Japanese hardware sales, Nov. 24 - Nov. 30: Scholastic pressure edition
by Griffin McElroy 
{ Dec 7th 2008 at 10:00PM }
While we imagine there are those who find French literature from the early 1900s to be just as, if not more, thrilling than the virtual shooting of virtual things, the vast majority of our university-bound readers are probably aching to doff their coursework, giving them time for more ludological ventures. As in most aspects of life, we prefer to take the road less traveled -- we find ample time for both activities by eschewing our pesky physiological needs, namely sleep, by using all manner of caffeinated pharmaceuticals. Best of all, there's no negative repercussions! We're so excited! We're so excited! We're so ... so ... scared!
Update: Zack just came over and showed us the error of our ways with a tear-filled embrace. We're probably going to be spending the next week or so at our grandparents' place for some much-needed reflection. As we do so, you too should reflect -- on this week's sales figures. Observe the impressive doubling of PS3 purchases, and the continued rise of the DS Lite, owed largely to the scarcity of the DSi -- and, of course, to a certain tall-hatted riddle-flinger.
- DSi: 87,185
1,658 (1.87%)- PSP: 55,090
6,136 (10.02%)- Wii: 49,848
14,550 (41.22%)- PS3: 34,978
17,542 (100.61%) - DS Lite: 26,851
8,271 (44.52%) - Xbox 360: 11,423
4,051 (26.18%)- PS2: 5,628
347 (6.57%)[Source: Media Create]
See: The very special archives
Get a WordPress.com Blog
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
ThePhoenixLament @ Dec 7th 2008 10:07PM
The Wii is such a fad...
What happened with the ps3 this month. A big release I'm guessing.
Hyams @ Dec 7th 2008 10:42PM
Pro Evo.
jimmygotsmack @ Dec 7th 2008 11:23PM
Trolling with such outdated comments.
Calling the wii a fad was so two years ago.
DangerMouse @ Dec 7th 2008 11:24PM
And here i was thinking the wii comment was sarcasm. was i wrong?
tmacairjordan87 @ Dec 7th 2008 11:29PM
No it was sarcasm. He considers himself a wii fanboy.
Jacksons @ Dec 7th 2008 11:31PM
@Mouse
I know sarcasm doesn't work in text, but I thought that one was pretty obvious too.
Negativecool @ Dec 7th 2008 11:45PM
I'm a cynical sarcastic prick, hence the name. As such, I can sense sarcasm from a mile away.
I must be the only one that upvoted him.
jimmygotsmack @ Dec 7th 2008 11:51PM
@jackson
It didn't work in my apparently.
Stew @ Dec 8th 2008 3:36AM
Microsoft gave up buying 360's and them selling them back to stores.
Sersiously, did anyone actually believe that people were buying that shit?
I wouldn't be suprised if a army of Microsoft drones are buying 360's right now in the US, and selling them straight back, just to bump up numbers...
soviet chick @ Dec 8th 2008 6:33AM
Would you like yo borrow one of my tin foil hats Stew? It's not the cheap stuff either, only Reynolds Wrap for you!
why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 7th 2008 10:09PM
Up 100% is nice, but Sony still needs to get PS3 sales up in Japan and Europe if they want to capture the overall world sales figures.
I don't normally say this, but jeez, isn't the price a factor? $270 for 360 (not even on sale) versus $400 for PS3?
atrimus @ Dec 7th 2008 10:34PM
"but Sony still needs to get PS3 sales up in Japan and Europe if they want to capture the overall world sales figures."
i wouldn't believe the doom and gloom the internet tries to purport about the PS3. sure, it isn't selling as much as the PS2 did (which, btw, is still selling respectable numbers), but trippling the 360 and selling nearly 80% as much as the Wii (both of which are much cheaper) isn't bad by any means.
iofthestorm @ Dec 7th 2008 10:43PM
@atrimus: Tripling the 360 in Japan isn't saying much.
atrimus @ Dec 7th 2008 11:07PM
"Tripling the 360 in Japan isn't saying much."
tell that to the fanboys (and sites that like to vaguely insinuate) who, just weeks ago, were proclaiming the PS3 dead because the 360 had outsold it in Japan for a few weeks.
more than likely this spurt will increase with WKC, then the PS3 will dwindle back down to its usual 10k-15k weekly sales...until Sony decides to drop the price.
Levi @ Dec 8th 2008 12:01AM
Walk into a store, you get the cheapest 360 worth buying for $300, and PS3 for $400. It plays Blu-Rays. Totally worth the extra $100. Nuff said.
Nomi @ Dec 8th 2008 12:15AM
Aren't sales totals for 2007 and 2008 for the PS3 slightly higher than the 360? Just take a look at VGChartz...its really behind in NA but overall the PS3 matched the 360 for the 2 years its been out.
Foetoid @ Dec 8th 2008 1:00AM
Your argument is flawed Levi. For starters, a Blu-Ray player is ONLY worth it on a 1080p TV. Otherwise, the upscaling the 360 does to regular DVDs on non-HD LCDs and Plasmas is well and truely enough. Yes the Ps3 upscales too, but since both upscales, and one is cheaper, which is the obvious purchase? Especially with the 360s superior online and marketplace. In other countries, the pricing is different, making the 360 an even better deal. At the moment in Australia, the 360 Pro with 4 Games and all the normal bits and pieces is $449 ($299 for arcade with free game). The Ps3 tho is $688 with a HDMI cable and a choice of 1 game (from LBP, Resistance 2, Motorstorm 2 and 3 Singstars). So where we are, the 360 is FAR better value for money. By comparison, the Wii is normally like $350 but at the moment u can get it for $499 with Mario/Sonic Olympics, Sonic Unleased and a Sports Pack of Plastic Crap. As much as i love the Wii, if i didn't have one, the 360 is better value at the moment and i wouldnt know what to choose. Nintendo need to consider a serious price drop!
why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 8th 2008 3:21AM
Upscaling is BS. A 720x480 DVD is 720x480 no matter how well you upscale it. There simply isn't more information to reveal. And if you could reconstruct lost data from pixels that were never recorded, we wouldn't have 25MP DSLRs.
If you have a decent HDTV (720p or whatever), BluRay will look at lot better than DVD. The HD downloads on XBLM will look a lot better than DVD and almost as good as BluRay.
I like BluRay at lot. But still, $100 is $100 (I guess I was wrong about the $270 price). A lot of people are going to buy the 360 and never know what they are missing with BluRay. At that still represents lost sales to Sony.
Foetoid @ Dec 8th 2008 3:26AM
Upscaling may not be as good as Blu-Ray, but it's a significant improvement. My father-in-law has a new-model 47" 1080p 100HZ LG LCD TV with a Pioneer 1080p Upscaling DVD player and it looks incredible. Watching 'Transformers' upscaled to 1080p is a huge and significant leap in quality over standard DVD.
Vcize @ Dec 8th 2008 9:58AM
Why is the cheapest 360 worth buying $300? Hard drives for the 360 are 20-30 bucks now, slap that on an arcade and you've got basically the same thing for $220/$230.
People that can't figure that out probably can't figure out how to buy an HDMI cable online either, and are looking at a hundred dollar cable to go alongside their PS3 purchase.
why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 8th 2008 11:48AM
foetoid:
Upscaling is bunk. If you see a big difference, it's in your head.
Vcize:
You could get a hard drive on eBay, that's for sure. As to the $20/30 deal from MS, that's probably over now. It was so you could run the NXE, and now that Arcades comes with enough flash in them to store the NXE, I doubt MS is giving deals on HDDs to those people. Someone who has one of these new Jasper Arcades should punch their serial number into MS' web site and find out for us.
Also, even ripoff HDMI cables aren't $100, they are more like $60-$70. No need to exaggerate.
Markez @ Dec 7th 2008 10:11PM
If I may make a Space Quest 5 reference, thanks a pantload, Griffin.
I'd already managed to erase that Saved by the Bell meltdown moment from my brain once, now I have to figure out how to do it twice. And now allll the lyrics I'd unfortunately memorized from the intro song years ago are flooding back in.
Ugh. Maybe a pan-galactic gargle blaster will do the trick...
IM SO... SCARED ugh please make it stop
j.howlett @ Dec 7th 2008 11:37PM
i was reminded about that episode when the promo was running for adult swim. i was working when they aired it though. i did catch it one saturday morning or afternoon.
bill51 @ Dec 7th 2008 10:13PM
JUST turned down an evening of zombie killing for studying. Three tomorrow. Yay higher education.
wickedpheonix @ Dec 7th 2008 11:53PM
same here - I HATE final exams with a passion!!!!
GenBanks @ Dec 8th 2008 4:13AM
Yeah this post made me laugh, I've had to give up TF2 and L4D for the past week or so because of coursework deadlines.
Draco @ Dec 7th 2008 10:13PM
Well the 360 is averaging much higher this week then this time last year. What happened on the PS3?
Sheppy (of the Fidlious Clan of Wong) @ Dec 7th 2008 11:35PM
Pro Evolution Soccer (or Winning Eleven in Europe and US).
WRE @ Dec 7th 2008 10:15PM
Whoa. What's going on with the PS3 this week?
Joeshie @ Dec 7th 2008 10:16PM
I seriously can't understand the obsession with the DSi. I mean, if you didn't have a DS Lite before, I can understand getting it, but I'm betting most people are just upgrading from the Lite.
Seems like a huge waste of money to me.
Markez @ Dec 7th 2008 10:21PM
If someone is a big DS fan, and wants the enhancements (whether they be screen, camera, whatever), whether they have a big library or not, and wants a DSi so be it. It's their disposable income, can spend their leisure dollars how they please.
It's horribly subjective, one could argue spending a dime on 360, PS3, or Wii, when you already bought a PS2 years and years ago is just as foolish a waste of money.
Markez @ Dec 7th 2008 10:22PM
Oh but yeah I agree, I would guess most are upgrading from the lite...
WRE @ Dec 7th 2008 10:34PM
Your mom seems like a huge waste of money to me.
Joeshie @ Dec 7th 2008 10:48PM
@Markez
Your PS2/360/PS3/Wii analogy is quite poor. With the next-gen systems, you would be getting the new games and a significant graphics upgrade, something which the PS2 can't provide you with.
With a DSi upgrade, all you are getting is a few extra features and a very slightly bigger screen. No increased library, no increased graphical capabilities.
As you can see, your the two different comparisons are...quite different.
Jacksons @ Dec 7th 2008 10:58PM
@Markez If the DSi was to the DSL as the PS3/360/Wii is to the PS2/Xbox/GCN, I'd upgrade in a heartbeat.
Markez @ Dec 7th 2008 11:05PM
You guys are essentially proving my point. It's absolutely and utterly subjective. It was an example. I didn't mean to imply it was an apples to apples comparison.
I'm not about to start making judgment calls when it comes to leisure spending on videogames, and try and point out whose personal videogame purchases are smarter than someone elses, and claim that someone else's purchases are wastes of money when I'm spending oodles on videogames myself.
Jacksons @ Dec 7th 2008 11:16PM
Oh there's no doubt some people see enough value in the DSi over the lite to upgrade, it's the magnitude of people that's a little surprising. To me, anyway. Although it really shouldn't be. This is a new portable in Japan, after all.
Joeshie @ Dec 7th 2008 11:37PM
Yeah, I'm with Jacksons about this one. I had no doubts that there are people out there who would buy it (some people compulsively buy any and every new tech gadget that comes out), but the amount of people who are picking it up are surprising considering the amount of people who already have a DS in Japan.
I can't help but feel that it's gotten to the point where all Nintendo has to do is just release a clone of their products with minimal changes and it will still sell gangbusters. Kind of the way people keep eating up all of Apples new iPod releases.
Foetoid @ Dec 8th 2008 6:51AM
Actually Joshie, the DSi DOES have access to a bigger library of games thanks to the internal memory and 'Wii Shop Channel'-like abilities.
sam @ Dec 8th 2008 8:10AM
@foetoid: exactly - who gives a s*** about the bigger screens or the camera, i mean they're nice but whatever. the reason for buying this (and I'm planning to when it comes out in US probably) is that WiiWare is periodically awesome. The same thing on DS? Even better suited to it...
Paviel @ Dec 8th 2008 10:38AM
"It's their disposable income, can spend their leisure dollars how they please."
I partially agree, but this is Japan we're talking about, so make that leisure yen.
Mr Khan @ Dec 7th 2008 10:24PM
My finals, at least, shouldn't be all that hard. My English teacher guaranteed us not to worry, my Japanese teacher has a flight out only hours after the test starts, so is under pressure to make the test short, for her own gain.
Josh @ Dec 7th 2008 10:46PM
Same, Sir Khan. My Japanese teacher is heading back to Japan as soon as our final is over. Coolio.
Blurrz @ Dec 7th 2008 10:58PM
Are you two in high school or college?
Chin-Poh @ Dec 7th 2008 11:01PM
I hope you two aren't like all the other wapanese/weaboos who only want to learn the language because of the country's soft/pop culture and its women. : 0
aristokrat @ Dec 7th 2008 11:30PM
What is this soft culture you speak of?
Joeshie @ Dec 7th 2008 11:39PM
@Chin-Poh
I'm willing to bet they are. Stupid weeaboos.
Chin-Poh @ Dec 7th 2008 11:42PM
By "soft culture", I mean videogames, anime, manga. Many when exposed to them wish to learn Japanese to enjoy anime in its purest form without subs, to view material that was never translated or localized into English or talk to Japanese. I think its interesting that some wish to learn the language merely because of Japan's soft culture but I hope that later on, they can appreciate other parts of Japanese culture too.
I've even had that feeling myself as I'm a bit of an otaku. But I've told myself that if I am to learn Japanese, I must do it after I learn my mother tongue, Hindi, which I've largely forgotten having lived in Canada and the U.S for so long. I still understand it, but can no longer speak or read it.
Josh @ Dec 8th 2008 11:48AM
Mostly for this "soft" culture you speak of, and my purist tendencies. Also, because of Japanese pop culture imports, I've taken an interest in Japanese non-pop culture and history.
Simply put, with as much as I already know about Japan, learning the language is just the next logical (and fun) step.
BananaBoat @ Dec 7th 2008 10:24PM
Finals week crushes my soul every year.
The month break afterward is nice though. Viva la University (used to go on Highschool break around the 18-20th of december, and return the first monday in January. Hardly a break)
If there is anything amazing about this weeks numbers, it's the thought that people are willing to buy a DS Lite instead of waiting a week or two and getting a DSi.