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Spider-Man Becomes Greatest Hit, Drops Price

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the superhero-popularity dept.

I noticed a blurb up at GamerFeed that Spider-Man has been inducted into not one, not two, but three different "greatest hits" programs. It's the first game to become a hit on all three of the major consoles, which is a nice feather in the cap of Activision, to be sure. There's also some good comparison of the different hits programs for each platform and what it takes to be eligible for each.

29 comments

  1. Too bad I already own it. by fishybell · · Score: 1

    So let me get this straight...Once enough people (read everyone who wants the game) buys it, they drop the price. Oh well...guess I have to buy for the Gamecube now as well.

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    1. Re:Too bad I already own it. by GigsVT · · Score: 3, Informative

      It makes sense doesn't it?

      A game is mostly fixed costs, once those are paid off, you can lower the price and still make the same amount of money.

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    2. Re:Too bad I already own it. by FrEaK7782 · · Score: 1

      They drop the price to lure folks like me to purchase it. No matter how cool a game looks, I can't afford to shell out $50+ for a game. Once it drops to $20, I re-evaluate it's worth and am much more likely to purchase it.

      Spider-man is a great example. I saw someone play this two years ago and it looked awesome. Now that the price has dropped, I might go buy it.

    3. Re:Too bad I already own it. by alcharn · · Score: 1

      I believe it! And if the prices drop, I am sure people are going to want to purchase it even more.

  2. Obligitory... by sporty · · Score: 2, Funny
    which is a nice feather in the cap of Activision.


    Pimpin'! I meant that in the good way. I'm not calling AV a pimp. Though.. you never know.
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  3. Its all about Name Recognition by Grand · · Score: 2, Insightful

    From what I remember, the game received average reviews. Wonder how many of the millions sold were bought by 13 and under and played for 2 nights.

  4. Greatest hits??? by Unleashd · · Score: 2, Funny

    Spider who?!?!?!

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    1. Re:Greatest hits??? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Holy shit! That's fuckin' funny!!!!!!!!!1

  5. Spider-Man Games by Acidic_Diarrhea · · Score: 1, Interesting
    The Spider-Man game that this article is referencing was a fun time and, for the most part, the physics and feel of flying through the air was decent. But here is what I've been thinking about for the sequel, and I think I read somewhere that these lines were being considered but I'm not sure it was going to be taken to this length.

    Spider-Man meets GTA. Now this seems like a good possibility since GTA was such a huge seller and thus, a game company would like to pump out a clone. But anyway, I'd like an open ended Spidey game where you travel the city, stopping muggers, etc. And Spidey could carry a communication device, supplied by Reed Richards, that would scan the police band. Then, in the game, you could decide whether to check out the situation or let the cops handle it on their own. Here's another interesting twist: you could choose to use your powers for evil. The Daily Bugle would have photographers other than Peter on the case and if too many of your crimes are caught, then cops will start shooting you on sight. On the other hand, do enough good work and the public will love you!

    Done right, this game could be GREAT.

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    1. Re:Spider-Man Games by rgonsalves · · Score: 1

      That is a good idea for the non-linear segment of the game. The only thing it lacks is that there has to be a storyline that keeps the action moving. But definantly in between events it would be cool to just help random people and have a ranging reputation system. -RPG

    2. Re:Spider-Man Games by KirkH · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Sounds like a very good idea, but I'll go ahead and predict that you'll never be able to make Spidey be "bad". I'm sure Marvel has some sort of veto clause they can use to prevent content that they deem inappropriate for the character, and I'm sure that having Spider-man commit crimes, harm innocents and police offiers, etc would be deemed inappropriate.

    3. Re:Spider-Man Games by aztektum · · Score: 1

      There's a sort of preview with the guys making the game in this months Game Informer where they say they're working on having something like 4x2 kilometers of Manhattan for you to swing around, save people, and follow the main story which will be based on the next movie most likely.

      There's some really cool talk about how the webshooting will work, webbing will have a physics system all to its own and you actually have to shoot at a solid object (building, flag pole) to swing around, no hangin' from the Stairway to Heaven any more.

      Basically it sounds like they're lookin' to make a more open ended game somewhat like GTA, but w/o the "Rated T for Teen" stuff.

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    4. Re:Spider-Man Games by Vann_v2 · · Score: 1

      Maybe not since, after all, with great power comes great responsibility.

    5. Re:Spider-Man Games by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Have you looked at the MMORPG called City of Heroes?

  6. This is not a "greatest hits" system... by JackAsh · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It's more of a bargain bin program. How exactly this is a "feather in Activision's cap" or whatever is beyond me. All this means is the game is now available for under $20, and hence maybe some more people will pick it up. It was probably already deeply discounted at your local Electronics Boutique anyway.

    Let me put it this way: Halo, Grant Theft Auto III/VC, Zelda or Mario Sunshine are NOT on the "greatest platinum hits" for any of the systems, and I really don't know of any titles that would deserve that name more... That's because they still sell just fine at $50/copy.

    Being put into the bargain bin really says "look at me, no one is buying me anymore". But it's great news for low budget gamers in search for a pretty decent game...

    -Jack Ash

    1. Re:This is not a "greatest hits" system... by analog_line · · Score: 1

      In order to get "bargain bin" status as you call it, you've got to sell hundreds of thousands of copies. According to the article, Activision needed to sell in excess of a million copies of Spiderman across the various consoles (850,000 between Sony and Nintendo, plus likely at least 200,000 copies to get the Xbox "platinum hits" nod).

      For a movie video game, that's insanely stellar. I'm sure sales have dropped off, and this is certainly a ploy to get more, but I don't think Activision is losing any money on the deal here. Any more coming in is a bonus, as far as they're concerned, and I wouldn't be surprised if Sony/Nintendo/Xbox reduces their licensing cut for titles within their greatest hits ranges. IE, a greater percentage in the bank for Activision.

    2. Re:This is not a "greatest hits" system... by andrew · · Score: 1
      It's more of a bargain bin program.

      Well, yes and no. Looking at Nintendo's current Top Ten List, we see that 3 of the current (monthly? ) top ten are Player's Choice games: Super Smash Bros Melee, Luigi's Mansion, and Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. Considering that these are all games that came out in late 2001 or early 2002, Mario Sunshine and Zelda probably haven't been out long enough to sell that many titles.

      Of course, the games that have been out the longest are the ones likely to have the lowest demand.

    3. Re:This is not a "greatest hits" system... by Drathos · · Score: 1

      as far as gta:vc, zelda, and mario are concerned, they're a bit too new. iirc, gta3 was supposed to be one, but because of the controversy it got pulled.

      halo will never be because it's the game that's making money for xbox.. why make less on it? (ok.. it'll prolly be added when halo 2 comes out)

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    4. Re:This is not a "greatest hits" system... by paradesign · · Score: 1
      so wheres zelda? didnt it sell hundreds of thousands in the first week? wasnt it the fastest selling game of all time?

      theres also something more than copies sold numbers that figures into this, like time since release? or maybe slowed sales?

      i think that the xbx method is most accurate, its not when it passes a set milestone, its when it passes a set mile stone AND they just feel like it. plus, ive heard the game sucks, like most 'movie games'. brings that famous atari cart to mind, you know 'E.T.' if you dont know... look it up.

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    5. Re:This is not a "greatest hits" system... by analog_line · · Score: 1

      Well, you hear doesn't mean diddly...

      I've heard a lot of things but until I actually try stuff out I'm just excercising my jaw muscles at best if I try voice anything resembling an opinion on it. Try playing the game before you say it sucks. If you're just not interested in it, that's fine, but saying it's stupid before you've ever seen it is stupid itself.

    6. Re:This is not a "greatest hits" system... by Drathos · · Score: 1

      hate to reply to myself, but i just read over at ign that gta3 was just added to the greatest hits list today.

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  7. which one? by nidx · · Score: 1

    there was the neversoft version - cheaper looking graphics but really fun game and then the movie version - really nice looking graphics but not as good a game which one is the "greatest"?

  8. funny the differences between the hits categories by MORTAR_COMBAT! · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Certain things must be achieved to be inducted into the "hits" programs for each company. Sony games must sell at least 400,00 copies to get into the "Greatest Hits" program. Xbox games simply need to be proven favorites and have sold well to be part of Microsoft's "Platinum Hits". Nintendo games must sell at least 450,000 units of a particular game before they are graced with Nintendo's "Player's Choice" tag.


    So the summary is:

    Sony: 400,000 units
    Nintendo: 450,000 units
    X-Box: need to be proven favorites and have sold well

    So basically, the X-Box "Platinum Hits" award is a fancy way of saying "they paid us to put this sticker here". Maybe that's because nobody is buying X-Box titles other than Halo?
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  9. Three-console Greatest Hits by fennecfox · · Score: 2, Informative
    It's the first game to become a hit on all three of the major consoles
    James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire also managed it.
  10. Link corrected by andrew · · Score: 1
    Sigh.

    Nintendo's list of Player's Choice games: http://www.nintendo.com/games/players_choice.jsp

  11. Where's Zelda? by andrew · · Score: 3, Funny
    According to this article from GameMarketWatch, Nintendo presold over 500k Zelda GCN titles. So, it should show up in that list any day now.

    Yep, any day.

    Yep.

    Sigh.

    1. Re:Where's Zelda? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Has to be over 450,000 sold AND 10 months from sale date...

  12. Re:funny the differences between the hits categori by Drathos · · Score: 1

    on the ps2, it must also be at least 9 months old. don't know if there's a similar rule for nintendo.

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  13. Good point by N10sb2002 · · Score: 1

    Things like this always sell great. Look at Enter The Matrix right now. So far, it has sold over 1 million copies! There was also Dragon Ball Z: Budokai a few months ago. It was in the top 3 best-selling games according to Electronic Gaming Monthly. Yet Metroid Prime was more like in the top 15. The bottom line is that if you make a game based on some movie or TV show or cartoon or comic or book or whatever then it will sell a lot of copies (although that is pretty obvious).

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