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Reader Comments (66)

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:08AM Mr Hett said

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Cool. But can we please get more first party games? I feel like MS is turning the 360 into some awesome STB that poops on Apple TV and Google TV, instead of focusing on games.

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:17AM Special Agent Steve said

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@Mr Hett
More first party games would be nice; then again, Microsoft's already solidified their standing as the dominant console this gen (PS3 is still close, Wii doesn't appeal to hardcore gamers much). They don't need to work to establish a strong user base and can pretty much rely on third parties to do all the work. Plus, they're probably working on the Xbox 720 as we speak.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:22AM (Unverified) said

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@Special Agent Steve Yeah, if you get bored with Gears of War 3, Forza 4, Batman AC, Battlefield 3, Call of Duty MW3, Skyrim, AC Revelations, Halo Anniversary and plenty of Kinect games you have too much money. Go buy a diamond encrusted horse or whatever you rich people do...
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:27AM Prboi said

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@Special Agent Steve

Yeah, it's WAAAY to late in the 360's life cycle to start focusing on first party titles. I'd rather them keep making advancements with new features so that next generation they can come full force with first party tiles.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:32AM xiLeShadow said

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@Mr Hett

"Xbox isn't a gaming console. Xbox is a family entertainment center. It's a place to socialize. It's a place to watch TV. We have Hulu coming. It's the only system where you are the controller. Your voice, your gestures, your body."

- Steve Ballmer. CEO of Microsoft Corp.

Core gaming is not the main focus for them anymore.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:37AM xiLeShadow said

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@Mr Hett

This is another disadvantage of gaming consoles. You are bound to what the first party wants their platform to be, instead of what you want it to be.

Bought an Xbox 360 at launch. Microsoft focused heavily on gaming and mostly gaming. Sony at the same time, was marketing their PS3 as all in one hub.

Four Years Later. Microsoft markets 360 as an all-in-one hub. While at the same time, PS3 is being marketing as a gaming console.

All this flip flopping is annoying. I have both consoles because of it..but still. The only platform I don't have to worry about all this corporate stuff is on PC. No corporation controls the PC. I make it what I want it to be.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:41AM ClanPsi said

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@Mr Hett Microshit abandoned their core gaming audience two years ago and they're never going back. Sucks for the 57.6 million fools who bought into their hoax, but stupid people will always be stupid in the end.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:47AM Special Agent Steve said

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@(Unverified)
I'm rich all of a sudden? Sweet!
I'm going to go buy a vat of pudding and see how long I can float a yacht made out of strips of gold on top of it.
Being rich is AWESOME! You should try it!

Oh, and only 2 of those games you mentioned are Xbox exclusives. And I never said anything about being bored.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:53AM CaramelZappa said

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@xiLeShadow

You know Microsoft said the 360 was the trojan horse to get Microsoft entertainment into the livingroom since day one, right?

In the end you don't suffer any because MS wants to do more with the console now. There are still great games every year. Gears 3 and Forza 4 are both must have exclusives this season, and there are plenty of other great games (if not exclusive) I don't see how being able to watch streaming movies when you aren't gaming is a BAD thing.

And don't pretend that the PS3 is any different. Blu-ray was obviously there to help blu-ray win the format war, and they've added just as many media-centric features as MS. And again, you still get a steady stream of excellent 1st and 3rd party games. (Uncharted 3, anyone?) So what's the problem?

The only game console that's been ONLY a game console is the Wii, and with that you only get 1 or 2 must have titles a year, and almost no third party support.

You should be happy that $250-600 you spent on your console is going towards not only playing a bunch of great games, but other excellent features as well. You got what you payed for and much more, but of course all you do is complain about it.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:01AM houstons85 said

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@Mr Hett

Agreed. It would be nice to have a reason to turn on my 360 once in awhile.

Haven't played anything on it in months. Just nothing good. =/
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:08AM xiLeShadow said

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@CaramelZappa

I'm not complaining about it. They can do whatever they wish.

I'm just saying, the traditional console is dying. (which is fine, I guess). It is kind of sad though when you get a good amount of first party gaming support and then a few years down the road, it all dies off.

First party exclusives is what makes me buy a certain console or not, a lot of gamers also use this to decide which console to get. But when the reason for buying that console is no longer there, will you still be happy?

Not as much as before.


Plus all those added features I never use because those same features are better (and most cases cheaper/free) on my PC.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:14AM BigBenn1 said

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@(Unverified)
You didn't list 1st party games, many of those games are multi-platform, in other words, not just for the Box. I'll tell you what games are worth getting the box if it's for "core" (read:exclusive) games. Forza, Gears, Fable (Debatable now), and Halo. I literally just summed up the only 1st party, aka, exclusive titles for the Xbox 360 gaming console. /Meh, PS3 has semi-same issues, but atleast it has more 1st party games/exclusives for people to buy the PS3 for. Don't get me wrong, I own both consoles, but just because I do doesn't = both consoles =/= fanboy.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:22AM BigBenn1 said

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@Special Agent Steve
I didn't know having a couple million more consoles sold than the PS3 solidified it's dominance for this generation of consoles. Far from it. Take in the fact the PS3 started a year late, sold at an insane price of $599.99, and was able to catch up to the box over time says a lot. Now if you said " solidified dominance in the United States for this generation", I would agree, but not world-wide, it's only dominant in the U.S.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 2:31AM HaVoK308 said

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@(Unverified)

Because one can afford to buy what you consider a lot of games, they are rich? It's called having a job kiddo. Do some chores around the hous and perhaps your parents will pay you a little money.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 2:36AM Special Agent Steve said

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@BigBenn1
I'd still say dominant everywhere (except Japan). Nearly everyone I've talked to who owns a PS3 uses it just for Blu-ray. They may have bought it for games initially but after a year or so it just becomes a Blu-ray player. And I have evidence of this. Look at the number of multi-console games sold on PS3 and 360. COD:BLOPS (lol, love that acronym) has sold around 9 million on the 360 and 4.5-5 million on the PS3. Even though the PS3 has almost as many consoles as the 360, more people use their 360 for gaming. Personally, I use my PS3 all the time for third party, non-exclusive games over my 360 (like Assassin's Creed, Red Dead Redemption, Portal 2), but I don't think I stand as the majority. So, that's why I said the 360 is dominant- because it's used more; not because it's better.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 3:24AM Hoops said

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@Special Agent Steve Your math is bad. He named 3 exclusives by name, (Forza 4, Gears 2, Halo A) and then tossed in 'all the Kinect titles' which brings the total up somewhat.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 4:13AM CaramelZappa said

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@xiLeShadow
" It is kind of sad though when you get a good amount of first party gaming support and then a few years down the road, it all dies off."

But that's not true. Again, this year we got Gears 3, Forza 4, Halo A, Star Wars Kinect, and other Kinect games (If you're into that, I'm not.)

PS3 list is even bigger, with LBP2, Killzone 3, Uncharted 3, Resistance 3, Infamous 2, Socom, etc.

That's at least 4 AAA 1st party titles in one year, and somehow you say that's not enough? How is that a step down from say, 2005, when the 360 launched with no noteable first party exclusives. It wasn't until the end of 2006 that Gears even came out. Sony has a similar story, with few first party titles in earlier years, and we got amazing titles like Uncharted 2 later.

First party support has only gotten better. I don't know what planet you live on if you think otherwise.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 5:05AM dragunrising said

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@xiLeShadow

Consoles as we know them won't exist after the next generation. Digital distribution will be the status quo and our consoles will be incorporated into set-top boxes, TV's, microconsoles (sort of like OnLive), and/or cell phones with output to TVs. Microsoft is just ahead of the curb and know that the traditional market is changing. Think for a moment about what Microsoft is doing with Live TV and the deals it's inked with cable and TV giants. This integration will only continue.
(from the future)

Regardless of your perception of Xbox as a casual gaming system you can't deny that it has excellent third party support. Could you say the same for the Wii? As far as gaming is concerned I can play the vast majority of hardcore games available today on my Xbox. I can buy any first party game I want on my PS3.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 5:09AM dragunrising said

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@ClanPsi

Go back to N4G. The fanboys over there are better company for you.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 7:10AM Tommy758 said

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@Mr Hett I think they're preparing new games for the next Xbox, but that's just a hunch.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 7:17AM JB said

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@xiLeShadow

Basically, thinking like that actually holds companies and innovations back. Clearly, the market is not the same as it was when the 360 and PS3 launched so neither company can use the strategies they used then. Having established a user base that supported these phases of the life cycle, it was time to implement other parts of their goals.

Also, most of the time, there are long term goals for the life of the console. They probably had designs on using the 360 as a media hub from the beginning, trickling out the features as the figured out what was the best way to bring these ideas to market. They didn't just say "Oh let's sell movies and music via Zune," just for grins, it was part of an over all plan.

We all know that the PC can calculate my tax refund, edit a video and play run games too, even at the same time however, I'm not going to get baited in to another console vs. PC debate.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 7:50AM SuperMike861 said

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@Special Agent Steve I've seen the same trend, I know 5 guys who bought a PS3 and they all use it as a blu ray player primarily, with some exclusives played occasionally (Uncharted and Killzone basically). I'm the same as well. They all play multiplatfom games on Xbox, and you know why? Xbox Live and achievements.

I hope Sony get the online portion right next gen, and bring PSN up to speed with where it's needed to be for years now. I hate to say this, as I loved my PS1/2 but Sony fudged up this gen, and has gone from dominant leaders to last place.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 9:06AM Acosta02 said

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@Everybody, seriously.

This grinds my gears so hard.

You guys, it's 2011. There's more to gaming than discs and boxes! Jump on the XBL Marketplace and you can find a ton of great games, exclusives even, that nobody has bothered bringing up. Crimson Alliance, Toy Soldiers, Ms. 'Splosion Man and Trenched (I mean Iron Brigade) have all come out since June, and those are just the games published by Microsoft themselves. You can go back to debating Blu-Ray or whatever you guys do but whoever's perpetuating the myth that "xbox has 3 gaems a year" should really stop.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 9:12AM GTThaAceman said

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@xiLeShadow I wouldn't agree with your last statement its not that gaming isn't their focus you can tell it is still in their agenda its just a lot of people don't just want a game system anymore they want something that can do anything plus I believe they are just getting ready for the next generation of their console which sadly too say for both xbox & ps3 are about to come out within the next couple years even though the consoles are just hitting their strides.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 9:53AM eescala7 said

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@JB

PS3 can also edit videos and upload them to Facebook or Youtube, but is still a gaming console, unlike the box. 2011 Exclusives KZ3, LBP2, Socom, Motorstorm, Resistance 3, Infamous 2, UC3, ICO, etc, etc, etc
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 10:00AM eescala7 said

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@Special Agent Steve

Xbx Blops sales are closer to 13mil
PS3 Blops sales are closer to 11mil
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 10:10AM Liquidfingers said

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@houstons85

haha, OK. we all know about your views on the PS3 and it's incredible lineup of exclusives. where did you come from, anyway? IGN? even if you don't include Gears 3, Forza, and the reworked Halo, there's still lots of great games that i'll be playing on my 360 simply because i usually buy multiplat games (as long as they're not on multiple discs) for my 360. the controller, even with its awful d-pad, is still the right fit for me.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 11:22AM JB said

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@eescala7

Not going to get baited into a Console V Console debate either. Nice try:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=pcuI6K9daIw#t=143s
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:16AM Timjoy said

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I wonder what percentage are repurchases from users who had broken systems....

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:29AM aronmayo2 said

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@Timjoy probably not many? Majority of broken 360s are covered by warranty. Everytime one breaks you get another 3 years. I know some people buy a new console when one breaks but these people are the extreme minority, most likely the ones who can't go without gaming for a week or two.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:43AM ClanPsi said

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@aronmayo2 IF they still have their proof of purchase. Most people don't keep it, so I'd say a good 20% were re-purchases.
Of my friends who bought that garbage console (~5), 3 of them had to buy a new one when it broke and they didn't have their receipt.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:00AM houstons85 said

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@Timjoy

Probably quite a few. Especially in the early days when you had to wait a month or more to get your console back. I know quite a few that just bought new ones.

One of the best thing Microsoft did was knowingly rush out one of the most faulty products in history. From re-buys due to failure, to people replacing their old boxes with Slim models.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 2:34AM FlashJS said

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@aronmayo2

3 years?!!?!? Are you in the US? It's always been 1 year for me. I've had 2 RRODs, each failing exactly a week after the 1 year warranty period ended. My last one (the second replacement they sent me) started acting weird exactly one month after warranty ended so I quickly traded it in to Gamestop and bought a Slim from Amazon on sale. That one is approaching it's one year warranty mark and I'm hoping it lasts beyond the 13 months that I've had all my other ones.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 8:41AM Styli said

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@FlashJS the 3-year warranty only covers the E74 hardware failure which was common on the pre-Jasper chipset original Xboxes. I'm in Ireland, when my old original Xbox RRODed with the E74 failure, I had to send it off to Germany to be fixed. MS emailed me the appropriate paperwork and labelling to get it sent free of charge, a new one arrived within 2 weeks and cost me nothing. Little secret: they rarely "fixed" consoles, everyone I know who had the issue got a brand new one back instead, thats why they ask you to remove all the accessories. And I had another 3 years even though it was a very reliable Jasper. I sold it to a friend whe the S came out and I upgraded.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 8:47AM Styli said

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@houstons85 Except that replacing those faulty Xboxes cost MS millions. To a certain degree you were right but I don't think it was their plan. I doubt they thought RRODs would be so common. It was a calculated risk which could have ended badly if they didn't, eventually, get their customer support right (and yes, I know some people have had nightmares but the vast majority of people have had pleasant experiences with MS Customer Care).
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 8:49AM xreadmore said

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@ClanPsi and FlashJS
You don't need a proof of purchase, I've had my Xbox RROD 3 times and each time I just told them the serial number and shipping info. Had my repaired/refurbished console back within a week. All Xbox consoles are warranted for 3 years for the RRoD so if you say yours was only good for 1 year you were mistaken or given the wrong info from someone.

Also to the people complaining that Xbox isn't a game console anymore:
What part of the mental institution did you escape from?
How does offering more features remove the gaming side? The xbox is and will always be a gaming console. If anything they have GROWN in gaming over the previous years and over previous consoles! You get retail games as per usual, then there are LIVE Arcade games, Indy games, Game Room, and the Kinect Labs thing.
Honestly people... do you complain that "your phone isn't a phone anymore"?
The Xbox gaming side has not suffered from the addition of any new service they implement that is non-gaming, and I challenge you to give me an example of how games are suffering because they added Facebook or Hulu or whatever else.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 9:36AM Styli said

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@xreadmore

Except they're not all covered for 3 years, ONLY the E74 hardware failure is covered for that long. All other RROD faults are only covered for the standard 1 year.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 10:13AM xreadmore said

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@Styli
RRoD is covered by 3 year warranty whether you get the E74 error message or not. Other hardware problems are the standard 1 year. Of course this is only in reference to the non-"slim" model since the slim doesn't have the red lights or something (I don't have a slim).
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:18AM Will96 said

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Keep up the good work! But please, no more Kinect crap.

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:31AM Whoppinberg said

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Achievement Unlocked: Mass Production

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:42AM Slight of Ham said

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@Whoppinberg...Nice, I usually can only unlock that while playing Civ.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:39AM xiLeShadow said

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@PolishMountainMan

He is talking about committing suicide.

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:41AM Slight of Ham said

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@PolishMountainMan...Who dares to spell simple words incorrectly while trolling an article!

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 12:57AM houstons85 said

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/yawn

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 8:14AM Mr Dude said

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@houstons85 yawn/ clicks on article to post yawn/
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 10:15AM Coffinfeeder said

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Dark Souls would like to have a word with you.
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Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:16AM Oddgirl said

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That's as many as the Dreamcast, GameCube, and original Xbox combined...

That's crazy, and also kind of sad, but still good in a crazy / sad way. Great for them.

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:17AM hiruuamon said

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Great! Now get some more developers in-house to produce first party games!

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:18AM pluupy said

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BROFORCE.

Posted: Oct 21st 2011 1:20AM Kadamon said

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Makes me wonder what the numbers for the other two big ones are at...

Which also leads me to wonder what the break down for each three and their individual SKU's are.

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