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Mass Effect 3 tops NPD bestseller report for March 2012
Whether you loved Mass Effect 3‘s ending or you hated it, one thing’s for certain, BioWare made a ton of money selling you the game. In what should be a surprise to no one, Mass Effect 3 took the top spot in The NPD Group’s report of the bestselling games in March 2012.
Even though March was a bit of a slow month for new releases, the remainder of the top ten is populated almost totally by games released in the last four weeks including Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City (#2), MLB 12: The Show (#3), SSX (#5), Street Fighter X Tekken (#6), Mario Party 9 (#7), Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations (#9), and Major League Baseball 2K12 (#10).
Whew!
Hit the break to see the full top ten, including the pair of holdovers from the February 2012 report. (more…)
Posted in DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Major League Baseball 2K12, Mario Party 9, Mass Effect 3, MLB 12: The Show, NBA 2K12, NPD, Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City, SSX, Street Fighter X Tekken
SOCOM developer Zipper Interactive closing down
Zipper Interactive, the development team behind the SOCOM franchise, MAG, and the recent Vita release Unit 13, has announced their closure via Twitter:
After 17 years it’s time to head off into the sunset. A sincere thank you to all our fans for everything you’ve done for us. Farewell.
Zipper’s parent company, Sony Computer Entertainment, responded to the closure with a statement to Game Informer:
The closure is a result of a normal cycle of resource re-alignment within SCE WWS. Zipper has completed all work associated with its most recent project, Unit 13 for PlayStation Vita. Zipper titles MAG, SOCOM 4 and Unit 13 will continue to be supported, including the new Daily Challenges in Unit 13.
Best of luck to the former Zipper employees, a team as talented as they were will catch on somewhere, if they haven’t already.
Modern Warfare 3 fends off Final Fantasy XIII-2 in February 2012 NPD ranking
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 sits atop the NPD’s monthly list of bestselling games for the fourth month in a row. The shooter sequel managed to fend off new releases Final Fantasy XIII-2, UFC Undisputed 3, and Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, which rounded out the top four. Two other new releases managed to make it into the top ten, Namco Bandai’s Soul Calibur V (at #7) and Sony’s Twisted Metal reboot (at #9).
The NPD Group didn’t list any Vita games in the top ten during its first month of availability. No 3DS games cracked the top ten either, for that matter.
You can find the complete list of February 2012 bestsellers after the break. (more…)
New Releases: Mass Effect 3, Street Fighter X Tekken, MLB 2K12/MLB 12, More
It’s here. It’s finally here. The grand finale of the Mass Effect trilogy, Mass Effect 3, will be available for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on March 6. It’s been a long wait (made longer by EA’s decision to delay the game from its original Fall 2011 release date), but it’s almost over.
However, other companies aren’t backing down from the juggernaut that is Commander Shepard…
- Capcom is bowing their 2D crossover fighter Street Fighter X Tekken (PS3, Xbox 360).
- A twin bill of baseball games will be available including Sony’s MLB 12: The Show (PS3, Vita) and 2K’s more inclusive Major League Baseball 2K12 (DS, PC, PS2 (!), PS3, PSP (!!), Wii, Xbox 360).
- Namco Bandai is bringing back the Ridge Racer series in Ridge Racer Unbounded (PS3, Xbox 360), a title that has really managed to stay under the radar.
- Zipper Interactive (creator of the SOCOM series) will make their Vita debut with Unit 13.
- And Nintendo wants everyone to do the Mario one more time on the Wii with Mario Party 9.
Even EA isn’t afraid to compete against itself, as the publisher plans to ship The Sims 3: Showtime for the PC this week in both a Limited Edition and a Katy Perry Special Edition (scandalized muppets not included).
Believe it or not, this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are even more new releases after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Major League Baseball 2K12, Mass Effect 3, MLB 12: The Show, Street Fighter X Tekken
WTF? Sony can’t keep up with PS2, PSP demand
What kind of weird hell is this?
OK, perhaps that’s a bit harsh. After all, Sony probably isn’t selling very many PlayStation 2 and PSP systems anymore. So it stands to reason that they aren’t producing very many either. But however many they’re making, it’s not enough to satisfy the demands of the American consumer.
Here’s what SCEA President and CEO Jack Tretton had to say about the situation in an interview (which mostly dealt with the Vita’s launch) with Forbes:
Forbes: What is going to happen to the PlayStation Portable line?
Tretton: The PSP will continue to sell on at $129. Right now there is more demand for PSP than there is production capacity… that is pretty much truth with the PlayStation 2 as well. PlayStation 2 will continue to sell as long as we can build it profitably and there is an audience for it, and PSP will follow that same trend.
I have to tip my hat to Sony. The fact that there’s still demand for the PS2 after 12 years is an amazing accomplishment.
Call of Duty: Black Ops voted “Best Ending” by Guinness World Records readers
Did you pass on the Guinness World Records 2012 Gamer’s Edition when it was released back in January? Then you missed their list of the “Top 50 Video Game Endings of All Time” as voted by 13,519 Guinness readers. But apparently this information was just begging to get out as Guinness released the full list over the weekend. And the winner is… [drummmmmmmmmmrollllllllll]… Call of Duty: Black Ops.
OK… sure… why not. But I guess that’s what you get when you award “records” based on a popular vote.
Black Ops was followed by Halo: Reach at number two and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time at number three.
The Guinness people weren’t too clear on what they considered a game’s “ending,” citing the entire final level for Black Ops, the post credits sequence for Halo: Reach, and the boss fight against Ganon for Ocarina of Time. So when you read the entire list (which can be found after the break), be sure to remember that it was about the furthest thing possible from a scientific poll.
Of course, the inclusion of Super Mario Bros. at number 11 (and four Mario games in total) probably tipped you off to that. (more…)
Posted in DS, Etcetera, News, PC, PS2, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops, Halo: Reach
With no new releases, Modern Warfare 3 leads the January 2012 NPD report
With their January 31 release date, Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Soul Calibur V missed the cutoff date for the monthly NPD report, so Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 emerges victorious once again.
Infinity Ward’s latest shooter was followed by string of titles that have been racking up big sales all Winter including Just Dance 3 (#2), The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (#3), NBA 2K12 (#4), and Battlefield 3 (#5). And a #8 finish for Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure capped off a strong 2011 for the toy/video game hybrid, including 22% of all accessory sales.
With no major new releases last month, game and hardware sales for January 2012 dropped 38% from the year before when Dead Space 2, which explains the large number of holdovers from 2011.
You can find the complete top ten for January 2012 after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Battlefield 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Just Dance 3, Madden NFL 12, Mario Kart 7, NBA 2K12, NPD, Saints Row: The Third, Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Shocker: Modern Warfare 3 leads December NPD list
The NPD Group has released their list of the bestselling games in December and, once again, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 tops the list. The shooter was joined in the top ten by its comrade in arms, Battlefield 3, which gunned down the number five slot.
The rest of the list includes a cross-section of some of this year’s absolute biggest games including Just Dance 3 at #2, Skyrim at #3, Assassin’s Creed: Revelations at #7, and Batman: Arkham City at #10. And Nintendo’s 3DS is finally coming alive with two titles in the top ten: Mario Kart 7 at #4 and Super Mario 3D Land at #9.
Here’s the complete NPD Top Ten for the month of December 2011:
1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC)
2. Just Dance 3 (Wii, Xbox 360, PS3)
3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
4. Mario Kart 7 (3DS)
5. Battlefield 3 (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
6. Madden NFL 12 (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PSP, PS2)
7. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
8. NBA 2K12 (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PSP, PS2, PC)
9. Super Mario 3D Land (3DS)
10. Batman: Arkham City (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Assassin's Creed: Revelations, Batman: Arkham City, Battlefield 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Just Dance 3, Madden NFL 12, Mario Kart 7, NBA 2K12, NPD, Super Mario 3D Land, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim