4, FE, etc., showing up this early would have to do with Amazon canning their discount program.
You do know that NSMBU was a launch title? It's kinda the job of launch titles to sell people on hardware.
While there were a load of factor hindering NSMBU's performance, WiiU's performance is also predicated by the fact that the launch titles were weaker products.
The fact that they relied on 3rd parties so much for the initial window and that software prospect were grim literally out the gate only compounded on the issues.
My point is you cannot blame the game's performance entirely on the system when the system's fate was dependent on the software released on it.
NSMB is usually a system seller and Nintendo usually recognize that by pushing bundles with the games, even for how mediocre NSMB2 was it still managed to perform rather well in comparison.
Heck MK8 in comparison even managed to get recognition outside WiiU circles and we have a better idea of its real potential after the rerelease on Switch, I believe the same will be true with SSB. That franchise is really popular among gamers after all.
It's two motion controllers you can hand to a friend for multiplayer, and use in conjunction with the Switch in a variety of unique and creative ways. It's like a Wii Remote on steroids. The Joy-Con may not be something completely original, but it uses old ideas in a brand new way, that gives it its appeal.
Casual games do not mean shovelware. If that really was the case, the Switch wouldn't already have a lot of shovelware on it already. Shovelware is a given whenever a console becomes a success, it's just the norm of a successful product, and has nothing to do with casual appeal. You do realize a console can appeal to both casual and hardcore gamers alike.
You don't decide what Nintendo does with the Switch. They're a business, they'll do what gets them a wide consumer base and makes them money. As long as stuff like 1-2 Switch and Labo does well, they'll keep making games like it. Sure, you'll still get your Mario and Zelda games, but Nintendo's not going to say "oh we didn't get the 80 million selling casual games we wanted, oh well better start making F-Zero". If you bought a Switch thinking it's going to be some hardcore only club, then quite honestly, you're delusional.
Joycon is mark of genius, you basically have a controller and for multiplayer you pass half of it and everyone has SNES controller equivalent.
It's pretty damn smart as you're not going to get single screen multiplayer with as many functions as a game which cannot be played on 1 screen (camera control is usually useless in single screen multiplayer after all).
I would say the bulk of Wii games unfortunately were shovelware, especially third parties that got the message of crapping out an ungodly number of mini-game athons, party games, fitness games, etc. etc. etc. I remember walking down the Wii aisle when it was in its hey day how much of the Wii section was plastic junk accessories and fairly mediocre games outside of the main Nintendo IP titles.
Nintendo doesn't have a tendancy to support things that aren't big hits, even something like Mario Run they weren't entirely happy with. They are chasing big appeal with these games, not Nintendo Land/Wii Party U type sales. Switch will be a learning experience even for Nintendo, they're going to be surprised by a lot things including the demographic shifts happening with their own fan base.
Switch will outsell the Wii without needing a Wii Sports or Brain Training. Relax. Sit back and enjoy the ride. It will be a better, more stable platform for Nintendo in the long run, much like what Sony has built with the Playstation, the PS brand wouldn't collapse if any one trend or fad suddenly fizzled out nor is it beholden to the whims of a very fickle audience.
Happy to see one of those retro-ish JRPG projects they've been giving shots pay off for SE in a big way.
Setsuna and Sphear didn't too well for em for what I remember. Hopefully the start of a promising franchise or atleast one or two sequels.
(I know Octopath isn't from Tokyo RPG Factory but still)
Setsuna and Sphear didn't too well for em for what I remember. Hopefully the start of a promising franchise or atleast one or two sequels.
(I know Octopath isn't from Tokyo RPG Factory but still)
Switch always dominates Amazon charts but it's doing even more so right now because the 20% pre-order discount program is ending.
Well yeah, Wii Sports and Wii Fit led to a lot of copycat products. Same thing would happen on Switch when it gets these kinds of successes. Difference is that Switch has a great hardcore install base to balance it. Wii's userbase was more lopsided than Nintendo would've liked. Switch can achieve better balance.
You're way off-base with this one. Nintendo, the company who decided to produce a 3rd entry in a series who's second game bombed on its original console and didn't do that much better when ported over. The company who insists on keeping a niche RTS series going despite not reaching Mario and Zelda numbers. And the company who puts out blatantly niche titles again and again for no other reason other than to provide variety doesn't support things that aren't big hits? Nintendo may have it's massive sellers, but they're not Capcom levels of unrealistic expectations. They typically have very conservative predictions, and don't expect every game to be a 5+ million seller instantly because they believe each game should have a different mission. 1-2 Switch still sold well for Nintendo, despite not being another Wii Sports phenomenon. They're putting out another Labo kit despite modest sales of the first two. And the producer of ARMS is already thinking about a sequel. Any typical publisher would can all these things as soon as they didn't get the insane sales numbers they wanted.
You never get anywhere if you only appease a hardcore audience. Truly successful consoles appeal to a wide variety of consumers. Sony is the same deal, more than half the people who bought a PS2 bought it as a DVD player and little else. The original PlayStation was defined by the novelty of the CD and FMV fad.
So happy I didn't restrain myself following Jason review, I really like Octopath. Hopefully, with all those sales, we can expect a follow-up.
Yeh it's people pre-ordering what they can now while they can still take advantage of the Prime discount (before Amazon kills it).
That third Labo kit was always in development, it's highly unlikely they just whipped that up in 3 months time.
The "hardcore" audience is bigger than people think, and yes you can.
PS2 destroyed the Wii in sales without needing a Wii Fit, the PS4 is going to easily outsell the Wii too, no problem. The PS3 + 360 sold far in excess of the Wii as well (due to Sony making some early mistakes, that gen was more split between MS/Sony).
No one bought the original PSOne to play CDs primarily, lol. The original XBox played DVD movies too, it's sales are no where close the PS2.
Switch will outsell the Wii as well without a Wii Sports type thing. Watch and see it done. Switch is the new chapter for Nintendo and it will showcase new demographic and marketing trends for Nintendo, ones that will drive them past the Wii. Stop trying to make the system into something backwards looking and just enjoy the ride.
Who said Go Vacation bombed ?
Game seems to be a sleeper hit, it charted in the top 5 in France and Spain last week and was #1 in Italy.
I could see the game selling quite a bit durinh the Holidays and crossing 1m copies without too much trouble.
Game seems to be a sleeper hit, it charted in the top 5 in France and Spain last week and was #1 in Italy.
I could see the game selling quite a bit durinh the Holidays and crossing 1m copies without too much trouble.
If you think playstation live & die by hardcore gaming you haven't been following.
Sports games are a huge reason for the appeal of consoles and they're really not hardcore game at all.
PS2 was released close to the release of Matrix Dvd and they certainly helped one another.
Sony didn't push Bluray so hard on ps3 for no reason if that wasn't part of the appeal of playstation.
"hardcores" are vocal but hardly numerous, there's a reason Platinium games don't generally fare that well in the market place.
also Ps2 had a lot of broader demographic products like Eye toy and so on.
Similarly you can't really claim that expanded audience played no part on ps3/X360 when MSFT did a total rebrand of x360 midgen to appeal to this expandded audience and Sony used a lot of marketing to make something out of the move peripheral.
Over 1 mill and it didn't even make top 10 NPD on its console in a relatively empty month? Don't think it faired well in Japan either, so I definitely don't see it.
It's really not. Core gamers can only get you so far. Getting other consumers on board creates a much healthier enviroment where different kinds of games can succeed.
And again, how many of those sales were attributed to the PS2 being a cheap DVD player for those who didn't give a shit about gaming? Not saying the PS2 didn't have a loyal core userbase but, cm'on, being the cheapest DVD player on the market and single handedly pushing the format into the mainstream is far more of a contributor to its 152 million sales than having hardcore games.
The Xbox Locked its DVD functionality behind an expensive remote purchase, the PS2 had it built-in. Also it wasn't just the fact that the PSOne played CDs, rather the Utility of the format is what drew people who otherwise wouldn't have touched a gaming console to it. Seriously, the novelty of FMV cutscenes and cinematic games were a key contributor to the PlayStation's success.
Switch will outsell Wii on the basis of it having a more balanced userbase and varied release slate. It won't be lopsided like the Wii's userbase was.
Switch is also functionally a handheld so there's incentive of more than 1 system per household.
In 4 or 5 years with little competition, I can see it.
It also kinda dropped without marketing so I don't know how much they expected to sell.
Depends on how long it sells and how it fares digital.
In 4 or 5 years with little competition, I can see it.
It also kinda dropped without marketing so I don't know how much they expected to sell.
Of course, Sony has a wide range of players, so what's wrong with that?
Who says you must have casual/non-gamers make up a huge part of your audience?
Sony does well with a range of enthusiast gamers from those who only like some genres (sports) to players that are very hardcore.
The PS2 easily outsold the Wii, the PS4 will do it easily as well. How is that possible if the Wii is supposedly the pinnacle of "wide appeal"? Well maybe because other systems find other ways to be as successful or even more successful in their own way.
It didn't release in Japan yet.
Like I said game had a tame launch but sales didn't went down. With the big holiday season coming I could see a lot of family picking this game.
More generally, software sales will be insane in Q4, expect some big surprises.
Well I guess I've got some crow to eat. A niche JRPG with very little marketing is the biggest game of the month? Well I'll be damned.
Yeah but not on the back of hardcore games.
And looking at the best selling ps2 games, there's a lot of wide appeal games that can be played casually like sports games.
Hardcore games are rarely the highest selling games so I don't know that particular demographic is so important when MSFT managed to get even more success by ditching them initially.
I can't imagine they had high expectations. 1 mill is probably the ceiling, but I can see it crawling to it over time with those casual legs and sales.
Congratulations to Octopath. I haven't played it yet but I've been impressed by the game itself in the demos and with the promotional push it has been given. Hopefully it inspires Square Enix and other third parties to create original IPs for Switch.
Can't believe the legs on Odyssey and BotW. I know they are both huge series and acclaimed titles but to be amongst the very top sellers so long after release.
GTA V is a sales behemoth.
Can't believe the legs on Odyssey and BotW. I know they are both huge series and acclaimed titles but to be amongst the very top sellers so long after release.
GTA V is a sales behemoth.
Wishful thinking from certain folks. Nobody has any real numbers, but the game itself is solid family fun and deserves to do well.
It's a game that deserve to do well, I had it on Wii it was surprisingly deep for such a shovelware looking game.
You would expect it to be the worst of the worst Wiisports cashin and it's actually a ton of fun to go through.
It really showed that the dev team poured all they could in making the game.
Absolutely. I remember the height of the Wii phenomenon. It definitely wasn't just popular among nursing home residents. Nearly everyone I knew was obsessed with Wii Sports from my 20-something year old friends to my young cousins to my uncle who had been a gamer as a teenager but hadn't played anything in years to, yes, my grandmother. It's just that we remember grandmothers and grandfathers playing the Wii because it was basically unprecedented at that time to see video games broadly appealing to an older demographic. They were the visible horizon at the edge of Nintendo's blue ocean, so that's where everyone's eyes were drawn.
That said, my only (tiny) reservation about Nintendo resurrecting Wii Sports is that I wonder if they'd want to comingle the Switch and Wii brands. But then again, Miis and Amiibo still exist, and Nintendo has never been one to make a clean break from its history.
Yep, that sounds weird, I was actually quite impressed by OT's marketing. It appeared all the way back to the january 2017 switch presentation iirc. It was the first big third party game to be shown I think (or maybe it was Dragon Quest, but since it's still not out...). It had two consequent demos and the developpers were listening to the fans. I'm not sure about regular advertisement. But Nintendo featured the game a lot in its direct. Since those who watch the direct are those who are the most likely to feel nostalgia towards 90's JRPG, it was a clever move.
Overall, I would say OT's launch was on point until we learned about the shortage
Thats a really good example.
Its interesting because DDR, which was a fad for a bit, completely died off.
GTA, CoD, FIFA, Madden, Battlefield, every game that's always in the top 20 NPD.
everyone knows gamers don't actually play games, Mat. they just complain about them on the internet
Then gamers are the worst.
What do we call people that play games that don't complain about them on the internet? Those people seem cool.