Support NeoGAF

[newjeruse]

Why is this constantly getting repeated? There is a trend in regards to digital sales and that is about 25%-30%. It isn't that large a factor. It's been said multiple times now.

I've got no horse in this race, but for most companies, 25-30% in any direction is generally a significant chunk.

 

[BokehKing]

Doesn't matter the console or the game (in my case). Digital sales are a big chunk now. I buy nearly every single game digitally, as do many on here.

I've even bought the last couple Wii U games I have digitally.....and my Vita games....and X1...and PC of course.

Digital sales should be considered a major part of statistics now. We're just going to toss them?

We had no problem tossing them up until this point? Does this mean every thread about sales will now say (digital sales not included)

It seems like a extra big deal is being made because it's halo
I buy 100% digital
When I exchanged my halo LE console for the holiday bundle I was kind of pissed that gears and rare replay where physical copies

But I know that me being digital only is minority only at this point

 

[MisterR]

I don't think there's anything necessarily wrong with setting up one studio to manage a property.

I can't imagine working at one myself. Just constantly doing one thing over and over...even though there's tremendous variety within series and someone can move from one job to another to learn more...but there is obviously an appeal to people managing a brand long term. Look at Bungle with destiny or Polyphony with gran turismo.

I don't think it's burnout necessarily, I just think overall the market is more diverse and needs are better met elsewhere for some people in mobile, Facebook, Etc. People talk about these as only affecting handheld or console sales but it will obviously affect core games as well.

Question would be why Facebook, mobile, Etc didn't seem to effect new IP's like Titanfall and Destiny as much. One would expect a new Halo to significantly outsell those new IP's on xbox, but it really didn't in the UK anyway.

 

[Diprosalic]

vg chartz numbers

really?
shame if true, i assumed forbes would be better than that.

 

[Interfectum]

I've got no horse in this race, but for most companies, 25-30% in any direction is generally a significant chunk.

Sure but even at 30% the thread title would still be accurate.

 

[idlewild_]

this forbes article has it at 6

http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2015/03/16/bloodborne-may-be-the-ps4s-salvation-in-2015/

Those numbers are suspiciously close to a certain site; we also know the series is at 21MM+ sold as of June.

 

[prwxv3]

I've got no horse in this race, but for most companies, 25-30% in any direction is generally a significant chunk.

If 30 percent was real for H5 it would still be the lowest entry

 

[cheesekao]

this forbes article has it at 6

http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2015/03/16/bloodborne-may-be-the-ps4s-salvation-in-2015/

Those are chartz numbers m8.

 

[stryke]

really?
shame if true, i assumed forbes would be better than that.

It's written by a contributer who doesn't know any better.

 

[Fox Mulder]

I'm not too surprised. Halo 4 soured a lot of people on the franchise, including me, and MCC was an unmitigated train wreck. Even if I had an Xbox One I'd have skipped this too.

plus some big design choices by 343 for halo 5 have finally turned me off of the franchise. Halo got me to buy the first xbox in 2001, now it isn't for me.

 

[Diprosalic]

It's written by a contributer who doesn't know any better.

learned my lesson, may the banhammer strike me fiercely

 

[Calabi]

So according to anecdotal evidence this is the best selling digital title ever?

 

[meanspartan]

I have to wonder if it would have been better served releasing in the summer.

No breathin room right now, good luck building momentum with CoD and Battlefront out soon.

 

[digoutyoursoul]

I think Microsoft's problem is that when something it big they keep releasing something every year (on top of that broken/disappointing products), Halo 5 was the best response to MCC in that it worked and was great (imo) but Halo Wars 2 next year... what in 2017? Then presumably Halo 6 in 2018... it ends up being too much.

I dont particularly want to get into a "MS does this, Sony does this" scenario because it seems like a silly argument but its not like Sony have studios work on franchises for long periods of time. I don't see a big issue with having a Halo or Gears studios personally, they have plenty of other new IPs coming, the problem is the constant flow of titles in that time, Fable is also guilty of that although Lionhead were on a new IP, we haven't seen it yet, though.

The only reason I brought Sony into it is Naughty Dog is one of Sony's biggest studios like 343 for MS. 343 has some talented people and I think something new could be interesting. I admit I'm looking at this thread as a Xbox fan more than a Halo fan, I find the series to be monotonous personally and whenever they announce a new entry it doesn't do anything for me.

I know they have new IP coming but I would like their own big studios to do more of it too instead of working with third party in a lot of cases. Sea of Thieves from Rare is a good start. The Tomb Raider also irks me along with Aaron Greenbergs comments about it but that's for another thread.

 

[Y2Kev]

I changed the title. I think it's just a statement of fact now!

 

[CelticVegas]

Ehy ehy ehy i have all of my 3 friends playing halo 5 right now.

... I'm i doing this right?

 

[SMOK3Y]

Lets add up the friend list numbers for digital.

So, so far:


We're at 44% digital.

We all know financial reports are just PR talk. We do the math to reveal the true split.

I was actually trying to counter your point not add to it 😊

 

[NeloAnjelo]

Wonder what this means for the US, if anything? Really shocked at the UK numbers, given that MS does have a good install base here with the XBONE and Halo was a mainstay for many here.

I have seen some ads, but not much, but to be honest most people are talking about Fallout 4 and BattleFront. Maybe being so close to Novemeber hurt it a bit, as many people will want to buy Fallout soon? I dont know, looking for some kind of logical explanation here. Dread to think how Tomb Raider will perform, coming on the same day as Fallout.

 

[Mikey Jr.]

So according to anecdotal evidence this is the best selling digital title ever?

I wouldn't be surprised if digital is 90%.

 

[RichiRamjag]

I've got no horse in this race, but for most companies, 25-30% in any direction is generally a significant chunk.

Not enough to change the original statement of the thread.

 

[Shiggy]

Where are these digital numbers from? Are people taking those out of their asses or do they have any factual basis?

 

[FunkyPajamas]

I changed the title. I think it's just a statement of fact now!

The famous NeoGAF Microsoft bias at work again. How do you sleep at night with all those hats made of money?

 

[Andodalf]

Lets add up the friend list numbers for digital.

So, so far:


We're at 44% digital.

We all know financial reports are just PR talk. We do the math to reveal the true split.

And I'm 1/1 with my friends! 100%

 

[Thebeardofknowledge]

So lemme get this straight... If I:

-ignore digital 100% of the digital sales
-Don't count certain games as part of the franchise history, even though you use the words, "franchise history"
-use incomplete data
-ignore other games in the franchise because reasons

Yeah, seems totally legit. Excellent set-up for a niche thread.

 

[cheesekao]

Where are these digital numbers from? Are people taking those out of their asses or do they have any factual basis?

Read the thread. It's hilarious.

 

[leeh]

I was actually trying to counter your point not add to it ��

I'm just running with it, the friend list comment seemed to be a corker.

I'd actually love to know the true split for this digital/physical. I personally guess or 'analyse' as Patcher loves to call it, that there would be a higher digital split on a games release due to pre-loading and then more sales coming through physical later in the games release due to sales and offers etc.

I'd predict the first week split would be around 40-50%. Then drop to the 20%-30% as mentioned in here.

And I'm 1/1 with my friends! 100%

Update: 12/26 (Digital/Total Sales)
We're at 46%!

 

[maxiell]

In the future, they need to stay away from Black Ops.

 

[RedNumberFive]

GOW Judgment was middling at best, but perhaps absence does make the heart grow fonder. The MCC may have screwed H5 in the end.

Agreed. I'm just getting quickly burnt out on these franchises. Halo, Assassin's Creed, Gears, God of War, and these days just open world games in general. I think I have it in me for one more Uncharted, but even that has reached a tipping point for me.

 

[Chobel]

For me personally, I think the attach rate for digital would be higher for Halo than what most other AAA games do. Nothing to back this up apart from anecdotal evidence of how many of my friends went retail and how many went digital.

Tomorrow should be interesting, press release incoming no doubt.

LOL! What's funny is that your friends habits for buying games shouldn't change much no matter the title, so the attach rate of digital for Halo will be the same as the other AAA titles.

 

[Diprosalic]

Dread to think how Tomb Raider will perform, coming on the same day as Fallout.

Yeah, TR is in real danger here, no good bundle, shitty sales day, no strong european fan base to help out.

 

[watership]

he was talking about games in general not just halo games; so he's right

Huh? He starlight up said that it was not that good of a game.

 

[IvorB]

These friend list statisticians are really cracking me up ha ha!

 

[Dunlop]

I changed the title. I think it's just a statement of fact now!

Unless the game was never on sale in the UK, in which case you are spreading the lie

 

[newjeruse]

If 30 percent was real for H5 it would still be the lowest entry

Not arguing that. The game did poorly compared to previous mainline entries.

 

[Kysen]

Wow PAL threads never get this much attention on GAF. This is a first.

 

[shandy706]

There's a difference between "nothing but guesswork" and reasonably informed estimations. We might not have ALL data, but we have enough to understand.

I don't usually take part in many of the sales (NPD) threads, so maybe the rise in digital sales isn't what I would think it would be. I wouldn't have a clue on what the trend is, as I see others have stated 25-30%.

I figure it will eventually become a much bigger chunk as digital starts to push on physical.

Funnily enough, I bought Halo 5 physical as I don't tend to play the multiplayer for an extended time and will probably sell it off eventually. It's the first physical copy I bought in a long time.


Edit**

Microsoft never mentions digital sales do they? I'm out of the loop on that. We might see them do it for once if not..lol.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

The only reason I brought Sony into it is Naughty Dog is one of Sony's biggest studios like 343 for MS. 343 has some talented people and I think something new could be interesting. I admit I'm looking at this thread as a Xbox fan more than a Halo fan, I find the series to be monotonous personally and whenever they announce a new entry it doesn't do anything for me.

PS3 era Naughty Dog was comparable to Xbox era Bungie in their significance to their console and their parent company. Bungie made three excellent Halo games and then wanted to break away and do something else, so MS (commendably) lets them go and immediately sets up another studio to make Halo games. Naughty Dog made a good game and followed that up with an excellent one, and Sony allowed the studio to split in two and make something new rather than risk members of the studio leave. I can only wonder how things might have been different for Bungie and MS had MS given them more creative freedom and allowed them to make something different after or alongside Halo 3.

 

[operon]

People are underestimating digital sales, with game sharing a lot of people are buying games digitally as you can share the cost this way

 

[Loris146]

I don't usually take part in many of the sales (NPD) threads, so maybe the rise in digital sales isn't what I would think it would be. I wouldn't have a clue on what the trend is, as I see others have stated 25-30%.

I figure it will eventually become a much bigger chunk as digital starts to push on physical.

Funnily enough, I bought Halo 5 physical as I don't tend to play the multiplayer for an extended time and will probably sell it off eventually. It's the first physical copy I bought in a long time.

These are optimistic estimates .

 

[Computer]

I don't care if it sold well. The game is some of the best multiplayer I have ever played and match making is very fast. I have not been sleeping well since its launch. Many people probably held off to see how everything goes because of the MCC. Well I can tell you that it is safe to jump in the water is fine.

 

[jimbobsmells]

What if everyone posting about their friends list are actually all on each other's friends list so they're just all talking about the same instance of anecdotal evidence

What a twist!

 

[Caja 117]

These friend list statisticians are really cracking me up ha ha!

I just think those that have in the Friend list Halo player of old, probably have more friends with Digital, I have more friends playing Halo 5 Digitally, but, I dont think new comers to the series or people that were concern on how this game was going to release based on MCC bought the game Digital, so, even as a die hard Halo fan, I doubt Halo 5 went out of the average for Digital and Halo 5 should also be sitting at 20%-25% in digital sales, based on Ass Creed United numbers I think both series suffered a lot from last year release problems.,

 

[leeh]

People are underestimating digital sales, with game sharing a lot of people are buying games digitally as you can share the cost this way

You have got to remember that all sales done that way are literally 1 sale per 2 people though. The digital/physical split is shafted because of that, in that sense. I wonder if enough people do that to actually make a large impact to that number?

All my friend list game share, so everyone must do!

I'd also argue that most people who know about this also know about buying from foreign stores in the UK to make it cheaper which means it doesn't get included in the number above.

Thinking about it, there's so many variables which fuck up the number in the OP.

 

[Bolivar687]

Are the install base comparisons speaking only to the UK? I thought XB1 isn't as entrenched as 360 was.

If WW it's the worst selling Halo, then I think this, along with CoD having peaked in 2011, heralds the softening of the choke hold FPS has had on the industry coming off of the last generation.

 

[GHG]

After reading this thread I have a feeling that I'll turn my Xbox one on later and find myself deleted from everyone's friends lists because I didn't buy halo and will therefore negatively effect their statistics.

 

[igordennis]

So assuming these numbers are even true, we are using the UK alone to sum up Halo 5's overall sales performance? Don't stop being predictable guys.

Dont stop being predictable as well. Had to throw that doubt there didnt you?

Another terribly titled XB1 thread. Everyone on my friends list is playing it and no one I know in real life buys hard copies of games anymore.

Lol

How is anecdotal evidence still brought up in sales threads? Your anecdotal evidence is literally (in every sense of the word) meaningless.

 

[TharpDaddy]

Curious to see if MS will put out official numbers.

Wow PAL threads never get this much attention on GAF. This is a first.

The console war economy

 

[operon]

You have got to remember that all sales done that way are literally 1 sale per 2 people though. So even though your catering for a large amount of people, the digital/physical split is shafted because of it.

I'd also argue that most people who know about this also know about buying from foreign stores in the UK.

Buying from foreign stores is definetly big

 

[digoutyoursoul]

PS3 era Naughty Dog was comparable to Xbox era Bungie in their significance to their console and their parent company. Bungie made three excellent Halo games and then wanted to break away and do something else, so MS (commendably) lets them go and immediately sets up another studio to make Halo games. Naughty Dog made a good game and followed that up with an excellent one, and Sony allowed the studio to split in two and make something new rather than risk members of the studio leave. I can only wonder how things might have been different for Bungie and MS had MS given them more creative freedom and allowed them to make something different after or alongside Halo 3.

Destiny?

 

[Boke1879]

People are underestimating digital sales, with game sharing a lot of people are buying games digitally as you can share the cost this way

Why is this argument being used exclusively for Halo 5 now that retail sales in the UK have disappointed?

Sure the game sold digitally but some are acting as if it's making up the bulk of sales. Going by trends even if it did 20% its still at least the 2nd worst opening for a Halo game in the UK.