Microsoft Confirms 2.5 million Xbox 360s, Sold to Date.

[theNoid]

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/690/690850p1.html

"Bowman repeated Microsoft's goal of shipping 5 million Xbox 360 units worldwide by end of June, adding that the company has reached about 2.5 million to date. By year's end 2005, Microsoft sold 1.5 million units across North America, Europe and Japan."

Not bad at all considering a worldwide launch and shortages still. I read an analyst report that estimates 12-13 Million by Q4 2006.

 

[Carv]

Hopefully they'll keep churning them out by the shitload before the launch of the PS3.

 

[theNoid]

MS is saying they plan on 5 million sold by June. So if they can accomplish this 5 million units out there before the PS3 even sees Japan ? Thats good.

But the most interesting part so far is that they've sold 2.5 million w/o a 'real' console selling game. Once GRAW and Oblivion launch in march... sales and demand is going to jump ENORMOUSLY.

 

[K600]

Hopefully, the Japanese will come around when games like Blue Dragon are released.

 

[lesman]

MS is saying they plan on 5 million sold by June. So if they can accomplish this 5 million units out there before the PS3 even sees Japan ? Thats good.

But the most interesting part so far is that they've sold 2.5 million w/o a 'real' console selling game. Once GRAW and Oblivion launch in march... sales and demand is going to jump ENORMOUSLY.

While many say there isn't any "real" console selling game out yet, there are MANY coming up...plus, the Xbox 360 has, by far, the largest game/accessory attach rate of any console ever. I can attest to that on my part, as this is the only console I've ever bought more than 1 game for at launch, and ANY accessories for, at that!

 

[Qwerty]

i have like 2 wireless+2corded controllers. A wack ton of games. (most games i ever bought for any system). And the logitech remote.

 

[phatfong]

hopefully they will have more than 10 games soon

 

[TheCreator]

Go go Microsoft...

Hopefully it continues and we can take a lot of marketshare from Sony.

 

[K600]

hopefully they will have more than 10 games soon

Microsoft's library didn't end because you ran out of fingers to count with. Save the flamebait for somewhere else, please.

 

[Obi_Kwiet]

*stares happily at mouse and keyboard*

 

[prozpris]

Microsoft's library didn't end because you ran out of fingers to count with. Save the flamebait for somewhere else, please.

LOL

 

[phatfong]

Ok I'll use my toes too, ahh nope I still have digits left, I am waiting for more.

 

[lesman]

Ok I'll use my toes too, ahh nope I still have digits left, I am waiting for more.

......so you have more than 10 fingers...err...

 

[WorldRunner]

MS is saying they plan on 5 million sold by June. So if they can accomplish this 5 million units out there before the PS3 even sees Japan ? Thats good.

But the most interesting part so far is that they've sold 2.5 million w/o a 'real' console selling game. Once GRAW and Oblivion launch in march... sales and demand is going to jump ENORMOUSLY.

FN3 was perhaps the first game where your friend looks at your 360 and says "Holy shit...now I HAVE to get one of these"

Those two games you mentioned as well as many others like Burnout and Far Cry will perhaps be 4 more titles that make people say the same thing.

Those games will be so far ahead of what the previous gen was at that people will feel the need to upgrade to next gen and will not want to wait until the PS3. IMO.

 

[theNoid]

FN3 was perhaps the first game where your friend looks at your 360 and says "Holy shit...now I HAVE to get one of these"

Those two games you mentioned as well as many others like Burnout and Far Cry will perhaps be 4 more titles that make people say the same thing.

Those games will be so far ahead of what the previous gen was at that people will feel the need to upgrade to next gen and will not want to wait until the PS3. IMO.

Exactly, and furthermore.. most people think that after E3 people will get less excited about the 360 and moreso on the PS3 or Rev. I think the opposite.

I think people will get excited about 'next gen'. But will realize at E3 that INDEED neither the PS3 or the Rev will hit US shores until the holidays 2006. Most people will not be able to wait that long, ... great 2nd gen 360 titles are going to drop and they're going to give in and buy a 360. Once they do, they'll FINALLY see what everyone is talking about and probably wait awhile before rushing out to purchase another console.

This is just what I think, because reguardless of company loyalty we're all gamers. Fighting the urge for the best on the market is hard, and once people know the PS3 and Rev aren't coming anytime soon... they'll finally logistically justify buying a 360.

MS was very very very smart by launching early. In no way is the 360 less powerful then the other 2, MS just got the job done faster and got a jump on the competition. They had to do this to gain marketshare... and congrats to them for doing so.

 

[WorldRunner]

Exactly, and furthermore.. most people think that after E3 people will get less excited about the 360 and moreso on the PS3 or Rev. I think the opposite.

I think people will get excited about 'next gen'. But will realize at E3 that INDEED neither the PS3 or the Rev will hit US shores until the holidays 2006. Most people will not be able to wait that long, ... great 2nd gen 360 titles are going to drop and they're going to give in and buy a 360. Once they do, they'll FINALLY see what everyone is talking about and probably wait awhile before rushing out to purchase another console.

This is just what I think, because reguardless of company loyalty we're all gamers. Fighting the urge for the best on the market is hard, and once people know the PS3 and Rev aren't coming anytime soon... they'll finally logistically justify buying a 360.

MS was very very very smart by launching early. In no way is the 360 less powerful then the other 2, MS just got the job done faster and got a jump on the competition. They had to do this to gain marketshare... and congrats to them for doing so.

Yeah the lack of killer launch titles didn't hurt them at all. These wave of games we're about to get is going to increase 360 sales by quite a bit.

Not to mention this summer when they're actually on the shelves in abundance and anyone can get one anytime they want... Look out.

I think the 12m consoles sold by end of 06 is the best estimate. It's a pretty optimistic one but I think it'll happen. PS3 is going to have at least as bad of a launch as far as quantity of systems and quality of games that the 360 had... So I think people will actually opt for the 360 at that point.

Also if Sony doesn't equal Xbox's "intangibles" - the achievement system, the online system, etc... They're going to be hurting.

Nintendo doesn't have to but I think Sony does.

 

[amdgamer]

While many say there isn't any "real" console selling game out yet, there are MANY coming up...plus, the Xbox 360 has, by far, the largest game/accessory attach rate of any console ever. I can attest to that on my part, as this is the only console I've ever bought more than 1 game for at launch, and ANY accessories for, at that!

I'm glad to hear this good news. As a big fan of the Xbox360, this is good news as more and more top rate games will be made for the 360. It's probably safe to say that Sony is likely getting worried. Keep in mind that the Xbox360 is also going to launch in other countries shortly, not to mention to release of some really hot high profile games by June of this year. I can also say that this is the first time i've ever bought more than 2 or 3 launch titles for any console. The launch titles were good enough where I bought 13 of them, with my 14'th game being DOA4 which was supposed to be a launch title, but got pushed back a little. Accessory wise, i've purchased an extra controller and the plug and charge kit which makes 2 accessories so far. If the momentum can keep rolling in Microsofts favor, Sony may have to take a much bigger loss than expected to make their PS3 competitive in any market other than Japan.

 

[amdgamer]

Yeah the lack of killer launch titles didn't hurt them at all. These wave of games we're about to get is going to increase 360 sales by quite a bit.

Not to mention this summer when they're actually on the shelves in abundance and anyone can get one anytime they want... Look out.

I think the 12m consoles sold by end of 06 is the best estimate. It's a pretty optimistic one but I think it'll happen. PS3 is going to have at least as bad of a launch as far as quantity of systems and quality of games that the 360 had... So I think people will actually opt for the 360 at that point.

Also if Sony doesn't equal Xbox's "intangibles" - the achievement system, the online system, etc... They're going to be hurting.

Nintendo doesn't have to but I think Sony does.

You also pretty much nailed it on the head. Also, if Sony can't launch their PS3 with more than 2 or 3 games, it will hurt them big time. It doesn't matter how good those 2 or 3 games are, because it's still only 2 or 3 games.

 

[Luke_Skywalker]

Go go Microsoft...

Hopefully it continues and we can take a lot of marketshare from Sony.

We? didn't know you worked for microsoft why are you so worried about who has market share in the first place.

 

[theNoid]

We? didn't know you worked for microsoft why are you so worried about who has market share in the first place.

I doubt he works for MS, rather probably just a fan.

Market share ? Market share is what MS NEEDS. Sony sold 100 million PS2's and Nintendo has a solid fanbase thats slowly growing. The first Xbox was MS first attempt, hense a new lower market share. By releasing early ... MS is going to increase its market share tremendously ...

All 3 consoles are going to be good, but quit honestly when the other 2 launch with just a handful of launch titles, which we all know are never system pushers.. the 360 will be on near 3rd generation games ... and will make the competitions launchers look terrible.

See right now, the 360 launch titles are 'decent' but nothing spectacular. However, there isn't anyting out on the market to make them look bad. When the PS3 and Rev launch titles hit, and are decent launch titles.. the 3rd generation 360 titles are going to dwarf them. The average kid who doesn't have a loyalty to any company is going to see this and 'probably' opt for the 360.

 

[steviep]

All 3 consoles are going to be good, but quit honestly when the other 2 launch with just a handful of launch titles, which we all know are never system pushers.. the 360 will be on near 3rd generation games ... and will make the competitions launchers look terrible.

See right now, the 360 launch titles are 'decent' but nothing spectacular. However, there isn't anyting out on the market to make them look bad. When the PS3 and Rev launch titles hit, and are decent launch titles.. the 3rd generation 360 titles are going to dwarf them. The average kid who doesn't have a loyalty to any company is going to see this and 'probably' opt for the 360.

That's one problem with a couple of your posts that I've noticed... assumptions garnered as fact. It seems that you're sure that the other 2 system launches will be exactly like the X360 launch (a bunch of shitty games with only 1 or 2 worth owning). How do you know exactly what the other systems will be launching with?

Second... you are aware that the other systems are launching later this year, right? You would call Q4 2006 "generation 3" of the X360, seriously? I'd be hard pressed to call it generation 2, never mind 3. And again, you're assuming that there will be oodles upon oodles of games to choose from for the X360 in its "third generation" as well. You can't just assume, even with a few of those titles being announced, you can only infer.

 

[Luke_Skywalker]

I doubt he works for MS, rather probably just a fan.

Market share ? Market share is what MS NEEDS. Sony sold 100 million PS2's and Nintendo has a solid fanbase thats slowly growing. The first Xbox was MS first attempt, hense a new lower market share. By releasing early ... MS is going to increase its market share tremendously ...

All 3 consoles are going to be good, but quit honestly when the other 2 launch with just a handful of launch titles, which we all know are never system pushers.. the 360 will be on near 3rd generation games ... and will make the competitions launchers look terrible.

See right now, the 360 launch titles are 'decent' but nothing spectacular. However, there isn't anyting out on the market to make them look bad. When the PS3 and Rev launch titles hit, and are decent launch titles.. the 3rd generation 360 titles are going to dwarf them. The average kid who doesn't have a loyalty to any company is going to see this and 'probably' opt for the 360.

Why do you care whether or not microsoft has more market share, is it really that important to your life or something. As for launch titles for the revolution and ps3 you have no idea really what either company with have to offer so I don't see how you can say the xbox 360 titles will dwarf them, I haven't seen alot of what the ps3 and revolution will appear at launch, apparently you have . From you comments it seems you and others are really more concerned over graphics then gameplay or appeal of certain game series.

 

[K600]

And again, you're assuming that there will be oodles upon oodles of games to choose from for the X360 in its "third generation" as well. You can't just assume, even with a few of those titles being announced, you can only infer.

You're basically doing the same thing with the developer support that has been announced for the Revolution, so I don't see why you would call theNoid on it.

As for marketshare; he cares because you're more likely to get a wider variety of games if you have higher marketshare. Whether or not those games are good remains to be seen, but the fact of the matter is that developers are more likely to put effort into you if they know you have the largest installed base.

 

[heatsinker]

Whether or not those games are good remains to be seen, but the fact of the matter is that developers are more likely to put effort into you if they know you have the largest installed base.

Is that right?

Shades of the Dreamcast come crawling back...

 

[theNoid]

That's one problem with a couple of your posts that I've noticed... assumptions garnered as fact. It seems that you're sure that the other 2 system launches will be exactly like the X360 launch (a bunch of shitty games with only 1 or 2 worth owning). How do you know exactly what the other systems will be launching with?

Second... you are aware that the other systems are launching later this year, right? You would call Q4 2006 "generation 3" of the X360, seriously? I'd be hard pressed to call it generation 2, never mind 3. And again, you're assuming that there will be oodles upon oodles of games to choose from for the X360 in its "third generation" as well. You can't just assume, even with a few of those titles being announced, you can only infer.

It will be FACT that both the Revs and PS3 launch titles will not be system pushers. Because thats what I said. Its a very rare thing these days for ANY console launch titles to be wowzers ...

I will say that 'in general' people think that if something comes out later, its better. Thats not true. Would you rather have a 2 year old Ferrari or a brand new Kia ?

While I see where you're coming from, I understand. Just in general terms outside of people like us who post of forums about games (think normal humans lol), the average 20 something guy will hear about the PS3 or whatnot... see a launch game. Then see games like Gears of War for the 360 and see a near night and day difference.

If you don't think the PS3 and Rev aren't going to have 'decent' launch titles, you're mistaken. Its common practice.

 

[theNoid]

Why do you care whether or not microsoft has more market share, is it really that important to your life or something. As for launch titles for the revolution and ps3 you have no idea really what either company with have to offer so I don't see how you can say the xbox 360 titles will dwarf them, I haven't seen alot of what the ps3 and revolution will appear at launch, apparently you have . From you comments it seems you and others are really more concerned over graphics then gameplay or appeal of certain game series.

Well not neccisarily.. see I would be impressed if either had killer launch apps. But its all too common for console launch titles to be good, just not ZOMG maxed out everything from square one. Common sense.

Personally I'd like to see MS gain more marketshare, and Nintendo. Why ? Because I've been an avid gamer for 22 years and I dislike companies like Sony that mislead the general public and play marketing mind games on people with little to no knowledge of how hardware works. Its a shame for the consumer so I'd much rather see MS or Nintendo regain the number 1 spot. Moreso MS because its an American based company, and yes that matters to some.

I guarantee you Gears of War on the 360 will 'dwarf' ANY Rev launch title (or your money back), and probably most if not all PS3 launchs. In time the PS3 will produce just as great stuff, but keep in mind the 360 will have a year leap. The Rev will 'apparently' be limited hardware wise so it will eventually cap out while the PS3 and the 360 soar graphically for years. Nintendo is relying on the idea of reinventing gameplay to sell consoles ... not power. A risk, but a risk I think will work well for them.

 

[steviep]

Again, you assume. What did the N64 launch with? A game that changed 3D gaming forever. The Rev is poised to launch with another Mario title that will "revolutionize" things as well. There have been other consoles that have launched with killer titles, too (Dreamcast, NES, SNES, Gameboy, etc) so you can't just assume. For all we know, considering that Sony still has the most third party support, they could have a couple killer apps too. You just don't know.

And again, you're "guaranteeing" that Gears of War will "be better" than anything the Rev has... and maybe Sony... no, you can't do that. But you're going on only visuals, anyway. Visuals are only a part of a game. First of all, the Rev is based on the Gamecube. Think Resident Evil 4 times 3, graphic wise, because developers already know how to push the Gamecube. Hell, the alpha dev kits WERE powered-up Gamecubes. The PS3, you may have a point for, however... since the Cell is essentially 1 of the X360 CPUs + 7 mini CPUs and the architecture won't be easy to push right off the bat. But you can't assume anything at this point because we just don't know. None of us can see into the future, we can only speculate

As far as Sony is concerned... I agree with you to a point. I hate their lies too. That said, I still own a PS2... why? Because it has some fucking awesome games. Despite the fact that I love my Nintendo-made games, I am no brand-loyalist when it comes to a game that I really want to play that isn't available elsewhere. So, if Sony continues to garner the same third party support that provides them with awesome exclusive titles... I guess I'll have to buy a PS3 too. If the X360 has a must-have for me, I'll own one too. I've got the cash, I just need the incentive.

 

[K600]

A game that changed 3D gaming forever.

And that opportunity is never going to present itself again. The transition from 2D to 3D in this industry can only happen once.

The Rev is poised to launch with another Mario title that will "revolutionize" things as well.

The new Mario will still be a 3D platformer, regardless of how it is controlled.

For all we know, considering that Sony still has the most third party support, they could have a couple killer apps too. You just don't know.

All Sony has is smoke and mirrors. If they had anything solid they would have shown it already. Instead, they falsely advertised the demonstrations shown at E3 as real-time. It's obvious that they're having serious problems getting everything together, which means it is very unlikely that they'll have their ducks in a row for launch.

First of all, the Rev is based on the Gamecube. Think Resident Evil 4 times 3, graphic wise, because developers already know how to push the Gamecube.

Come on...you know that it doesn't work that way. Having a more powerful system doesn't guarantee that the quality of the software will proportionally match the disparity between the old system and the new.

 

[steviep]

The new Mario will still be a 3D platformer, regardless of how it is controlled.

Yeah, but if Nintendo changes the way we control things, it could be another "successful transition" But this isn't about Nintendo, it's about the assumption that Sony and Nintendo will have horrible launches, which we don't know to be true yet.

All Sony has is smoke and mirrors. If they had anything solid they would have shown it already. Instead, they falsely advertised the demonstrations shown at E3 as real-time. It's obvious that they're having serious problems getting everything together, which means it is very unlikely that they'll have their ducks in a row for launch.

Yes, I agree with you... it's looking real bad right now for Sony. Real bad. And is there a good chance that the PS3 launch will be even worse than the rushed-to-hell X360 launch? Yes, an extremely good chance. That said, it's still speculation. Nobody knows... for all we know, the thing could launch with Gran Turismo 5, GTA 4, Unreal 2007 (it likely will), and the next iteration of Final Fantasy during the launch window, and (unfortunately) people would eat it up even at $500 on the brand names alone. That said, it's still speculation. We can't just ASSUME it will be shit, even if we think so

Come on...you know that it doesn't work that way. Having a more powerful system doesn't guarantee that the quality of the software will proportionally match the disparity between the old system and the new.

Normally I'd agree with you there, too. BUT... this is an extremely similar architecture. One which the devs are already familiarized with (as I've said before, they're using a G5-class CPU that's directly backwards compatible with the G3 in the Gamecube, and an ATi RN520 GPU that's directly compatible with the ATi "Flipper" chip in the cube as well), so I'd expect that there won't be anywhere NEAR the graphics-curve that normal systems have (i.e. launch looks like ass and games get much better looking with each gen, since devs are learning). Will it be directly proportionate? Probably not at launch. But if you subscribe to all the speculation we're all subscribing to in this thread, you can easily infer that devs can push the Revolution hardware a lot more at launch than they can/have the other systems at launch. That said, the PS3 will be the newest kid on the block when the Rev is launched and the X360 has been out for a year... so you can also infer that devs won't be pushing the PS3 as much as their pushing either of the other 2 systems come this thanksgiving.

 

[LstBrunnenG]

First off, I am not a console gamer. However, I want the 360 to succeed and wouldn't mind seeing the PS3 take Sony down a notch or two. Here's why: (note these are mostly opinion, and some is speculation)

1) Blu-ray. Most likely, the media will cost more, and it has been confirmed that while HD-DVD provides for legal ripping as a requirement, Blu-Ray makes it optional. Meaning if anyone wants to build a legal Blu-Ray HDD-based jukebox, they're at the mercy of the whims of Hollywood for their fair-use rights.

2) Cell. It's a sweet-looking octal-core CPU architecture from IBM that nobody wants because the architecture is so different from x86, and because it's so expensive. Here's what Anand has to say about it:

<snip>
The problem here is that big game development houses often develop and optimize for the least common denominator when it comes to hardware, and offer ports with minor improvements to other platforms. Given Cell’s architecture, it hardly looks like a suitable “base” platform to develop for. We’d venture to say that a game developed for and ported from the PC or Xbox Next would be under-utilizing Cell’s performance potential unless significant code re-write time was spent.
<snip>
Console-only development houses, especially those with close ties to Sony, may find themselves able to harness the power of Cell much more efficiently
<snip>
With Cell, Sony has effectively traded hardware complexity for programmer burden...
<snip>
As a potential contender in the PC market, Cell has a very tall ladder to climb before even remotely appearing on the AMD/Intel radars. The biggest strength that the x86 market has is backwards compatibility, which is the main thing that has kept alternative ISAs out of the PC business.
<snip>
Once again, what’s most intriguing is the similarity, at a high level, of Intel’s far future multi-core designs to Cell today. The main difference is that while Intel’s Cell-like designs will be built on 32nm or smaller processes, Cell is being introduced at 90nm - meaning that Intel is envisioning many more complex cores on a single die than Cell. Intel can make that kind of migration to a Cell-like design because their microprocessors already have a very large user base. IBM, Sony and Toshiba can’t however...
<snip>

True, he was excited about the potential performance, but obviously he had reservations. Cell reminds me of the same proprietary nightmare Sony has with its peripherals, but this time it's an entire CPU. Sony-only content houses will enjoy a significant advantage, breeding more exclusive games for them. Meanwhile, it'll be much easier to port a game from the 360 to PC, since the PowerPC cores it uses aren't unheard of.

And you can bet IBM is praying that the PS3 will sell like hotcakes, so that they can ramp up production and try to creep into the PC market as well. Except, it won't be long until Intel brings its own quad- and octal-core CPUs to bear, and you can bet that they'll be built with smaller processes and more efficient technology. Cell is octal-core on today's technology, and nobody is even ready for octal-core yet. By the time they are, Intel will have a much better product, and one that doesn't require a fundamental rewrite of every major application for the PC either.

3) ATi. ATi has been struggling recently, but it's nice to see them get back into form with hard launches and stable motherboard chipsets. The more revenue that ATi can bring in on their GPUs in the 360, the better they'll be able to compete with NVidia on the PC front. Besides, some of the stuff about the GPU ATi made blows my mind. 16MB cache ON CHIP!

4) Sony & proprietary formats. I don't like to support a company that feels the need to introduce the memory stick (and all its iterations), MiniDisc, ATARAC3, UMD, and Blu-Ray. The only advantage of these formats over existing ones is that Sony gets licensing fees. That and you can't burn your own UMDs, and thus are forced to buy expensive proprietary flash storage if you use a PSP. Even when Sony released an HDD-based iPod-like device, they had to cripple it with ATARAC3. You absolutely couldn't put MP3s on it, you had to use their software to convert your MP3s to DRMed ATARAC3. Even that wouldn't have been so bad if it was good software.

5) Microsoft. No matter what you may think of MS in the PC front, MS is the underdog here, and they've managed to come up with some very competitive, innovative features (XboX Live, MCE-extender, etc) AND be first to market with them. There's been speculation about how the PS3 *might* have some kind of MCE-style features and *might* have an on-line component. The 360 was designed with these features in mind from the get-go. This makes the PS3 feel like more of the same, just with faster hardware and the cutting-edge features tacked on at the last minute.

I think bias has blinded many to what an innovative company Microsoft really is. Has anyone here ever used OneNote?

6) Game selection. If I ever bought a console, it would be an Xbox. The PS2's games don't really appeal to me.

7) My instincts. The delays, the promises of the moon and the stars but the lack of delivery, they all smell of the GeForceFX/Prescott/R520 debacles. Apple's the company that uses secrecy as a marketing tool, not Sony. It would be bad for the industry if everyone went out to buy a PS3 just because it was from Sony, only to find themselves with an underperforming product with a smaller feature set. If I'm wrong and the PS3 really is going to pwn the console market, please, show us! Hype is good, just ask MS, Apple, Intel, ATi, and NVidia.


For the longest time, Sony was THE name when it came to consumer electronics. Now I think they've started to rest on their laurels and become out of touch with their market. Hopefully they'll learn their lessons and make a nice, competitive comeback.