Topic: GameCube Sales on Target

[WindyMan]

Iwata said Nintendo would sell a certain amount, and he's sticking to his story.

Link: http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20040107-00000169-jij-biz (Japanese)
Source: Yahoo! Japan


In a small newsbyte on Yahoo! Japan, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata was quoted as saying that Nintendo will meet its worldwide GameCube sales goal of 6 million units for the fiscal year, which finishes up in March.  "The target is in sight, [but] it won't be an easy victory," he said.

Thanks to the price drop to $99 in America and similar price drops elsewhere, GC sales have skyrocketed.  In addition to the recent Japanese and upcoming US release Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, along with other potentially big sellers before March, Nintendo has a pretty good shot at meeting their target, despite the woefully slow start to 2003.  

[Ian Sane]

While I hope they reach the target the rumours of a PS2 price cut could potentially change that.  The low price point would become less significant is Sony lowered their price.  Without a significant price difference interest in the Cube isn't going to be as high.  Banking on FFCC is risky as well since the huge hardware requirements for that game will probably discourage sales more than anything else.

[chlupe]

Ugh. Generalizations. My friend said it best so I'll just copy what he said here:

"http://www.planetgamecube.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=7&threadid=7620

Check out the response. I'm starting to hear this type of generalization more and more.

Although there really aren't heavy hardware requirements, people tend to get the wrong idea and b**** about it. Essentially you should not have to provide GBAs for your friends, and if they have the game and (assumedly, because of the nature of the game) wish to play multi, they should already have a GBA of some sort. All that's required is a 10 dollar cable, which is provided with the game. Only people who actually have problems are those unfortunate enough to be surrounded by GBA-less acquaintances. With double-digit million GBAs sold, that number must be too low to matter."

Nuff said.  

[Ian Sane]

Maybe they should put what your friend said on the game packaging.  Just the fact that so many people who keep up with videogame news are complaining about it indicates that it's a major issue.  You can provide all sorts of good arguments but that won't matter because the average person isn't going to hear them and is going to look at the package and say "I need a GBA?  Screw this."  I myself am cool with the requirement for the most part but I know that most people are going to think it's a cheap cash-in to sell GBAs.

It's like how people said that the graphics in Wind Waker were fine once you gave them a chance.  Well that didn't matter to the various people I've met who immediately rejected that game because it looked like a cartoon.

[Saturn2888]

All I can say on this is: The casual gamer has destroyed Nintendo and many good games that could've come to the market and now Nintendo is in a fix w/ their new system because they have to appeal to the large American audience.  If someone has a GCN, arn't they going to have a GBA?  I know friends w/ PS2 and GBA, and they like my GCN bc it has games that their PS2s don't and that looks better.  Sound quality is actually better than 80% of PS2 games bc the quality of games for PS2 are for casual gamers who ruined the gaming society.  It was the hardcore gamers that drove the gaming industry, and then it became shut down because Sony wanted to appeal to the American masses, so they took advantage of the wrong turn w/ the N64 and put out crap that's been around in these last 8-10 yrs.  I'm probably most mad when ppl say PS2 is technologically better than GCN.  I can understand when ppl say XBox is better w/ technology, but not better w/ games and all.  Some are good, some are bad, but people depend on one kind of game to buy a system.  What drove me for GCN was 1) Nintendo made it, 2) PS2 sucks (in my opinion, and in the opinions of my friends w/ them bc they break down and cost more than what Nintendo can offer them), 3) bc of SSBM, and that was all.  I never played F-Zero and really never took on to Mario Kart, but now I have both and love them.  Resident Evil; wouldn't never gotten it or gotten into it if it weren't for Nintendo (love the storyline).  Super Monkey Ball was actually a cool game and something that showed off the GCN at launch up until SSBM.  I just think that 1 Final Fantasy game would drive (force) gamers to buy GameCubes and see them as superior.  It's like the casual gamers are all little kids who don't know their right from their left.  If people want a Square game so bad, just don't buy Sony consoles and Square would have to make Final Fantasy on a Nintendo system again (even though there are legal issues associated, it's not avoidable).
Well I've said enough w/ my raving, but some people just have to see this and understand what gamers are like and the differences w/ the American public and the Japanese in how games are made and how respectible games are made.

[chlupe]

Saturn drives home an even better point. Plus, what my friend and I are referring to is not whether or not it will sell; if anything, we're saying why such a generalization is unfounded, and that if anything, that sort of generalization is what may result in low sales. Plus, "I need a GBA? Screw this." This is precisely why he pointed out the number of GBA's sold. The key is that they are not "huge" hardware requirements.

Also consider the gap between GBA ownership and GCN ownership. Don't more people have GBAs? The deal here is they're trying to move Cubes. So, if someone had a GBA and not a Cube (a high possibility considering what I've just said regarding the gap between ownership), and was going to get a Cube for FF:CC, why would s/he say "I need a GBA? Screw this."

Although personally I could care less if Chronicles sells well or not, as long as I get my copy. I'm more worried about the insistence that gamers don't want flashy graphics, or whatever it is that the Big N is philosophizing. THAT is what will deter Gamer Average, considering s/he knows of this "philosphy", from buying the Cube. I'm the last guy to say graphics makes a game but... why say something like that? That's not a smart business move, esp. coming from a company who supposedly wants to make "sound" business decisions (including delaying the foray into the online world, although I shouldn't be so whiny about that, there probably are legitimate concerns regarding online...)

[Aslan the Lion]

Still...

[Drunk Fly]

That's exactly what I was about to link to

[NWR_Lindy]

Basically, Crystal Chronicles will never see the light of day with me for two reasons:

1) The GBA requirement is crap
2) It looks like another super-cartoony game that's been dumbed down for Gamecube

I think this is generally how Joe Gamer will feel.

silks

[Kakashixs]

We should also remember Chrystal Chronicles was made primarily so Square-Enix could make GBA games...I doubt if Square-Enix really even cares about the sales of Chrystal Chronicles as much as say the sales of FF Tactics Advance.

Furthermore we shouldn't forget about the name Final Fantasy. That is what will primarily sell Chrystal Chronicles, not what kind of game it is or its 'requirements'.

[Bloodworth]

Once again, I've been playing single player for several months, and I enjoy it fairly well.  Yes multiplayer is more fun, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy the game without a GBA.

[Olpus]

I hope that Nintendo will sell a lot of machine, but they arent doing the right things in all the world.
Here in Italy they don't do any promotional spot in television and Nintendo products aren't distribuited well, unlike Sony and Microsoft does.

[ichibod]

Are we not forgetting the fact that there are 42 millions GBAs sold to date? I'm sure most people already have one, let alone all the people with GCN. I mean, I own 3 anyway.

[NWR_Lindy]

Yeah, but that doesn't necessarily mean people will buy it though.  The idea of playing a Gamecube game with a GBA controller doesn't sound too appealing to me...as far as RPGs go, how complex can it get really?  Even RPGs on the SNES had more buttons to work with.

silks

[DrZoidberg]

-___- it works because it was designed to work that way, how many RPG's on the snes USED all the buttons, battle! use + to move around the menu use A to select, amazing

protip: almost all console RPG's only really use the directional stick/pad and two other buttons, remember it's mostly menu based and dialogue based? oh yeah.

[NWR_Lindy]

SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!11111111111111111!!!!!!!11 SUPEER NESE 4 EVAR!!!!!!11111111111111111111

Good point.  But I'm still not loving the GBA control, it's just unnecessary.

silks

[DrZoidberg]

it may not be necessary in your eyes, but from everything i've read it sounds like it works extrodinarily well, that and it was designed from the beginning to be a connectivity title, to be one of the best things about connectivity, so er don't complain that it requires the GBA to play multiplayer, it's been that way from the begining, they didn't throw it in at teh last seccond to annoy everyone.

[Bloodworth]

You guys are still arguing over this?  You can't even use a GBA as a controller in single player, just as a map display in port 2.  In multiplayer, the GBA is absolutely essential to the game design, and the only thing that could replace it is LAN or online.

[ruby_onix]

Quote
While I hope they reach the target the rumours of a PS2 price cut could potentially change that. The low price point would become less significant is Sony lowered their price.

That's if Sony lowers their price anytime soon. The PS2 is still selling like hotcakes. Sony doesn't really have a reason to drop the price, unless they have a good reason to believe they'll sell so many more units with a lower price, that it'll offset the loss of a major chunk of their profit margin. Or if they just want to take a shot at the GameCube, regardless of the costs to themselves.

Personally, all of the PS2 price drop rumors that I've seen can be attributed to wishful thinking by hopeful soon-to-be PS2 owners, since the PS2 is so very overpriced at this point, or PS2 fanboys threatened by the idea of Nintendo doing well, and hoping Sony does something to stop Nintendo, whatever the costs, before their carefully-constructed world view comes crashing down around their heads.

Quote
We should also remember Chrystal Chronicles was made primarily so Square-Enix could make GBA games...

I actually doubt that one. It was always just a rumor, and the rumor said that Square needed to make two GameCube-exclusive games before they were allowed to start making GBA games.

Although we can say that the real reason Square made FF:CC is that it's practically free for them, thanks to Hiroshi Yamauchi, so they're free to take risks with it.

[mouse_clicker]

Quote
Just the fact that so many people who keep up with videogame news are complaining about it indicates that it's a major issue.

I think Ian hit the nail on the head here- while it may be true that these people AREN'T seeing the facts straight, and are being hardheaded, we can't go out an convince every single one of them that using GBA's is the best way to do it, and sales WILL take a hit because of it. The same thing happened with Wind Waker- even though most people had very misconcieved opinions of its visual style, it doesn't matter that they were misconcieved, it mattered that those were their opinions and there was nothing we could do about it. I think both games will benefit heavily from their respective decisions, but sales will take a hit. I just hope Square doesn't decide not to further support the Gamecube based opn FF:CC's sales, when it's obvious why the sales dipped.

[KDR_11k]

I think it's a good example of how minds work: First they complain that connectivity is nothing but a gimmick, then they complain that it's too expensive once devs start to use it...

[Ian Sane]

"I think it's a good example of how minds work: First they complain that connectivity is nothing but a gimmick, then they complain that it's too expensive once devs start to use it..."

I would assume those two complaints are related.  If you complain that connectivity is a gimmick then obviously a game that essentially requires it is too expensive.  If connectivity wasn't a mere gimmick then surely no one would complain about FFCC.

[chlupe]

It's sad that joe average (aka "sheep") doesn't realize it's NOT a gimmick (as bloodworth already points out). But then think about the fact that Joe Average may perceive any Final Fantasy title as a single player title because it's only an RPG... so then the "huge" hardware requirements go out the window. All comes down to what joe average knows about the game... we'll soon see -- February looms.

[KDR_11k]

It's always like that: People want everything and they want it for free. Look at online. Microsoft is learning that lesson the hard way (by losing a huge part of their customers to Linux...).