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Holiday Game Sales Not Looking Optimum?

Posted by simoniker on from the lump-of-coal-in-stocking dept.

Thanks to Yahoo/Reuters for their report suggesting that videogame sales aren't quite as spectacular as hoped, so far this holiday season. Analyst reports cite retailer concerns over: "soft sales", apparently due to "few 'hot' new titles, slow hardware sales, high software price points, and increased competition for consumers' home entertainment dollars as newer technologies become more affordable." Nonetheless, industry observers are expecting "12.5 percent year-over-year software sales growth for November", but this still will "fall well short of original analyst, publisher, and retailer estimates." Finally, although the article cites "broad agreement that there is no blockbuster title this holiday like last year's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City", the "top title at retail" in analyst estimates was EA's Need for Speed Underground, and other top-sellers include True Crime, Tony Hawk's Underground, and GTA Double Pack.

3 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. Few Hot Titles by illuminata · · Score: 3, Interesting

    It seems as if nobody's wanting to make anything different. Publishers are only wanting to go with the safe bets that are likely to make some money, but not much. They'll copy another company's game and add a few extra features, then claim that their title is better.

    My guess is that if publishers started to fund original ideas and took a few risks, that sales would boom for them. Since consumers are starved for something different, there's a good chance that those ideas would do well.

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    Until Slashdot fixes the funny modifier, use insightful or interesting. The poster knows your intentions.
    1. Re:Few Hot Titles by nkodengar · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The major games expected this Christmas were Half-Life 2 and DooM 3, but they are both a.w.o.l., so it's hardly suprising that the lineup this year isn't exactly amazing... Thogh it must be said -- the new Prince of Persia game looks pretty hot, the orignal 2 games were fantastic, even if they were borderline impossible towards the end... And the three examples I have just given are all sequels... I think you are right :/

    2. Re:Few Hot Titles by PainKilleR-CE · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Not to mention games that came out a few weeks ago, such as
      Crimson Skies (though a bit older)
      Final Fantasy X-2
      Fire Emblem (again a bit older)
      Mario Kart:DD
      Super Mario Bros. 3
      Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

      but yes, a lot of the new games came out almost a bit early for the XMas rush, and many games were delayed until January at the earliest (FF:CC, Doom 3, HL2), and probably later (in the cases of the latter 2).

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      -PainKilleR-[CE]