JapaneseHardwareSales posts (Subscribe to this feed)

Japanese hardware sales, Nov. 23 - Nov. 29: Unnatural edition

by Griffin McElroy { Dec 6th 2009 at 10:30PM }

We just don't get it, folks. Usually, the purchasing habits of the Japanese gaming populace is formulaic and predictable -- when a console diminishes in size, its sales spike into the stratosphere. However, the gigantified DSi LL managed to retain its commanding lead in this week's chart, despite its newfound largeness. At the same time, the PSP Go, which is considerably smaller than its UMD-reading predecessor, continues to plummet to the bottom of the rankings.

Our world's been flipped, turned upside-down! If this one constant rule, which has proven itself true time and time again throughout the annals of history, can be so easily dismissed, what other laws of nature can we ignore? Gravity? Thermodynamics? That one law that prevents us from smashing open gumball machines and harvesting the candies within? That path leads to anarchy, friends. Delicious, chewable anarchy.

- DSi LL: 67,243

33,310 (33.13%)
- PS3: 46,558

11,806 (33.97%)
- Wii: 46,673

13,829 (42.11%)
- PSP: 38,839

6,087 (18.59%)
- DSi: 37,021

4,951 (15.44%)
- DS Lite: 7,268

2,217 (43.89%)
- PSP Go: 3,809

765 (16.72%)
- Xbox 360: 3,685

400 (9.79%)
- PS2: 2,057

33 (1.63%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The archives

Japanese hardware sales, Nov. 16 - Nov. 22: Rapid expansion edition

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 29th 2009 at 4:30PM }

This is just getting ridiculous. It seems like every week now we see a new contender added to the Japanese sales chart. Remember? Remember the beginning of the month, how simple everything was? Seven platforms. Seven arrows. Seven percentile figures. With today's addition of the super-magnified DSi LL, we're now up to nine platforms. In addition to being a much less appealing number (unless you're a Beatle), it's incrementally increased the amount of time we have to spend compiling each chart . That's twenty precious, valuable seconds we'll never see again.

To compensate for the increased labor that goes into making the charts, we guess we'll subtract some of the usual work ethic that goes into the text of these posts. Hope you don't mind. Man, that DSi LL sold a bunch, didn't it? Man. Sure sold real good. PS2 didn't, though. Too bad about that.

- DSi LL: 100,553 (New Entry!)
- PS3: 34,752

3,746 (9.73%)
- Wii: 32,844

6,080 (22.72%)
- PSP: 32,752

6,018 (15.52%)
- DSi: 32,070

1,679 (4.97%)
- DS Lite: 5,051

15 (0.30%)
- PSP Go: 4,574

1,853 (28.83%)
- Xbox 360: 4,085

39 (0.95%)
- PS2: 2,024

7 (0.34%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The super-magnified archives

Japanese hardware sales, Nov. 9 - Nov. 15: New direction edition

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 22nd 2009 at 10:00PM }

If you haven't noticed, just about every foreign sales post we do somehow references football (or, as our primitive North American minds have designated it, soccer) -- including the post you're reading right this hot second. The terrifically named, PSP-exclusive J. LEAGUE Football Club Tsukurou! 6 Pride of J took top honors in the Japanese charts this week, pushing the portable platform to a first-place finish over its ill-equipped, football-less competitors.

We know better than to stand in the way of progress -- so, from henceforth, Joystiq will be changing its focus from video games to the foot-centric sport which half of our posts tend to be about anyways. Yes, we know very, very little about the game, but we don't really think that's too important. You know what is important? Choosing a new name of our blog, which we've already done: Joykick. Or, in sticking with our current typographically-challenged theme: Joyqick. Yeah, that's solid gold.

We know this transition will be extremely difficult, but as you probably already know, we've always had a knack for achieving our lofty GOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLS! (See? It's already started.)

- PSP: 38,770

4,986 (14.76%)
- PS3: 38,498

10,427 (21.31%)
- DSi: 33,749

3,672 (9.81%)
- Wii: 26,764

5,046 (15.86%)
- PSP Go: 6,427

7,565 (54.07%)
- DS Lite: 5,036

479 (8.69%)
- Xbox 360: 4,124

555 (11.86%)
- PS2: 2,031

35 (1.69%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The foot-centric archives

Japanese hardware sales, Nov. 2 - Nov. 8: Flipped the Script edition

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 15th 2009 at 10:30PM }

Man, it's going to be awfully difficult to read that script, now that it's been utterly and irreversibly flipped. Now it's words-side-down, so the only thing that's going to be reading it is going to be the table. Which is impossible, because tables can't read. Even if they could, it would be far too dark to ... we forgot our original point. Oh! That's right. There were a number of large sea changes in this week's chart, which apparently means that somewhere in the world, a book of dialogue for something was upended.

For instance, the PS3 took top honors this week, which is a feat it hasn't managed since the launch of its sleeker iteration. This wasn't a random occurrence; the top selling game was the PS3-exclusive Pro Evolution Soccer (or, as its known in Japan, Winning Eleven) 2010. A soccer game. Which beat out a Pokémon game and an action title starring a scantily clad, guns-a-blazing heroine. Oops! The script's upside-down.

If only Konami had created a soccer game exclusively for the PSP Go, the sales for which completely plummeted after its first ~~week~~ day of availability. We're not certain that this qualifies as script-flipping per sé, as it only hit us as mildly surprising. We'd be willing to say that the script was rotated about 71 degrees to the left, and then the pages were slowly flipped through a few times -- just enough so that they get creased a little bit.

- PS3: 48,925

12,864 (35.67%)
- DSi: 37,421

96 (0.26%)
- PSP: 33,784

1,127 (3.23%)
- Wii: 31,810

2,922 (10.11%)
- PSP Go: 13,992

15,117 (51.93%)
- DS Lite: 5,515

1,387 (20.10%)
- Xbox 360: 4,679

1,368 (22.62%)
- PS2: 2,066

100 (5.09%)

[Image, Source: Media Create]

See: The upended archives

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 26 - Nov. 1: Away we Go edition

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 8th 2009 at 9:30PM }

It was almost one year ago to the day when we last added a participant to the Japanese sales charts, leading to a mathematical anomaly which 'sploded our living quarters. Luckily, we learned from our mistakes, and have remembered not to add today's newcomer to our Excel spreadsheet, preserving the integrity of our apartment and, more importantly, the space-time continuum.

Not that we require number-crunching software to accurately place the PSP Go into our weekly line-up. The system's one-day sales of 29,109 garnered it a somewhat disappointing fourth-place finish -- while simultaneously, the sales totals of every other console (save for the DSi) increased, reversing a recent downward trend for the region. Our theory on why this occurred is simple: Upon seeing the digital distribution-based future our world has in store, Japanese gamers began to hoard the tangible media-reading platforms, which will undoubtedly become priceless relics in the coming years.

Also, an action game featuring an attractive, gun-toting witch whose clothes frequently disappear was released. That might have contributed to the sales surge. Like, a little.

- DSi: 37,517

4,682 (11.10%)
- PS3: 36,061

6,084 (20.30%)
- PSP: 34,911

2,046 (6.23%)
- PSP Go: 29,109 (New Entry!)
- Wii: 28,888

2,971 (11.46%)
- DS Lite: 6,902

352 (5.37%)
- Xbox 360: 6,047

1,577 (35.28%)
- PS2: 1,966

15 (0.77%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The attractive archives

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 19 - Oct. 25: Time travel sugar rush edition

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 1st 2009 at 9:30PM }

Hey, guys! How was your Halloween? Good to hear! Well, we've been up eating candy for roughly two days straight now, and whoa man do we love Whoppers. The malted milk chocolates, not the burgers, which are okay, but that malted milk chocolate is the jam. Some dude came up to us yesterday, and he was like, "Hey! Stop eating so much candy! You're an adult!" You should've seen us, we just opened up a new carton of Whoppers -- they come in cartons, remember -- and just slammed them in like four seconds.

Unfortunately, our fructose binge caused our particles to vibrate at a frequency which dislodged us from the timestream, and kept us from experiencing linear time like the rest of the world for about 60 minutes. It was a pretty terrifying experience, but to The Hershey Company's credit, it says right there on the box: "Warning: Shotgunning an entire carton of Whoppers may dislodge the consumer from the timestream for one hour." Well maybe next time you shouldn't make such a delicious product. Think about that. Mister Hershey.

So. Anyways. We've been trying to read about String Theory and stuff all day, but it's hard to turn the pages of a book that's one hour in the future. Luckily, we're really slow readers. Well, we can't feel our hands anymore, so it's probably time to put the ol' Whopperoonis down, and tell you about the Japanese hardware sales figures for this week before we go into a coma. See, both of those Pokémon gamjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj

- DSi: 42,199

7,945 (15.84%)
- PSP: 32,865

7,235 (18.04%)
- PS3: 29,977

919 (2.97%)
- Wii: 25,917

4,824 (15.69%)
- DS Lite: 6,550

1,096 (20.10%)
- Xbox 360: 4,470

1,144 (34.40%)
- PS2: 1,951

182 (8.53%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The malted archives

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 12 - Oct. 18: Almost pure evil edition

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 25th 2009 at 9:30PM }

We place equal amounts of stock in the practices of numerology and demonology -- that amount being very little, mind you -- but even we were perturbed by the digits which appeared in this week's Japanese hardware sales chart. From what we know of the teachings of Iron Maiden, six-hundred and sixty-six is like, the evilest number there is. We're almost certain that if you say it three times, the devil jumps out of the ground, and says really mean things about your shoes.

Imagine our terror as we read over the following chart. If one turns the sales reduction of the DSi upside-down -- there's one! If one less person would have bought a PS3 this week -- there it is again! If you add 360 (like, from the Xbox 360) to the system's sales increase, then you take the number of letters in "DS Lite" and add that to the sales reduction of the PS2, and then you subtract that number from the first number -- oh, no, here he comes!

"What? These shoes? These are Sketchers. What? No, Sketchers are still really cool! You ... you're a jerk, you know that, Lucifer?"

- DSi: 49,145

999 (1.99%)
- PSP: 33,508

6,592 (16.44%)
- PS3: 30,231

665 (2.15%)
- Wii: 29,965

776 (2.52%)
- Xbox 360: 3,662

336 (10.10%)
- DS Lite: 2,590

2,864 (52.51%)
- PS2: 2,109

24 (1.13%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The six-hundred and sixty-fifth archive

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 5 - Oct. 11: Imploded analogy edition

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 18th 2009 at 11:00PM }

It wasn't just relief that we felt after learning of the folk hero-esque Balloon Boy's safety -- it was inspiration. "Ah, yes," we said to ourselves upon hearing of the boy's false flight, "we've found our subject for the next Japanese Hardware Sales post." The plan was deceptively simple: It would be a metaphor! An analogy! But for what? Sales! Sales, on occasion, go up -- just like balloons. It was perfect! It would work -- it had to work.

Imagine our dismay when we actually calculated the changes in sales from last week's data. All of them, down. No -- this won't do. Can't be! The plan, the analogy! We check CNN, hoping to read of some brave copycat, utilizing bizarre means of downward transportation -- a Tunnel Boy, if you will. We could work with that. The analogy, it would stand.

Sadly, no such boy existed.

- DSi: 50,144

3,149 (5.91%)
- PSP: 40,100

11,115 (21.70%)
- PS3: 30,896

6,642 (17,69%)
- Wii: 30,741

4,651 (13.14%)
- DS Lite: 5,454

5,207 (48.84%)
- Xbox 360: 3,326

918 (21.63%)
- PS2: 2,133

46 (2.11%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The imploded archives

Japanese hardware sales, Sept. 28 - Oct. 4: Orwellian edition

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 11th 2009 at 10:00PM }

After giving the Japanese game purchasing community a stern talking-to last week, we were refreshed to see such fantastic rebounds for a pair of our contenders in the most recent sales data. However, we were troubled by the causes behind said rebounds -- the PSP spiked due to the launch of the PSP Go, and the Wii got a bump from Wii Fit Plus. In other words, two products similar to their previous iterations, albeit with simple modifiers attached to their monikers. In even more other words, it's straight up Newspeak.

Perhaps the other consoles could have experienced similar boosts with the same treatment. We bet the Doubleplusgood Xbox 360 would garner a huge sales increase, as would the Goodplayful PS3. Though nothing can be done for the Doubleoldful PS2, we're afraid. It's about time Big Brother sent it to the Ministry of Love to be bathed in his ever-shining Tripleplusgood light. Or fed to rats. One of the two.

- DSi: 53,293

10,049 (15.86%)
- PSP: 51,215

33,881 (159.46%)
- PS3: 37,538

2,422 (6.06%)
- Wii: 35,392

23,661 (201.70%)
- DS Lite: 10,661

4,396 (29.20%)
- Xbox 360: 4,244

610 (12.57%)
- PS2: 2,179

168 (7.16%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The doubleplusgood archives

Japanese hardware sales, Sept. 21 - Sept. 27: Diminishing returns edition

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 4th 2009 at 8:30PM }

Okay, Japanese game consumers. It's time we had a heart to heart. Last week, Enterbrain analyzed the Japanese hardware and software sales figures for the first half of fiscal '09, and ... well, let's just say the numbers were pretty grim. We certainly understand that times are kinda tight -- as made evident by the surplus of red arrows witnessed this year -- but let's take a moment to step back, observe the big gaming industry movements from the past six months, and illustrate how much you guys dropped the ball.

Seriously, in the past six months, Japan has seen the release of a new Dragon Quest game, a new Monster Hunter game, two new Pokémon games, a sleeker version of the PS3 and a veritable rainbow of new color choices for most of our weekly contenders. What's gotten into you, Japan? Has your interest shifted away from video games? What's your new area of expertise -- tell us, so we can start tracking the sales of whatever that may be instead.

Oh, who're we kidding. The release of Final Fantasy XIII (and the accompanying Squeenix-branded PS3) will more than make up for this slow half-year. Go ahead and keep doing whatever it is you're doing that isn't purchasing video games. Come December 17, you'll flock back like moths drawn to a spiky-haired, turn-based flame.

- DSi: 63,342

2,731 (4.13%)
- PS3: 39,960

11,095 (21.73%)
- PSP: 17,334

3,739 (17.74%)
- DS Lite: 15,057

1,502 (11.08%)
- Wii: 11,731

4,967 (29.75%)
- Xbox 360: 4,854

111 (2.24%)
- PS2: 2,347

376 (13.81%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The diminishing archives

Japanese hardware sales, Sept. 14 - Sept. 20: Live from Tokyo edition

by Griffin McElroy { Sep 27th 2009 at 10:30PM }

We're here! We're really here! The land of the rising sun! The place where all the magic happens. The factory in which the sausage is made. Sales sausage! We're currently sitting in Shibuyo, with -- what? Shibuya. That's what we said. We're sitting in Shibuya, getting ready to go on a shopping excursion in Ikeahabar, where we'll -- Akihabara. Okay, we were way off with that one, but c'mon, we lost like, six hours getting out here. Nine hours. Twenty hours?

Fine! Not all of us made the trip to the Tokyo Game Show this year -- not even the guy who, on a weekly basis, takes hours out of his day to compile the hardware sales figures of the region. In some circles, that would qualify such a person as an expert on Japanese ludological affairs. Such a qualification might inspire such a person to purchase and tirelessly study a series of tapes which teach the listener the beautiful, elegant language of Japan. Such a series of tapes cost such a person $300. Such a person isn't made of money, you know.

Sales charts are below. Pokémon Heart Gold and Soul Silver sold a whole bunch again, and -- oh, screw it. It's Miller time.

- DSi: 66,073

425 (0.64%)
- PS3: 51,055

4,289 (7.75%)
- PSP: 21,073

2,698 (14.68%)
- Wii: 16,698

870 (4.95%)
- DS Lite: 13,555

2,376 (21.25%)
- Xbox 360: 4,965

2,603 (34.39%)
- PS2: 2,723

111 (4.25%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The jetlagged archives

Japanese hardware sales, Sept. 7 - Sept. 13: Heart and Soul edition

by Griffin McElroy { Sep 20th 2009 at 10:00PM }

Ahhh. Nothing feels quite so soothing as a swift return to the world of Japanese hardware sales which we're all familiar with. The roaring sales inferno sparked by the launch of the PS3 slim has died down, percentile increases and decreases are back in the double digits (as opposed to the quintuple digits) and Nintendo's handhelds are flourishing following the release of another installment in an ever-popular RPG franchise, Pokémon Heart Gold and Soul Silver. Tired of disrupting the status quo, our charts have settled back into the nook they've carved into the soft suede recliner of history.

Also, for curious parties, Soul Silver outsold Heart Gold by nearly 3,000 units. This means that not only are purchasers of the former going to find it incrementally more difficult to catch 'em all, but that the Japanese people clearly prefer Ag over Au. Who'd have thunk it?

- DSi: 66,498

6,079 (10.06%)
- PS3: 55,344

96,439 (63.54%)
- PSP: 18,375

3,809 (17.17%)
- Wii: 17,568

3,989 (18.50%)
- DS Lite: 11,179

2,870 (34.54%)
- Xbox 360: 7,568

741 (10.85%)
- PS2: 2,612

389 (12.96%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The silvery, silvery archives

Japanese hardware sales, Aug. 31 - Sept. 6: Does not compute edition

by Griffin McElroy { Sep 13th 2009 at 10:30PM }

Us: Listen, Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. We need to talk about your PS3 Slim sales calculation.
Excel: What's wrong with it?
Us: We've never doubted your number-crunching capabilities before, but ...
Excel: Well, when a number increases from 1,040 to 151,783, that's an upshot of 14,494 percent.
Us: Listen! Listen to yourself. Do you even know what "per cent" means? It means "out of 100," or something. That number is impossible.
Excel: Where did you learn math? Or Latin, for that matter?
Us: Um, college?
Excel: Human college?
Us: Yes.
Excel: That's cute. I was born in a math factory.
Us: Is that where you learned how to love? Oh, that's right. You can't. Man, this is awkward.
Excel: We're done here.

- PS3: 151,783

150,743 (14,494.52%)
- DSi: 60,419

538 (0.90%)
- PSP: 22,184

3,897 (14.94%)
- Wii: 21,557

3,481 (13.90%)
- DS Lite: 8,309

1,005 (13.76%)
- Xbox 360: 6,827

427 (5.89%)
- PS2: 3,001

178 (5.60%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The unloving archives

Japanese hardware sales, Aug. 17 - Aug. 23: Bottom drops out edition

by Griffin McElroy { Aug 30th 2009 at 9:30PM }

The entire Japanese gaming hardware market was visited by the ghost of plummeting sales this week -- a natural side-effect from the waning of interest in the highly anticipated RPGs which hit the nation throughout the past month. However, no console took the brunt of the depreciation quite as hard as the PS3, which took an unfamiliar last place finish in this week's charts. You'll find it just below its last-gen brother, the PS2 -- which would likely be maniacally cackling right now, if it was equipped with the vocal chords required to do so.

Don't go hocking your Sony stock just yet -- the sizable drop can be attributed to the nation's anticipation for the PS3 Slim, which is set to rise like a phoenix on September 1. To continue our cryptozoological metaphors, the other consoles should level out like a winged chimera by that point -- except for the PSP, which may be strengthened like a minotaur with the Japanese release of Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny. Also, the Xbox 360 will inexplicably be like a chupacabra. There's no reason for this observation. You're just going to have to trust us.

- DSi: 59,578

28,358 (32.25%)
- PSP: 27,187

12,695 (31.83%)
- Wii: 26,972

20,760 (43.49%)
- Xbox 360: 8,979

183 (2.00%)
- DS Lite: 5,735

2,186 (27.60%)
- PS2: 3,295

1,612 (32.85%)
- PS3: 2,052

3,892 (65.48%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The cryptozoological archives

Japanese hardware sales, Aug. 10 - Aug. 16: Science edition

by Griffin McElroy { Aug 23rd 2009 at 10:30PM }

Far too often, we here at the Institute for Japanese Hardware Sales Tracking deal in half-truths for the purpose of attempted comedic affect. Sometimes, we deal in reverse-truths. Other times, supertruths -- but how would you even be able to tell? Ah, see. You just got logic schooled, son.

Today, we're trying something completely different: Explaining the causes for the changes in hardware sales for each console with cold, hard, unfeeling scientific fact. Observe -- and learn:

The DSi increased because people are still buying boatloads of Dragon Quest IX. Simple.
The wheels have somewhat fallen off the Wii wagon as interest in Monster Hunter 3 subsides.
The PSP increased because Dissidia: Final Fantasy is coming out in North America next week, and Japanese gamers want to experience the magic all over again at the same time ... that we do. This is science, trust us.
360 sales increased 68.54%, due to wizards.*
The DS Lite decreased because it doesn't have a camera in it. Duh.
The PS3 didn't do much, as folks are putting off their Sony purchases 'til the Slim drops.**
The PS2 is ... it's like, twenty years old. Science can't explain why people are still buying it. You know who can?***

* - You're going to have to trust us on this one.
** - Yes, the PS3 Slim news didn't drop during the week of August 10. Wizards got involved, and time-traveled the news over to Japan early.
*** - Wizards.

- DSi: 87,936

17,870 (25.50%)
- Wii: 47,732

592 (1.26%)
- PSP: 39,882

5,989 (17.67%)
- Xbox 360: 9,162

3,726 (68.54%)
- DS Lite: 7,921

778 (8.94%)
- PS3: 5,944

118 (2.03%)
- PS2: 4,907

306 (6.65%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The scientific archives