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Top Japanese Sellers of 2005
Gamasutra reports on a partial list of the top-sellers in the Japanese market for last year. From the article: "With the Nintendo DS dominating hardware sales during the year, it was no surprise to find Oide yo Doubutsu no Mori (aka Animal Crossing: Wild World) at number one with approximately 1.17 million copies sold. The second ranked title, and one of the few games to feature prominently in the top tens from all three countries, was Sony's Gran Turismo 4 for the PlayStation 2, with 1.07 million units sold."
It's not comparable, GT is a simulator where PGR is an arcade racer.
"I was under the impression that the Japanese market wasn't a kind place to racing games."
Actually, driving games tend to do better in Japan than the United States, where people are far more likely to go out and drive a real car.
Animal Crossing is probably the best-seller for the DS in the States, too. When I went to buy a copy my local EB said they were sold out for three weeks.
:)
Luckily, I can play Mario Kart online to heal my wounds
Why is it that when you believe something it's an opinion, but when I believe something it's a manifesto?
It's not about completing a goal. Sometimes I'm in the mood to play a video game but not in the mood for a challenge. When the mood strikes, I pick up Animal Crossing. The characters are entertaining and I find it satisfying to see what new characters wander through and what sorts of new items I can uncover.
Bottom line is that it allows you to explore and have fun without having the pressure of a challenge. It certainly isn't for everyone, but the freedom and low pressure make it great for escaping the stresses of the real world. Just like the character we create in the game who is running away from home, so does the player run away into the same fantasy world when everything else is just tiresome.
To make a long story short, it's just plain entertainment without the idea that you need to be skilled at anything. It's not really supposed to have a point, although there certainly are goals that can be achieved with patience.
Animal Crossing is one of a "new" type of game called sandbox games.
The definition, 'It's like playing in a sandbox. There's no goal, there's no pressure, you can pretty much do whatever you want.'
This type of game appeals to a very different mindset than the "standard" video game. Some people, enjoy it, some do not. Much like Nintendogs (which also has no real goal) and the Sims (again, no real goal) it appeals very strongly to female gamers and older gamers, a market Nintendo targets because they also have money to spend.
just some guy
I suspect you'll find it's not out in Japan til March and not out in the US til late this year.