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[Good Guy Gone Bad]

Glad you are up to date now.

I’m up to date now since I now realize it is available digitally on all platforms. So even if it sold well on eShop, it could have easily sold well on PSN and XBLM.

As it stands, retail sales are the same as a legacy console released over a decade ago, which is extremely underwhelming.

 

[Bazry]

I said high street, not supermarkets. Argos and GAME have them available in the majority of stores.

Argos didn't even have a listing for it on Friday, I know because I wanted to buy it due to Amazon not sending mine out until Friday, meaning it was going to my works address Saturday, so I was going to send that one back

 

[Floody]

Seems really bad to me. Dunno, maybe I was blinded by a proper(ish) handheld FIFA too much, but I was expecting it to at least have around 10%. Though if stock is actually an issue, it's most likely done better than EA expected at least.

Seems the PS4 marketing deal paid off for Sony too. Isn't FIFA usually not far off 50/50?

 

[Zedark]

i'm just gonna go ahead and say that "fifa on-the-go" will never be big. its just not what fifa players want/care about and i'm saying this as a reformed heavy fifa player (i stopped caring around fifa 15).

That's fine as far as personal belief goes, but I feel the exact opposite as a heavy fifa player who retired after fifa 15: portable fifa made the game much more attractive, as I can squeeze a matching at many more moments than with my PS4. We'll see if it becomes a thing (UK sales aren't the end-all-be-all), I guess.

 

[Mr Swine]

Ouch, I guess EA will abandoned Switch like they did with Wii U? Not good that Switch sales are only 1% or the total sales

 

[Bazry]

Seems really bad to me. Dunno, maybe I was blinded by a proper(ish) handheld FIFA too much, but I was expecting it to at least have around 10%. Though if stock is actually an issue, it's most likely done better than EA expected at least.

Seems the PS4 marketing deal paid off for Sony too. Isn't FIFA usually not far off 50/50?

10%, seriously? I bet if every Switch owner in the UK bought a copy of it, it still wouldn't be 10%

 

[Ninja Dom]

How many Switches are there in the UK? Far less than the install base of the others for sure.

Either way, I'm thinking about picking it up myself but not for that price.

Same £55 is too much for me. I was hoping some of the supermarkets would have it for around £30. But no joy.

Ouch, I guess EA will abandoned Switch like they did with Wii U? Not good that Switch sales are only 1% or the total sales

It is Monday and the game only came out on Friday.

 

[fortunato]

Seems really bad to me. Dunno, maybe I was blinded by a proper(ish) handheld FIFA too much, but I was expecting it to at least have around 10%. Though if stock is actually an issue, it's most likely done better than EA expected at least.

Seems the PS4 marketing deal paid off for Sony too. Isn't FIFA usually not far off 50/50?

You were expecting Switch version selling >100.000 copies on a <400.000 installed base...? Really? Why?

 

[gtj1092]

You should stop writing things like are facts.

First, we don't have numbers but only rankings across some store chains. Second, FIFA debuted at 10k units at PS4 launch, while the second PS4 FIFA did only 17k units FW. And it grew.

Did you forget that PS4 is consider a niche console in Japan and FIFA on switch is on the hottest console in Japan and is launching to a much bigger userbase than the original FIFA on PS4.

 

[Jimmyfenix]

What is the estimate of sales for switch version

7 to 10k?

 

[AllGamer]

Ouch, I guess EA will abandoned Switch like they did with Wii U? Not good that Switch sales are only 1% or the total sales

Why abandon it when they could just update the kits and roster and release a Fifa 19 Legacy Edition

 

[ArchedThunder]

So did they undership or not? I see a lot of people saying they were unable to buy it.

 

[brawly]

It is Monday and the game only came out on Friday.

The PS4/XBO sales aren't gonna stop either though, so it may very well stay at 1%. Whether the actual numbers satisfy EA is another question.

 

[fortunato]

Did you forget that PS4 is consider a niche console in Japan and FIFA on switch is on the hottest console in Japan and is launching to a much bigger userbase than the original FIFA on PS4.

It doesn't matter for two reasons:

1. Also in Japan, FIFA has a history on Sony platforms. The franchise was selling respectable numbers on PS3 as well, and it never missed a year on that platform.
2. Sony audience is more skewed towards the target that is more likely to buy a football simulation game. As I previously said, niche mainly refers to the type of audience, not the mere installed base.

Also, Switch has much more software competition in its first year with respect to PS4 in its first year. The debut might be low, but what is important is how the game will perform over time and the YOY growth (if any).

 

[gundamkyoukai]

I also think EA hoping the games has legs .
Because if they only sell small amount for the whole of EU they not going to be to happy IMO.

 

[Floody]

You were expecting Switch version selling >100.000 copies on a <400.000 installed base...? Really? Why?

Because it's a mostly up to date handheld FIFA. I said as much in my post.

Worst case I was expecting 20K-30K. But possibly sub 10K is terrible imo, only hope is EA massively underestimated it's potential.

 

[TsuWave]

Generalizing your own world view is not how sales work. Im having a great time playing single joy con multiplayer at the office. If I would generalize this to sales and popularity then FIFA would a gigantic success. The truth is somewhwre in the middle. You will have people that care and people that wont care. Topping the Nintendo Switch chart first week is probably the best metric to look at for the moment.

this is a whole lot of nothing tbh. my opinion is fifa on the go will never be big, and i believe i know enough about the franchise and its core fanbase to make that statement, however, i don't discount the possibility of being proven wrong in the future, though as it evident i don't believe things will change considerably moving forward. as it stands, no one can convince me that 1% of physical copies sold is good/decent/or "somewhere in the middle", and before the "constrained release/amazon stock/"success is relative to expectations" replies, what's understood ain't gotta be explained. my opinion will not change.

That's fine as far as personal belief goes, but I feel the exact opposite as a heavy fifa player who retired after fifa 15: portable fifa made the game much more attractive, as I can squeeze a matching at many more moments than with my PS4. We'll see if it becomes a thing (UK sales aren't the end-all-be-all), I guess.

yeah, exactly. that's just my personal belief. i see you as like the outlier of outliers (if that makes sense).

 

[wapplew]

Ouch, I guess EA will abandoned Switch like they did with Wii U? Not good that Switch sales are only 1% or the total sales

They won't ditch Switch Fifa engine just for one game. Even Fifa for vita get 3 more follow up.

 

[fortunato]

Because it's a mostly up to date handheld FIFA. I said as much in my post.

Worst case I was expecting 20K-30K. But possibly sub 10K is terrible imo, only hope is EA massively underestimated it's potential.

20K-30K would be 2-3%. Would this have really changed something in how people interpret the numbers?

What it matters is whether FIFA for Switch can sell well over time. It's a new console with a building userbase. FIFA 18 for Switch can end up selling respectable numbers over time even with a low debut.

 

[Jimmyfenix]

I don't know why people think ea will drop support. Fifa 19 switch will happen. They have another platform to release a legacy version now.

 

[fabricated backlash]

It's dead Jim.

 

[MilkyJoe]

How is switch doing in the UK overall?

It's been readily available for a good while now.

Got this code for gamesseek if anyone wants it

FROM 5pm WED 4th OCT
Nintendo Switch (Neon) - only £258.50
Save £21.49 on RRP
To be eligible for a £258.50 Switch, simply use the code "GameSeekWeekSwitch" at the checkout which will knock £21.49 off the price when the deal goes live on Wednesday at 5pm.

 

[OrbitalBeard]

Ouch, I guess EA will abandoned Switch like they did with Wii U? Not good that Switch sales are only 1% or the total sales

They won't abandon the Switch. It's too successful for them to ignore. It's unlikely to be a high priority console for the company, but they'll continue to release software for it.

 

[Kazuma Kiryu]

I don't know why people think ea will drop support. Fifa 19 switch will happen. They have another platform to release a legacy version now.

Pretty much this. Keep releasing FIFA legacy on PS3/360/Switch = easy pocket change.

 

[BlackBuzzard]

Thats a bomba.

 

[Bazry]

GAME just retweeted this

https://twitter.com/GAMEBluewater/status/914426030143754242

Not a Switch version in sight

EDIT: ignore clearly there

 

[eFKac]

It's dead Jim.

That's such a negative word man. EA calls it "Legacy".

 

[Floody]

20K-30K would be 2-3%. Would this have really changed something in how people interpret the numbers?

What it matters is whether FIFA for Switch can sell well over time. It's a new console with a building userbase. FIFA 18 for Switch can end up selling respectable numbers over time even with a low debut.

The percentage would still look bad, but that's about it. Again that was like my worst case scenario too. I thought it'd be pushing a 100k. I feel pretty silly even.

I agree with the second part though, it's not the final nail or anything. Just way off what I was expecting. EA would be stupid to completely write the Switch off after this, especially if they undershipped it.

 

[NHale]

I guess nowadays a gamechanger is something that sells 1% of the overall product sales, considering how convinced some people on GAF was that portability would change how FIFA would be played from now on, to the point where Microsoft and Sony would have to adapt to keep their FIFA golden egg.

As always reality is a harsh mistress for some.

Ouch, I guess EA will abandoned Switch like they did with Wii U? Not good that Switch sales are only 1% or the total sales

Why would they do that when they already have built an engine designed for the Switch hardware? They can keep just updating the rosters every year, introduce some of the missing FUT features + ability to play online with friends and call it FIFA 19.

Of course they also now have a reason to tell shareholders for not trying to make big improvements to next year game... but they would be dumb to not just keep cashing on semi-legacy Switch editions.

 

[AusRoachman]

Knowing how ea treats it’s nintendo customers they probably only shipped a 100 copies.

 

[Maxrunner]

Thats a bomba.

More like that's a bomba with no supply because EA doesn't really bother...

 

[fabricated backlash]

They won't abandon the Switch. It's too successful for them to ignore. It's unlikely to be a high priority console for the company, but they'll continue to release software for it.

If there's another FIFA it will be this game with updated roster.
Personally I think this was it though.

 

[Shiggy]

GAME just retweeted this

https://twitter.com/GAMEBluewater/status/914426030143754242

Not a Switch version in sight

?

 

[ArchedThunder]

GAME just retweeted this

https://twitter.com/GAMEBluewater/status/914426030143754242

Not a Switch version in sight

I've seen a couple posts that talk about how it wasn't readily available for purchase but they are all being drown out by people talking about how this is a failure.
To me it seems like the game didn't flop, EA just massively undershipped.

 

[OrbitalBeard]

If there's another FIFA it will be this game with updated roster.
Personally I think this was it though.

If Switch has a great holiday, EA will not stop releasing software on the system.

Will it receive even a fraction of support the other platforms get? Of course not, but that was never going to happen.

 

[fortunato]

The percentage would still look bad, but that's about it. Again that was like my worst case scenario too. I thought it'd be pushing a 100k, feel pretty silly even.

I agree with the second part though, it's not the final nail or anything. Just way off what I was expecting. EA would be stupid to completely write the Switch off after this, especially if they undershipped it.

I expected a slow start given the fact that FIFA has a history on Sony and Microsoft platforms, which have a huge installed base compared to Switch.

Attracting consumers is hard: FIFA for Switch should have stolen consumers from PS4 and Xbox One (very difficult) or attracted new ones. I think it can do both in the long-run but do new FIFA players even exist? The game is so huge in UK that it's hard to think someone will come out in 2017 saying "Oh, I wanna try this game for the first time". I can see this scenario more likely in the US, where FIFA gained popularity only recently.

 

[OfficerRaichu15]

People EA didn’t ship a lot. Let’s wait and see how the stock does over the next few weeks and the holidays.
I admit this total for first week is horrendous though

 

[Maxrunner]

I've seen a couple posts that talk about how it wasn't readily available for purchase but they are all being drown out by people talking about how this is a failure.
To me it seems like the game didn't flop, EA just massively undershipped.

EA doesn't care, they never did. I mean the game is missing content from the other versions just because...

 

[+Aliken+]

What is the Switch market share in the UK?

 

[fabricated backlash]

If Switch has a great holiday, EA will not stop releasing software on the system.

Watch them. What good is it to them if switch does well, but their game isn't.

 

[Bazry]

?

Apologies until I blown it up looked like the 360 version on the left

 

[xandaca]

A little surprised considering the Switch version was actually advertised over here, but not entirely surprised because Sony is king in the UK and I don't think Switch sales over here have been particularly exceptional (better than, say, the Wii U by a distance, but not relative to more Nintendo-friendly countries). I'd have expected around 5%, maybe, it'll be interesting to see EA's reaction depending on how the game does elsewhere.

 

[NHale]

People EA didn’t ship a lot. Let’s wait and see how the stock does over the next few weeks and the holidays.
I admit this total for first week is horrendous though

If EA didn't ship a lot of copies is because preorders were very low. Persona 5 was also out of stock in most UK retailers after release but that doesn't mean the game would have sold 100K if Atlus had shipped 100K to stores. Also EA can't force retailers to accept what they want to ship, it's the retailers that make that decision and ask for copies allocation based on preorders numbers. If FIFA 18 Switch preorders were low, of course stock on release date would be low as well especially at places like GAME considering their previous finantial issues.

 

[LukasTaves]

Maybe put this in the OP for context. 1% of total sales is still #7 on individual SKUs.

In a market that is selling 250k a week (at least did last week) that's not saying much as anything that wasn't in the top 5 likely could barely managed to get past 10k sales.

 

[OrbitalBeard]

Watch them. What good is it to them if switch does well, but their game isn't.

If EA is disappointed in these numbers and they do not improve throughout the holidays, they'll likely offer the system limited support moving forward, but they won't drop support, unless the system stops selling.

 

[Chinner]

Not impressive, but doesn't really mean anything without knowing the budget and EA's internal projections.

 

[OfficerRaichu15]

If EA didn't ship a lot of copies is because preorders were very low. Persona 5 was also out of stock in most UK retailers after release but that doesn't mean the game would have sold 100K if Atlus had shipped 100K to stores. Also EA can't force retailers to accept what they want to ship, it's the retailers that make that decision and ask for copies allocation based on preorders numbers. If FIFA 18 Switch preorders were low, of course stock on release date would be low as well especially at places like GAME considering their previous finantial issues.

Your also comparing one of the biggest franchises on the planet to a rising rpg. We will see, not looking good though.

 

[Floody]

I expected a slow start given the fact that FIFA has a history on Sony and Microsoft platforms, which have a huge installed base compared to Switch. Attracting consumers is hard: FIFa should have stolen consumers from PS4 and Xbox One (very difficult) or attract new ones. I think it can do both in the long-run but do new FIFA players even exist? The game is so huge in UK that it's hard to think someone will come out in 2017 saying "Oh, I wanna try this game for the first time". I can see this scenario more likely in the US, where FIFA gained popularity only recently.

My logic was, because FIFA is so big, it'd be more a case of people who already play every FIFA and already have a Switch, just opting for that version or double dipping (which is definitely still possible) instead.
My big fuck up was not realizing most play FIFA with their friends and it's extremely unlikely most would buy a Switch for FIFA, when they've played the last 5 (or whatever) on their PS4 or XB1, so the Switch guy stays with them instead. I do think it'll have good legs.

 

[Waluigilicious]

How did FIFA 13 on the Wii U do?

 

[The Last One]

Damn, that seens horrible.