Nintendo DS sells 500,000

[dbiersdorf]

http://ds.ign.com/articles/569/569826p1.html

-------

Whoa! @_@

[Pedro Lambrini]

Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!

[squirrelnut]

Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!

God bless the Nintendo fanboys! :rocker:

[petewhitley]

That's good but it's interesting to note that the GBA and GBA SP sold 800,000 units in that same week.

[Pedro Lambrini]

That's good but it's interesting to note that the GBA and GBA SP sold 800,000 units in that same week.

Indeed. Who are all these people who keep buying Gameboys. Everybody and their dog must own one by now! LOL Maybe parents are buying as surrogate DS's for the kids' Christmas?

Squirrelnut: I do really like Nintendo H/W and Games but I am not a fanboy. My concern is for competition in the free market and real choice for the gamer. Although, I have to admit, I am not a great fan of Sony I don't really want the PSP to dissappear into obscurity. I want the DS and the PSP to do well so that neither company can sit on their laurels - like Ninty has done with the Gameboy and Sony has done with the PS brand.

[zmweasel]

Squirrelnut: I do really like Nintendo H/W and Games but I am not a fanboy. My concern is for competition in the free market and real choice for the gamer. Although, I have to admit, I am not a great fan of Sony I don't really want the PSP to dissappear into obscurity. I want the DS and the PSP to do well so that neither company can sit on their laurels - like Ninty has done with the Gameboy and Sony has done with the PS brand.

Sony has had serious competition in the home console market from the moment it launched the PlayStation in '95, whereas Nintendo hasn't had any serious competition in the handheld market since the Game Gear, more than a decade ago. You could accuse Nintendo of "resting on its laurels," but not Sony.

-- Z.

[Avatard]

What are you talking about? Nintendo has had serious compitition in the console market ever since the Genesis. Atleast they are still around, unlike Sega.

[goatdan]

Sony has had serious competition in the home console market from the moment it launched the PlayStation in '95, whereas Nintendo hasn't had any serious competition in the handheld market since the Game Gear, more than a decade ago. You could accuse Nintendo of "resting on its laurels," but not Sony.

I'd agree with you for the most part, however in Japan at least Nintendo has seemed to have some decent competion:

According to IGN, the Wonderswan holds 8% of the handheld gaming market in Japan: http://gameboy.ign.com/articles/358/358834p1.html?fromint=1

Then there was the GP32, which is a pretty slick handheld. I can't find any market share reports, but I've heard it wasn't doing bad. It was very powerful and really could give Nintendo some good competition.

Lastly, the Neo Geo Pocket and Pocket Color I thought did some damage in the Japanese market. I had heard somewhere that they had claimed 15% of the market share when they collapsed, but I can't seem to find anything that supports that.

While none of these systems gained the same visibility as the Game Gear, I think that at least part of the fact that they haven't gained more ground is due to the fact that Nintendo has been so good marketing the GameBoy line up. There is no doubt that the NGPC (released '99) is more powerful than the Game Boy Color. There is also no doubt that the GP32 is more powerful than the GBA. But Nintendo has continued to control the market.

I also find it very ironic that the only real challenger is the Wonderswan, which made its name with great games at a cheap price. Something has to be said for price with portables...

[Avatard]

Yea, I couldn't care less about power. The original GB coulda been 100x more powerfull but I still woulda liked my Game Gear better, I could actually SEE it. Also you're right goatdan, I'm not willing to spend a lot on handheld games. I can fork over $50 for a hot PC game, but I'm not willing to do that with handhelds. Especially not at the rate they are milling out GBA games, like those NES classics. $30 is still too much for my tastes, however I gladly spent $40 on FFTA.

[goatdan]

Also you're right goatdan, I'm not willing to spend a lot on handheld games.

I think we're in the minority on this, but I feel the same way. I can barely justify spending more than $20.00 on a console game, and I can never justify that much on most portable games. I have one Neo Geo Pocket game I paid more than $20.00 for.

I haven't bought a GBA because I can't justify spending that much money on portable games. I'm seriously starting to consider getting a Game Boy Color for $10.00 now.

Ironically, I have a Wonderswan in my collection. No games, but I got it as an import perfectly boxed up for $10.00, so that made it worth it to me :)

[Ed Oscuro]

You could accuse Nintendo of "resting on its laurels," but not Sony.
Looking at DS software and general marketing from N thus far, I'd say yes...but as you've said, Nintendo rushed the DS to market. The DS has suffered somewhat as a result, but Nintendo has definitely taken some of the wind from Sony's sails.

It's rather interesting to see Sony, outspoken champions of the "first to market" strategy relying on their fanbase to pick up the PSP (which should prove to be a more polished product than the DS). Probably a reaction to the general annoyance towards the PS2's reliability and the realization that being first doesn't count for everything...you can get your product out first, but then you'll have to live with the tradeoffs in quality. Definitely not the way to go with a disc-based machine.


What are you talking about? Nintendo has had serious compitition in the console market ever since the Genesis. Atleast they are still around, unlike Sega.
Sega's still around, and you misread what Zach wrote. He said Nintendo has had serious competition in the handheld market...discounting the Nomad (which I hate to do since it's a great machine), the Genesis has nothing to do with that market.


The original GB coulda been 100x more powerfull but I still woulda liked my Game Gear better, I could actually SEE it.
The thought of a puke green screen machine driven by a ~4.19GHz processor is INTENSELY amusing.

[zmweasel]

What are you talking about? Nintendo has had serious compitition in the console market ever since the Genesis. Atleast they are still around, unlike Sega.

As I stated in my earlier post, Nintendo hasn't had legitimate competition in the HANDHELD market--certainly not in North America--for more than a decade. Sony has always been up against two major competitors in the CONSOLE market.

-- Z.

[zmweasel]

According to IGN, the Wonderswan holds 8% of the handheld gaming market in Japan: http://gameboy.ign.com/articles/358/358834p1.html?fromint=1

That's a link to an article from May 2002, Dan. That quoted 8% figure has dropped to an even more insignificant percentage over the past two and a half years.


Lastly, the Neo Geo Pocket and Pocket Color I thought did some damage in the Japanese market. I had heard somewhere that they had claimed 15% of the market share when they collapsed, but I can't seem to find anything that supports that.

If you ever do find something to support that extraordinarily unlikely percentage, let me know.

-- Z.

[goatdan]

That's a link to an article from May 2002, Dan. That quoted 8% figure has dropped to an even more insignificant percentage over the past two and a half years.

Regardless, it as well as my other points show that Nintendo has faced some competition... but has so far squashed it. Hearing that the market share for the WonderSwan has gone down since 2002 means that Nintendo is "winning" the sales wars, right? Doesn't that prove that they're doing something right in a market where there is more competition?

[Ed Oscuro]

I don't think Nintendo had any competition TO squash: by the time somebody figured out their formula for success (cheap, low specs, high battery life), that somebody was SNK and their handheld wasn't up to the task of going head-to-head with the GameBoy Color...and SNK's properties always have had a relatively small following, though very dedicated.

[zmweasel]

That's a link to an article from May 2002, Dan. That quoted 8% figure has dropped to an even more insignificant percentage over the past two and a half years.

Regardless, it as well as my other points show that Nintendo has faced some competition... but has so far squashed it. Hearing that the market share for the WonderSwan has gone down since 2002 means that Nintendo is "winning" the sales wars, right? Doesn't that prove that they're doing something right in a market where there is more competition?

I never said Nintendo hasn't faced competition in the handheld market. I said it hasn't faced SERIOUS competition in more than a decade. The Wonderswan was a curiosity, not a challenger. The NGPC was from a company on the verge of death.

The Game Gear was the last legit competition to the Game Boy, released when Sega was at its peak of success in the home-console field--an obvious parallel to Sony. But Sega was barely ahead of Nintendo at the time, and eventually lost the 16-bit wars, whereas Sony has been clobbering Nintendo for a decade.

-- Z.

[RCM]

Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!

The Dreamcast sold almost 400,000 units the first day of release in the states. Maybe 377,000. Something like that. I think it took 10 or 12 days to reach a million sold. Just cause the DS is doing well doesn't mean it will continue.

THE ONE, THE ONLY- RCM

[Pedro Lambrini]

Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!

The Dreamcast sold almost 400,000 units the first day of release in the states. Maybe 377,000. Something like that. I think it took 10 or 12 days to reach a million sold. Just cause the DS is doing well doesn't mean it will continue.

THE ONE, THE ONLY- RCM

Erm, oh well... :embarrassed:

Maybe it will last - if the GBA can still sell 800,000 units in the same week maybe the solid position of the GBA and DS (and the compatibility of the DS with GBA games) will hold them in good stead. By the time Sega released the 'Cast they had already lost a lot of ground in their market...

[zmweasel]

Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!

The Dreamcast sold almost 400,000 units the first day of release in the states. Maybe 377,000. Something like that. I think it took 10 or 12 days to reach a million sold. Just cause the DS is doing well doesn't mean it will continue.

THE ONE, THE ONLY- RCM

Exactly. The Dreamcast sold to the hardcore, but never reached the mass market. The DS is currently selling to the hardcore, but the question is whether or not it will reach the mass market, like the GBA.

-- Z.

[Jive3D]

The thought of a puke green screen machine driven by a ~4.19GHz processor is INTENSELY amusing.

Watch it there, that machine was my bread and butter for quite some time.

The above comments really did hit the nail on the head in comparison of the DC initial sales to the DS. This will be very interesting, and as much of an N fanboy as I am, I'm not blind, N really needs to "play it loud"er in order to give Sony the competition.

[le geek]

Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!

The Dreamcast sold almost 400,000 units the first day of release in the states. Maybe 377,000. Something like that. I think it took 10 or 12 days to reach a million sold. Just cause the DS is doing well doesn't mean it will continue.

THE ONE, THE ONLY- RCM

Exactly. The Dreamcast sold to the hardcore, but never reached the mass market. The DS is currently selling to the hardcore, but the question is whether or not it will reach the mass market, like the GBA.

-- Z.

The DS has at least two advantages over the Dreamcast.

1) The support of EA Games

2) Nintendo hasn't removed their previous console from the market as Sega had.

Who knows if this will make a difference...

Cheers,
Ben

[zmweasel]

The DS has at least two advantages over the Dreamcast.

1) The support of EA Games

2) Nintendo hasn't removed their previous console from the market as Sega had.

Who knows if this will make a difference...

Cheers,
Ben

EA is also supporting the PSP, so that's not an advantage for Nintendo.

And of course Nintendo's not going to pull the GBA. It's Nintendo's bread and butter. The question is whether or not the DS will make it beyond early adopters and hardcore gamers into the mass market of teens and adults that the PSP is targeting.

-- Z.

[RCM]

Exactly. The Dreamcast sold to the hardcore, but never reached the mass market. The DS is currently selling to the hardcore, but the question is whether or not it will reach the mass market, like the GBA.

-- Z.

Yeah. A lot of hardcore gamers pick up hardware at launch. It will be interesting to see how it all unfolds.

THE ONE, THE ONLY- RCM

[CAR25]

That's a link to an article from May 2002, Dan. That quoted 8% figure has dropped to an even more insignificant percentage over the past two and a half years.

Regardless, it as well as my other points show that Nintendo has faced some competition... but has so far squashed it. Hearing that the market share for the WonderSwan has gone down since 2002 means that Nintendo is "winning" the sales wars, right? Doesn't that prove that they're doing something right in a market where there is more competition?

I don't think the big N had any real competition in a LONG time because other brands have not been putting out their products in ads not nearly enough... everyone heard of "gameboy" but not everyone knows of "wanderswan" or "GP32" etc... Sony seems to be aggressively putting out the PSP to the masses in terms of letting their targeted base know what's available... and I think their marketing strategy will work.

As for Nintendo's sales... that's good and all, but I don’t think the DS will sell as good as the GBA... what I am looking forward to is a real successor to the GBA (Nintendo has made this known in the media) and I can't say that I have much interests in the DS.

[goatdan]

Exactly. The Dreamcast sold to the hardcore, but never reached the mass market. The DS is currently selling to the hardcore, but the question is whether or not it will reach the mass market, like the GBA.

I don't know... the two things that spring to my mind when thinking about the various launches is:

Dreamcast was HUGE. The ONLY console launch date I remember because it was everywhere... 9.9.99. The system had incredible looking games like NFL 2K, Soul Calibur and Ready 2 Rumble right off the bat, as well as a pretty deep selection (12+) launch day games. The advertising was everywhere, and people were talking about it like crazy.

The DS is below the radar. I have seen commercials for it only on one day. It came out with a total of five games, none of which were revolutionary. The games were / are decent, but they weren't incredible. The advertising for the DS is pretty much no where, and it is barely mentioned outside the hardcore gamer.

I definitely wouldn't begin to compare them, seeing that the only similarity seems to be in the number of systems sold. Sega did the more noteworthy advertising campaign, pulled out some serious games and really looked good. The Nintendo DS... Well, we all have our opinions about that, but I think everyone can agree that it doesn't include a noteworthy advertising campaign.

[zmweasel]

Exactly. The Dreamcast sold to the hardcore, but never reached the mass market. The DS is currently selling to the hardcore, but the question is whether or not it will reach the mass market, like the GBA.

I don't know... the two things that spring to my mind when thinking about the various launches is:

Dreamcast was HUGE. The ONLY console launch date I remember because it was everywhere... 9.9.99. The system had incredible looking games like NFL 2K, Soul Calibur and Ready 2 Rumble right off the bat, as well as a pretty deep selection (12+) launch day games. The advertising was everywhere, and people were talking about it like crazy.

The DS is below the radar. I have seen commercials for it only on one day. It came out with a total of five games, none of which were revolutionary. The games were / are decent, but they weren't incredible. The advertising for the DS is pretty much no where, and it is barely mentioned outside the hardcore gamer.

I definitely wouldn't begin to compare them, seeing that the only similarity seems to be in the number of systems sold. Sega did the more noteworthy advertising campaign, pulled out some serious games and really looked good. The Nintendo DS... Well, we all have our opinions about that, but I think everyone can agree that it doesn't include a noteworthy advertising campaign.

Hardcore gamers were talking about the Dreamcast like crazy, but mainstream gamers were still quite happy with their PS1s, and eagerly awaiting the PS2. Sega's advertising blitz didn't work on them.

Hardcore gamers are talking about the DS like crazy, but mainstream gamers haven't even heard of it yet. Will Nintendo's advertising blitz, presuming one is forthcoming, work on them? Or are they eagerly awaiting the PSP? Those are the burning questions.

-- Z.

[goatdan]

Hardcore gamers were talking about the Dreamcast like crazy, but mainstream gamers were still quite happy with their PS1s, and eagerly awaiting the PS2. Sega's advertising blitz didn't work on them.

I don't agree with you at all on this point, but I know that it isn't worth trying to debate with you...

[le geek]

EA is also supporting the PSP, so that's not an advantage for Nintendo.



Maybe advantage is not the right word, but EA skipped the dreamcast to wait for PS2... This is not the case here...

Cheers,
Ben

[zmweasel]

Hardcore gamers were talking about the Dreamcast like crazy, but mainstream gamers were still quite happy with their PS1s, and eagerly awaiting the PS2. Sega's advertising blitz didn't work on them.

I don't agree with you at all on this point, but I know that it isn't worth trying to debate with you...

What's to debate, Dan? History validates my statement. In North America, the Dreamcast was dead in less than two years. The PS2 showed up, and that was that.

I know you have a theory that piracy killed the Dreamcast, so let's roll with that: if the DC had ever reached beyond hardcore gamers with the technical savvy to steal DC games, and into the mass market of casual gamers without that savvy, perhaps Sega could've held out a little longer.

-- Z.

[goatdan]

Hardcore gamers were talking about the Dreamcast like crazy, but mainstream gamers were still quite happy with their PS1s, and eagerly awaiting the PS2. Sega's advertising blitz didn't work on them.

I don't agree with you at all on this point, but I know that it isn't worth trying to debate with you...

What's to debate, Dan? History validates my statement. In North America, the Dreamcast was dead in less than two years. The PS2 showed up, and that was that.

The Dreamcast being dead in two years has nothing to do with the buzz that was generated at the LAUNCH of the Dreamcast.

But I've realized to just let you make your points and to give up. There isn't an "exchange of ideas" in these threads once you latch onto an idea.

Your idea is that the Dreamcast and the DS launches can be easily compared because they moved the same number of machines, and obviously the hardcore gamer will purchase any system in the first week / month of launch, and the DS therefore is looking no better or worse than the Dreamcast. I'm stating that I don't believe that to be true. No matter what I explain on this fact, you'll bring up other random points (piracy had NOTHING to do with the Dreamcast LAUNCH) and you'll take on other stuff.

Zach, every time you join a conversation, you make me want to leave it. I'll let you take over here. I have better things to do with my life then to talk about video games with a close-minded individual that just likes to point out how wrong everyone but him is about everything.

[zmweasel]

Zach, every time you join a conversation, you make me want to leave it. I'll let you take over here. I have better things to do with my life then to talk about video games with a close-minded individual that just likes to point out how wrong everyone but him is about everything.

This forum isn't an echo chamber, Dan. If you can't handle your opinions being challenged, perhaps you shouldn't bother to express them.


Your idea is that the Dreamcast and the DS launches can be easily compared because they moved the same number of machines, and obviously the hardcore gamer will purchase any system in the first week / month of launch, and the DS therefore is looking no better or worse than the Dreamcast. I'm stating that I don't believe that to be true. No matter what I explain on this fact, you'll bring up other random points (piracy had NOTHING to do with the Dreamcast LAUNCH) and you'll take on other stuff.

I never said the DS is "looking no better or worse than the Dreamcast." I said that early sales of the Dreamcast, as with the DS, were fueled by early adopters and hardcore gamers. I also said that it remains to be seen whether the DS will make it beyond the hardcore and into the mainstream, which the Dreamcast was never able to do. The Dreamcast proved that an impressive launch is no guarantee of long-term success.

EDIT (and re-edit): Dan, I delete PMs and emails resulting from threads such as these, WITHOUT reading them first. Doesn't matter if I get one, two, or a hundred. A few months back, someone quoted one of my emails out of context to try and further a sad little vendetta. Thus, I no longer engage in "private" debates, under the assumption that whatever I say will end up in the forums anyway.

-- Z.

[Ed Oscuro]

Hardcore gamers were talking about the Dreamcast like crazy, but mainstream gamers were still quite happy with their PS1s, and eagerly awaiting the PS2. Sega's advertising blitz didn't work on them.

I don't agree with you at all on this point, but I know that it isn't worth trying to debate with you...
No, it's true, and for all the gamers I knew during the time period it happened during, not a single one spoke of the Dreamcast. Sure, I didn't talk with too many gamers back then, but if you're talking about the mainstream, then it would've been more likely that at least one person out of five would've had the Dreamcast or at least was talking about it.

[Ed Oscuro]

The thought of a puke green screen machine driven by a ~4.19GHz processor is INTENSELY amusing.

Watch it there, that machine was my bread and butter for quite some time.
Well, I can't claim I've ever made a living off of it...but I play Game Boy games to this day, and find the grayscale format very appealing (even if it is rather green-tinted at times). I used that wording to highlight the obvious dichotomy the person I was replying to had set into place with his "100 times more powerful" statement, which was amusing.