Microsoft: Apology Offer Plus Xbox 360 Sales
Game not named - sales figures big upped
At the same time as Microsoft tells the world that it's sold 17.7 million Xbox 360s worldwide since its 2005 launch - it is also offering Xbox Live users a free game to make up for the almost Network Rail like chaos in suffered by the service over the 'The Holidays' season.
First up, those sales figures, which we know are so beloved/hated by fan-people of all loyalties. Back in September Microsoft claimed 13.4 million consoles had found their ways into homes of gamers the world over. One SPOnGer got out his Xmas digital watch'n'calculator and managed to work out this means during September, October, November and December the company managed to shift another... 4.3 million Xbox 360s.
As comparison, Reuters quotes figures to mid-September 2007 for Nintendo Wii 13.2 million, while Sony's PS3 is said to have sold 5.6 million PS3 worldwide.
Now, aside from it being the 'The Holidays' season, we also saw Halo 3 doubling hardware sales in the UK in September, Bioware's Mass Effect also made its entrance, and the Xbox Arcade courtesied in.
Right, that's the trumpet blowing, now for the grovelling. The Xbox Live gaming service appeared in pre-ghost-Scrooge form over the 'The Holidays' period with connection problems forcing Xbox-owning to talk to their parents or... grand-parents instead of fragging their BFFs.
Xbox Live General Manager Mark Whitten has explained that "While the service was not completely offline at any given time, we are disappointed in our performance."
To show just how disappointed he is, Mark has announced that all Xbox Live members will be able to freely download one game over the service. Okay, he hasn't given any details... for example we don't know if this means the same game or a choice from a wide selection of games - or even a choice from all available games. It's also the case that the offer won't be firmed up for a weeks yet. Exactly why not is not known as we go to press.
Let's hope it doesn't turn out to be as confusing as Novembers free copy of the single game Carcassone.
First up, those sales figures, which we know are so beloved/hated by fan-people of all loyalties. Back in September Microsoft claimed 13.4 million consoles had found their ways into homes of gamers the world over. One SPOnGer got out his Xmas digital watch'n'calculator and managed to work out this means during September, October, November and December the company managed to shift another... 4.3 million Xbox 360s.
As comparison, Reuters quotes figures to mid-September 2007 for Nintendo Wii 13.2 million, while Sony's PS3 is said to have sold 5.6 million PS3 worldwide.
Now, aside from it being the 'The Holidays' season, we also saw Halo 3 doubling hardware sales in the UK in September, Bioware's Mass Effect also made its entrance, and the Xbox Arcade courtesied in.
Right, that's the trumpet blowing, now for the grovelling. The Xbox Live gaming service appeared in pre-ghost-Scrooge form over the 'The Holidays' period with connection problems forcing Xbox-owning to talk to their parents or... grand-parents instead of fragging their BFFs.
Xbox Live General Manager Mark Whitten has explained that "While the service was not completely offline at any given time, we are disappointed in our performance."
To show just how disappointed he is, Mark has announced that all Xbox Live members will be able to freely download one game over the service. Okay, he hasn't given any details... for example we don't know if this means the same game or a choice from a wide selection of games - or even a choice from all available games. It's also the case that the offer won't be firmed up for a weeks yet. Exactly why not is not known as we go to press.
Let's hope it doesn't turn out to be as confusing as Novembers free copy of the single game Carcassone.
Companies:
Microsoft
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Comments
SuperSaiyan4 4 Jan 2008 12:23
1/13
Wow I thought the Wii was leading the pack in sales but looks like Xbox 360 has hit number 1 again.
What gets me if the 360 was in the PS3's shoes on sales the PS3 fans would still be hating on the 360 saying its a pile of crap etc, even with the 360 being number 1 they are all hating on it saying all sorts of BS.
I am no fanboy, talking about a system that is good at what it does which is play GAMES and has loads of GAMES and online etc people think 'oh look stupid fanboy' well I dont think there is anything wrong in speaking the truth.
What gets me if the 360 was in the PS3's shoes on sales the PS3 fans would still be hating on the 360 saying its a pile of crap etc, even with the 360 being number 1 they are all hating on it saying all sorts of BS.
I am no fanboy, talking about a system that is good at what it does which is play GAMES and has loads of GAMES and online etc people think 'oh look stupid fanboy' well I dont think there is anything wrong in speaking the truth.
realvictory 4 Jan 2008 13:19
2/13
What I hate is that people act like the XBox 360 is the best thing on the planet, but they never have any justification for it (apart from sales figues, and Live, which don't count).
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king skins 4 Jan 2008 13:27
3/13
games?
There is a world outside the US and in that world the 360 is coming last 4 Jan 2008 14:42
4/13
The 5.6m PS3 sales were the official sold figures released in September, Since then sales have increased worldwide and it has now sold about 9m.
The 360 was actually the lowest selling console worldwide for the last few weeks. It sells more than the PS3 in the US but in Japan last week the PS3 outsold it 6:1 and in Europe it was outsold by the PS3 nearly 2:1. A lot of (very dumb) people seem to think the 360 is kicking the PS3's ass but the PS3 is actually catching it very quickly and will almost certainly overtake it in total sales within the next 18 months. You should remember that the PS3 sold over 100k more than the 360 last week in a period when the PS3 doesn't really have any of its big exclsuives out yet the 360 has games like Gears of War, Bioshock and Halo 3 boosting it.
Here are last weeks worldwide sales which should shut up the idiot 360 fanboys and put things into a more realistic perspective;
Japan
Wii - 352k
PS3 - 57k
360 - 7k
Europe
Wii - 284k
PS3 - 246k
360 - 142k
US
Wii - 325k
PS3 - 143k
360 - 188k
Total
Wii 962k
PS3 448k
360 337k
The 360 was actually the lowest selling console worldwide for the last few weeks. It sells more than the PS3 in the US but in Japan last week the PS3 outsold it 6:1 and in Europe it was outsold by the PS3 nearly 2:1. A lot of (very dumb) people seem to think the 360 is kicking the PS3's ass but the PS3 is actually catching it very quickly and will almost certainly overtake it in total sales within the next 18 months. You should remember that the PS3 sold over 100k more than the 360 last week in a period when the PS3 doesn't really have any of its big exclsuives out yet the 360 has games like Gears of War, Bioshock and Halo 3 boosting it.
Here are last weeks worldwide sales which should shut up the idiot 360 fanboys and put things into a more realistic perspective;
Japan
Wii - 352k
PS3 - 57k
360 - 7k
Europe
Wii - 284k
PS3 - 246k
360 - 142k
US
Wii - 325k
PS3 - 143k
360 - 188k
Total
Wii 962k
PS3 448k
360 337k
There is a world outside the US and in that world the 360 is coming last 4 Jan 2008 14:47
5/13
It should also be pointed out that in its first year the 360 shipped 10.3m units while it has only shipped 7.4m in its second year. You don't really need me to point out that represents a 30% drop in shipments in a period that should actually have shown an increase if things were going to plan.
vault 13 5 Jan 2008 20:11
6/13
I like arbitrary numbers.
PreciousRoi 5 Jan 2008 21:03
7/13
hah...yer a booby...
spudgun 6 Jan 2008 09:01
8/13
>I am no fanboy
You are.
>'oh look stupid fanboy'
Indeed.
You are.
>'oh look stupid fanboy'
Indeed.
vault 13 7 Jan 2008 05:49
9/13
That was poignant and very well stated. I couldn't of said it better if I tried.
PreciousRoi 7 Jan 2008 08:42
10/13
vault 13 wrote:
That was poignant and very well stated. I couldn't of said it better if I tried.
Not using "of" as a auxilliary verb you can't...
actually thats a misspelling of a compound contraction...couldn't've...
vault 13 7 Jan 2008 17:49
11/13
Touché.
deleted 7 Jan 2008 23:32
12/13
PreciousRoi wrote:
vault 13 wrote:
That was poignant and very well stated. I couldn't of said it better if I tried.
Not using "of" as a auxilliary verb you can't...
actually thats a misspelling of a compound contraction...couldn't've...
What You Talkin Bout Willis!
PreciousRoi 8 Jan 2008 00:48
13/13
Choo.