Microsoft struggling with UK Xbox 360 demand
by Alexander Sliwinski 
{ Dec 12th 2007 at 6:59PM }
We're all quite aware of the Wii shortages, but Xbox 360 shortages? Anything is possible as this generation of game consoles really begins to gear up. We know that the PS3 has been rallying in Europe according to Sony, so why not the Xbox 360? In the absence of Wii, others will win.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
sifer2400 @ Dec 12th 2007 7:02PM
it seems as sony's ps3 is the only one they have an over abundance of
Stevie @ Dec 12th 2007 7:37PM
Well, according to VGChartz the PS3 has actually been outselling the 360 in PAL territories since about mid-October. The 360 appears to be doing well only in UK of the European territories.
Amazing what brand loyalty can accomplish.
eugene @ Dec 12th 2007 7:37PM
typical sony hater. The only reason there's a 360 supply problem is because all the PS3's are sold out. Sold out everywhere! People are just settling for 360. And nothing like facts, or numbers, or the dust settling on the PS3 boxes behind glass shelves can persuade me otherwise!
sifer2400 @ Dec 12th 2007 7:43PM
typical fanboy response it was a legitimate statement i nvr said fuck sony dick head. so far it the only console that is not synonyms with shortages
dsub @ Dec 12th 2007 7:56PM
People settling for a 360 because of no PS3's? Is that a serious theory as to why this could be happening? You sure sounded serious, that's the sad part.
We could apply your same theory to the fact that the Wii is impossible to find. So, now we have people who were going to settle for a PS3 that are now settling for a 360. What's next? They'll settle for a PS2 because 360's are out of stock and we'll see PS2's become hard to find. It couldn't just be the simple fact that the 360 has an amazing library of games in comparison to the PS3 and Wii could it? You think? I'd say it's a good possibility.
Fanboy arguments aside, outside of Blu-Ray and a few games, why would you want a PS3? The only reasons I can think of are future titles or features that seem to keep getting "delayed" amidst more and more empty promises from Sony, who seems to have this "It'll be worth it, we promise!" sales pitch. I mean, they are actually advertising MGS4 as a "coming soon" title. Hasn't it been pushed back to Summer/Fall of 08 now? Also being advertised is the Home service, as if it's available now.
The PS3's got some potential, but outside of the fact that it's an in-expensive blu-ray player that also happens to have a few decent games available for it, don't see the reasons to run out and grab one.
dsub @ Dec 12th 2007 7:58PM
when I say "advertising" I am referring to the new crop of PS3 commercials.
eugene @ Dec 12th 2007 7:58PM
dsub:
LOL
did you read my entire post? or just the first line?
Ants @ Dec 12th 2007 8:49PM
@Eugene
Oh lmao! i didnt even notice the part with the dust on the ps3s.
Anticrawl @ Dec 12th 2007 9:18PM
MY GOD! The PS3 is selling out everywhere in the PAL regions? Can it be? I had the option of buying one at launch and was gonna sell it for a huge profit online but decided not to. If this is true for the PS3 then I must go forth and purchase all 30-50 of the PS3's from my local Game!
dsub @ Dec 12th 2007 9:40PM
I feel like a dumbass. Definitely didn't see the dust part. Lol.
Anticrawl @ Dec 12th 2007 10:15PM
@eugene
Was a great comment by the way, forgot to note it in my post directly, but my sarcasm did in a sense.
You have earned +10 internet respects. It is the hardest type of respect to earn in this world my friend, spend your points wisely. This type of thing doesn't happen often. Nor does someone admiting their wrong (especially on the internet). So actually here are +2 Bonus Respect points for that.
XanthouS @ Dec 12th 2007 7:04PM
In sales, the illusion of short supply is often enough to spark sales, especially as Christmas draws near.
Delgado @ Dec 12th 2007 7:09PM
Unless the shortage is as widely publicized as the Wii's, I'm 99% sure that a small statement from Xbox's UK head will make little to no difference. Especially when the item isn't normally considered an impulse buy, as it costs $300+.
Necki @ Dec 13th 2007 10:30AM
Delgado the arcade 360 (stil a 360, just)
is only £200 in most shops. in fact the elite is the only £300+ console of the 360 range
Necki @ Dec 13th 2007 10:34AM
oh wait...
amazon has the elite for 299 and play.com for 279
peter @ Dec 12th 2007 7:06PM
I think thats bull but its great marketing.
LilCo187 @ Dec 12th 2007 7:21PM
I agree, only because it's Microsoft.
Robert @ Dec 12th 2007 7:13PM
"In the absence of Wii, others will win."
Actually, everyone wins. The Wii sucks. I still only have two games for it (Wii Sports and Zelda) and nobody here has played either for quite a while. The 360, on the other hand, gets played every single day.
And I can't afford a PS3.
UltimateQ @ Dec 12th 2007 7:25PM
You are right. I don't play my wii. or Any of my consoles. Because consoles in general are all so boring.
mr nimblewick (SegaDF - Jogurt Ring) @ Dec 12th 2007 7:25PM
Why not sell your Wii to someone who will appreciate it?
sifer2400 @ Dec 12th 2007 7:26PM
yea my friends are saying the same thing after a couple of months they go back to the 360 and sell there used wii's
Arteen @ Dec 12th 2007 7:58PM
Why not buy more Wii games, instead of sell it? There's Galaxy, Corruption, and RE4 out, with Mario Kart and Brawl on the way, to name a few. It would solve that "It sucks and I only have two games for it" problem of yours.
Anticrawl @ Dec 12th 2007 9:26PM
Honestly I'm one fucking huge Nintendo fan but I NEVER play my Wii unless my ladyfriend wants to. She actually has just as many games for it as me(that is she bought just as many for it, still my damn Wii! Games like Boogie, which is quite fun for the first 2 hours you play it, then you realize how god awefully shallow it is).
The reason I don't play my Wii is quite honestly because the original Xbox got me addicted to online gaming. PC never quite did it because texting messages while you're trying to frag someone in Unreal was impossible because the damn game moved so quickly. I hope this will all change with Brawl on the Wii and if it doesn't have a chat feature by then well I'll turn on my 360 and private chat with a buddy who has the game on Wii as well and we'll play together online. Voice chat + online gaming = Ultimate Win!
I have to go study for my final tomorrow now, mother will cry if I lose my scholarships and state paid tution over a gaming forum and online games! Damn this addiction (honestly it is, not to gaming or the internet. It's an addiction to the interaction with other people. Normally people in person aren't as much fun as they are on the internet because they can't speak their mind or be themselves comfortably).
ComradeTrotskii @ Dec 12th 2007 10:06PM
This is just a suggestion, you certainly don't have to listen to it but I would suggest you do.
IF you have a Wii but don't have Super Mario Galaxy or Metroid Prime 3, then you should purchase Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime 3, especially if you want to complain about about a lack of games.
Heck, you never know you might actually enjoy playing them.
ALH @ Dec 13th 2007 5:55AM
i was like you, then i got super mario galaxy. It makes a wii worth having- for once a game that justifies its reviews- buy it already!
Micheal82 @ Dec 12th 2007 7:16PM
It possible with the Wii shortages people picked up the 360 instead causing shortages. That's why I bought my Dreamcast years back because the PS2 was sold out.
Anticrawl @ Dec 12th 2007 9:41PM
That's insane dude. The whole reason the Dreamcast failed (ok half of the reason) is because they couldn't supply the undying demand for it in Japan. They had I think (pulling numbers out of my ass that are probably wrong) around 500,000 launch units and the demand was far greater than that. Eventually buyers got discouraged and decided to stop searching and wait for the impending PS2 launch (which used the shortage to gain ground by excessive advertisment at the notice of the shortage).
The second half was because the head of advertisment (or something really important, my history is getting a little iffy since it's been years this all happened) was fired after Sega realized they were going to "lose"/were "losing" in Japan. And if I remember correctly he went to Sony and successfully forced the PS2 into every gamer's room across the country.
It was all an unfortunate turn of events for Sega *tears up a bit*. Even though they were once a sworn enemy of Nintendo I loved them just the same, I stay up at night wodering "what would the gaming world have been like if the PS2 and Dreamcast swapped places?" (not really haha)
Seriously though, if the Dreamcast had done things right, then the Gamecube would have had more support in it's online sector and been able to test the waters a bit before the launch of the Wii. Then the Wii would have probably had voice-chat and online games at launch. Also consoles would have more feature right operating systems and resemble a PC operating system more, which would have driven cost of the consoles up or performance down since more feature rich operating systems come at the cost of performance (SEE: PS3 losing 13% of potential CPU power to it's operating system making it technically equal, more or less, to the 360 whos OS only eats up about 3-5%. Of course technical and real world stats are usually a little different)
Scary, a world where the PS3 costs even more because its already bloated OS/interface had more shit in it. Eh well that's all subjective I guess, I for one like my things to do what they are primarily for and that's it. My phone is for calling, my radio/pmp is for music, my consoles are for gaming and my PC is for por...school and torren...e-mailing.
"A jack-of-all-trades is a master of none."
Micheal82 @ Dec 13th 2007 8:52AM
To further add on I couldn't find a Dreamcast at first and waited for the PS2. When the PS2 came out I couldn't find it anywhere and got a Dreamcast. I didnt get a PS2 until after the first Christmas after its release. At least I got my Xbox, 360, Wii and Gamecube on the release date.
mike @ Dec 12th 2007 8:33PM
Well i know 5 people who have bought an xbox360 elite in the last month none of them owned an xbox before so MS are obviously doing something right
Elites are also hard to come by in bundles at present, peopl eon the www.avforums.com have been finding it hard to get one with bundled games
Cabcru @ Dec 12th 2007 7:25PM
Not sure where these shortages are supposed to be taking place but it certainly ain't my town centre. Even the shops that weren't video game dedicated had the odd 360 stacked up last weekend. No crowds swarming to snap them up, either.
Anticrawl @ Dec 12th 2007 9:44PM
Haha, no shit. My local electronics store had a literal PILE of them in one of the main walkways. But they moved the stock in the back and locked the rest up behind glass because of people stealing them(how the fuck do you sneak out with something that big), people hitting them with their buggies(god, just as bad as they are on the road eh?) and finally because the fire-marshall had tizzy about them blocking a potential escape route and potential causeing "a bottle-neck of screaming people" if the place ever caught on fire.
Anticrawl @ Dec 12th 2007 9:50PM
Also a bit off topic but...
Do buildings still catch on fire? Other than from wildfires in California, intentional fires or the random piece of debree from space that takes out a Walmart*. Houses really don't count for this question since you're typical American home-owner is about as responsible with their house as they are with their car (Honey, where did we leave that thing we spent 20-50,000 dollars on? You know. I wasn't really thinking about it cause I really wanted to get this bottle of water that cost me 99 cents).
* = I'm still waiting for this to happen, the odds are pretty high considering the size of the actual buildings and abundance of them.
Stevie @ Dec 12th 2007 7:32PM
Sounds like Microsoft is trying too hard to put itself on the same level as Nintendo with this.
It's also quite weird for them to say that, since they've been constantly outsold by PS3 in Europe since the end of October...
Matt B @ Dec 12th 2007 7:39PM
Anyone here from London to refute his claim?
ukickmydog @ Dec 12th 2007 7:49PM
poisoned al i think
Stevie @ Dec 12th 2007 7:50PM
Incidentally I'm from London ;)
I should have been a bit more specific: the 360 is doing great over here in UK and it's doing quite badly in the rest of Europe.
ukickmydog @ Dec 12th 2007 9:34PM
really, other than the UK and maybe france, are there any other major "gaming" countries in europe? if not, it shouldn't matter if it's doing bad outside the UK.
maybe denmark or sweden or something, it's possible i guess, i just haven't played many people outside of the UK and israel (lol right?) online on any console.
o the chinese gold farmers in wow too
Poisoned Al @ Dec 13th 2007 3:30AM
Yeah, everyone in England lives in London don't they? Sheesh! I live out in the sticks and I don't think there's even a 360 shortage out here. Saying that tho, somehow we manage to find a DS for my mum this week in our crappy Woolworth's when we couldn't find them anywhere online.
Tony @ Dec 12th 2007 7:38PM
If they mean mass-producing a product that doesn't fail in droves then yes, I see their point.
ukickmydog @ Dec 12th 2007 9:35PM
the same COULD be said of sony fanboy parents =/
that was fucked up
TheGreatDave @ Dec 12th 2007 7:52PM
Every major UK website has 360s for sale.
This is just bullshit, as you'd expect.
gonk @ Dec 12th 2007 8:08PM
did you try ordering one to see if they're on backorder?
TheGreatDave @ Dec 12th 2007 9:01PM
Most sites from the last 7 years say when something is out of stock ;)
Black @ Dec 12th 2007 8:00PM
I dunno, i know a lot of people are getting 360's
Jeff @ Dec 12th 2007 8:00PM
The Wii sells out because a few gamers and a bunch of retards want to buy it because its "omgz teh coolz!". If the Xbox360 is selling out, it's because every gamer and a few retards want it.
The Wii is the Mac of gaming consoles-- great marketing, great aesthetics, and no function. Meh, at least the Wii is cheap.
Farseer (GDI) @ Dec 12th 2007 8:31PM
Because of the Wii, I can now have gaming conversations (to an extent) with those who went glassy-eyed before.
Call the casual gamer a retard if you will. I'm just glad to see gaming become more and more mainstream.
Jeff @ Dec 12th 2007 8:38PM
Oh yeah, of course. I'm tempted to buy one so that my parents and sister can begin to appreciate why I waste so much of my time.
... that doesn't mean that I, personally, would ever put a Wii on the same level as a 360, my PC, or even ps3. It's for playing around with a cute gimmick until the drugs/alcohol wear off; not for use as a serious pastime.
mr nimblewick (SegaDF - Jogurt Ring) @ Dec 12th 2007 8:55PM
Is that why so many businesses use macs? Because they have no function?
BIGGEN @ Dec 12th 2007 10:20PM
he meant AND SAID function for gaming. god you have the worst posts, picture, and name, please die.
mr nimblewick (SegaDF - Jogurt Ring) @ Dec 13th 2007 1:11AM
"he meant AND SAID function for gaming. god you have the worst posts, picture, and name, please die."
And I'll quote him: "The Wii is the Mac of gaming consoles-- great marketing, great aesthetics, and no function."
He does not compare the Wii's gaming to a Mac's gaming. He compares a Wii's function to a Mac's function, saying that the Wii sucks as a game console as much as a Mac sucks as a computer. It's really a basic comparison.
And about myself personally, that's great that you don't like... this picture and name of a person on the internet. I'm glad you are able to release some of those homicidal tendencies online. Just know that I could never be insulted by someone with a Simpsons-style avatar.