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 Weekly Gamasutra

[11.20.09]

Modern Warfare 2 Infinity Ward's 'Most Successful PC Version' Yet
Offerpal Sets New Ad Standards As Facebook Bans Offer Providers
Class-Action Suit Filed Against Zynga, Facebook Over Offer-Based Ads
Gameloft Scales Back Android Game Development
UK Gov't Intelligence Agency To Advertise On Xbox Live
Video Game Watchdog National Institute On Media And The Family Shutting Down
The Art History of Games Symposium Announced
New Tech, Design Details Of Project Natal To Emerge At Gamefest In February
BioShock, Far Cry 2's O'Connor: Beware 'Serviceable, Not Great' Approaches To Integrating Game Writers
PSP, PS3 Lead Weekly Japanese Sales Charts
Sony 'Confident' In 13 Million PS3 Target This Year, Plans Online Services
Microsoft To Offer Free Xbox Live Weekends To Silver Members
GDC 2010's Experimental Gameplay Workshop Calls For Submissions
Saling The World: Wii Fit Plus, New Super Mario Bros. Wii Head U.S. Sales
Best Of Indie Games: We Need More Heroes
Opinion: Rethinking Player Death
Round-Up: Gamasutra Network Jobs, Week Of November 20
Interview: Capy Talks Critter Crunch, Mobile Horrors

[11.19.09]

GameStop Acquires Majority Stake in Jolt Online Gaming
Marvelous Sees Success With PSP Games, Less So With Wii
Brad Pitt's Plan B Entertainment Options Dark Void Film
Stardock Reveals Impulse, Steam Market Share Estimates
Disciples III Dev Akella Signs DRM Deal With Byteshield
Valve: Devs Should Experiment With Post-Release Content Using Digital Distribution
Japanese Software: J-League Pro Soccer Club Replaces Winning Eleven At Top
Best of GameSetWatch: From New Super Chick Sisters to Choose Your Own Adventure
Sony: 'All PS3 Units Will Be Firmware-Upgradeable To 3D'
GameStop Reports Boost In Q3 Sales, Profits
Analyst: Nintendo Likely To Launch On-Demand Wii Video Channel In U.S.
Feature: Minimizing Risks In Large Productions
NaturalMotion Opens New Korean Office
PSN Revenues Hit October High, As Sony Mulls 'Premium' Subscriptions
Sony: Game Biz To Be Profitable By 2011
NeoEdge Merges With Offspring, Expands Into Game Creation
Analysis: Shattered Horizons and New Horizons For Weightless Gaming
This Week In Video Game Criticism: All You Need Is Love
In-Depth: PixelJunk's Baiyon Vs. Katamari's Takahashi
Interview: The Developers And Daniel Johnston
Gamasutra Expert Blogs: From Design Docs To Designing By 'No'

[11.18.09]

Study: MMOs Take Up 14% Of Gaming Time In U.S
Uncharted 2, Batman, Others Vie For Top Honors At Spike VGAs
IGF 2010 Reveals Record Student Entry Numbers
Analyst: Over 60 Percent Of All iPhone Apps Have Been Pirated
Feature: 'And Yet It Grows: Analyzing the Size and Growth of the European Game Market'
Activision: Modern Warfare 2 Rakes In $550 Million Five-Day Gross
SCEA, Ubi, Disney, EA Face Voice Tech Patent Suit
Layoffs Hit Australia's Krome Studios
Kotick Sells More Activision Shares, Gains $17 Million
Critical Reception: Nintendo's New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Retailer Sports Authority To Sell Wii, Fitness Software
Q&A: The Then And Now of Hitman Dev IO Interactive
In-Depth: On Company Culture, Hiring, And Retention
In-Depth: North American PlayStation Network Sales, October 2009
Analysis: Industry Faces Steep Odds Against Year-Over-Year Growth

[11.17.09]

Hecker: Indies Can't Do All The Heavy Creative Lifting
Activision Unveils Bay Area-Based Sledgehammer Games
Zynga Raises $15.2 Million In New Funding
Valve's Holtman: Digital Direct Gives Developers More Pricing Freedom
David Sirlin: Keep Interface Design Simple, Concise, Efficient
EA Memo Confirms Pandemic Consolidation, Van Caneghem Hire
Fils-Aime: Wii HD 'Will Not Be The Next Step For Us'
Funcom Looks Forward To Secret World Amid Q3 Losses
Activision Edits Modern Warfare 2 For Russia
Sony Confirms Facebook On PS3, Details Firmware Update 3.10
Modern Warfare 2 Release Week, Console Bannings Have Major Effect On XBLA Sales
In-Depth: The Guide To Rescuing A Troubled Project
Randy Smith: Do Games Need To Be Fun?
Tradewest Founder Leland Cook Passes Away
Analysis: Nintendo's DSi Sales Trends, Wii Price Cut Too Late?
Analysis: Gungriffon - The Forgotten Conflict
Gamasutra Member Blogs: From Betamax To Game Engines

[11.16.09]

In-Depth: Ugly, Quick, And Dirty - The Power of Working Fast
Assassin's Creed 2's Plourde On Why 'Fail Early, Fail Often' Is The Wrong Approach
EA Montreal's Schneider: Who Do We Make Games For?
Japanese Hardware: PlayStation 3 Outsells All Hardware, Including DSi
IGDA Offers Group Health Insurance Access
Wada: Too Much Diversification Will Confuse Game Consumers
Square Enix's Wada Talks Going Beyond Globalization
NPD: 14 Percent Of Households Have An Online Game Subscription
ESA: 42 Percent Thinking Games For Holidays
Softkinetic, Optrima Partner On 3D Gesture Recognition Tech
Develop Liverpool Sees 160 Delegates, To Return In 2010
UK Modern Warfare 2 Sales Hit $111.8 Million To Top UK Charts
OnLive To Work On Mobile Phones
Japanese Software: Winning Eleven Takes Lead From Bayonetta
Analysis: On PSP Go's Launch Numbers, PSP's U.S. Future
Release This: New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Left 4 Dead 2 Debut Stateside
Stonetrip Unveils Updates To Shiva Editor
Hansoft Hires EA Sports Vet Wynn, Launches Consultant Training Program
Interview: Kajiya Productions on Translating Final Fantasy
Postmortem: Behind The Scenes Of Scribblenauts

[11.13.09]

Fils-Aime: Nintendo Offers 'Full Meal' To iPhone's 'Small Chunks'
Sony Brings Internet Play To Local PSP Multiplayer Games
NPD: October Top 20 Sees Impressive Demon's Souls Showing
IGDA Forum: Asking 'Why' Will Keep Games Out Of The Ghetto, Says Hecker
IGDA Forum: WB's Ryan On What It Takes
Naughty Dog: Uncharted 2 Could Lead 'Shift' In PS3 Tech Prowess
Guillemot: UPlay Community Features Will Help Ubisoft 'Get Closer To Our Customers'
Bobby Kotick Nets $20M In Stock Option Sale
Analyst: Take-Two 70 Percent Growth An 'Example' In Challenging Economy
SouthPeak Reverses Loss, Buys Midway TNA Assets
Interview: Ohai Makes A Case For Social MMOs With City of Eternals Facebook MMO
Saling The World: Modern Warfare 2 Tops Charts in U.S. and UK
IGDA Leadership: Firaxis' Caudill On Doing It 'Sid's Way'
Sponsored Feature: Rasterization on Intel's Larrabee
Analysis: Modern Warfare 2 - Is It Really 'No Girls Allowed'?
Best Of Indie Games: Close to the Black Heart

[11.12.09]

Playdom Acquires Green Patch, Trippert Labs
NPD: October U.S. Sales Slump 19% As Wii Re-Tops Hardware
NPD: Uncharted 2 Heads October 2009 U.S. Game Sales
Microsoft: Xbox 360 Only YTD Grower, As Xbox Live Hits 2 Million Simultaneous
EA: 'No Coincidence' That Layoffs, PlayFish Buy Emerged Simultaneously
Twitter, Facebook To Hit Xbox Live November 17
ESA Nite To Unite For Kids Raises $800,000
Wooga Raises $7.5 Million For Social Games, New Hires
GameCareerGuide Feature: Game Design Challenge - Sidekick
Farrell: Leaner Structure, New Opportunities To Drive THQ Profitability
GameStop Planning In-Store Console DLC Download Service
Best of GameSetWatch: From REO Speedwagon to Rock Band Network
Fils-Aime: 'I Like Our Chances' Against Rival Motion Controls
Epic's Free Unreal Development Kit Gains 50,000 Users In First Week
Postmortem: Wadjet Eye's The Blackwell Convergence
TimeGate Licenses Vision Engine For MMO Project
Massive, comScore Collaborate To Measure Effectiveness Of In-Game Ads
PSN Struggles With Modern Warfare 2 Launch
U.S., UK Modern Warfare 2 Launch Sales Hit 4.7 Million Units
Q&A: Data Beez's West Coast Chiptune Romp
The Week In Game Criticism: Duty Calls, Google Waves, Dragon Ages
Gamasutra Expert Blogs: From Going Indie To Boycotting Steam
Q&A: Valve's Swift On Left 4 Dead 2's Production, AI Boost

[11.11.09]

Social Dev Playdom Raises $43 Million
Gaming Network Playfire Raises $2.1M From Atomico, Atari's Gardner, Others
Report: PlayStation 3 To Add Facebook Integration
Modern Warfare 2 Sells 1.23 Million Day One Copies In UK Alone
Report: Microsoft Bans Live Accounts For Modded Consoles
Mad Catz Sees Sales Fall On Slow-Starting Holiday Season
UK Court Dismisses Convicted Console Modder's Appeal In 'Pivotal' Case
NCsoft Aims For 2011 Guild Wars 2 Release
Spider Devs On Rock-Bottom iPhone Pricing: 'You Don't Have To Do It'
PlayStation 'Father' Kutaragi Founds New Online Networking Company
Critical Reception: Activision/Infinity Ward's Modern Warfare 2
Q&A: Sands of Destruction Team Talks Battle System, Story Creation
Analysis: Meeting the Badman
Opinion: The Lion's Gate - Majors And Indie Publishing

[11.10.09]

Nielsen: Heavy Marketing, Quality Expectations Drive Modern Warfare 2 Buzz
American Council on Exercise Charts 'Underwhelming' Wii Fit Health Benefits
Penny Arcade Launches 2009 Child's Play Charity Drive
GCG Design Challenge Results Showcase Photographic Interpretation
Analyst: New Super Mario Bros. Wii Could Outdo Modern Warfare 2
Xbox Live Game Show 1 Vs. 100 Gets Second Season
Former ESA Head Lowenstein To Receive AIAS Lifetime Achievement Award
Need For Speed: Shift Developed Largely Remotely
Giana Sisters Co-Creator Armin Gessert Passes
Analysts Question EA's Playfish Buy, Future Prospects
TIGA: UK Devs Want To Address Piracy Themselves
GDC 2010 Reminds Of Summit Submissions, IGF Student, Mobile Deadline
In-Depth: Xbox Live Arcade Sales Analysis, October 2009
Analysis: What The (Game) Papers Say - November 2009, Pt. 1
Interview: Cascade Game Foundry's New Lease On The Simulation Genre
Analysis: Is Delay Publishers’ New Marketing Strategy?
Gamasutra Member Blogs: From 'RPG Elements' To Physics Engines

[11.09.09]

EA's Riccitiello: Cuts Necessary To 'Transform Our Company'
EA Announces Increased Net Loss, Confirms 1,500 Layoffs
Zynga Removes CPA Offers After FishVille Suspension
Report: Layoffs Hit EA Studios Including Tiburon, Black Box, Redwood Shores, Mythic
Interview: EAi, Playfish On Bringing Electronic Arts Brands to Social Networks
Unity User Base Reaches 33,500 In Wake Of Free License
EA Confirms $300 Million Playfish Acquisition
Best Of GamerBytes - All Out Of Gum
Capcom's Niitsuma: Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom Only Works For Wii
NCsoft Sales, Profits Surge Following Global Aion Launch
Wii Fit Plus Leads As Dragon Age Debuts Strong In UK
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Launch Defeats Street Dates
Konami Reports Sales, Profit Declines In Half-Year
Activision Donating $1 Million To Military Veterans
Analyst: October NPD To See 9 Percent Software Decline, Uncharted 2 As Top Title
Release This: Modern Warfare 2, Phantasy Star Zero Debut in U.S.
Analysis: Mole's Eyes - Fatale's Storytelling Attitude
Interview: Tri-Ace on Resonance of Fate's Battles, Manly Characters
Interview: Al Lowe Talks New iPhone App, Evolution Of The Adventure Game Genre

[11.06.09]

Game Boy, The Ball Admitted To National Toy Hall Of Fame
iPhone Dev Storm8 Sued Over User Data Harvesting Allegations
Namco Bandai Swings To Loss In First-Half, Posts Lower Sales
Infinity Ward's Emslie: Animation 'First And Foremost' Key To Visual Realism
Japanese Hardware: PS3 Closes In On Leader DSi
Analyst: CoD: MW2 Could Sell $500 Million Week One, Music Genre Still Challenged
Iwata: 35% Japanese Connectivity Ratio For Wii, 20% For DS
Iwata: Nintendo Is Not 'Losing Its Edge' To iPhone, Rival Tech
RedLynx Intentionally Leaked Trials To Torrent Sites
Saling The World: Dragon Age, Uncharted 2 Top U.S. Charts
Best Of Indie Games: Eufloria, Home, Run Away!
Game Developer November Issue Showcases Scribblenauts, The Game Developer 50
Direct2Drive Tussles With Valve By Declining To Sell Steamworks-Powered MW2
Interview: OneBigGame's de Ronde On Making Games For Charity
Analysis: Turn-Based Versus Real-Time
Round-Up: Gamasutra Network Jobs, Week Of November 6
Q&A: CCP On Keeping EVE Online Fresh And Growing


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May 23, 2008

Saling The World: Wii Fit Sells Out in U.S.; Age of Conan Makes Strong PC Debut

Gamasutra's weekly column, "Saling The World", covers the top five sellers for every available platform in the United States, Japan, and Europe, providing an important update of sales patterns worldwide.

This week's charts, with data taken from May 22nd, 2008, see Wii Fit exhaust its initial shipment completely in its first week of release, while both the regular and limited editions of Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures place among this week's top PC sellers. Data for "Saling The World" comes courtesy of the public sales information on Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, and Amazon.co.jp, with sales split out for each platform and territory, and pre-orders disregarded.

This results in a true sense of what games are selling worldwide on the real-time updated service, as follows:

Nintendo Wii
North America: 1. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 3. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 4. Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party (Konami), 5. Wii Play (Nintendo).

Japan: 1. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 2. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 3. Link no Bowgun Training + Wii Zapper (Nintendo), 4. Totsugeki!! Famicom Wars VS (Nintendo), 5. Wii Sports (Nintendo).

UK: 1. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 2. Wii Play (Nintendo), 3. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 4. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega), 5. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami).

Nintendo's Wii Fit debuts in North America this week, placing third in overall weekly sales. Sales for the title would have likely been considerably stronger if greater initial supplies had been made available, but Amazon currently lists the title as being out of stock and only available for purchase from third-party sellers, many of whom demand aftermarket prices in excess of $150.

Wii Fit also struggles with supply issues in Europe, where aftermarket inflation and stock shortages continue to be a problem more than a month after the title's UK launch. Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party returns to the U.S. top five after a one-day promotional sale price at Amazon, meanwhile, as Mario Kart Wii once again tops overall sales in Japan.


Xbox 360
North America: 1. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 2. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 3. Rock Band Special Edition (EA Games), 4. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 5. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision).

Japan: 1. The Orange Box (EA Games), 2. BioShock (2K Games), 3. The Idolm@ster: Live for You! (Namco), 4. Strangehold (Success), 5. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision).

UK: 1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 2. Rock Band (EA Games), 3. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 4. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 5. The Orange Box (EA Games).

A day-long price drop at Amazon drives Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock past Grand Theft Auto IV as this week's best-selling Xbox 360 title in North America. GTAIV is expected to reclaim its place atop the chart next week, however, as demand for Guitar Hero III will likely slack as soon as it returns to full retail price. Elsewhere, Rock Band finds chart popularity following its recent release in Europe, while the Japanese version of The Orange Box tops regional sales soon after its debut.


PlayStation 3
North America: 1. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 2. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 3. SingStar Bundle (SCEA), 4. Haze (Ubisoft), 5. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (SCEA).

Japan: 1. Senjou no Valkyria (Sega), 2. Senjou no Valkyria -- Limited Box (Sega), 3. Haze (Spike), 4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 5. MotorStorm Complete (SCEI).

UK: 1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 2. Haze (Ubisoft), 3. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (SCEE), 4. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 5. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (SCEE).

Guitar Hero III also tops this week's PlayStation 3 software sales charts in North America, with Grand Theft Auto IV trailing close behind. Haze and SingStar make strong showings this week as well, with both titles breaking into the top five in their first week of release.

It remains to be seen whether either title has what it takes to compete with big weekly sellers like Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, however, and both titles could face fierce competition over the next month from both long-standing chart regulars and upcoming releases. In Japan, meanwhile, Haze finds a warm reception that results in a third-place finish in this week's sales results, while the region-exclusive MotorStorm Complete takes fifth in its debut week.


PlayStation 2
North America: 1. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 2. Rock Band Special Edition (EA Games), 3. Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection (Konami), 4. Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES (Atlus), 5. God of War II (SCEA).

Japan: 1. KimiKiss -- ebKore+ (Enterbrain), 2. Princess Nightmare (Karin Entertainment), 3. 12Riven: The Psi-Climinal of Integral -- Soundtrack Edition (CyberFront), 4. Suzumiya Haruhi no Tomadoi -- Limited Edition (Banpresto), 5. Musou Orochi: Maou Sairin (Koei).

UK: 1. SingStar Summer Party (SCEE), 2. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 3. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 4. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami), 5. Iron Man (Sega).

Amazon's recent day-long rhythm games sale impacts North America's PlayStation 2 charts the greatest, with Guitar Hero III and Rock Band finishing as this week's biggest software sellers on the platform. Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection also sees a jump in popularity this week, pushing up past Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES as this week's third-best selling PS2 title.

In Japan, meanwhile, last week's sales leader Aoishiro falls out of the top five in favor of discounted older releases like KimiKiss and 12Riven, while this week's release of Princess Nightmare makes its chart debut at second place.


PC
North America: 1. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (Eidos), 2. The Orange Box (EA Games), 3. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures -- Collector's Edition (Eidos), 4. Painkiller: Gold Edition (DreamCatcher), 5. BioShock (2K Games).

Japan: 1. Chaos;Head (Nitro Plus), 2. Clannad Full Voice (Key), 3. Final Fantasy XI: Vana'diel Collection (Square Enix), 4. Phantasy Star Universe: Illuminus no Yabou (Sega), 5. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision).

UK: 1. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (Eidos), 2. World of Warcraft (Blizzard), 3. Football Manager 2008 (Sega), 4. The Sims 2 (EA Games), 5. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (Blizzard).

Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures debuts strong in North America and Europe this week, capturing both regions' top PC sales spots after spending only a few days on store shelves. Amazon also reports big preorder numbers for Mass Effect over the past week, however. Both titles are expected to wage a close battle for chart dominance upon Mass Effect's release next week. In the meantime, The Orange Box manages an impressive finish in this week's U.S. results, while a rereleased and discounted Painkiller: Gold Edition makes a return to the PC charts after a long absence.


Nintendo DS
North America: 1. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo), 2. Mario Kart DS (Nintendo), 3. Brain Age 2 (Nintendo), 4. Brain Age (Nintendo), 5. My Word Coach (Ubisoft).

Japan: 1. Hercules no Eikou: Tamashii no Shoumei (Nintendo), 2. DS Bimoji Training (Nintendo), 3. Luminous Arc 2: Will (Marvelous), 4. Hiiro no Kakera DS -- Limited Edition (Idea Factory), 5. Hiiro no Kakera DS (Idea Factory).

UK: 1. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (Nintendo), 2. 42 All-Time Classics (Nintendo), 3. Mario Kart DS (Nintendo), 4. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo), 5. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega).

As Square Enix's The World Ends With You remains in short supply in North America, Nintendo's Mario and Brain Age franchises continue to rule over regional sales in its absence. My Word Coach drop to fifth place after seeing a sales surge last week, while Nintendo's Crosswords DS finishes just outside the top five at sixth place. Elsewhere, Hercules no Eikou: Tamashii no Shoumei takes top honors in its first week on Japanese retail shelves, while European DS sales continue to be headed by Nintendo's Bran Training series.


PlayStation Portable
North America: 1. God of War: Chains of Olympus (SCEA), 2. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (Square Enix), 3. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (Konami), 4. Iron Man (Sega), 5. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (Rockstar).

Japan: 1. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (Capcom), 2. Maplus Portable Navi 2 (Edia), 3. Nippon no Asoko de (SCEI), 4. Star Ocean: The Second Evolution (Square Enix), 5. Bleach: Heat the Soul 5 (SCEI).

UK: 1. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories -- Platinum (Rockstar), 2. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami), 3. God of War: Chains of Olympus (SCEA), 4. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 5. Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 (EA Games).

After spending more than a month at second place in weekly North American PSP sales, God of War: Chains of Olympus finally triumphs over Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII in sales this week to claim a first-place chart victory. Sega's Iron Man also makes an impression in this week's sales results, with the PSP edition of the title being the only version to place in the top five in North America's multiplatform charts.

POSTED: 10.58pm PST, 05/23/08 - Danny Cowan - LINK



[05.20.08]  [Next Column]  [View All...]  [View Other Saling The World Columns]


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