The NPD Group released April 2008 sales figures today, and Sony had another solid month of system sales across all three platforms. The PSP was the biggest seller from Sony, selling almost 193,000 hardware units. The PSP was buoyed by the sales of God of War: Chains of Olympus and Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, which were the top selling software titles on the handheld.While the PSP outsold the Xbox 360, the PS3 did almost as well, moving just over 187,000 units. The larger story, however, was the software sold for the system, with more than one million copies of Grand Theft Auto sold for the PS3 and 224,000 Blu-ray copies of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue sold. There was also a large number of DualShock 3 controllers sold as well, accounting for more than $10.9 million in April. Rounding out the setup was the PS2, which moved a little more than 124,000 units.Jack Tretton, President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America, had the following statement about the company's April sales, "Clearly, the tremendous legacy of Grand Theft Auto on PlayStation, combined with the blockbuster launch of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue packed a one-two punch with consumers at retail this month. The proof is in the numbers and, in April, PlayStation 3 hardware sales experienced a 127% increase over April of last year. PS3 momentum is fueled by enthusiasm for Blu-ray as the definitive high def standard and the growing number of consumers gearing up for some of the most anticipated titles of the year, exclusively for PS3, including the June release of Metal Gear Solid 4, and other great exclusives in the second half on the year, such as Resistance 2, SOCOM: Confrontation and LittleBigPlanet to name a few. With exciting PlayStation Network innovations and our strongest console-driving titles of the year still on the horizon, PS3 remains on pace for a breakthrough year."
الجمعة، 16 مايو 2008
الأربعاء، 14 مايو 2008
Kojima hinting at MGS5?
Oh Mr. Kojima, why do you do this to us? At Tuesday's Metal Gear Solid 4 press event in Tokyo's Roppongi Hills, the Kojima Productions team left those attending the event with a small audio clip that has spread like wildfire across the interenet about a possible sequel already in the works for the Metal Gear Solid franchise.
The audio clip featured a conversation between Revolver Ocelot and an unknown character, with only Ocelot's side of the conversation presented in the clip (with subtitles shown on the screen). Mark MacDonald, from 1UP.com, provided the translation of the subtitles to English: [Ocelot's voice] Yes. We just finished the press conference. Yes. Everything went according to plan. Yes. We're entering into the last phase of the mission. Do you want to execute the launch day surprise? Yes, that's right. Akihabara, New York, L.A.... Live, simultaneously throughout the world... Yes, it's under control. The VIP's are happy to participate. Yeah, that's right. That person. Yes sir, understood. So on June 12th... By the way, what should we do about "The Project?" Yes, that's correct. That man has fallen. It's about the sequel. Yes, indeed. Yes. Yes. Yeah. I see. Yes, sir. Mr. CEO.This can be taken a whole bunch of ways but the first thought to mind (as the conversation clearly states) is that of a sequel to MGS4. Although there is no telling just yet, its likely that the conversation partly refers to the planned launch events and creator Hideo Kojima's world tour, both of which were discussed at the event. I guess we are all left wondering until June 12.
Sony sells 9.24 million PS3s in 2007; reveals forecast for '08
Sony Corporation has announced that it sold approximately 9.24 million PlayStation 3 consoles in the financial year ended March 31, further adding that it plans to sell 10 million during the upcoming 2008 business year.This brings the total number of PS3s sold globally since launch to 12.85 million, with the Xbox 360 currently at 19 million and the Wii at 24.45 million.
The company also revealed that it sold a total of 15 million PlayStation Portable units, although it neglected to reveal its current sales forecast for the handheld device. Elsewhere, the platform holder is also expected to sell 17 million liquid crystal TVs for the fiscal year ending March 2009, up from the previous year ended March 31 2008, where the firm sold 10.6 million.Mizuho Securities analyst, Koichi Hariya, commented: “The forecast for 450 billion yen in operating profit this financial year looks solid, given that there’s been speculation the yen’s rise and slower U.S. growth could have a negative impact.”“The results could lead to bullish sentiment on Sony shares."
The company also revealed that it sold a total of 15 million PlayStation Portable units, although it neglected to reveal its current sales forecast for the handheld device. Elsewhere, the platform holder is also expected to sell 17 million liquid crystal TVs for the fiscal year ending March 2009, up from the previous year ended March 31 2008, where the firm sold 10.6 million.Mizuho Securities analyst, Koichi Hariya, commented: “The forecast for 450 billion yen in operating profit this financial year looks solid, given that there’s been speculation the yen’s rise and slower U.S. growth could have a negative impact.”“The results could lead to bullish sentiment on Sony shares."
Evolution only "scratched surface" of PS3
Evolution Studios has said that it has only managed to scratch the surface of what it is capable of achieving on the PlayStation 3 following its work on the original MotorStorm title.Speaking during an interview with Videogamer.com, Nigel Kershaw, director of the upcoming sequel MotorStorm Pacific Rift, stated, "We've realised we've just scratched the surface of what we could actually do with the machine. And I'm sure next time around we'll learn a lot more from MotorStorm Pacific Rift.""The first game pushed the PS3, this is pushing the PS3, our next game is going to push the PS3. It's not so much about pushing the hardware, it's about learning how to use the hardware in the best possible fashion.""Now we've spent a lot of time with it we're starting to make it sing under the hood," he said, referring to the advantages of having already released a game for the Sony platform.Kershaw added that developers are slowly starting to unlock the power of the machine as companies begin work on their second or third title for the PS3, commenting:"Actually the first and second generation of games that we've seen on the PS3 are just people starting to learn how to make great games for it. It's a long race. Now that developers are starting to write their second or third game, they're starting to untap the power that's within there."MotorStorm Pacific Rift is due out later this year
Sega Sammy posts half-billion-dollar loss
Back in October, it was becoming clear that all was not entirely well within the franchise of Sega Sammy. The company, which makes the majority of its money from pachinko machines, downsized its profit and net sales forecasts for the financial year.
Although the official figures, released today, aren't quite as low as forecast, they're not far off. For Sega Sammy's financial year from April 1, 2007, through to March 31, 2008, net sales were down 13 percent over the previous year to ¥458.9 billion ($4.4 billion). Both operating and net income were in the red, with the company's operating loss hitting ¥5.8 billion ($55 million) and net loss at ¥52.5 billion ($500 million).
Sega Sammy pointed out a number of reasons behind the numbers. Its pachinko business in Japan continued to decline, with machine sales falling by 24,000 units to 108,000 units, and it had postponed a number of major pachinko machine titles until fiscal 2008.
The minus figures also included impairment losses for Chinese businesses, and a cancellation fee for ceasing development of an entertainment complex in Minato-ku. The company also dissolved Sega Amusements Singapore along with Sega Korea, in order to "increase operating efficiency in the amusement machine sales business."
Game sales were up overseas, but down in Japan--2007 saw the release of Sega titles including Condemned 2: Bloodshot, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, and Viking: Battle for Asgard. The company sold just under 27 million games in total during fiscal 2007, an increase of 5.7 million over the previous fiscal year. Nonetheless, only a small amount of these sales came from its home nation. In Japan, 2.6 million games were offloaded onto the public, compared with 12 million in the US, 12.3 million in Europe, and 70,000 in other regions.
Sega stated that Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games was a best-seller overseas, whereas the third part in the Yakuza action adventure series, Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan, fared well in Japan.
Despite the year's losses, the company remained upbeat about the outlook for fiscal 2008. It believes that the group will return to profitability, forecasting consolidated net sales of ¥470 billion ($4.5 billion), consolidated operating income of ¥15 billion ($143 million), and net income of ¥5 billion ($48 million). Sega Sammy concluded that it expected its game sales to once again "show healthy growth" overseas, although it made no new announcements regarding upcoming games.
Although the official figures, released today, aren't quite as low as forecast, they're not far off. For Sega Sammy's financial year from April 1, 2007, through to March 31, 2008, net sales were down 13 percent over the previous year to ¥458.9 billion ($4.4 billion). Both operating and net income were in the red, with the company's operating loss hitting ¥5.8 billion ($55 million) and net loss at ¥52.5 billion ($500 million).
Sega Sammy pointed out a number of reasons behind the numbers. Its pachinko business in Japan continued to decline, with machine sales falling by 24,000 units to 108,000 units, and it had postponed a number of major pachinko machine titles until fiscal 2008.
The minus figures also included impairment losses for Chinese businesses, and a cancellation fee for ceasing development of an entertainment complex in Minato-ku. The company also dissolved Sega Amusements Singapore along with Sega Korea, in order to "increase operating efficiency in the amusement machine sales business."
Game sales were up overseas, but down in Japan--2007 saw the release of Sega titles including Condemned 2: Bloodshot, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, and Viking: Battle for Asgard. The company sold just under 27 million games in total during fiscal 2007, an increase of 5.7 million over the previous fiscal year. Nonetheless, only a small amount of these sales came from its home nation. In Japan, 2.6 million games were offloaded onto the public, compared with 12 million in the US, 12.3 million in Europe, and 70,000 in other regions.
Sega stated that Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games was a best-seller overseas, whereas the third part in the Yakuza action adventure series, Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan, fared well in Japan.
Despite the year's losses, the company remained upbeat about the outlook for fiscal 2008. It believes that the group will return to profitability, forecasting consolidated net sales of ¥470 billion ($4.5 billion), consolidated operating income of ¥15 billion ($143 million), and net income of ¥5 billion ($48 million). Sega Sammy concluded that it expected its game sales to once again "show healthy growth" overseas, although it made no new announcements regarding upcoming games.
MS: 360 first to reach 10 million in US
Microsoft has apparently attached a special significance to the number 10 million. Five months before the Xbox 360 launched in November 2005, the company's head of the gaming business Peter Moore publicly stated that the console would sell 10 million units before the end of 2006. Just days into 2007, Microsoft used its CES keynote to announce that it had met that goal. Before and since, the company has publicly announced passing such milestones as 10 million Xbox Live members reached and 10 million pieces of content downloaded from the system's Marketplace storefront.
Today Microsoft added another public proclamation to the stack, saying that the Xbox 360's US installed user base has reached beyond the 10 million mark. The company added that the 360 is the first current-generation console to do so, and stressed the importance of that.
"History has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle," said Don Mattrick, the current head of Microsoft's gaming business, in a statement. "We are uniquely positioned to set a new benchmark for the industry."
Worldwide, Microsoft said that the Xbox 360 is up to 19 million systems sold, which it initially claimed was "more than any other current-generation console." After being directed to Nintendo's latest financial results, in which the hardware maker revealed that it had sold more than 24 million Wiis to date, a Microsoft representative recanted the initial statement.
"We apologize for any confusion. Xbox 360 has the largest global install base of any current-generation high definition [emphasis added] gaming console," the representative said.
Microsoft also updated the size of its online user base. Xbox Live now claims 12 million members according to the company, up from 6 million a little over a year ago. Representatives from Sony and Nintendo did not return requests for the latest figures on the US installed user bases of the PlayStation 3 and Wii.
Today Microsoft added another public proclamation to the stack, saying that the Xbox 360's US installed user base has reached beyond the 10 million mark. The company added that the 360 is the first current-generation console to do so, and stressed the importance of that.
"History has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle," said Don Mattrick, the current head of Microsoft's gaming business, in a statement. "We are uniquely positioned to set a new benchmark for the industry."
Worldwide, Microsoft said that the Xbox 360 is up to 19 million systems sold, which it initially claimed was "more than any other current-generation console." After being directed to Nintendo's latest financial results, in which the hardware maker revealed that it had sold more than 24 million Wiis to date, a Microsoft representative recanted the initial statement.
"We apologize for any confusion. Xbox 360 has the largest global install base of any current-generation high definition [emphasis added] gaming console," the representative said.
Microsoft also updated the size of its online user base. Xbox Live now claims 12 million members according to the company, up from 6 million a little over a year ago. Representatives from Sony and Nintendo did not return requests for the latest figures on the US installed user bases of the PlayStation 3 and Wii.
Sony revenues hit $78.5 billion
Sony has today announced that consolidated sales and net income for its financial 2007 (April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2008) broke company records. Consolidated operating income was more than five times higher than the year before, and the second highest in the company's history. Sales of Bravia LCD televisions, VAIO PCs, and Cyber-shot digital cameras are the products that are selling best for Sony overall, while mobile phones and CRT televisions have seen a fall in sales.
Overall, sales and operating revenue was up 6.9 percent to ¥8.871 trillion ($78.5 billion), and operating income was up 422 percent to ¥374.5 billion ($3.3 billion). Income before taxes was up 357 percent to ¥466.3 billion ($3.9 billion), while net income for the whole of Sony was up 192.4 percent to ¥369.4 billion ($3.3 billion).
In the games division, sales increased by 26.3 percent over last year to ¥1.284 trillion ($11 billion). According to Sony, the PlayStation 3 saw a "significant increase" in sales, as did the PlayStation Portable, which Sony pointed out probably had to do with the release of a shiny new slim version.
Operating loss for the games division was almost halved from last year to ¥124.5 billion ($1.1 billion), an improvement of some ¥107.8 billion ($954 million) over the previous year.
Sony sold 9.24 million PS3s in fiscal 2007, bringing the total to just under 13 million worldwide. In comparison, Nintendo recently revealed that it has sold 24.5 million Wiis to date, with Microsoft selling 19 million Xbox 360s since the console's 2005 launch, according the company's latest figures.
PSP sales increased by 4.36 million year on year, bringing the total for fiscal 2007 to 13.89 million--last week, the company said it sold 34 million PSPs as of end of the 2007 calendar year. Sales of the PlayStation 2 were down by just under a million units with 13.73 million sold worldwide.
As for software, PS2 game sales slowed dramatically, down 39.5 million to 154 million, although Sony still sold more games on the PS2 than on the PS3 and PSP combined. PS3 game sales saw an annual increase of 44.6 million units to 57.9 million sold worldwide, and 55.5 million PSP titles left store shelves, an increase of 800,000.
Sony forecast that the games division would be back in the black in the next financial year due to hardware cost reductions and "an enhanced lineup of software titles in the PS3 business," despite falling PS2 sales.
Sony believes it will sell a further 9 million PS2s, 15 million PSPs, and 10 million PS3s during its 2008 fiscal year, which began April 1. For games, it wouldn't be drawn on its platform-specific projections, but said it believes it will sell 250 million units across the PS2, PS3, and PSP.
Overall, sales and operating revenue was up 6.9 percent to ¥8.871 trillion ($78.5 billion), and operating income was up 422 percent to ¥374.5 billion ($3.3 billion). Income before taxes was up 357 percent to ¥466.3 billion ($3.9 billion), while net income for the whole of Sony was up 192.4 percent to ¥369.4 billion ($3.3 billion).
In the games division, sales increased by 26.3 percent over last year to ¥1.284 trillion ($11 billion). According to Sony, the PlayStation 3 saw a "significant increase" in sales, as did the PlayStation Portable, which Sony pointed out probably had to do with the release of a shiny new slim version.
Operating loss for the games division was almost halved from last year to ¥124.5 billion ($1.1 billion), an improvement of some ¥107.8 billion ($954 million) over the previous year.
Sony sold 9.24 million PS3s in fiscal 2007, bringing the total to just under 13 million worldwide. In comparison, Nintendo recently revealed that it has sold 24.5 million Wiis to date, with Microsoft selling 19 million Xbox 360s since the console's 2005 launch, according the company's latest figures.
PSP sales increased by 4.36 million year on year, bringing the total for fiscal 2007 to 13.89 million--last week, the company said it sold 34 million PSPs as of end of the 2007 calendar year. Sales of the PlayStation 2 were down by just under a million units with 13.73 million sold worldwide.
As for software, PS2 game sales slowed dramatically, down 39.5 million to 154 million, although Sony still sold more games on the PS2 than on the PS3 and PSP combined. PS3 game sales saw an annual increase of 44.6 million units to 57.9 million sold worldwide, and 55.5 million PSP titles left store shelves, an increase of 800,000.
Sony forecast that the games division would be back in the black in the next financial year due to hardware cost reductions and "an enhanced lineup of software titles in the PS3 business," despite falling PS2 sales.
Sony believes it will sell a further 9 million PS2s, 15 million PSPs, and 10 million PS3s during its 2008 fiscal year, which began April 1. For games, it wouldn't be drawn on its platform-specific projections, but said it believes it will sell 250 million units across the PS2, PS3, and PSP.
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