Kane & Lynch didn't sell 1,000,000 & Zack & Wiki didn't bomb, and other sales facts..

Status
Not open for further replies.
Thanks roland, glad to see that No More Heroes and Patapon did well. I guess that's why the former is getting a sequel and the latter's pricing was repeated. I'm also disappointed that a great game like Yakuza 2 didn't sell too well, I can only blindly hope that the subtitle-only localization was still able to turn an overall profit.

[quote name='io']And to compare to Chrono Trigger (that 21K is hard to believe) what about Final Fantasy IV and Dragon Quest IV?[/QUOTE]

I guess another good comparison point would be Front Mission DS' numbers from last year's round. It had similar qualities to CT: Remake of an SNES classic, $40, etc.; but it was released a month earlier than CT (FM: October, CT: November), relative to the numbers date.

[quote name='roland13x']More metal crushing action...

Front Mission DS - 28k
Front Mission 4 - 118k

And for good measure, I'll toss in...

Ring of Red - 44k[/QUOTE]
 
Wow roland, thanks for the numbers, i always wanted to know how Bourne did and looks like it did pretty bad, although i enjoyed the game so much. I dont have any requests, but just thanks for your help, as these numbers are always great to have.
 
Glad to see this thread is alive and kicking again.

Roland, if you could provide sales numbers for the following titles it would be much appreciated:

Neverland Card Battles (PSP)
Pocket Pool (PSP)
Fading Shadows (PSP)
Izuna (DS)
Izuna 2 (DS)
Drone Tactics (DS)
Summon Night Twin Age (DS)
Etrian Odyssey (DS)
Etrian Odyssey 2 (DS)
Dokapon Kingdom (Wii)
Dokapon Kingdom (PS2)
Baroque (Wii)
Baroque (PS2)
Persona 3 (PS2)
Persona 3 FES (PS2)
Metal Slug Anthology (PS2)
Metal Slug Anthology (PSP)
Metal Slug Anthology (Wii)

Thanks in advance!
 
If possible:
Sonic Unleashed (all versions, I saw something on Gamechartz and would like to know the REAL numbers)
Soul Calibur IV
Lips
Karaoke Revolution Presents American Idol Encore (1 and 2)
Battle Fantasia (should be less than 50k)
 
Hey roland, great to see some more numbers. Any chance you could throw out the million-sellers for the current-gen platforms (PS3, Wii, 360, PSP, DS)?
 
[quote name='Whambamm']Wow, I'm both saddened and surprised. Saddened that Assassin's Creed has sold more for the PS3 than MGS4, not that AC's a bad game, I just love MGS4 that much.[/QUOTE]
I'm not too surprised. AC's been out longer, and has a greatest hits edition out.
[quote name='roland13x']And as an update to my OP:

Zack and Wiki is now at a grand total of 117k. I take it back. It bombed. Crazy to think that there was ZERO long tail for this title, since it only sold another 35k or so in the past year. I think it's a bit overrated as a game, but it certainly deserved better than that.
[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I actually came here to post this: (source)

[quote name='Christian Svensson, Capcom'](Zack and Wiki) did not sell 500K units or anywhere near it. I still don't understand where you're getting 500K.

To the best of my knowledge, the 300K figure quoted by IR included European orders from Nintendo who published the title on our behalf in that territory. Nor did it do the volume it did do at anywhere near frontline pricing (in the US anyway).

And what you think was a cheap game to make, wasn't. Great games almost never are.[/QUOTE]
So basically everyone that said 1) Zack and Wiki sold well, and 2) Zack and Wiki made a profit because making games for Wii is cheap, is wrong on both counts.
 
It's interesting to see that for all the crying of fanboys, publishers are simply going where the money is for the most part. I mean, you can't blame a company for having no interest in a series that sells 20K copies. It does make clear, however, how much Internet gamers are a niche group in the total medium.
 
[quote name='roland13x']No jeopardy to my job...NPD connections...well, we'll see. As long as I don't go crazy posting everything, should be fine.

Chrono Trigger - 21k. That's gotta be a disappointment I'd imagine.[/quote]
This has to be 210k, no? Thought I had seen a number from November or December that was significantly higher than that.

Was the Halo 3 number you posted for the regular edition only?
 
[quote name='Whambamm']Since you're offering, I've got a couple more if you get sales figures for PSP and DS. Thanks again.[/QUOTE]

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney - 117k
Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Justice for All - 110k
Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations - 92k
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney - 71k [that slope is getting steeper and steeper...]
Professor Layton and the Curious Village - 340k
God of War: Chains of Olympus - 640k
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII - 708k

[quote name='dallow']Ha, yes, very interesting. Thanks for that. I too was pretty curious as to how it'd turn out. One year is a long time. I appreciate this thread, thanks man.

Umm, I'm curious about these:[/QUOTE]

Folklore - 109k
Time Crisis 4 - 206k
Banjo: Nuts and Bolts - 154k (low numbers, I guess not a surprise though)
Viva Pinata 2 - 80k [ouch! I'm guilty here too though, loved the first, haven't gotten the 2nd yet]
Fallout 3 - 1.14M (360) 452k (PS3) [includes CE]

[quote name='io']How about Beautiful Katamari? I'd be interested in that one because all of a sudden it is somewhat difficult to find new and goes for a slight premium on ebay - so I figure a great portion of the stock sent to stores in the U.S. has been sold, though I'm sure it was pretty low to start with.

And to compare to Chrono Trigger (that 21K is hard to believe) what about Final Fantasy IV and Dragon Quest IV?

Oh, and another game that probably should have sold more than it did like Z&W (I'm guessing it is also low): De Blob.

And with that request, I'm off to play Dragon Quest V ;).

Edit - Oh yeah, an thanks for that awesome bit of news about the Vesperia LE actually being quite limited (to 6700). That is probably the first time ever I've gotten an LE that actually turned out to be one. And the funny thing is they don't even call it a "limited edition" unlike the overproduced crap that most games try to pass off as "limited". It is simply a "Special Edition".[/QUOTE]

Beautiful Katamari - 96k [the others sold 450k and 230k on the PS2, so this figure isn't a surprise at all]
FFIV - 275k
DQIV - 76k

And I double checked...Chrono Trigger has sold a total of 210k. That 21k was for the month of January. False alarm!

[quote name='io']Just curious about these numbers - I'm sure they include every copy sold no matter the price, right? Because Zack & Wiki was clearanced at TRU and Kmart (and maybe Sears too?) and sold in pretty large quantities from those places. I would have though that would have pushed the numbers up considerably.[/QUOTE]

These numbers are not EXACT sales figures. I don't know which retailers for sure, but there is a significant amount of "calculated figures" in here. And a lot of smaller mom & pops don't get included, and I'm willing to bet a bunch of clearanced titles aren't listed by their proper SKUs. But still, it's all we have to go on. Which sucks too...as a developer, I always feel we're getting a little bit screwed on the numbers.

[quote name='emg28']^With this in mind, how about Fantastic 4 for the Wii? :lol:[/QUOTE]

You must be a masochist...

F4 - 76k Wii

[quote name='emg28']Good to have you back.

I was wondering about these:

Thanks in advance.[/QUOTE]

Final Fantasy Tactics A2 - 233k
Disgaea - 45k (DS) 78k (PSP)
Star Ocean: First Departure - 69k
Yggdra Union - 12k
Persona 4 - 123k
Civilization Revolution - 96k (DS) 254k (360) 149k (PS3)
Lego Indiana Jones - 241k (360) 142k (PS3) 456k (PS2)
Lego Batman - 207k (360) 128k (PS3) 507k (PS2)
Eternal Sonata - 98k (360) 33k (PS3)
 
[quote name='roland13x']
Lego Indiana Jones - 241k (360) 142k (PS3) 456k (PS2)
Lego Batman - 207k (360) 128k (PS3) 507k (PS2)
[/quote]
Could you add the Wii numbers in there just for thoroughness? Thanks!
 
[quote name='akilshohen']If possible:
Sonic Unleashed (all versions, I saw something on Gamechartz and would like to know the REAL numbers)
Soul Calibur IV
Lips
Karaoke Revolution Presents American Idol Encore (1 and 2)
Battle Fantasia (should be less than 50k)[/QUOTE]

Sonic Unleashed - 113k (360) 69k (PS3) [ugh]
Soul Calibur IV - 500k (360) 353k (PS3) [includes CE]
Lips - 46k
Karaoke Revolution Presents American Idol Encore 1 - 85k (360) 46k (PS3)
Karaoke Revolution Presents American Idol Encore 2 - 20k (36o) 16k (PS3)
Battle Fantasia - 4,704 (to be exact)

[quote name='botticus']Hey roland, great to see some more numbers. Any chance you could throw out the million-sellers for the current-gen platforms (PS3, Wii, 360, PSP, DS)?[/QUOTE]

That'd be way too much. But here's the numbers:
25 on 360
7 on PS3
16 on Wii
24 on DS
5 on PSP
114 on PS2

[quote name='botticus']Was the Halo 3 number you posted for the regular edition only?[/QUOTE]

Yes, just the regular version of H3. The others:

CE - 633k
LE - 479k

That's a lot of cat helmets....
 
[quote name='botticus']Could you add the Wii numbers in there just for thoroughness? Thanks![/QUOTE]

Good call.

Lego Indy - 563k
Lego Batman - 420k

I thoroughly enjoyed Lego Batman so much more than Indy. Kind of surprised to see the numbers that much in favor of Indy. I'm betting it's because they are based on known films rather than a new story, which I was skeptical of as well at first.
 
[quote name='roland13x']Good call.

Lego Indy - 563k
Lego Batman - 420k

I thoroughly enjoyed Lego Batman so much more than Indy. Kind of surprised to see the numbers that much in favor of Indy. I'm betting it's because they are based on known films rather than a new story, which I was skeptical of as well at first.[/quote]Thanks!

How about a Wii number for Sonic Unleashed?

Also, how's Tiger Woods 09 doing across all the platforms?
 
Okay, 340k is a hell of lot for a DS game. Where the hell's the next Professor Layton? And those Ace Attorney, Folklore, and Eternal Sonata numbers make me a sad panda. At least consumers are starting to wise up to the poor quality of the Sonic games.
 
Damn, now I wonder if the UK numbers for Lips is holding it up. Karaoke revolution 2 really fell off, but hopefully I'll be able to find it for cheap now. There's no eBay listings for it. LOL.
 
[quote name='Whambamm']And those Ace Attorney, Folklore, and Eternal Sonata numbers make me a sad panda.[/QUOTE]

Are they low? 100k looks good to me; only 25 360 titles and 7 PS3 title have sold over 1 million, so the odds of selling that ain't great. So, now if I can only figure out the mean sales number at which a game becomes profitable. But I'm sure there's enormous fluctuation in that.
 
[quote name='botticus']Thanks!

How about a Wii number for Sonic Unleashed?

Also, how's Tiger Woods 09 doing across all the platforms?[/QUOTE]

Sure thing.

Sonic - 315k (Wii)
TW09 - 216k (360) 174k (PS3) 565k (Wii) [I had to triple check those Wii numbers. Wow!]

[quote name='mykevermin']Are they low? 100k looks good to me; only 25 360 titles and 7 PS3 title have sold over 1 million, so the odds of selling that ain't great. So, now if I can only figure out the mean sales number at which a game becomes profitable. But I'm sure there's enormous fluctuation in that.[/QUOTE]

There is absolutely no formula. Some games cost $400k to make and zero in marketing, some cost $25M to make with a $15M marketing budget. Some publishers have relationships with retailers and get more per unit sold. And then there's always the "creative accounting" that's not all that different from the stuff you hear about in the film industry (where very few films ever return a profit, according to the studios). If you knew all those costs, you might be able to figure something out. But there's no way those costs are going to ever make it to public in any sort of an accurate way.
 
Very interesting info indeed.

Clearly, Sega needed to put Sonic into the Ryu Ga Gotoku series somehow.

Sonic Vs the Yakuza would've done gangbusters methinks.

:p
 
[quote name='Whambamm']Okay, 340k is a hell of lot for a DS game. [/quote]

[quote name='roland13x']Golden Sun - 743k
Golden Sun: Lost Age - 491k
[/quote]

I was looking through some of the older posts in this thread and I still don't understand why we have yet to see another Golden Sun game. According to these numbers, both games sold well. Golden Sun DS would be awesome.
 
[quote name='The Crotch']Hey, do you have numbers for Halo 3: Spanish Edition?[/QUOTE]

Nope, not listed. Which is strange...I can't imagine they clump them in with the English version.

Best Buy accidentally shipped the Spanish version to me. I almost opened it before realizing what was up. My girlfriend joked they should have just called it "Hola".
 
I would love to know how Lair sold :)

Edit actually really curious about these three too. Skate 1 360/ps3 Shaun white 360/ps3 and Fight Night round 3 ps3/360?

Thanks
 
[quote name='panasonic']I would love to know how Lair sold :)

Edit actually really curious about these three too. Skate 1 360/ps3 Shaun white 360/ps3 and Fight Night round 3 ps3/360?

Thanks[/QUOTE]

Lair - 185k [man, those first dozen or so Sony 1st party titles didn't do much at all, with the exception of Insomniac's stuff]
Skate - 606k (360) 202k (PS3)
Shaun White - 271k (360) 141k (PS3)
Fight Night - 1.19M (360) 526k (PS3)
 
Wow at FNR3 selling 526k i was one of the people who bought it but wouldn't have guessed a 6month old port would sell that well. Thanks for the numbers.
 
Just inquisitive...do you happen to know the numbers for, say, Ultimate Shooting Collection and Castle Shikigami 3 on the Wii? I just can't imagine they have numbers high enough to justify pushing them into the market.

Which is a shame, since I love shooters like those to death but, really, let's be realistic. :lol:
 
[quote name='Kapwanil']Just inquisitive...do you happen to know the numbers for, say, Ultimate Shooting Collection and Castle Shikigami 3 on the Wii? I just can't imagine they have numbers high enough to justify pushing them into the market.

Which is a shame, since I love shooters like those to death but, really, let's be realistic. :lol:[/QUOTE]

Ultimate Shooting Collection - 1,126 (I didn't even know this thing existed)
Castle Shikigami 3 - 7,366

Tough genre in the States...
 
Nice to see you're back, not sure if 123k for P4 is a good or bad thing, but i bet numbers increase this month, it's been a top seller on Amazon ever since it was DotD. I wonder what it would need to turn a profit. I LOVE THAT GAME.

But what would i be if i didn't ask for something? Not sure if you have any numbers on PS1 games, but if you do, what are the numbers for Persona: revelations, Persona 2, Persona 3, and Persona 3: FES? I'd list all of the Shin Megami Tensei games, but i don't want you to do all this work, so i'll ask another time. I love this thread :).

Update: Oh, also Ultimate Duck Hunting. I managed to sell it for $70 on eBay, so apparently it's rare.
 
[quote name='the_punisher']Nice to see you're back, not sure if 123k for P4 is a good or bad thing, but i bet numbers increase this month, it's been a top seller on Amazon ever since it was DotD. I wonder what it would need to turn a profit. I LOVE THAT GAME.

But what would i be if i didn't ask for something? Not sure if you have any numbers on PS1 games, but if you do, what are the numbers for Persona: revelations, Persona 2, Persona 3, and Persona 3: FES? I'd list all of the Shin Megami Tensei games, but i don't want you to do all this work, so i'll ask another time. I love this thread :).[/quote]
Persona 4's number is fantastic, much better than all their previous RPGs besides P3.
 
Does anyone know how much does the developer actually get from the sales? If they are spending 15 million to make a game like shaun white and only sell about 400k would they even break even? I know i saw a lot of commercials for the game too so it probably had a high budget.
 
[quote name='SL4IN']Do you have the numbers for Disgaea DS vs Disgaea PSP?[/quote]


Look 20 posts above yours (#557). ;)
[quote name='roland13x']Disgaea - 45k (DS) 78k (PSP)
[/quote]
 
[quote name='roland13x']Viva Pinata 2 - 80k [ouch! I'm guilty here too though, loved the first, haven't gotten the 2nd yet]
Disgaea - 45k (DS) 78k (PSP)[/quote]

Wow, I feel so honored to own these low-selling titles ;).

[quote name='roland13x']
Beautiful Katamari - 96k [the others sold 450k and 230k on the PS2, so this figure isn't a surprise at all]
FFIV - 275k
DQIV - 76k[/QUOTE]

If those numbers were exact (which I know you said they weren't) I'd be willing to guess BK shipped 100K or so since it is all of a sudden very hard to find (though I did see 2 at a Kmart out here in the DC area where I'm visiting).

Also, that's a shame on FFIV vs DQIV. I'm surprised they priced DQV at $39.99 given those sales. I enjoyed DQ IV way more than FF IV (in fact I finished DQIV and got bored with FFIV though I will finish it - AFTER I finish DQ V that is ;)).
 
[quote name='roland13x']Ultimate Shooting Collection - 1,126 (I didn't even know this thing existed)
Castle Shikigami 3 - 7,366

Tough genre in the States...[/quote]

I looked up Ultimate Shooting Collection on ebay and the description says it has Chaos Field. Anyone know if that is the exact game that was on the DS?

Also, is it strange that Disgaea on the PSP sold quite a bit more than the DS version? Were they different games?
 
[quote name='the_punisher']Nice to see you're back, not sure if 123k for P4 is a good or bad thing, but i bet numbers increase this month, it's been a top seller on Amazon ever since it was DotD. I wonder what it would need to turn a profit. I LOVE THAT GAME.

But what would i be if i didn't ask for something? Not sure if you have any numbers on PS1 games, but if you do, what are the numbers for Persona: revelations, Persona 2, Persona 3, and Persona 3: FES? I'd list all of the Shin Megami Tensei games, but i don't want you to do all this work, so i'll ask another time. I love this thread :).

Update: Oh, also Ultimate Duck Hunting. I managed to sell it for $70 on eBay, so apparently it's rare.[/QUOTE]

When I first read this, I thought you were kidding about Ultimate Duck Hunting. A few friends (and now colleagues) worked on that turd...it was their most miserable professional experience ever.

Anyway, it's at 49k units right now. People who buy this game suck.

I don't have PS1 numbers.

[quote name='panasonic']Does anyone know how much does the developer actually get from the sales? If they are spending 15 million to make a game like shaun white and only sell about 400k would they even break even? I know i saw a lot of commercials for the game too so it probably had a high budget.[/QUOTE]

Depends entirely on the developer contract. Generally, devs get a certain percentage in royalties back (anywhere from 5% to 40%, again, depending on the situation). However, they don't collect any royalties until ALL development/marketing/manufacturing, etc costs are recouped by the publisher...so it's something that devs rarely see, only on the biggest titles.

Internal devs often don't get royalties but a "performance bonus".
 
[quote name='roland13x']Ultimate Shooting Collection - 1,126 (I didn't even know this thing existed)
Castle Shikigami 3 - 7,366

Tough genre in the States...[/quote]

Wow. It's a miracle that any of them come out nowadays given those numbers. Hoo boy.
 
Due to all of these requests is it safe to assume that NPD numbers aren't made available to the unwashed masses?

Also, any numbers for Odin Sphere?
 
[quote name='schuerm26']I looked up Ultimate Shooting Collection on ebay and the description says it has Chaos Field. Anyone know if that is the exact game that was on the DS?

Also, is it strange that Disgaea on the PSP sold quite a bit more than the DS version? Were they different games?[/QUOTE]

Wasn't Chaos Field a Gamecube game? I believe it does contain that exact game on there, along with two others.

Disgaea PSP had a pretty big head start on the DS version. Wasn't the DS version released around a year after the PSP version?
 
[quote name='schuerm26']Also, is it strange that Disgaea on the PSP sold quite a bit more than the DS version? Were they different games?[/quote]

They are the same game.

[quote name='Josef']
Disgaea PSP had a pretty big head start on the DS version. Wasn't the DS version released around a year after the PSP version?[/quote]

PSP - Oct 2007
DS - Sep 2008
 
[quote name='roland13x']Ultimate Shooting Collection - 1,126 (I didn't even know this thing existed)
Castle Shikigami 3 - 7,366

Tough genre in the States...[/QUOTE]

That last statement piqued my interest. Now I'm wondering how well Blast Works: Build, Trade, Destroy (Wii) did; after all, it does seem like one of the few shmups in recent memory that has had some major backing behind it.

[quote name='neocisco']Due to all of these requests is it safe to assume that NPD numbers aren't made available to the unwashed masses?

Also, any numbers for Odin Sphere?[/QUOTE]
I found some numbers for it from last year's round in Dr Mario Kart's summary post, though the GS Game Days deal may have increased the sales:
Dr Mario Kart's summary post;3939480 said:
Odin Sphere - 101k
Click to expand...
 
Any numbers on the Wii version of Shaun White, and does it lump the Target Edition in with the regular edition? The Wii version is actually superior to the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions and one of the better Wii titles. I wonder how much the Target version was an incentive for people to buy?
 
[quote name='Rusty Ghia']I can't imagine that being a Toys R Us exclusive helped at all, so I'm wondering what kind of numbers Soul Bubbles did for the DS?[/QUOTE]
Oh god, this is a great question. I'm going to guess 3,500.
 
If you could get these, would really appreciate it. Last 4 are PS2 titles, not sure if you have those.

Silent Hill titles
Dark Sector
Star Wars Force Unleashed
Pure
Motorstorm 1 and 2
Unreal Tournament III
Ninja Gaiden titles
Marvel Vs Capcom 2 (SCOOPS SCOOPS)
Disney Golf
Final Fantasy X and XII
Kingdom Hearts I and II and COM
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
bread's done
Back
Top