MadWorld sells 66K in March, Sega oddly pleased

[Shrygue]

via Joystiq (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/04/17/madworld-sells-66k-in-march-sega-oddly-pleased/)


Call us crazy, but we always thought that the idea behind making games was to sell tons of copies. Not so for Sega, as it seems weirdly satisfied with MadWorld's lackluster sales, based on comments to Gamasutra. Debuting early in March, Platinum Games' over-the-top brawler managed to move 66,000 copies, despite generally positive reviews.

Sega's other M-rated title on Wii, House of the Dead: Overkill, also managed to have a sub-par debut, selling 45,000 copies during February. What does this say for The Conduit, the third of Sega's big games for Wii? Could Sega's gamble on the mature audience of Wii gamers been a poor move? All signs are pointing to "yes" right about now ... but Sega seems to disagree!

[XXXW0]

no everyone and their uncle are pirating thats why! I'm the only person i know who has bought madworld in my group of friends. DAMN PIRATES!!!!

[Nocuddle]

no everyone and their uncle are pirating thats why! I'm the only person i know who has bought madworld in my group of friends. DAMN PIRATES!!!!

hey hey dont look at me. :rofl:

[goshogun1]

Yeah, it could be pirates. But, it also might be the fact that its one of the most messed up games ever made. I mean, they pushed the envelope so much I wouldn't be surprised that not everyone would even be able to buy it. Personally, I find some of the game to be really offensive (like the commentators), and I usually have pretty high tolerance for this kind of stuff.

[kevenz]

The game is quite good but I hate the fact that it freeze sometimes.

[Devil-Itachi]

I think this means Sega had realistic expectations. Probably setting the bar around Clover's efforts of God Hand and Okami which sold less.

[Hevyduty]

This is just the latest Joystiq stupidity. It reminds me of this classic bit of idiocy.

http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/16/boom-blox-a-bust-at-retail-sells-only-60k-units/

Yep, Boom Blox failed all right. Since then, it's sold nearly a million copies worldwide without steep discounts (it still retails for $40). And it spawned an upcoming sequel.

For some reason, the major game sites have yet to figure out that Wii games aren't nearly as front-loaded as 360 and PS3 games. That is, they don't sell the majority of their copies in the first few weeks. They hang around on the charts and sell lots of copies over time.

I'm not saying Madworld is going to sell a million copies. But it'll likely sell as well as No More Heroes (500,000 copies ww). I'm sure Sega wisely made the game's break even point in the 200,000 to 300,000 range, so while the game won't be a worldbeater, it'll certainly earn a solid profit.

As for HOTD: Overkill, it's much on the same path. Sales stand at 230,000 ww, which means it's likely already in break even territory. Once the game hits 300,000 in sales, I think Sega will discount the game to $40 or $30, which should propel sales forward as the game earns additional profits.

This is why Sega's happy with the performance of both games. They're both easily on their way to making good profits. Why wouldn't they be happy?

[mr_nick666]

This is just the latest Joystiq stupidity. It reminds me of this classic bit of idiocy.

http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/16/boom-blox-a-bust-at-retail-sells-only-60k-units/

Yep, Boom Blox failed all right. Since then, it's sold nearly a million copies worldwide without steep discounts (it still retails for $40). And it spawned an upcoming sequel.

For some reason, the major game sites have yet to figure out that Wii games aren't nearly as front-loaded as 360 and PS3 games. That is, they don't sell the majority of their copies in the first few weeks. They hang around on the charts and sell lots of copies over time.

I'm not saying Madworld is going to sell a million copies. But it'll likely sell as well as No More Heroes (500,000 copies ww). I'm sure Sega wisely made the game's break even point in the 200,000 to 300,000 range, so while the game won't be a worldbeater, it'll certainly earn a solid profit.

As for HOTD: Overkill, it's much on the same path. Sales stand at 230,000 ww, which means it's likely already in break even territory. Once the game hits 300,000 in sales, I think Sega will discount the game to $40 or $30, which should propel sales forward as the game earns additional profits.

This is why Sega's happy with the performance of both games. They're both easily on their way to making good profits. Why wouldn't they be happy?

Sage words indeed. I also agree with XXXW0 that, a sweeping generalisation I admit, most 'core' gamers are more than familiar with piracy and many thousands of sales will have been lost to it.