Comgnet 11/30

NSMB Wii- 884 (+55). NSMB DS was at 541, +60


ToG- 294 (+2)

SW3- 75, 48 for 123 (no change)

Kamen Riders- 53 (+5)

Comnget 11/29

NSMB Wii- 829 (+117) NSMB DS was at 481, +72

ToG- 292 (+13)

SW3- 76, 47 for 123 (+7)

Kamen Riders- (+7)

FF13- 1565


Weekly Orders

Layton with 625

Momotaro with 64

Taiko software version with 33

Comgnet 11/28

NSMB Wii 712 (+94) NSMB DS was at 409 (+66)

ToG 279 (+11)

SW3- 74, 43, 117 (+9)

Kamen Riders enters at 41

Comgnet 11/27

NSMB Wii 618 (+80). NSMB DS was at 343, +26

ToG 268 (+8)

SW3- 70 and 38, for 108 (+6)

Famitsu Software 11/16-11/22

01 . [NDS] Friend Collection (Nintendo) - 59.000 / 1.641.000
02 . [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 42.000 / 894.000
03 . [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon Co.) - 40.000 / 2.985.000
04 . [WII] Taiko Drum Master Wii: Dodon to 2 Yome! (Namco Bandai) - 29.000 / 29.000
05 . [360] Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts Victor) - 28.000 / 28.000
06 . [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Threat of the Invaders - Fire / Blizzard (Level 5) - 27.000 / 634.000
07 . [NDS] Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Nintendo) - 26.000 / 26.000
08 . [PSP] J-League Pro Soccer Club! 6: Pride of J (Sega) - 23.000 / 113.000
09 . [PS3] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 21.000 / 304.000
10 . [NDS] Doraemon Baseball 2: Nettou Ultra Stadium (Namco Bandai) - 19.000 / 19.000

11 . [PSP] Armored Core: Silent Line Portable (From Software) - 18.000 / 18.000
12 . [PS3] Dragon Ball: Raging Blast (Namco Bandai) - 17.000 / 81.000
13 . [PS3] Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time (SCE) - 15.000 / 15.000
14 . [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) - 11.000 / 1.340.000
15 . [WII] Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Nintendo) - 10.000 / 49.000
16 . [WII] Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers (Square Enix) - 8.800 / 44.000
17 . [NDS] 4 Warriors of Light: Final Fantasy Gaiden (Square Enix) - 8.700 / 171.000
18 . [NDS] Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Starry Sky (Square Enix) - 8.500 / 4.031.000
19 . [NDS] Mega Man Battle Network: Operation Shooting Star (Capcom) - 7.800 / 39.000
20 . [WII] Metal Fight Beyblade: Gachinko Stadium (Hudson) - 7.300 / 7.300
21 . [NDS] Tamagotchi no Narikiri Channel (Namco Bandai) - 7.200 / 28.000
22 . [PSP] Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (PSP the Best) (Capcom) - 6.700 / 1.079.000
23 . [PSP] Persona 3 Portable (Atlus Co.) - 6.000 / 170.000
24 . [PS3] Bayonetta (Sega) - 5.100 / 183.000
25 . [PSP] Hexyz Force (Atlus Co.) - 4.900 / 17.000
26 . [PS3] Tekken 6 (Namco Bandai) - 4.800 / 155.000
27 . [WII] Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo) - 4.500 / 2.364.000
28 . [NDS] New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo) - 4.300 / 5.569.000
29 . [PS3] Infamous (SCE) - 3.700 / 29.000
30 .

xx . [WII] Calling (Hudson) - 2.300 / 2.300
xx . [PSP] Minna no Navi (Zenrin) - 1.900 / 1.900
xx . [NDS] Moomon Tani no Okurimono (Sonic Powered) - 1.600 / 1.600
xx . [PSP] Jak and Daxter: The Last Frontier (SCE) - 1.100 / 1.100
xx . [NDS] Akogare Girls Collection: Lovely Youchien (Creative Core) - 1.100 / 1.100

Media Create 11/16-11/22

DSi LL 100,553
PS3 34,752
Wii 32,844
PSP 32,752
DSi 32,070
DS Lite 5,051
PSP go 4,574
Xbox 360 4,085
PS2 2,024

Comgnet 11/26

NSMB Wii with 538 (+73) NSMB DS was at 316

ToG 260 (+2)

SW3 at 66 for the standalone, 36 for the CC Pro for 102 total

Lepton 11/26 update

NSMB Wii 837 (+424)

ToG 565 (+103)

SW3- 164 standard, 99 for the CC Pro for 263 total (+65)

FF13 3434 (+397)


Releases

Layton with 504

Momotaro 2010 with 57

Comgnet 11/25

NSMB Wii with 465 (+43) (NSMB DS was at 289, +21)

ToG at 258 (+5)

SW3 at 64 for the standalone, presumed 30 for the CC Pro for 94 total

Comgnet 11/24

NSMB Wii 422 (+ 31)(NSMB DS was at 268 (+16) at the same point.

ToG- 253 (+6)


SW3- 61 for the standalone, presumed 30 for the CC Pro, 91 total

Comgnet 11/23

NSMB Wii 391 (+54). At this same point NSMB DS had 252

ToG 247 (+6)

SW3- 59 for the standalone, presumed 30 for the CC Pro, 89 total

Comgnet 11/22- NSMB Wii continues to rise

NSMB Wii- 337 (+58) (NSMB DS had 231 at this point)

ToG 241 (+11)

SW3- 57 for the standalone, presumed 30 for the CC Pro, for 87

FF13 up to 1351

For the week, Taiko Wii had 70 total orders.

Comgnet Historical Numbers

This website has detailed comgnet preorder data going back several years. Its a great resource.

Here are a few games and their preorder numbers upon release:

NSMB DS- 688

Tales of Vesperia- 483

ToRM2- 590

Tales of VS- 357

Tales of Hearts Anime edition- 236, CG version at least 35 but under 54

Tales of Symphonia KoR: 406

Resident Evil the Umbrella Chronicles- 67

Super Mario Galaxy- 201

Mario Kart Wii- 450

SSBB- 1217

Animal Crossing- 396 total

Dynasty Warriors 6- 381

Gundam Musou- 333


Gundam Musou 2- 283

Orochi Z- 159

RE5- 663

Yakuza 3- 635

Dragon Quest Swords- 300

Taiko Wii- 131

Pokemon GS Remake- 2298

MGS4- 678

MH3- 981

DQ9- 2917

Phantasy Star Portable- 303

Gundam vs. Gundam- 393

Comgnet 11/21- NSMB Wii explodes

NSMB Wii goes up to 279 preorders- a jump of 71 spots.

ToG goes up to 130.

SW standalone goes up to 55, CC Pro pack assumed at 30 for 85 total

11/20 Comgnet Update

ToG 224

NSMB Wii 208

SW3 54 standalone, presumed 30 for the CC pro, 84 total


Zelda enters at 32

Media Create 11/9-11/15

PSP 38,770
PS3 38,498
DSi 33,749
Wii 26,764
PSP go 6,427
DS Lite 5,036
Xbox 360 4,124
PS2 2,031

Comgnet 11/19

ToG 219

NSMB Wii 180

SW3- 53 for the standalone, assumed 30 for the CC Pro, 83 total.

Famitsu Software- 11/9-11/15

01. [PSP] J-League Pro Soccer Club wo Tsukurou! 6: Pride of J (Sega) - 90,000 / NEW
02. [PS3] Dragon Ball: Raging Blast (Bandai Namco Games) - 64,000 / NEW
03. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) - 63,000 / 1,581,000
04. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 54,000 / 852,000
05. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 49,000 / 2,945,000
06. [PS3]　World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 48,000 / 283,000
07. [WII] Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers (Square Enix) - 35,000 / NEW
08. [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Kyoui no Shinryakusha - Fire / Blizzard (Level 5) - 34,000 / 607,000
09. [NDS] Rockman EXE Operate Shooting Star (Capcom) - 31,000 / NEW
10. [Wii]　Mario & Sonic at Vancouver Olympics　(Nintendo) - 14,000 / 39,000


11. [PSP] Hexyz Force (Atlus) - 12,000 / NEW
12. [PSP] Persona 3 Portable (Atlus) - 12,000 / 164,000
13. [PSP] Lunar: Harmony of Silver Star (GungHo Works) - 12,000 / NEW
14. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) - 11,000 / 1,329,000
15. [PSP] Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Jan (AQ Interactive) - 10,000 / NEW
16. [PS3] Need For Speed: Shift (Electronic Arts) - 10,000 / NEW
17. [PS3] Bayonetta (Sega) - 10,000 / 178,000
18.
19. [PSP] Battle Spirits: Kiseki no Hasha (Bandai Namco Games) - 9,200 / NEW
20. [PS3] Tekken 6 (Bandai Namco Games) - 8,500 / 150,000

21. [NDS] Hikari no 4 Senshi: Final Fantasy Gaiden (Square Enix) - 8,300 / 163,000
22. [NDS] Dragon Quest IX: Hoshizora no Mamoribito (Square Enix) - 8,100 / 4,022,000
23. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (BEST) (Capcom) - 8,100 / 1,072,000
24. [PS3] inFAMOUS (SCE) - 7,800 / 25,000
25. [PSP] Sengoku Hime: Senran ni Mau Otometachi (SystemSoft Alpha) - 7,700 / NEW
26. [360] Dragon Ball: Raging Blast (Bandai Namco Games) - 6,900 / NEW
27. [NDS]　Summon Night X: Tears Crown (Bandai Namco Games) - 6,700 / 33,000
28. [PSP] Warship Gunner 2 Portable (Koei) - 6,700 / NEW
29. [PSP] Dissidia: Final Fantasy - Universal Tuning (Square Enix) - 5,300 / 42,000
30. [PS2] Sengoku Hime: Senran ni Mau Otometachi (SystemSoft Alpha) - 4,800 / NEW

__. [NDS] Uchi no 3 Shimai DS 2: 3 Shimai no Dekake Daisakusen (Culture Brain) - 2,500 / NEW
__. [PSP] Need For Speed: Shift (Electronic Arts) - 1,700 / NEW
__. [360] Need For Speed: Shift (Electronic Arts) - 1,500 / NEW
__. [360] Final Fantasy XI: Vana'diel Collection (Square Enix) - 830 / NEW
__. [PSP] Shaun White Snowboarding (UBI The Best) (Ubisoft) - 650 / NEW
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PSP - 40000
DSi - 33000
PS3 - 33000
Wii - 23000
go - 6600
360 - 4100
DSL - 2800
PS2 - 2500

Lepton 11/19

FF13 3037

ToG 462

NSMB Wii 413


SW3- 122 standard, 76 for the CC Pro for 198 total

Left For Dead 2 finished with 88

Taiko Wii did not chart

Comgnet 11/18

ToG 216

NSMB Wii 159

SW3- 53 for the standalone, assumed 30 for the CC Pro, 83 total.

Taiko Wii does not chart- last time I believe it had over a 100 preorders. Might be a low number next week.

Famitsu software predictions and Comgnet Comparison

First, updated Famitsu software predictions:

(Wii) New Super Mario Bros. : 1,03-1,29M / 2,50M or more
(PS3) Final Fantasy XIII : 1,01-1,36M / 1,00-1,50M
(DS) Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks : 320-430k / 720-880k
(DS) Layton 4 : 300-400k / 540-690k
(PSP) Kingdom Hearts : 240-330k / 450-580k
(PSP) MS Gundam vs. Gundam Next Plus : 230-320k / 320-400k
(PSP) Phantasy Star Portable 2 : 200-260k / 270-350k
(Wii) Tales of Graces : 200-260k / 230-290k
(DS) Power Pro Pocket 12 : 130-180k / 230-290k
(PSP) Winning Eleven 2010 : 110-160k / 180-230k
(DS) Fushigi no Dungeon 4 : 100-140k / 100-130k
(PSP) Valkyria Chronicles 2 : 100-130k / 160-200k
(???) End of Eternity : 100-140k / 110-140k
(Wii) RE Darkside Chronicles : 100-130k / 180-230k
(PS3) Call of Duty MW2 : 90-130k / 140-170k


Now Comgnet comparisons for NSMB Wii and FF13:


29 days to release:
Final Fantasy XII - 1865pt
Final Fantasy XIII - 1223pt

Release date:
Final Fantasy XII - 3510pt
Final Fantasy XIII - ?

15 days to release:
New Super Mario Bros. - 160pt
New Super Mario Bros. Wii - 120pt

Release date:
New Super Mario Bros. - 688pt
New Super Mario Bros. Wii - ?

Comgnet 11/17

ToG 211

NSMB Wii 134

SW3- standalone 51, presumed 30 for the CC Pro bundle, for 81.

Comgnet 11/16

ToG 207

NSMB Wii 120

SW3 50 for the standalone, assuming 30 for the pack, for 80.

Comgnet 11/15

ToG 206


NSMB Wii 103

SW3 49, presumed 30 for the CC Pro pack for 79 total

FF13 with 1203



Weekly Totals

J League 107

Dragon Ball PS3 167


Crystal Bearers with 32

Comgnet 11/14

ToG up to 193

NSMB Wii up to 79

SW3- 46, and assumedly 30 for the Pro pack for 76

Comgnet 11/13

ToG 191

NSMB Wii 61

SW3, 44 and 30 for 74 total.

Crystal Bearers bomba

27K first day.

Absolute bomb

Media Create 11/2-11/8

PS3 48,925
DSi 37,421
PSP 33,784
Wii 31,810
PSP go 13,992
DS Lite 5,515
Xbox 360 4,679
PS2 2,066

NPD October 2009

PlayStation 2 117.8K
PlayStation 3 320.6K
PSP 174.6K
Xbox 360 249.7K
Wii 506.9K
Nintendo DS 457.6K

UNCHARTED 2: AMONG THIEVES (PS3; Oct-09) 537,000
WII FIT PLUS* (WII; Oct-09) 441,000
BORDERLANDS (360; Oct-09) 418,000
WII SPORTS RESORT* (WII; Jul-09) 314,000
NBA 2K10* (360; Oct-09) 311,000
HALO 3: ODST (360; Sep-09) 271,000
NBA 2K10* (PS3; Oct-09) 213,000
FORZA MOTORSPORT 3 (360; Oct-09) 175,000
KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 DAYS (NDS; Sep-09) 169,000
FIFA SOCCER 10 (360; Oct-09) 156,000

(*includes CE, GOTY editions, bundles, etc. but not those bundled with hardware)

Comgnet 11/12

ToG up to 188

NSMB Wii up to 59

SW3 up to 43 and 30, for a total of 73.

Famitsu Software- 11/2-11/8

DSL　3.600
DSi　34.000
PSP　38.000
PSPgo　15.000
WII　24.000
PS3　43.000
PS2　2.300
360　4.000

01. [PS3] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 235.000 / 235.000
02. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 66.000 / 798.000
03. [NDS] Friend Collection (Nintendo) - 66.000 / 1.519.000
04. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon Co.) - 56.000 / 2.896.000
05. [PSP] Persona 3 Portable (Atlus Co.) - 44.000 / 152.000
06. [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Threat of the Invaders - Fire / Blizzard (Level 5) - 37.000 / 573.000
07. [NDS] 4 Warriors of Light: Final Fantasy Gaiden (Square Enix) - 35.000 / 155.000
08. [PS3] Bayonetta (Sega) - 29.000 / 168.000
09. [NDS] Summon Night X: Tears Crown (Namco Bandai) - 27.000 / 27.000
10. [WII] Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Nintendo) - 24.000 / 24.000
11. [PS3] Tekken 6 (Namco Bandai) - 21.000 / 142.000
12. [PS3] Infamous (SCE) - 17.000 / 17.000
13. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) - 17.000 / 1.318.000
14. [PSP] Dissidia: Final Fantasy - Universal Tuning (Square Enix) - 16.000 / 36.000
15. [360] Bayonetta (Sega) - 12.000 / 78.000
16. [PS3] 3D Dot Game Heroes (From Software) - 12.000 / 12.000
17. [NDS] Tamagotchi no Narikiri Channel (Namco Bandai) - 11.000 / 11.000
18. [360] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) - 9.100 / 9.100
19. [NDS] Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Starry Sky (Square Enix) - 8.900 / 4.014.000
20. [PSP] Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (PSP the Best) (Capcom) - 8.600 / 1.064.000
21.
22. [PSP] Dynasty Warriors 6: Special (Koei) - 6.600 / 43.000
23. [NDS] Rune Factory 3 (Marvelous Entertainment) - 6.400 / 54.000
24. [PSP] Gran Turismo: The Real Driving Simulation (SCE) - 5.600 / 228.000
25. [PSP] Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball Portable 4 (Konami) - 5.200 / 213.000
26. [PS3] Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (SCE) - 5.100 / 89.000
27. [WII] Monster Hunter 3 (Capcom) - 4.800 / 940.000
28. [NDS] Love Plus (Konami) - 4.800 / 157.000
29. [NDS] Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (CyberFront) - 4.600 / 15.000
30. [PS3] NBA Live 10 (Electronic Arts Victor) - 4.600 / 4.600
xx. [360] Tayutama: Kiss on my Deity (5pb.) - 4.200 / 4.200
xx. [360] Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade (Namco Bandai) - 3.300 / 3.300
xx. [PSP] NBA Live 10 (Electronic Arts Victor) - 2.900 / 2.900
xx. [NDS] Sakura Note: Imanitsu na Garu Mirai (Marvelous Entertainment) - 2.000 / 2.000
xx. [PS3] Colin McRae: Dirt 2 (Codemasters) - 1.800 / 1.800
xx. [PSP] Suikoden I + II (Konami the Best) (Konami) - 1.800 / 1.800
xx. [PSP] Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (Konami Dendou Selection) (Konami) - 1.600 / 1.600
xx. [360] Fallout 3 (Platinum Collection) (Bethesda Softworks) - 1.400 / 1.400
xx. [360] Colin McRae: Dirt 2 (Codemasters) - 790 / 790
xx. [NDS] Rika-Chan DS Motto! Onna no Ko Lesson: Oshare Oshigoto Otetsudai Daisuki! (Takara Tomy) - 520 / 520


Link


Of note, MH Tri returns and is well on its way to selling a millon units.

Lepton 11/12 Update

FF13 with 2705

ToG with 397

NSMB Wii with 244

SW3 with 88 for the standalone, 53 for the CC Pro pack for a total of 141.


For software releasing this week:

Dragonball PS3 with 225

J League with 210

Rockman with 65

Crystal Bearers ended up with 53 orders.

Comgnet 11/11

ToG with 186

NSMB Wii with 56

SW3 with 41 for the preorder,for 70 total

Dragon Ball PS3 ended up with 87

J League ended up with 84

Crystal Bearers Update

It is officially available on Amazon and is at #15. It barely charted on Lepton and is still not charting on Comgnet. SE's only hope is that it somehow catches on and displays some impressive legs, because it clearly will not have a strong opening.

Why the Wii has faltered in Japan and what Nintendo can do about it

The Wii has been successful in every region, selling unprecedented numbers of consoles, and in no region was it a hit faster than in Japan. The console was virtually sold out for almost a year and in contrast to the West has not yet had a viable console competitor. It seemed a matter of time before Wii would have PS2 level domination. Now, in late 2009, this has not been the case, and after the launch of the PS3 Slim the Wii’s dominance seems more tenuous than ever. Nintendo profits and hardware projections have dropped. Iwata admitted that Wii sales have stagnated. Where has Nintendo went wrong in its home country?


1. Lack of Strong Third Party Support


This is undoubtedly the most obvious factor, but still crucial when analyzing the Wii‘s troubles in Japan. Whether this is Nintendo’s fault or not, third parties have not given the Wii a steady stream of successful software since its launch in late 2006. Last year, 2008, Wii had three third party titles that sold more than 200,000 units- Tales of Symphonia Knights of Ratatousk, Deca Sports, and Taiko Wii (Joysound Karaoke reached that amount in early 2009). By contrast, for this holiday season, Wii arguably has five third party titles alone that could reach that number (Biohazard:Darkside Chronicles, Samurai Warriors 3, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Crystal Bearers, Taiko Wii 2, and Tales of Graces). Nintendo needed these titles, which can maintain momentum and attract a different type of consumer than the Wii Fit crowd, much later than Holiday 2009. This lineup in 2007 would have quickly established the Wii as a system that the PS2 owners could feel comfortable moving on to. Instead, coming now, this lineup is quite possibly too little too late.
After a respectable Holiday 2008 (approximately 415 thousands units sold in December according to Japanese tracker Media Create), the Wii fell swiftly to unheard of levels during the first half of 2009, flirting with ten thousand units solid weekly. The biggest third party release during that period, by far, was Monster Hunter G, an identical port to the PS2 game pushed out by Capcom to help build the audience for Monster Hunter Tri. Of course, Nintendo itself didn’t help matters with its biggest release prior to Wii Sports Resort being the GCN port Mario Tennis. That is the crux of the matter- possibly the Wii could have better maintained sales with a steadier stream of 3rd party titles despite their own substandard 1st half of 2009 lineup.
The other concern with the lack of strong third party support has been the inability to build a “core” gamer market that supports niche titles such as Arc Rise Fantasia, Fragile, Muramasa and others. This leads to a cycle where smaller titles under-perform leading publishers to refuse to devote more assets towards the platform. In many ways Nintendo and third parties flipped the usual pattern on its head- instead of releasing the big high profile titles first and providing a home for lesser titles, they released the lesser titles first, leading to a weak market for those niche titles. Because of this, for the most part, when third party games are released they do not do well, further exacerbating the perception of the Wii user base not being friendly towards third party games. By contrast, the PS3 has received many PS2 franchise entries that at this point have lead to friendlier eco system for more niche titles such as Demon’s Souls (first party published but third party developed), Bladestorm, Way of the Samurai, Rorona Alterier, and others.
This is not to just put the blame on Nintendo for whatever failings they exhibited by not lining up more significant third party support; All parties share the blame. Third parties absolutely expected the PS3 to dominate and planned many of its franchises accordingly. If you don’t build a market, the market won’t exist. On the other hand, Nintendo, with its vast war chest, undoubtedly could have been and still could be more aggressive in securing major third party franchises that help build a different audience. The only question is whether it is too late, with increasing competition from the PSP, DS, and the PS3. As previously stated, this holiday is the first period where there is a consistent stream of high profile third party software. However, there is currently not much announced for 2010, and if this holiday represents the high water mark for third party franchises on the system then the Wii is in serious trouble in its homeland, no matter what type of impact Nintendo’s first party franchises have.



2. Lack of RPG’s.


Nintendo has done a woeful job building an RPG market on the Wii. Despite having two first party studios who make RPG‘s, Monolith Soft and Intelligent Systems, after 3 years on the market Nintendo has released two- Fire Emblem and Super Paper Mario, which were both in 2007, and are not traditional JRPG‘s. Third party support hasn’t been much better aside from low profile projects like Arc Rise Fantasia and spinoffs like Dragon Quest Swords. In fact, the Wii’s first truly first rate high profile traditional RPG is only coming out this December, Tales of Graces. Square Enix, which has given the portables and the HD systems significant support, still has not given the Wii a high profile traditional RPG. Dragon Quest X is announced, but won’t be arriving for years. Crystal Bearers, which has received positive early impressions, is not a traditional RPG. Chocobo’s Dungeon is probably the closest, but even that genre (rogue like RPG) is relatively niche.

What could Nintendo do? First, increase their own RPG output. This may very well be going on behind the scenes, but it is a point that bears making. Second, and this may be easier said than done, get Square Enix on board with significant support. Dragon Quest 7 remake. More Final Fantasy. Companies follow the leader and the leader is Square Enix. There is no reason PS2 franchises that cannot afford to go HD should not come to Wii. Without legitimate RPG support, the Wii will never enjoy PS2 level success and may cede ground to the PS3, not to mention the handhelds.

3. Lack of consistency in controller output.

Another problem for Nintendo in trying to revitalize Japanese market is the lack of consistency as to what the Wii is supposed to represent to the public in terms of how you control the software. On one hand Nintendo released Wii Sports Resort with Motion Plus to much fanfare this summer and recently released the Balance Board supported Wii Fit Plus. On the other hand, Nintendo is pushing the traditional Classic Controller Pro with 3rd party titles such as Monster Hunter 3, Tales of Graces, Samurai Warriors 3, and even Winning Eleven 2010. Nintendo is essentially engaging in one marketing push towards the new motion based output and another push at the same time to capture the PS2/traditional gaming crowd.
Clearly Nintendo is trying to thread the needle and appeal to both the casual grandmother’s and the traditional teen market, but without a coherent strategy, this seems doomed to fail. If Nintendo really wants to push its machine as for everyone, they need to bundle every single Wii with a Motion Plus and a Classic Controller Pro and market Wii Sports Resort right along side Monster Hunter. That way, right out of the box, both markets have their controller and the parents can play their Wii Sports Resort while the teenager is already equipped to play Monster Hunter or Samurai Warriors. Right now, Nintendo’s marketing in Japan is disjointed and at odds with each other. The gamers who buy Monster Hunter probably aren’t buying Wii Fit Plus, and unless you at least tie the two outputs together in the SKU, The Wii marketing has no real continuity and the two competing messages can possibly harm each other.


4. Lack of continued support for peripherals

Related to the previous point, Nintendo has done a terrible job following through on initially successful peripherals. The Balance Board has an install base nearly equal to the PS3 and yet as of nearly two years after its release in Japan, there has been zero Nintendo games supporting the platform and two third party titles- the two We Ski titles from Namco. For a peripheral with as much success as the Balance Board, to have Nintendo and third parties essentially ignoring that success is inexplicable. Similarly, Wii Sports Resort/Motion Plus has been followed by one announced Nintendo game supporting Motion Plus, Span Smasher, and zero Japanese third party games. Contrast this to the situation in the U.S and across PAL territories where the device actually launched with third party software (EA’s Tiger Woods and Grand Slam Tennis), and a major third party game is launching exclusively with Motion Plus early next year (Ubisoft’s Red Steel 2).
This is a missed opportunity for Nintendo. The Wii sold for nearly a year after Wii Fit and the Balance Board launched, and that impact could have been even larger with immediate and strong support for the balance board. Motion Plus with just the promise of Wii Sports Resort is not going to give consumers confidence to invest in the peripherals. Consumers are more likely to invest in the system and the peripheral if they know it is going to be supported. This again speaks to confusion and the lack of a clear strategy for Nintendo in Japan. Nintendo has to communicate to its consumers what benefit’s the system brings, and the continued introduction of peripherals with no following software undermines the success and appeal of every new piece of white plastic introduced.




5. For core titles, lack of a differentiator



Finally, a fundamental problem with the Wii design is there is no real differentiating factor to spur developing of core games on the system. This is not to say that core games cannot succeed- the argument is that these games succeed based on their own merits, not on any inherent advantages to the Wii system. Compare the Wii to its competitors. The PS3 offers increased graphical capability. For developers and customers, this can be a draw. Compare the DS and PSP- both offer portability, a differentiator to the usual PS2 software. Now, looking at the Wii, it offers very little over the PS2 in terms of traditional, core games. Monster Hunter 3,Tales of Graces and Samurai Warriors 3 could easily have been done on the PS2. There is nothing besides a little bit of graphical capability that distinguishes the two systems. The only “core franchise games on Wii that take advantage of the systems controller is Dragon Quest Swords, the Biohazard Chronicles series, and the upcoming Crystal Bearers. This incongruence makes it less likely for developers to commit to the system and less likely for PS2 games to make the jump to the Wii.

One partial solution is for developers to utilize the pointer functionality, which could provide some interesting mechanics for RPG’s and action games. However, one potential issue is that when you try a different controller output you risk alienating the reliable, core audience. Take Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles the Crystal Bearers; The game uses the pointer technology and from all accounts is not an RPG at all, but rather is being pushed as a pure adventure game. Square Enix is apparently trying to tap into the more casual part of the Wii user base. However, there is a risk- if the title fails to catch on with the casual crowd, the title could flop. It appears (based on lack of retailer preorders), that the traditional RPG and Crystal Chronicles audience is not on board. This illustrates the danger to third parties; if you create a core game that does not use anything unique about the Wii, your software might have a ceiling and sales might not be maximized. On the other hand, if you do use the Wii’s strengths, you risk alienating that core group and not selling at all. There is no easy answer to this issue as it is inherent in the actual design of the Wii hardware. However, this issue can be minimized by solid marketing and fostering of third party relations.


Conclusions


To conclude, there are no easy solutions for the Wii in Japan. It has competition not only from the portables but also as of late from the PS3, and aside from New Super Mario Bros. Wii there is no title on the horizon that could anticipate being a genuine system seller. Some problems can only be solved with a complete retooling in software development, and some problems are so inherent in the actual Wii hardware that they can probably never be satisfactorily dealt with. However, Nintendo could start taking efforts right now to stop the bleeding and at least remain competitive in the market. Essentially, Nintendo needs to streamline and focus in its marketing of the system and its controller outputs; increase support of its peripheral; and improve first and third party software marketing and outreach.



Solutions

Short Term:

1. Bundle the hardware with CC Pro and Motion Plus and streamline the marketing approach to include the casual and core gamer.

2. More promotion for core titles, even lesser titles such as Dynamic Slash, Monado, etc. Build up hype and promotion in Famitsu and other gaming outlets instead of stealth releasing any title that isn’t expected to be a big seller.

Long Term:

1. More RPG development from Nintendo’s internal studios and invest in third party developed RPG’s.

2. More software support for already existing peripherals.

3. Increased Third Party support through incentives and co-marketing.

Comgnet 11/10

ToG up to 183

NSMB Wii up to 54

SW3 normal software only up to 39, while the CC Pro pack enters at 29, giving SW3 a total of 68.

Crystal Bearers nowhere to be found even though there is a day before its release.

Comgnet 11/9

ToG up to 177

NSMB Wii up to 52

SW3 38

Comgnet 11/8

ToG with 174

NSMB Wii with 48

SW3 with 38

FF13 with 1069

For total orders, WE 2010 PS3 with 468

Summon Tears with 99

Mario and Sonic with 35

Comgnet 11/7

ToG up to 171

NSMB Wii up to 41

SW3 up to 38

Comgnet 11/6

ToG with 165

SW3 with 36

NSMB Wii with 36

Media Create 10/26-11/1

DSi 37,517
PS3 36,061
PSP 34,911
PSP go 29,109
Wii 28,888
DS Lite 6,902
Xbox 360 6,047
PS2 1,966

Comgnet 11/5

ToG with 163

SW3 with 33

NSMB Wii with 33

Lepton 11/5 Update

FF13 up to 2460

WE 2010 PS3 finished with 730

ToG up to 336

NSMB Wii up to 153

Summon Tears finished with 111

SW3 up to 80

Super Mario Galaxy 2 enters with 50

FF:CC:CB enters with 46

Comgnet 11/4

ToG up to 157

SW3 at 33

NSMB Wii at 30

WE 2010 finishes at 230

Summon Tears ended up at 48

Famitsu Software, 10/26-11/1

01. [PS3] Bayonetta (Sega) - 138,000 / NEW
02. [PS3] Tekken 6 (Bandai Namco Games) - 120,000 / NEW
03. [NDS] Hikari no 4 Senshi: Final Fantasy Gaiden (Square Enix) - 120,000 / NEW
04. [PSP] Persona 3 Portable (Atlus) - 108,000 / NEW
05. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) - 73,000 / 733,000
06. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon) - 69,000 / 2,840,000
07. [360] Bayonetta (Sega) - 66,000 / NEW
08. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) - 53,000 / 1,453,000
09. [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Kyoui no Shinryakusha - Fire / Blizzard (Level 5) - 40,000 / 536,000
10. [WII] Super Robot Taisen Neo (Bandai Namco Games) - 32,000 / NEW

11. [360] Tekken 6 (Bandai Namco Games) - 26,000 / NEW
12. [PSP] Dissidia: Final Fantasy - Universal Tuning (Square Enix) - 20,000 / NEW
13. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo) - 18,000 / 1,302,000
14. [NDS] Fresh Precure! Asobi Collection (Bandai Namco Games) - 15,000 / NEW
15. [PSP] Shin Sangoku Musou 5 Special (Koei) - 13,000 / 36,000
16. [NDS] Rune Factory 3 (Marvelous Entertainment) - 12,000 / 57,000
17. [PS3] Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (SCE) - 11,000 / 84,000
18. [WII] Sin and Punishment 2 (Nintendo) - 10,000 / NEW
19. [NDS] Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (CyberFront) - 10,000 / NEW
20. [NDS] Dragon Quest IX: Hoshizora no Mamoribito (Square Enix) - 9,700 / 4,005,000
21. [PSP] Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (BEST) (Capcom) - 8,500 / 1,055,000
22. [PSP] Gran Turismo (SCE) - 8,100 / 223,000
23. [PS3] Samurai Dou 3 Plus (BEST) (Spike) - 8,000 / NEW
24. [PSP] Elminage II: Sousei no Megami to Unmei no Daichi (Starfish SD) - 7,600 / NEW
25. [NDS] Umihara Kawase Shun: Second Edition Kanzenhan (Genterprise) - 7,000 / NEW
26. [360] Steins;Gate (5pb.) - 6,100 / 27,000
27. [PSP] Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball Portable 4 (Konami) - 6,000 / 207,000
28. [NDS] Love Plus (Konami) - 6,000 / 152,000
29. [PS2] Sekirei: Mirai Kara no Okurimono (Alchemist) - 6,000 / NEW

Outside top 30:

[PSP] Kenka Banchou Portable (Spike) - 5,300 / NEW
[NDS] Game Book DS: Sword World 2.0 (Broccoli) - 3,800 / NEW
[PSP] Taishou Yakyuu Musume: Otometachi no Seishun Nikki (5pb.) - 2,600 / NEW
[PS2] Nadepro!! Kisama mo Seiyuu Yatte Miro! (GungHo Works) - 2,500 / NEW
[PSP] Purisaga! Portable (Views) - 1,100 / NEW
[NDS] Date ni Game Tsui Wake Jane! Dungeon Maker Girls Type (Idea Factory) - 1,000 / NEW
[NDS] Konami Arcade Collection (BEST) (Konami) - 760 / NEW
[PSP] MotorStorm: Arctic Edge (SCE) - 590 / NEW

Hardware:

PSP　42000
PSPgo　28000
DSi　36000
DSL　4400
PS3　37000
Wii　27000
360　4800
PS2　2700

Comgnet 11/3

ToG with 154


SW3 still at 33

NSMB Wii at 28

Comgnet 11/2

ToG lost one to 151

SW3 stays at 33

NSMB Wii enters with 24

Comgnet Update- 11/1

FF13 with 939

ToG with 152

SW3 with 33


For the week,

Bayonetta PS3 had 410 orders

P3P had 323

Tekken 6 PS3 had 317

FF Gaiden had 209

Bayonetta 360 had 126

SRW Neo had 65

Wii Fit Plus had 63

Lepton Update- 10/29

FF13- 2204

Tekken 6 PS3- 458

Bayonetta PS3- 393

P3P- 355

ToG- 279

NSMB Wii- 115

FF Gaiden- 111

SRW Neo- 84


SW3- 65