Joystiq

NPD: Guitar Hero 3 is this generation's highest-grossing game

JC Fletcher — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 10:15:00 EST

Call of Duty: Black Ops might be the best-selling game by unit sales, but it isn't the US bestseller in terms of gross revenue. According to NPD data going back to 1995, and compiled by CNBC, the honor of the highest-grossing game of "this generation" goes to another Activision game, the Axl Rose-angering Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock. Black Ops is #2.

The list of the NPD's top ten best-selling games by revenue (after the break) includes a second Guitar Hero game, too -- R.I.P. -- along with Rock Band and both Wii Fits, which suggests that the best way to make a lot of revenue is simply to make your game cost more. Although Wii Play and Mario Kart Wii are also on the list, so maybe people just really like finding peripherals inside their game boxes, like cereal box prizes.

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NPD: Guitar Hero 3 is this generation's highest-grossing game originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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'Splosion Man 'splodes to top of XBLA sales chart

James Ransom-Wiley — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 13:30:00 EST

'Spolsion Man, one or our absolute favorites of 2009, enjoyed a surprise sales surge last week, rocketing to the top of the Xbox Live Arcade bestseller list. That's the power of Black Friday and a one-day, 75-percent discount.

In fact, thirteen of the top twenty bestsellers for the week of November 22 were on sale for at least part of the period, and the only discounted XBLA title not to chart was poor Voodoo Dice. Amidst the apparently too-good-to-refuse deals, Crazy Taxi made a strong debut in the number six position in its first week of release, and Pac-Man CE DX ate up a top-ten spot in its second week of availability.

As for Xbox Live activity, Black Ops recruits and Modern Warfare 2 veterans (who aren't about to surrender that easily) continue to hog the most bandwidth, followed by the Reach faithful and -- watch out for that Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood sneaking up the activity chart! Speaking of no surrender, how about World at War and Call of Duty 4 (remember that one?) hanging around the top twenty most-played Xbox Live games? No wonder Activision wants to better tap its gold mine next year.

Both Top Twenty charts are posted in full after the break.

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'Splosion Man 'splodes to top of XBLA sales chart originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 01 Dec 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Guinness: Modern Warfare 2 had biggest entertainment launch ever

Griffin McElroy — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:30:00 EST

There's been some dispute as to whether Modern Warfare 2 had the biggest first-day sales presence in the entire entertainment industry. Sure, its $401 million launch day revenue topped literally every other piece of entertainment media ever released, but in terms of units sold, it was surpassed by the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book and ticket sales for The Dark Knight.

However, in an attempt to clear up any obscurity, the Guinness Book of World Records proclaimed that the game had the "Most Successful Entertainment Launch of All-Time." Though we shudder to think that we live in a world where success is measured in the amount of money earned, and not the number of lives a book, movie or game touches, we suppose congratulations are in order. So, congratulations, Modern Warfare 2! Guinness says you did it.

Guinness: Modern Warfare 2 had biggest entertainment launch ever originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Analysts: No cause for concern over reported unpaid Modern Warfare 2 bonuses

Alexander Sliwinski — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:30:00 EST

Following the departures of two Infinity Ward executives, a related story has gained significant traction and deserves some attention. BingeGamer reports that the development studio "has yet to be paid a single dime in royalties for Modern Warfare 2," ostensibly to be paid by publisher Activision. As Infinity Ward is a wholly-owned Activision studio, we turned to some leading industry analysts to explain what appears to be a private contractual matter.

EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich tells Joystiq, "I couldn't speak to what the royalty agreement between Activision and Infinity Ward is. If royalties haven't been paid out yet, I wouldn't consider that too alarming. The game has only been out for a little over 90 days. Additionally, it is common to see royalty agreements based upon factors such as hitting release date, review scores (a.k.a. 'Metacritic Clauses') or revenue milestones. I think if you just replace the word 'royalties' with 'bonus' it should make some more sense."

Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachter explains, "I don't know the nature of [Infinity Ward's] contract, but my bonus is paid after year-end (in February), and theirs is likely the same. The idea that they haven't been paid 'yet' is not all that surprising. The year just closed, and the final SEC documents were filed yesterday." He continues, "IW sold itself to Activision back in 2004, Activision owns the [Call of Duty] IP, and the guys leaving were employees under some kind of contract. Activision appears to believe that they have breached this contract, and may or may not be justified in withholding bonuses."

Check out Pachter and Divnich's full analyses after the break.

[Editor's note: This post has been altered to reflect updates in the Infinity Ward leadership shakeup.]

Continue reading Analysts: No cause for concern over reported unpaid Modern Warfare 2 bonuses

Analysts: No cause for concern over reported unpaid Modern Warfare 2 bonuses originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GfK-ChartTrack analyzes 2009's global software and hardware sales trends

Griffin McElroy — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:40:00 EST

We've seen some pretty comprehensive breakdowns of how the U.S. gaming industry performed last year -- however, industry analysis firm GfK-ChartTrack recently compiled a sizable amount of data to inform us how the whole planet did. In short, the planet did okay. U.S. sales faltered somewhat, the U.K.'s past-gen console sales sunk like a rock (or, rather, an original Xbox), and Japan stayed afloat upon a makeshift raft of Nintendo DS RPGs.

The worldwide best-selling game of 2009 was (you'll never guess) Modern Warfare 2, with 11.86 million units sold. The runners-up were all proud members of the casual Wii suite: Wii Sports Resort, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Fit Plus, and plain ol' Wii Fit. For more details on how the gaming industry did across this great big terrestrial mass we call home, check out MCV's analysis of the statistics.

GfK-ChartTrack analyzes 2009's global software and hardware sales trends originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NPD: Wii Play is best selling 'game' of all time in the US

David Hinkle — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST

If there's a statistic measuring how well a game sold, you're likely to find Wii Play lingering in it somewhere. It's not only been the best-selling game of 2009, but also just recently made itself known as the top seller for the last decade. Now, according to NPD data (via GameSpot), the software-hardware hybrid has claimed another throne: top-selling non-PC US game ever.

It's a pretty prestigious list and while no exact figures are listed (save for the bundle's October performance, selling a whopping 11.1 million units in that month alone), the other games listed should give you an indication of just how many homes Wii Play has invaded. Taking second place is Guitar Hero III, the first game to earn $1 billion in revenue, followed by Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The others in the top ten are generally expected, including Activision's other $1 billion earner, Modern Warfare 2 (notable because, damn, that was fast!), along with a pair of other Call of Duty games. Head over to GameSpot for the full list.

NPD: Wii Play is best selling 'game' of all time in the US originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Modern Warfare 2 makes a billion dollars

JC Fletcher — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 10:25:00 EST

Was one of your goals for 2009 to give Activision a billion dollars? It may be a little late, but that's what you all, in aggregate, have done -- and that's only for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

The publisher announced that Infinity Ward's mega-hit FPS just crossed the $1 billion threshold in sell-throughs. Which means, yes, that some of that billion went to retailers and not just Activision. The company reminded us that $550 million of those sales happened in the first five days, meaning that more than half of the game's total worldwide sales occurred right at launch.

"There are only a handful of entertainment properties that have ever reached the $1 billion mark," Activision CEO Bobby Kotick, beneficiary of some of that one billion dollars you put into this game, said, "which illustrates the power of the Call of Duty franchise and mass appeal of this game."

Modern Warfare 2 makes a billion dollars originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 13 Jan 2010 10:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Modern Warfare 2 leads UK game sales for 8th straight week

James Ransom-Wiley — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 10:59:00 EST

Following another week of tepid new releases (er, were there any releases at all?), and despite a 41-percent drop in sales, Modern Warfare 2 remained atop the UK all-formats sales chart for the week ending January 2. This marked the eighth straight week that Modern Warfare 2 led UK game sales, a feat unequaled since the gritty street sequel, Need for Speed: Underground 2, captured the British imagination five years ago. This week, Bayonetta gets her first shot at taking down the reigning champ.

Additionally, Assassin's Creed II continued its rebound up the week's towering sales list, perched at the number two position, followed by a trio of casual Wii games. FIFA 10 dropped four spots into sixth place as weekly sales of the ~~soccer sim~~ "footie fax" fell 61 percent. Finally, UbiGaga's Just Dance made a fevered surge up to seventh on the chart, with New Super Mario Bros., Mario Kart and Avatar rounding out the top ten. Can we get a "TAROK MAKTO!"?

Source - Call of Duty Ends the Year on a High [GFK Chart-Track]
Source - Latest UK Software Charts [GFK Chart-Track]

Modern Warfare 2 leads UK game sales for 8th straight week originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wii dominates Amazon's video game best sellers of 2009

Mike Schramm — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:35:00 EST

Online retailer Amazon has tallied up sales in its Video Games category for the year 2009, and the results are overwhelmingly in favor of the Nintendo Wii, with nine out of the top ten spots going to Nintendo's console, various official accessories, and games. The best-selling game on the list is New Super Mario Bros. Wii at spot number 5, a feat made even more impressive by the fact that the game came out in November -- selling more copies in under two months than most games sold all year. But above that it's all Wii gear, from the Nunchuk and the MotionPlus addon to the console itself at the top.

Modern Warfare 2 is the only non-Nintendo title in the top ten, and it's specifically the Xbox 360 version, while the PS3 version comes in at number 13. There are only two titles exclusive to another console on the list: Halo 3: ODST for Microsoft at 16, and Uncharted 2 for Sony at 18. But that's not much to cheer about: even the Wii Wheel beat them both. It's fair to say Nintendo can declare Wii-ctory on Amazon in 2009. See the full list below.

[Via Kotaku]

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Wii dominates Amazon's video game best sellers of 2009 originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft's Greenberg depicts theoretical November without MW2 as 'very different'

Ben Gilbert — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:35:00 EST

It's no secret that the Xbox 360 received the lion's share of Modern Warfare 2 purchases during last month's retail blitz and Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg certainly knows it, telling us not too long ago that it was the "best November ever" for the console. So when G4TV recently asked Greenberg how a theoretical November 2009 without Modern Warfare 2 launching would have looked for the company in terms of console sales, we weren't shocked to see the Xbox exec say, "November without Modern Warfare 2 would have looked very different."

Besides the MW2-branded Xbox 360's effect on overall console sales ("hundreds of thousands," he claims), Greenberg guesses "we would have probably sold less consoles ... to be honest." In his eyes, MW2's launch was "an event" that convinced consumers to purchase the game over not just other games, but also over "buying an iPod or instead of going to a movie." Considering the game got its own branded drink -- though not the branded drink -- we think it's clear that the game has nearly reached Independence Day status.

Microsoft's Greenberg depicts theoretical November without MW2 as 'very different' originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NPD lists top-selling games of 2009 in US -- excluding December

Alexander Sliwinski — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 22:00:00 EST

The NPD Group, which tracks sales of games in the US, handed over a list of the top 10 selling games this year through November to IndustryGamers. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on Xbox 360 dominates the top spot with 4.2 million copies sold, while the PS3 version slips in at eighth place -- considering the data only goes up to November, a quick look at last month's NPDs could have told you as much.

The only other non-Nintendo titles at the top are Halo 3: ODST with 2 million and Madden NFL 10 on Xbox 360 with 1.5 million at the six and nine spots, respectively. Otherwise, Nintendo owns this list with first-party titles. If you're prepared to gaze upon the stunning sales Nintendo had in 2009, head on over to IndustryGamers for the data.

NPD lists top-selling games of 2009 in US -- excluding December originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pachter: Modern Warfare 2 sold 6m units in Nov.; PS3 hardware sales skyrocketed

Griffin McElroy — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:40:00 EST

Though the November NPD sales report won't be released until later this week, gaming industry analyst (and possible soothsayer) Michael Pachter has predicted November's biggest players in the gaming hardware and software markets. Unsurprisingly, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the highlighted title in his report -- not only does the report claim the game sold around 6 million units last month in the U.S. (for about $350 million), it credits the game with pulling the industry out of a downward spiral that it's followed for seven of the past eight months.

The report also awards a large gold-star sticker to the PlayStation 3, which is predicted to have sold 700,000 units in November, an 85-percent year-over-year sales increase. Despite the two upswings, Pachter's report ends on a decidedly dour note, stating, "as 2009 draws to an end, it is clear that it will end as a horrible year for video game publishers." Pachter suggests that sales will drop off once more in December. Happy holidays, gaming industry professionals!

Pachter: Modern Warfare 2 sold 6m units in Nov.; PS3 hardware sales skyrocketed originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GameStop earnings up in Q3, Modern Warfare 2 company's biggest launch ever

Alexander Sliwinski — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:15:00 EST

GameStop remains an unstoppable retail force, as the juggernaut slammed cash register drawers shut with $1.83 billion in sales and $52.2 million in profit for the quarter ending October 31. The figures represent 8.2 and 11.8 percent increases, respectively, from the same quarter last year.

The top five games during the quarter were Madden NFL 10, Halo 3: ODST, Batman: Arkham Asylum, NBA 2K10 and Wii Sports Resort, with all titles having "exceeded" the company's initial sales expectations. GameStop also revealed thar Modern Warfare 2 -- which released in Q4 on November 10 -- sold 2.5 million copies at the retailer in 72 hours. GameStop CEO Daniel DeMatteo is optimistic and believes MW2 is a bellwether for the rest of the holiday season.

GameStop earnings up in Q3, Modern Warfare 2 company's biggest launch ever originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Modern Warfare 2 makes a killing, bundled games rally in UK sales chart

Griffin McElroy — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:08:00 EST

Much like a dude-seeking missile dropped from an overhead predator drone, Modern Warfare 2 sales plummeted in the UK after the game's first day of availability. As you already know, the game moved 1.23 million copies on its launch day -- however, according to Chart Track's calculations, it finished off the week with a paltry 1.78 million units (for £67.4 million) sold. With pathetic figures like that, you know Activision's got to be feeling disappointed.

Other UK chart staples (Wii Fit Plus, Wii Sports Resort, FIFA 10) all maintained their top 10 ranking this week -- though the list had two unfamiliar visitors who vaulted to the top of the charts on the back of a new 360 bundle: Lego Batman (which jumped from 14th place to 7th) and Pure (which sprung from 23rd place to 9th). That's quite a comeback for these two titles, though perhaps they would have fared even better had they been bundled with copies of Modern Warfare 2 instead.

Source -- Modern Warfare 2 Smashes All Records [Chart Track]
Source -- All formats chart [Chart Track]

Modern Warfare 2 makes a killing, bundled games rally in UK sales chart originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Modern Warfare 2 breaks record with 4.7 million in day-one sales

Justin McElroy — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:47:00 EST

With his brother dying in the war and his father abusing the whole family, you'd think that Niko Bellic had lost enough, but now Activision has to come along and take away one of the few things he had left: His day-one sales record. Activision announced today that Modern Warfare 2 sold an estimated 4.7 million units in its first 24 hours in North America and the UK alone, which far exceeds the previous record of 3.6 million held by Grand Theft Auto IV.

In other news, we're going to go ahead and bring you the world exclusive news that Modern Warfare 3 - 7 will be released in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019 respectively. That pattern will likely continue into infinity ... but what will we cover in 2020 if we tell you that now?

Modern Warfare 2 breaks record with 4.7 million in day-one sales originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Analyst estimates seven million day-one sales of Modern Warfare 2

JC Fletcher — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:20:00 EST

Analyst Ben Schachter estimates that Modern Warfare 2, that game you're playing right now, sold seven million copies worldwide in its first day on the market, almost doubling the first-day sales of Grand Theft Auto IV (3.6 million). 1.2 million copies have already been accounted for in the UK -- not coincidentally, also double that region's first-day total for GTA IV. That trend went into Schachter's estimate.

"With GTA IV selling-through 6mm units worldwide in its first week," Schachter said, "that suggests week one of Modern Warfare 2 worldwide sell-through could approximate ~11.7mm. While 2x the week one tally for GTA IV may seem aggressive, the bottom line is that we believe current consensus estimates of around 12mm for the December quarter may end up being conservative."

Here's an eye-opening number for context: Street Fighter II on SNES, which we think of as ubiquitous, sold 6.3 million copies worldwide. Total.

Analyst estimates seven million day-one sales of Modern Warfare 2 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PS3 sales up 300% for first week following price cut in US

Randy Nelson — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 18:28:00 EST

Sony Computer Entertainment America has some good news and some bad news to share. The good: Sales of PS3 hardware at its "top retailers" jumped 300% for the first week of September versus the week before the system's price was cut to $299 for the 120GB "slim" unit. The bad: Um, well ... okay, we lied. Everything's pretty good for a change at SCEA HQ, considering people are actually buying its console. (Although 300% pales in comparison to Europe's totally legit 999% increase ... or Japan's 7,350% increase).

The hardware maker also noted that, as of August, five of consumers' top 10 most-wanted games (as surveyed by OTX's GamePlan Insights) -- Gran Turismo 5, Final Fantasy XIII, God of War III, Assassin's Creed 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 -- are on PS3, in case you somehow didn't know this. We would like to note (mainly for Sony's information) that Modern Warfare 2 is also on Xbox 360, and that version was No. 2 in OTX's survey results, whereas the PS3 version placed 10th. (Assassin's Creed 2 for 360 is No. 3 and No. 8 for PS3.) In fact, if you calculate the "purchase intent index" for the top three (all Xbox 360 games) and the lower five (all PS3 games) they're nearly identical. But still, we'll give it to them.

Maybe it's more worthwhile, though, to point out that Uncharted 2 didn't even make the top 25. What's up with that?

Source -- GamePlan Insights Survey Data [PDF file]

PS3 sales up 300% for first week following price cut in US originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 10 Sep 2009 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GameStop: Modern Warfare 2 'could be the best selling title of all time'

Randy Nelson — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 18:40:00 EST

Tony Bartel, GameStop's executive vice president of merchandising and marketing, has some high expectations for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. In fact, he told shareholders and media listening in on the company's recent Q2 earnings call that the latest Infinity Ward FPS "could be the best selling title of all time," IndustryGamers reports. Of all time.

That would be quite an impressive feat, given the titles it'd need to trample in order to become king of the hill. In its 21 months on sale, the original Modern Warfare has sold 7.7 million copies across all platforms in the US, according to NPD. For comparison, Wii Play, which has sold more than 11 million copies in the states according to NPD, leads the all-time best sellers list for games that were never bundled with a console or handheld. If you consider pack-ins, it'd have to beat Wii Sports' nearly 24 million units in the States. To do that, every PS3 and Xbox 360 owner in the US would need to buy a copy.

So, yes: It could be the best selling game of all time. Emphasis on "could."

GameStop: Modern Warfare 2 'could be the best selling title of all time' originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 21 Aug 2009 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Activision hopes Modern Warfare 2 is 'biggest selling video game of all time'

David Hinkle — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 10:45:00 EST

Newsflash: Developers and publishers want you to buy their games. Doubly so if they plan to release their wares during the year-end holidays, as is the case with Modern Warfare 2. In fact, Activision brand manager Simon Wells told MCV that the company hopes Modern Warfare 2 will be the "biggest selling video game of all time," beating out the high sales figures of Call of Duty 4 and Treyarch's Call of Duty: World at War.

We're not going to say that people aren't excited about Infinity Ward's sequel (our tips inbox proves it), but we're going to need more than a teaser trailer if we're to board the hype train. Although ... the inclusion of teddy bears does help.

Activision hopes Modern Warfare 2 is 'biggest selling video game of all time' originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Apr 2009 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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