PSP Not A Sellout Hit

MilenCent writes "We're starting to see our first mainstream media reports on the PSP's (lack of) sales performance, from the Seattle Times: "But while Sony is touting the rollout as a success -- and many retailers did sell their entire stock -- the event might not have been the complete blockbuster that was expected." In summary, the article says that more systems were sold than not, that dedicated gaming stores were more likely to sell out than department stores like Target, and that the biggest reason gamers didn't pick it up is likely its price -- which wasn't helped by some retailers' sale condition that customers also purchase games, which could raise the price to nearly $350. Will demand pick up once the unit is out there and seen by people, or will it take a price cut before the system sells satisfactorily?"

Comments

My Checklist Before I'll Buy It

[Anonymous Coward]

1. Max price of $150.
2. No more ninja star discs.
3. No more nubs falling off.
4. Square button no longer sticking.
5. Square button sensor under Square button and not to the right of the Square button. It's only one of the most used buttons.
6. No more dead pixels.
7. More games that I'd actually want. So far - none.

Think that about sums it up. If all those get cleared up, then I'll think about getting a PSP. Until then, I'll stick with my GBA SP, which already has games I enjoy for it.

(It's worth noting that I'm also not getting a DS, either.)

Yes, I wanted a PSP

[rocjoe71]

Sure I wanted a PSP, but there was so much hype about the waiting lists and how hard it was going to be to get one leading up to March 24th that I didn't bother looking because I figured I wasn't going to get one if I did.

On the bright side, lower than expected sales usually leads to price cuts so I'm glad the big hype machine failed.

Re:cost?

[mausmalone]

Actually... the PS2 is $100 cheaper than that.... and that's the new slim one even.

Even though I'm a 20 year Nintendo customer, even I can see that the PSP is not a commercial failure like people are saying now. It isn't the New Crack that most magazines and newspapers made it out to be, but it's no N-Gage either. I think this is yet another example of over-hype and too-high-expectations.

bad ideas for launch

[Tumbleweed]

In order of biggest problem to least, IMO:

1) LCD quality control & dead pixel policy. Horrid.

2) Only selling the 'value' pack. Worst. Idea. EVER. There is already a great selection of third-party add-ons which make the 'value' pack absurd.

3) High price of games. $40-50 per game. Ouch.

4) No demo units in stores. You want to sell a $250 machine? Have demo units.

5) Some stores selling only bundles. Out of the 5 stores I went to opening day, only 1 was doing that in the Seattle area (KB Toys).

6) High price of UMD movies (when they arrive). Silly; they shouldn't try selling UMD movies to the public; this should really be targeted at rental places, especially airport locations.

All these problems aside, most of this can get better, if not much better. Quality control will increase over time, and they're already addressing the dead pixel policy. Hopefully they'll come out with the base edition, sans 'value' soon. $50 in third-party add-ons goes a long way.

The biggest hope I have is that they'll either change their business model, or make a PSP-like PDA platform with a modular bay where the UMD drive is. I live in breathless anticipation.

Re:Not surprising...

[justforaday]

I was in my local Target last Friday afternoon and overheard two of the clerks talking. Out of the 100 they received, they had sold 3.

Re:Games

[tepp]

I'm a PS fan, but these are not the games I'd buy.

I'm a female gamer, and I prefer games with stories, games with plots and twists. I loath straight out racing games and "sports" games. I don't like fighter games either - too much boring button mashing. I like games that make me think, games that rely on figuring out solutions rather than memorizing "super combos" or memorizing a track.

Plus, the price of the system is a bit high for merely a portable system!

That being said, I would've bought it had it only had Katamari Damacy on it! The ability to roll stuff up while on the bus, or at work.... mmmm. Rolling.

Other PS games I would've paid for - and bought it for - any Final Fantasy game, including FF strategies and other older ones... any Silent Hill game... any Grand Theft Auto, or Prince of Persia (1 or 2).

the problem

[muel]

When the PSP first hit, I was inches away from buying one. The launch lineup was pretty damn nice, and I felt like this thing had some serious developer support. Then I looked at the list of upcoming releases and gasped - what a barren wasteland! I didn't see a single upcoming game with any buzz around it that didn't have the word "PORT" written all over its face. Grand Theft Auto and Gran Turismo are probably the only interesting titles, and they're basic ports, and they aren't coming out for monnnnnths. I see no reason to pay $350 for only two exciting games right now (WipeOut and Lumines). I figure, if I'm gonna pay that kind of cash for two games with no guarantee for future quality, I'll buy a fricking DDR setup for the house. For now, I'm waiting to see if other quality titles come out of the woodwork, and judging by sales, enough other hardcore gamers are in agreement.

Problem of perception

[igrp]

You raise some very interesting points.

3) High price of games. $40-50 per game. Ouch.
Personally, I think that is going to be Sony's biggest problem down the road.

If you think about, $40-50 isn't really that much money for a game you'll get countless hours of enjoyment out of. Well, at least if you're a working adult, it isn't. That's especially true if you compare it to a night out a the movies or a decent meal for two. Both of those will cost you around, or upwards of $50. That is not how it works in the real world though.

Few people think rationally about a product's price tag. And people perceive $50 to be a lot of money (and rightfully so). Dropping fifty bucks on an item you need is okay, wasting fifty bucks on an item you know you or somebody else will enjoy (say a Christmas present or - to stay on topic - even a video game that allows you and your buddies to kick back, watch a football game and play before and after) - sure. Selling the idea of spending $50 on an item you're only using to amuse yourself for a short period of time is a whole lot harder because it doesn't quite feel right.

If games were, say, $30 a piece, it would feel more like picking up a CD on your way home after work. Something most people wouldn't feel guilty about at all - after all, you're rewarding yourself and it's "just $15". And whilst $30 is certainly more than most people would pay for a CD, it doesn't feel wrong for a portable video game because most average middle-class Americans still perceive $30 is "inexpensive", whereas $50 is still an investment of sorts (think about it: don't think twice before you hand someone a $50 bill whereas handing someone a $10 just feels natural).

Add financial constraints to the mix ("gotta pay the bills"), and $50 just doesn't like your getting your money's worth. Sure, a lot of hardcore gamers won't mind plucking down $50 for a game. But that's not necessarily Sony's target audience -- if they want to be profitable, they need to target a broader demographic. And a $50 a pop, people will think twice about buying your product. These days, very few people make $50 impulse buy decisions...

Re:Problem of perception

[petsounds]

If you think about, $40-50 isn't really that much money for a game you'll get countless hours of enjoyment out of.

Well that's exactly where the problem lies. You see, in general the publishers and game studios aren't being *honest* with customers about the quality of their respective titles. If they were, there would be much more granularity in the pricing structure of games. But as it is, they market every game as if it's a AAA title (even though internally they know very well which ones suck and which are mediocre), and so they have a fixed price point for every game. This leads to a situation where consumers have to wade through endless amounts of marketing BS to find the truth about a game. If they were willing to sell a mediocre console game at $25, people would be much more willing to buy it. But they aren't willing to be honest. ESPN was honest with their sports games. And then EA bought them out to shut them up.

To speak more to your point though, I believe publishers vastly underestimate how complicated consumers are in their game purchase decisions. I think for a lot of us, the "worth" of a game is determined by a mix of longevity, fun factor, and style. If this is some action game that we can blow through in 8 hours, do not expect us to throw down $50 for it. I have to give Namco props here for releasing Katamari Damarcy for $20. I think this exactly proves my point. If you nail the price point correctly, people will buy it in droves, whereas it might otherwise languish on the shelves and in three years be talked about by game journalists as a cult classic that got overlooked.

I think in the end a flexible pricing structure would serve to benefit both the publishers and the consumers. Lying to your customer base by saying every game is amazing and worth $50 only serves to piss people off, and after so much marketing shrill (and don't think I'm not also pointing the finger at you for this, IGN et al), people start to just tune you out completely. I think that is exactly what is happening with the PSP. Sony got greedy and thought people would buy a portable system as if it was a third Playstation console. But Nintendo has already set a different price expectation for consumers, and that will be very difficult to overcome.

So to borrow a note from Jon Stewart: publishers, stop hurting the game industry. Just stop. We know that next-gen games cost more to produce, but charging more money isn't necessarily the answer.

PSP Figures from Best Buy in NJ?

[pnice]

Someone posted on the PSP gamefaqs.com message board what seem to be legit sales information from the Best Buy stores in his area (NJ)

Here is the link: http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?bo ard=918340&topic=20123040

..and here is just the store name and the number of units they had in stock at these particular stores (as of 3/30/2005 10:19:01 AM)

400 - HOLMDEL NJ 8
344 - PARAMUS NJ 8
388 - MANALAPAN NJ 6
456 - WOODBRIDGE NJ 2
457 - ROCKAWAY NJ 37
468 - W PATERSON NJ 9
472 - UNION NJ 2
473 - E HANOVER NJ 10
475 - BRICK NJ 31 31
544 - BRIDGEWATER NJ 13
578 - PRINCETON NJ 11
598 - EAST BRUNSWICK NJ 4
887 - PARAMUS NJ 3

So not one of those stores sold out according to this guy. More detailed information can be found at the link above (although he didn't format it worth a damn)

Re:-sigh- the psp crusade.

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm pretty sure the DS sold out in a lot of stores in japan. There were tons of pre-orders so nobody was in a hurry to wait in line to grab one when they didn't have too..

On the other hand PSP had very few units to sell and NO PRE ORDERS so the ONLY way to get one was to wait in line in the freezing cold.. FUCKING DUH?!?!

The DS sold out ALL of its units when it hit the shelves in the US.

Show me the numbers where the PSP is selling more than the DS? The DS will have sold over 6 million by the end of this month. How many has the PSP sold?

$99 The sweet spot for ANY videogame console

[Metroid72]

After > 20 years in gaming, I've learned a few lessons:
a) Early adoption is just a hip factor. Other than being first and hip the oportunity cost is negative. As you grow older it's easier to have a console accumulating dust. I'd rather have a $99 idle console than a $399 one.
b) Optical media based-consoles actually improve in quality as iterations of the hardware are released.
c) Maturity of the Software Lineup. Why? Well.. when a console reaches $99 it's probably in the last year of its lifetime and all the greatest hits are out around $20. Not only that, there's no complains about weak 1st gen lineup or lack of knowledge from the developers (ahem.. PS2, GC, DS...)

I'm actually waiting for the PS2 and Xbox to hit $99. On each instance I'll go with $300 and pick up the 10 best games of each console (good games are timeless). I might actually save some money with the XBox (other than Halo/Halo2 they might not reach 10 must have timeless titles).

Re:Sell Out

[badasscat]

I find it funny that there are complaints about supply when they sell out and worries about systems failing when they don't sell out. How does a gaming system manufacturer win?

Probably by neither over-promising nor under-delivering. It's really not all that difficult.

Sony apparently assumed from their experience with the PS2 that they wouldn't even be able to produce enough units for the demand no matter how many they made; that there was simply an insatiable demand for the PSP. Obviously, they're learning that that's not the case. Hopefully, this will be good for gamers in that:

a) they will tighten their QC (no doubt some people, like myself, are staying away partly due to the screen issues)
b) a non-value pack will be released at a lower price... $150 is the maximum I would ever pay for a handheld and if Sony wants to keep the value pack on the market they're gonna need to cut it by $50 too, IMO

I'm interested in the PSP but not for $250 and not with this obvious dead pixel problem. Sony just completely over-estimated the handheld market, IMO - it is not the same as the home console market in terms of what people are willing to pay, the build quality people are willing to accept, and the types of things people want to do with a portable game machine.

(Oh, and Sony also needs to admit that it is a portable game machine, not a half-baked multimedia "swiss army knife" that does nothing particularly well.)

btw, I will take back some of my comments if Sony's rumored UMD burner in the PS3 turns out to be fact.

Re:Not surprising...

[devnull17]

There's a reason for that, BTW. From what I understand, distributors were forcing retailers to buy 5 PS2 games with every PSP they ordered. (I've heard that similar things happen with each console's launch.) It's a slimy way of offloading stale inventory at inflated prices, and the cost gets passed directly on to us.