Analyst: Xbox 360 sales solid but "lackluster"

Wait till Halo 3

The original Xbox had a killer app.. 360 is still waiting on that. I would expect the same to happen to the PS3, since MGS:4 is a ways off.

I plan on picking up a 360 if GOW is as good as its hype train would dictate.. once I had the 360 there are a few games that I'd definitely purchase, but they're not titles that would warrant the purchase of the system on their own.

Had Halo 3 been a launch title, things would be a lot rosier for the Xbox 360 sales.

I think there's alot of people who are doing the "wait and see" approach to all of them.. There are early adopters (such as myself, along with GC, Xbox, DC, PS2) All of the new systems is still a good chunk of cash, and i wonder if this actually has something to do with it.. Xbox specifically when i purchased it, i bought it for Halo, cause i heard nothing but fantastic stuff about it before it was released.. And it was as good as they said it was.. Groundbreaking for the time..

These numbers are directly affected by the way the 360 is selling in Japan.

No Japan. No Win.

I totally agree with the article. I remember another analyst saying that the PS2 would be the worst enemy of the PS3, but I think that a more compelling case could be made that the presence of the Xbox is going to hurt 360 sales.

I think that microsoft abandoned the Xbox, hoping that people would immediately switch up to the more powerful 360, but the problem is that the Xbox is a capable and powerful system, and I think many consumers such as myself saw the improvement in power as a marginal increase and not worth the price of admission (yet).

i cant wait for the rpgs(blue dragon, lost odyssy) to come out and of course it will get alot of the ps3 games ported over a period of time too.

I not in Halo. The Xbox 360 game lineup is weak.

Price is the key, if the 360 was $200 it would sell a million a month. 300k is the US numbers not europe, uk, canada, or rest of world.

Usually there is the obligitory "wait til XXX comes out". It will be Gears of War, and Then people will say Halo 3. Sorry guys but Halo sold 5 million copies over its lifetime....Halo 2 did a bit better with 7.4 (i am sure with tons of overlap).

The problem is genre saturation. Those who will be buying Halo 3 will probably be buying Gears of War, and will also had been interested in Rainbow 6: Vegas, and GRAW and Call of Duty 2....So the majority people who will be getting Halo 3, will already have an Xbox 360. Such as myself, i bought a 360 a few months ago for Prey (big mistake lol) and GRAW (awesome game) and will be buying Gears, Vegas, and Halo 3. So bottom line is i dont see the 360 purchasing picking up, most of those who want it, already have it.

One AAA title (Halo 3) does sell a system over 4yrs. This is very interesting information. Its going to be real interesting how the sales numbers will change from November 06 to March 07 for all three systems.

Gears of War, Mass Effect, Too Human, Bioshock, and Assassin's Creed then Halo 3 and GTA IV. Enough Said.

One AAA title (Halo 3) doesn't sell a system over 4yrs. This is very interesting information. Its going to be real interesting how the sales numbers will change from November 06 to March 07 for all three systems.

The article didnt point out that 360 has had the next gen. market all to themselves for the past year; they also sold less units than Dreamcast sold before the PS2 came out.

Well, most people only think of the Xbox as a "Halo" machine, therefore they do not see the point in paying $300-400 to play Halo 2. Of course, these people are wrong, as there are a few great games for the 360. But, I'm not a fanboy, so I will admit that MS holding off on the big titles to compete with Sony has pissed me off

I think that the biggest reason the 360 isn't doing as well as it could be is because of PS3 fever. So many people think that PS3 will be the greatest thing since sliced bread. When the original Xbox came out, it didn't have to compete with the dream of something spectacular coming out the next year. This is kind of like when the Dreamcast came out a year before the PS2 and it didn't get the attention it deserved. If you want to compare numbers, compare Dramecast to 360, as in the pre-Playstation systems. Just wait until the PS3 is out and people have a chance to choose one or the other.

The 360 isn't doing as well as the Xbox because the Xbox started on the market in the months after September 11th. Everyone was sitting at home on their couches with jack shit to do. Halo was a welcome distraction from people breathing in god knows what in New York, and crackpots wondering whether a missile hit the Pentagon instead of a plane.

No one wanted to go to the movies, people were afraid to go to the mall. People were worried about opening their god damn mail (remember anthrax?).

DVD was another benefactor of that perfect home entertainment storm. Naturally this console generation is going to have a little slower pickup when people are willing and able to go out for a nice walk in the park. As winter sets in, sales will pick up for everyone.

Not too surprising. There's no games for the 360, it's content starved. Blue Dragon looks terrible and rushed. GOW and Halo look awesome to the 360 hard core core, but how does it look to the rest of the gamers out there. The PS3 may just have everything casual female gamers want. Internet, free games, chat. movies. Once the 7 billion games industry joins forces with the 7 billion dollar film and TV industry the PS3 is going to have plenty of content coming out fresh every Tuesday. . And I think that's something that is sticking in the back of everyones head. It's not hte potential of the Xbox 360 that stifling the 360, its the potential of the PS3 that has everyone hedging their bets.

@ # 16

Man that is the weirdest comment i have ever read on joystiq

Maybe 360 sales aren't through the roof simply because most people don't want to pay over $200-300 for a game system, plus they know that the price will eventually come down. I guess we'll see when the PS3 early adopters are satisfied and Sony has to sell a console that costs even more on a month-to-month basis to average gamers.

halo 3 is gonna save the 360?
dont you think that everyone that is into halo and cant wait for halo 3 already owns a 360

srry but halo wont do shit for the 360

@ 15
"I think that the biggest reason the 360 isn't doing as well as it could be is because of PS3 fever. So many people think that PS3 will be the greatest thing since sliced bread."

If you have "PS3 fever" and think that the "PS3 will be the greatest thing since sliced bread", then you are a Sony fanboy, and wouldn't buy the 360 anyways...

@16 .. so, al-Qaeda plotted to bump up video game sales and in particular XBOX? nah, i still think they're radical nutcases..

The 360 is actually destroying the Xbox if you discount the first two months. The Xbox sold over 1.4 million units its first holiday season. The 360 sold about 600,000. It was a supply issue. Since then the 360 has been selling far better than the Xbox did. And it missed 300,000 by very little in April, when it finally became in supply.

The PS2 was under 300,000 quite often, too, in its opening months. Just not as much. Again, though, it never had the supply problem

The PS2 sold 3 million it's second holiday season.
The same one where the 360 sold 1.4 and the GC sold 1.1. We'll see what happens this year. The PS3 will sell 400,000. Where will the other two be?
I'd predict they'll do well, but I don't think the 360 will sell 3 million in two months...

1 game does not save a console, do you want to pay $300 (+controller, games, live etc) to play 1 game? Go play it at a friends house. Cant do that with the rpgs you find on the ps3, you'd be at your friends house for hours a day, every (other) day...dont think theyd be happy about that.

halo isnt that good, face it, it just isnt, it cant move mountains or make the 360 sell through the roof.

@ Serb, #20

"halo 3 is gonna save the 360?
dont you think that everyone that is into halo and cant wait for halo 3 already owns a 360

srry but halo wont do shit for the 360"



Just like Im sure that GTA4 and MGS4 wont "do shit" for the PS3...

Yeah I agree. Xbox 360 lacks the game titles needed to bring people to actually buy it.

Halo 3, GoW is what I'm waiting for. The launch titles weren't as appealing.

Plus, the next gen prices aren't for the average joe. I mean. with the extra hundred. I could get something else. And what the heck is with the 2 SKUs? I mean. the cheaper version isn't worth it.

The good old days when it was just ONE CONSOLE. not multiple SKUs.
I mean, who needs media streaming when you can hack a Xbox with XBMC and get the 360 skin for it.

Wii is smart. Keeping it plain. A new way of playing games, for cheaper than their competitors and just one console to choose from.

I used to be an old school nintendo fan. but last gen I converted to an Xbox fan.

I'm waiting out to see which console I really want.
360- I'm waiting til the good titles come out, and for them to switch to a smaller more energy efficient processor (60nm) and maybe until they have the HDMI output availible.

For sure, I'm getting a Wii first. Then 360.
Forget the PS3. I'm a student..and my wallets are not that deep.

Since I'm a lowly jackass, please, humble me with some other exclusive titles that the PS3 has.

Where are some of you people getting your stats. 360 out sold dreamcast in like july the dreamcast only sold 5 mil in two years this is just a PS3 wish article because 360 is the fastest selling console in history with the most game attachments. You people are just wishing that the sony glory will last for ever. I just want equal console love, Got two preorders waiting to prove it. pswii60 all the way (the true gamer way) and to anyone who is going to give there own stats back them up with links as facts it would help you not look so ignorant.

^ GTA4 won't, it's not an exclusive. Sony doesn't even get it first. If Halo 3 was the draw for the 360 for me I wouldn't even get it. The reason I must have it eventually is Mass Effect, Blue Dragon (If I was w/o morals I would kill for the previous two alone...), Bioshock, Halo Wars (honestly more excited for than Halo 3), Gears of War, Lost Odyssey, Lost Planet (I hope these games find themselves...), Alan Wake, Too Human, Shadowrun (yes, I actually think FPS with magic sounds fricking awsome), etc. The only Siren Call Sony could possibly muster over me with that awsome of a line-up would be the FFVII re-make...oh dear god I would die.

AAA high profile titles matter quite a bit beyond their own sales. They raise the profile of the platform as a whole. The bestselling games of all time only reached at best 50% of the installed base, and most major hits far less than that, but their effect on making a platform desirable and in turn inspiring more developer support cannot be dismissed.

Some of the above posters are desparately ignorant. Despite the installed base of the Xbox, when Halo 2 appeared there was a substantial surge in hardware sales. Those existing fans of Halo only accounted for a portion of the sales and much of the interest came from people new to the Xbox.

Major titles do that. MGS 2 didn't sell greater than the existing PS2 base when the game was released but it marked the point when the PS2 became 'real' for those who'd been awaiting that game before buying the console. Likewise for RPG fans who awaited FFX before making the investment.

Thus far, the Xbox 360 has some excellent games but not of the sort that effectively reach those consumers who don't don't pay attention to magazines or sites like this. Plenty of people brought in by something like Halo 3 may eventually pick up Oblivion, making for great longterm sales for Bethesda. But they need that mainstream uber-hit to bring in the crowd.

do you microsux and nintendo wiitards even know what "play b3yond" means
it means to play b3yond three killer appa.
Xbox= halo1 halo2 and halo3
Nintendo= metroids, zelda, mario
but with sony you can play jak and daxter, MGS, DMC, socom, GTHD, rachet and clank, getaway,resident evil, final fantasy and you know the rest.
one game does not make a console fools

What is this Gaylo talk...you people are on f-ing crack, seriously. Halo is an AWESOME game no matter what way you cut it. Anyone that underestimates this title does not know a damn thing about videogames. Take a look back at the reviews, the acclaim, the sales, the fans, the franchise, the books, and soon a movie with good names behind it...this is no small title. You call Halo fans MS fanboys, but you are the only fanboys I see.

halo is overated

@21 Random Insanity

Thank you for restating exactly what I said. There are so many Sony Fanboys that think that because the system will use Blu-ray, that the games will be so huge and long, or other such crap. 360 has shown that huge games can and do work on DVD. Oblivion for example. I get kind of sick of hearing from these people that think that PS3 will practically wipe your butt for you. I at one point was considering reserving one, but that was back when I was convinced that they would never release a system for more than $500. I guess by a stretch of the imagination they didn't, but they also said they wouldn't do multiple skus like Xbox did. I think though, that this will possibly be the most level playing field that the games industry has seen in years. We have ingenuity and originality from Nintendo, a middle level player that is willing to do everything that they have to in order to win over Japan (Microsoft) and the two time champ who thinks that all he needs is his name to win people over (Playstation). The main thing it will come down to is the games, and who can get the greatest exclusives. PS3 lost a huge quiver in it's bolt when Assasin's Creed went multi-platform. This game was getting so much hype, but now it's on both PS3 and Xbox 360. That changes things. The Wii on the other hand will be able to pull people in a very different way. Last gen, they could use Mario and other first party titles to bring people in, now, they have a controller that will change the way you play a game. It's not just about which system you prefer, but how you want to play. If you want Vibration and graphics, 360 is your bet. If you want unique controls, the Wii is your answer. The PS3 itself doesn't have much to distinguish itself from the 360 other than Blu-Ray, not that important to me. Will I buy a PS3? Not this year, maybe next year when more are available and there are good games that aren't on the 360. Did I buy a 360 at launch? Yes, and I have enjoyed the games and really like the fact the I now have second year games, while the Sony Fanboys are getting first year titles. Will I be getting a Wii? Definitely, I plan to be there at launch. I am a video game nut and try to get every system I can get my hands on, but at the moment, the PS3 is making life hard. I really want one, but I don't think that it will be worth getting at launch, not like the 360 or the Wii.

Also @ 17 Mcloki

I don't know what you're smoking, because Blue Dragon looks to me like one of the best J-RPGs in quite some time. I think that Sakaguchi has made a great game and I can't wait to play it. If you want to play a rushed game, check out Enchanted Arms. That game was out within months of the launch in Japan, but it turned out to be a decent, but not great, game. Also, what Freakin' casual female gamer is going to spend $600 for a PS3? Or are you talking about the girlfriends of the Hardcore freaks who will buy the PS3 for "the potential of the PS3 that has everyone hedging their bets"? Most of these Casual gamers will be put off by the craziness of the fanboys, and possibly never touch the controller. You are correct though when you say "It's not hte potential of the Xbox 360 that stifling the 360, its the potential of the PS3 that has everyone hedging their bets". Like I said, people think this thing will be just fantastic, it won't be as great as people seem to think it is. For the same $600, I have a computer that can do things that the PS3 couldn't even dream of, such as durning DVDs, recording television, storing and transfering my digital music library and much more. So what if the PS3 can do 1080p, my TV can't, and since $600 is alot to spend, several thousand for an HDTV is much worse. As they say, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. I have a 360 and know what it can do, so far, so I have usable potential while the Sony Fanboys wait for a fantasy that looks like it might turn out less than imagined.

On a little side note, talking about potential, I remember when the PS2 came out and Fanboys were ranting about rumors that it could "launch missiles". Such is the mentality of a Fanboy. As I said, it's the games that win out, and depending on you genre of choice, it was Xbox for FPS mainly and PS2 for RPGs. I hope this will change, but who knows.

MS has a very narrow scope when it comes to what demographic they target, Sony does not.

"AAA high profile titles matter quite a bit beyond their own sales. They raise the profile of the platform as a whole. The bestselling games of all time only reached at best 50% of the installed base, and most major hits far less than that, but their effect on making a platform desirable and in turn inspiring more developer support cannot be dismissed."

Backs up my point. With an installed base as huge as the PS2 had, no single game could ever be wanted by every single person. That is where the PS2 had its best selling point: variety. There was a game for just about anyone.

Right now, the 360 just doesn't have a library wide enough to satisfy all gamers. Although asking that a year in is a bit ambitious, but still, if you look through the xbox library, there isn't terribly much variety to satisfy every niche.

Now I'm not saying that is a bad thing either, I'm just saying having a narrow focus is not going to win you large marketshare, however for those you are trying to win over, you will do in spades. Xbox fans are up to their necks in FPS games and tactical shooters. Variety is always a good thing, and if you want those kids of games, xbox is the system for you.

Sorry to burst your bubble novacharged, but Resident Evil is not a Playstation Exclusive, so you need to take that off your list.

Jesus Christ Novacharged. I thought I told you to learn how to communicate in a readable way. I suggest that everyone ignores his comments until he grows some balls , sprouts a penis, and learns how to type.


Regardless of what you may think. Halo 3 will sell several Millions of consoles. Not everyone reads the internet and people will buy it due to brand loyalty.

If you think that Microsoft only has Halo, and Nintendo only has three system sellers, then you need to pull your head out from under your ass. Also Getaway sucked and Resident Evil is not an exclusive. Not to mention that the developers of Jak and Daxter and Ratchet and Clank keep putting out repetitive sequels. Sony has very few exclusives left.


What seperates real people from Sony fanboys is that real people decided to grow brains while the unfortunate people with retarded genes decided to ignore facts and judge fiction as reality.

novacharged, please tell me you're just a random ass flamer who's trying to make Sony fans look bad, because you're seriously pissing me off.

And if you're being serious, just shut the hell up.


-From a fellow Sony fan.

Chronos_777 i don't have time to read the bible but after skimming through real fast you should know that oblivion have countless repeated audio. with blu ray even if the game is not long developers have no reason to repeat the same catch phrase over and over. and oblivion was an empty world with no creature are wildlife whats so ever. all you do is walk and suddenly
some weird crap attacks you. and the little wildlife they had also randomly appears. since you have oblivion try going around a bush and you can see the textures repeating right in front of you. you know what, i bet you that GTA4 for 360 will be on 2-3 disc.

So let me get this straight:

- M$ has dumped collossal amounts of money into pushing 360, buying out anyone who can't defend themselves, and paying off developers for exclusives

- 360 is in a worse position than Dreamcast at this point in its life

- 360 is in a worse position than xbox 1 in at this point in its life

In other words, 360 has been a *COLLOSAL* failure. This console generation is turning out to be a *NIGHTMARE* for M$, not only have they failed to capitalize on Sony's gaffes, they have failed to increase their market penetration from last gen, andnow face being steamrolled by the seemingly unstoppable PS3 juggernaut, with Wii brining up the rear to mop up the scraps.

To M$'s credit though, I'm sure they will stay in the fight, theoretically at least (like they are right now in Japan), and just wait until next gen, when they'll try to throw enough money around to monopolize the video game market again.

"i heard ps3 can cure retardation maybe you should get one to better help you cause"

And you would be living proof of this then?

Novacharged,

How old are you? I would really like to know. Your post implies you're a teenager (early teens) with an inability to spell properly and that your little "you bitches" comment implies you don't have a sufficient amount of neurons to come up with a much more sophisticated, eloquent response. That or perhaps a venereal disease such as syphilis is slowly destroying that pitiful, seven pound gelatinous mass that could be classified as a brain. It takes a four year old or someone with that level of maturity to say, "you bitches." You, and people like you, make a mockery of gamers as a whole. Thank you for helping perpetuate the stereotype that gamers lack grade school language mechanics, that gamers are incapable of acting like reasonable adults, and that gamers lack the maturity or intelligence to formulate clever counter arguments to earlier comments without having to resort to the derogatory language that only inbred felons seem to be capable of using. With people like you around, it is no wonder why an anti-game media whore such as Jack Thomspon is able to take such glee and expend so much effort in attacking our rights; it just takes one idiot like you to validate any of his points and if he is able to do so in front of an easily influenced judge, he will be successful in meeting any number of his goals.

Furthermore, the Xbox 360 is not dead. If you think that, you are most certainly a fool. There are two main reasons as to why the Xbox 360 hasn't outsold its predecessor given the same time frame. A) The Xbox 360, currently, does not have a killer app. Most games available can be found for $10 cheaper on the PC, are ports of current gen titles, or were titles originally slated to be Xbox titles but were delayed just long enough for the "next gen" polish. B) The Xbox 360 costs more than its predecessor in a number of ways. When the Xbox launched, it was $300, came with a HDD, and games were $50 a piece. Now, a Core Xbox 360 is $300, a memory card costs $40 (HDD is now $100), and games average $60. The idea of paying $430+ (including taxes) for a console just to play current gen ports at a higher resolution or games that were sloppily put together isn't exactly an appealing idea to the masses. Price always plays a factor in how quickly a console is adopted, and you really seem to forget that. Similarly, don’t expect the PS3 to sell more units than what the PS2 did in its first year. Barring manufacturing delays, the average consumer is unwilling to pay $500-$600+ for a product that is perceived to have limited functionality.

Finally, in regards to your little, "one game doesn't make a console jackass", I have this to say. While it is true that a single game doesn't make or break the market share of a console, a killer app certainly affects adoption rate. There are people who will buy a console just to play one game. Halo's a perfect example. Both it, and its sequel, sold a phenomenal amount of copies; both set and broke records in terms of sales. Furthermore, no one can deny that Halo and Halo 2 both played a large role in how the original Xbox sold. If Halo 3 had been a launch title, it'd be virtually guaranteed that the Xbox 360 would crush its predecessor's adoption rate and you'd be seeing 10+ million Xbox 360s sold instead of 7 million. Oh yes, I forgot. MGS4 isn't the only killer app for the PS3, but it would be a safe bet that the game will never outsell Halo 3 during the PS3's life time. Never forget that the Halo franchise appeals to far more people than what the Metal Gear Solid franchise does.

Go out, buy a PS3, have fun, but quit mocking people over things you seem to show little understanding for. I'd attack your, "360 sux" remark, but it'd take far too long to point out just how wrong your little comment is (case in point, at least Microsoft delivered its console on time while the same cannot be said for Sony). Also, go polish up on elementary school level English. You could certainly use it.

personally, i'm actually waiting for halo 3. i don't think i'm in the minority. the truth is that the xbox 260 doesn't have an amazing game yet to warrant a huge shift towards the 360. I mean what is there? Go to any game review site and check to see what's rated above a 9/10. Not enough to warrant dropping a huge wad of cash. PS3 is in bigger trouble for the same reason... To be honest I'm going 80% for the wii... I might get a 260 when halo 360 comes out, but until then it's just not matured enough for it to warrant the financial investment. It doesn't help sales that a hacked xbox plays all the hits from years ago. I mean I just spent a few days playing Mario world, and that's way more fun than most of the nonsense out now.

27:"The good old days when it was just ONE CONSOLE. not multiple SKUs.
I mean, who needs media streaming when you can hack a Xbox with XBMC and get the 360 skin for it."

Yeah, don't you just love the "good old days". you know, back in the 8-bit era, when Nintendo had THREE SKUs.

The Nintendo "control deck". With a system, two controllers = $99.99.

The Nintendo "Action deck". With a system, two controllers, a light gun, and Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt = $129.99

The Nintendo "power deck". With a system, two controllers, a power pad, light gun, and Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt/Generic track game = $149.99.

The Nintendo "Entertainment System". With a System, two controllers, light gun, ROB the robot, and Duck Hunt/Gyromite = $149.99(this was discontinued a couple of years after it's release.)


Lets take a look at the "good old days" 16-bit era.

Super Nintendo "Control deck". With a system, two controllers = $149.99/$99.99

Super Nintendo "Entertainment System". With a system, two controllers, and a copy of Super Mario World = $199.99/$149.99

Sega also released multiple system SKUs, priced between $149/$99 dollars. Same thing with the 32-bit/64-bit generation. How many different configurations of the Nintendo 64 did Nintendo sell simultaneously? This whole idea of multiple system SKUs is a old as the video game industry.

Almost everyone who's interested in Halo 3 and GoW owned an original XBox. Microsoft cannot improve on the XBox1's sales numbers with only shooters, they need a full spectrum of games if they want to appeal to the mass market. The 360 is one year old, but it's just now getting it's first significant jRPG (Blue Dragon), kiddy game (Viva Pinata), and platformer (Banjo-Kazooie 3 and Sonic). A couple unproven RPGs is not going to sway RPG fans, and a pair of kid-friendly games is not enough to convince parents to put a 360 under the Christmas tree.

#50 speaks the truth with style.

With regards to old school consoles..

The different SKUs were more to do with packed in accessories. For example, the difference between a 150 and 200 dollar SNES was a game, that cost 50 on its own.

It's not like it was 150 dollars for just an SNES and 200 for the SNES, AV wires, Mario and 2 controllers.. effectively forcing the consumer to buy the 200 dollar option.

I think these SKUs were more about choice than the 360's and PS3's.

No Novacharged, you implied it.