PS3 Sales Stagnate; DS, PSP, 360, and Wii All Going Up

Japan - The PS3 and PS2 were the only platforms that didn't receive a significant boost this week as the end-of-year climb finally begins. The DS and PSP platforms are both up nearly 20k units, the 360 almost doubled last week's effort from 8k to 15.5k, and the Wii is up 10k units from the previous week.

Defying the weekly gains for every other platform, the PS3 sold only 17.4k units this week, exactly what it sold last week.

[Raoh]

LMFAO tell the writer that even after the 360's price cut the ps3 is still selling well at the current price with no price cut.

the story should read the 360's price cut has helped in japan, but not by much and it may be in trouble in 2009 when the ps3 gets its own price cut.

[saruwatari]

Be a gamer, not a hater.

¬¬

[sutton32]

same can be said for the author of this article

[AAACE5]

Grow Up! Either one of these consoles should be selling at least 30,000 a week! So these small numbers mean almost nothing because they both lag extremely far behind the Wii!

[Danja]

wow I was expecting to see Terrible sales for the PS3..mis-leading title...this article is flame-bait....

[Coheno]

Please... 360 got a boost from Last Remnant, not the price cut! It has had the price cut for some time now, and it's still lacking in Japan.

Though i'm looking forward to seeing the numbers AFTER White Knight Chronicles comes out on the 25th dec. First REAL and decent JRPG for PS3! Especially because it has ad-hoc play, which the Japanese seem to really really like...

[Aclay]

To be honest, I was expecting the 360 to outsell the PS3 this week in Japan because of The Last Remnant.

However, the only reason why 360 sales doubled from last week is JUST because of The Last Remnant and nothing else. The Xbox 360 is like HALF the price of the PS3 in Japan, the 360 has more JRPG's, yet the PS3 still outsells it and the 360 hasn't reached a million in Japan after 3 years.

PS3 sales in Japan will be through the roof once White Knight finally drops in less than a month from now.

[littletad]

The ps3 outsells it because that's it's homeland. But the fact that the 360 is selling much better than expected and even sometimes beats the ps3 in weekly sales is an amazing accomplishment. Japanese people are very private and tend to like their own products. And boy do they like their rpg's. So the 360 has been bringing more to the plate and has a better price point. So quit comparing the ps3 to the 360 in it's homeland when it has an overwhelming advantage not just in familiarity but in self conscious buyers. For the 360 to even rise buy a few k's is a good thing for Microsoft and a great thing for all gamers.

[DocEvil]

PS3 seems to be selling well to me? What's with that title? Only a couple of months ago the 360 was consistantly struggling to reach 3k sales per week... now it is usually over 10k so they seem to be finally making some progress in japan.

[aggh im on fire]

Im starting to loose all interest in Japan's gaming culture. The ps3 sales are still low, the games they buy often bizzare and there development teams seem to have got stuck in the past. There was a time when they had the most respected teams and games in the world but it now seems to me that western developers are the ones taking chances and pushing the hardware.

[littletad]

There was a time when rpg's were coming out left and right. I miss those days. Maybe, it was because things are so sophisticated these days. And just maybe, the consumers ourselves have changed the market so much, their as confused as they can be.

[GlibGamer]

Nice spin on this story. Even though the PS3 still outsold the Xbox360 by nearly 2k units while being more expensive in a poor economy, they would have you believe the 360 is slaughtering the PS3 in sales.

Poorly worded to the point of losing almost all objectivity.

[xaviertooth]

so true!

[SaiyanFury]

Well put, sir. The PS3 sold about as much this week as last. It's like those authors who were saying that last month's minor 360 sales increase over the PS3 in Japan was a complete triumph. It outsold the PS3 by a couple of thousand units for a couple of weeks. Sorry, that doesn't constitute a victory in the long run.

[Sayai jin]

LOL. True, but remember a few years back no one would have ever thought the 360 would sell about the same or more. The original XBox did not come close to even selling the same amount to the PS2 and no one ever thought that the 360 would ever out sell the PS3 this gen in Japan. albeit only for a few weeks. The 360 will never catch up in Japan this gen, but MS never thought the would. They are going at it one step at a time, releasing one JRPG at a time. Look how much better the 360 is doing in Japan this time around. Now imagine next gen.

I do not own any stocks any either company, but you can expect to see a nice surge once White Knight Chronicles is released.

Cheers, heres to great gaming no matter what console it is on!

[xaviertooth]

lol! the PS3 sold a measly 17k and the 360 sold a MASSIVE 15k!!!

spin, spin, spin! xbots love it! spin, spin and more spin!

spin for more hits! mindless xbots are ready to give hits!

[alexM]

even with LR x360 couldnt move past ps3 in weekly sales

imagine ps3 sales next week when PES is launched.
so far i know that PES ps3 is the most preordered HD game in Japan

[IzKyD1331]

the fact that the PS3 can hold a solid 17K each week is more impressive than the 360's little spikes here and there

[maruchan27six]

Don't forget xbox costs half the price of PS3.
Don't forget there is a The Last Remnant Xbox 360 Bundle.
I think aside from the JRPGs, Japanese have no reason to own an Xbox 360.PS3 is just more appealing as a multimedia entertainment.

[HateBoy]

You people have absolutely no idea how the japanese market works, right? Read a book, preferably one about economic development worldwide after WWII. Seriously, you all sound retarded.

[Serjikal_Strike]

the wii and the ds is selling as well as they are since Its gettin close to xmas and the kiddies still want it....

[cmrbe]

Geez so the PS3 didn't go up 1k in a week in Japan when it has been selling 17K up the last couple of weeks?. This is getting stupid.

[aggh im on fire]

The thing is the xbox shouldn't be selling these kind of numbers. The last xbox was doing 200 a week if they were lucky while the ps2 at the same time was doing 50,000. The ps3 is underperforming in Japan regardless of price and the xbox360 is performing better than expected.

[Traveler]

You are right. The very fact that the 360 is often selling in the same ball park as the PS3 is simply amazing and unexpected. I would never have expected that the 360 could hang in there with the PS3 in Japan.

[Snyph3r]

positive news for everyone except PS3 even if it outsold 360 for yet another week?

[InMyOpinion]

The expected scenario would be the PS3 outselling the 360 by 3:1. This is Japan. The PS3 is supposed to be dominating the 360.

[cmrbe]

there are about 3 PS3 to 1 x360 in Japan. So what's your point again?.

[InMyOpinion]

Japan is starting to accept the 360 more and more for every JRPG that is released over there. That's my point.

[R_1993]

Didn't 'The Last Remnant' for the 360 come out in japan this week?

[TheHater]

yes it did

[R_1993]

Then, shouldn't that be a good reason to why the 360 sales boosted?

[InMyOpinion]

Shouldn't Valkyria Chronicles, LBP and Resistance 2 boost the PS3's sales also?

[R_1993]

What does the PS3 have anything to do with what I'm talking about?

I'm suggesting that the 360 sales got a Boost from an RPG which launched in that same week.

[lelik]

you think ps3 is under performing next to two 200 dollar systems? you sir are an idiot.

[morganfell]

Game, Set, and Match with that comment right there. Bubbles pal.

[Tiberium]

well that's called smart business on microsoft's hand.Sony could have made the ps3 $200. But they wanted the best technology available and the end result was a $600 machine. And the only way to drop the price was to start axing features like backward compatibility with the ps2 and ps1.But seriously who would have dreamed that mighty Sony would be neck and neck salewise in Japan. Congrats microsoft. :)

[Mr_Luke]

Funny.... "PS3 sales stagnate" and still sells more than the 360. Even with The Last Remnant out..... let's see when this title will be out for PS3, i remember the Famitsu wishlist, it was in a higher position than the 360 one.

[Mike134nl]

If you told me a year ago Microsoft would sell more than 10.000 units, I wouldn't believe you. They are propably selling more 360 in the past week than in their whole first year in Japan.

[Mr_Luke]

@Mike

True, 360 started very bad there. Lately, comparing the past sales, it's not going bad

[Arsenal4Ever]

even so. The PS3 still should've climbed by now. It should be at least 20 k this week.

[jmare]

Oh noes! The PS3 is teh doooomedz!! But with these numbers it looks like the PS3 sold about 35K versus the 360's 23K. Hmmm. Damn those crazy japanese bastards and liking the 360 least. Damn them.

[heroicjanitor]

is why didn't the 360 sell more? The last remnant was out this week, when tales of vesperia came out they sold loads

[cmrbe]

there is a x360 shortage in Japan. Wait for it.

[maruchan27six]

LOL that's really made me laugh.

[ps3king]

Both Consoles are doing bad realistically I guess. The HD era in Japan is not taking ground nor as pronounced as in the Western culture. At the same time I don't care. The best Japanese developers have 'westernized' and are selling well here. If Japan doesn't like it... Why do I care?? Sony should be worried. Microsoft, well I guess they should be somewhat happy I guess.

Side note: Look at how well Ford/GM/C-D does in Japan. How well is Honda/Toyota doing in Japan nowadays. They both are failing too.

[idlewild_]

nice spin PL, too bad you failed to mention the fact that all 4 systems that got a boost had a big release this past week...

wii = animal crossing
ds = chrono trigger
360 = last remnant
psp = gundam v gundam

it's more surprising that the 360 failed to beat the ps3 considering that TLR had ONE OF the biggest first weeks for a 360 game ever in Japan. was expecting CT to be big, but not big enough to beat out gundamania (regardless of how close the # were). hope this doesn't relay the msg to SE that they should just farm out more ports (it does, they will, bastards -.-)

[Sarcasm]

I'm still curious if the Japanese consumers are going to buy White Knight Chronicles and how much of an impact that game is going to make.

[cmrbe]

is garunteed anymore in Japan.

LR just came out and its a SE game and yet look at the x360 numbers. Pathetic.

It seems like Japan has gone completely anti HD consoles. I always believed its just a phase but even this early in the console cycle signs are not good.

[LethalToxins]

I think it's even more evident with traditional Japanese devs trying to incorporate the western market more. Look at what SE is doing. To me, even Capcom's Valkyrie Chronicles has a western feel to it. As the Japanese culture shifts more and more toward handhelds, it seems dev on consoles are going for a western approach.

[Doctor Strange]

Valkyria Chronicles was made by Sega, just like to give credit where it is due its is a great rpg.

[LethalToxins]

Whoops, lol. You're right. I knew that, too. No idea what I was thinking when I wrote that. Maybe Capcom's SF2:HDR is on my brain too much right now.

[Arsenal4Ever]

I know WKS will be a good game but how many units do you think it'll sell?

[maruchan27six]

I would say around 400k first week.Would be higher if Sony decides to advertise WKC like crazy.

[aggh im on fire]

I never said it was selling poorly compared to the xbox. The xbox sales are irrelevant. Im just saying its underperforming.The xbox1 was hell of a lot cheaper than the ps2 but the ps2 killed it big time in sales when the price wasn't far off what the ps3's is now. Yes the ps3 is underperforming in Japan. Sony knows it and to think its not is blind sighted. So no im not an idiot im just stating a fact.

[Joejoefhosho]

- bubble for being retarded

[Gitaroo]

last remnent just came out for 360 and I kind of feel sorry for the 100K ppl that bought it lol

[ps3king]

Do you feel sorry for yourself for buying it too??

[Tykis]

Considering the 360 sold less than the PS3 even though it had an JRPG is very surprising! I like how they make the 360 sound like there doing fine! lol

[BrianC6234]

It's just like all those reports about how the 360 outsold the PS3 for the week. They showed the sales numbers each week but ignore the real facts. The real facts were the PS3 sold almost as well and has sold great in Japan while the 360 has done squat.

[ps3king]

Yeah 360 is always doing terrible in Japan.

I can imagine that people are being made fun of for owning a 360 in Japan. I imagine a lot of "closet" 360 fans in Japan that are too embarrassed to play a US product as well. The humiliation of playing a FPS in Tokyo must be priceless.

[Traveler]

Not everybody is a blind nationalist. I buy products from any part of the world as long as it is a good product. I imagine many Japanese people are the same way.

[Denges]

wow lets make a cheap looking website that recycles old news

these number have been posted like 3 times already

you can tell by the past headlines that this PL guy is a fanboy

[Captain_Sony]

Sorry but that is in no way a good thing guys... With R2,GTA4,LBP, MGS4 and a ton of other games out right now over there for PS3, the console that is number 1 only has Animal crossing out and it is killing it. 360 may be doing poorly in Japan but even it managed an increase in sales even if those sales were still poor. The real proof that PS3 is doing poorly in Japan is that people actually bring up 360 sales as an excuse for Sony's poor sales.360 is the most unreliable console ever made,they know this also. They still seem to be choosing to buy it as much as some are willing to buy a PS3 and that not s good sign for the PS3 when you look at their history of buying American electronics.

[OuterHaven]

You do realize PS3 is 2x the price?

[BrianC6234]

"With R2,GTA4,LBP, MGS4 and a ton of other games out right now over there for PS3,"

Funny you mention those games. Games like GTA and Resistance aren't huge in Japan and MGS4 was out months ago.

[ps3king]

Yes Japan doesn't care about those games.

so... Who cares about Japan. If Japan is such a concern then why isn't China or Indonesia or any other country. I know Sony is from Japan but times change. Hell Toyota sells better in NA than in Japan.

[Counter_ACT]

Wow, how bias is that title? PS3 sales "stagnate" despite outselling 360 there for ANOTHER week, despite the recent JRPG release. If anything 360 sales fail more than PS3.

[heroicjanitor]

Would lead me to believe that the ps3 sales are steadying in Japan while the 360 is still doing that "release a big game for one week of extra sales" thing

[ZombieNinjaPanda]

The Ds is murdering the competition!

Must be because they are releasing all of the pokemon games for it :(

Wish they would make more for my game boy sp, but I doubt it :/

[Arsenal4Ever]

Doesn't the word stagnate mean regression? Or something along the lines.

[ViceKingz]

it basically means staying the same

[aggh im on fire]

Fair enough. Ok its performing wonderfully, these really are great figures. If thats what the disagrees want to hear.
Ps3 is doing fine in the rest of the world and at a higher price point but not so well in japan where on there home turf they should be doing better.Disagree with the facts all you like but a facts a fact. I would say the person who doesn't except this is the idiot.

[cmrbe]

Home Turf

[xaviertooth]

except by EXCEPT you mean ACCEPT

at least fix your grammar to get agrees!

[Traveler]

Oh no, here comes the grammar police! Too bad that is a spelling mistake and not a mistake of grammar. I bet you feel stupid.

[smurfie4]

I'm waiting for the inevitable release of WKS to boost ps3 sales in Japan.

[aggh im on fire]

Oops. Yes that was an error. I speed type on here and Im working at the same time so errors do happen. In not getting agree's anyway though so no biggie although the gramma on this whole site is terrible so i didn't think anyone would notice. I could point out you started your comment with a lower case letter rather than a capital for instance but it doesn't really matter on here.

[BrianC6234]

This story is too much. The PS3 sold more than the 360 did yet the PS3 is the one in trouble? I think not.

[IntelligentAj]

This headline is kind of deceiving. As a I read the article I was expecting to see bad news on the PS3's part. What does it say that the PS3 stood steady while seeing increased competition from a price drop and a RPG that appeals to the market?

[pshizle]

but its not!

ps3 has failed

[cmrbe]

3 PS3 to 1 x360 in Japan at least. If that is not destroying i don't know what it is.

[Death]

The Wii is selling 3-1 over the PS3 and well over 6-1 over the Xbox 360. Year over year shows the Xbox 360 has the greatest percentage of growth of the three, but that is less impressive when you look at last years sales in Japan. People are giving alot of credit towards Microsoft for the same reason though, they are keeping pace with the PS3 if not beating it for the last couple months. That is very impressive considering this is Japan.

-Death

[CrippleH]

They must be buying the crappy Lost Remnant game right now. Anything with SE Japan will buy. They bought Infinite Undiscovery and that scored horribly.

[cmrbe]

for a SE game is not really good for Japan. But worse for MS they only sold 15k consoles.

[Death]

some people actually play games for fun and not only because they score well with critics.

-Death

[ReBurn]

Play games for fun? That's crazy talk!

(I agree with you.)

[gumgum99]

"PS3 Sales Stagnate; DS, PSP, 360, and Wii All Going Up"

that's not what the charts say.

[Firstkn1ghT]

Sony fans keep trying to spin this into positive. Sony is Japan land and should be crushing the 360 and it's only beating it by 2k and it looks like the 360 will over take the ps3 soon again. While America is 360 land and absolutely crushed the ps3 by 200k. That's how it's done. The ps3 is a major failure in Japan.

[ReBurn]

Console gaming is dying in Japan.

[Captain Tuttle]

I'd say it's dead and buried, at least Hi-Def console gaming.

[ReBurn]

So it would seem. This generation really never took off there, did it?

[ultimolu]

...The PS3 is certainly doomed now!111

...-__-

[tonywood]

How about posting this article AFTER Black Friday!! I mean, the ps3 will be packed with a copy of Casino Royal and Ratchet and Clank on this day. Also, gamestop/ebgames will have their annual buy 2 used games get 1 free deal going on. (Thats when I will get my copy of LBP and Bioshock). I think the sales will surprise those who are praying for SONY's down fall. (But SONY will bounce back up, like round ball!)

[TheExodus]

Yup, packing in a 2 year old movie & a game Target clearanced for $30 last week is going to have PS3s flying off store shelves like they were Wiis.

[SprayandPreycom]

i got my ps3 a 8 month ago and everyone said i should wait for the price drop well
im still waiting would suck to get it then 1 week later have the price drop so i feel good about getting it when i did unlike the hd drive for 360 i got it then it went on sale then fell of the map... unfortunatly i only have one game for ps3 the one that came with it ... but i do have 20 blue rays... lol hope this relates to the story somehow... it does but subliminally that is it might be to deep for your average gamer like me.?

[Traveler]

The 360 is doing better in Japan than most expected. The PS3 is doing worse in Japan than most expected. Anyone who argues against those two statements is seriously deluded.

[Traveler]

It's amazing that the 360 is selling in the same ballpark as the PS3 in Japan. But it is disappointing that neither HD console is doing all that well in Japan. I have always loved Japanese made games, but I am saddened by the direction the Japanese gaming market has turned. I love the PS3 and 360 and I want both of them to succeed all over the world. In general, I think that both consoles are doing well, but I would like to see them do better in Japan in order to spur more Japanese game development for the HD consoles.

[lelik]

microsoft has all the rpgs and a 200 dollar price tag and its losing in sales to a 400 dollar system with no rpgs, IN JAPAN. how can you spin this in microsoft's favour?

[sak500]

SO What does it show? It shows people are buying a games console which they think is cheaper than the "MOST OVERHYPED CONSOLE IN THE WORLD" and plays 99% times better multiplatform games. What else is shows? It shows 360 is eating at ps3's market share at alarming rate. It shows even when ps3 price is dropped next year, people who wanted to buy ps3 but bought a 360 earlier will not cough up again for another console which has nothing above the 360.

[JeepGamer]

So let me see if I get this right.

Selling 17.4k is somehow not as good as selling 15.4k consoles because you also sold 17.4k consoles last week and the competition... That you've been outselling for two weeks now... Doubled from 8k to 15.5k?

In other words over the course of two weeks the PS3 sold nearly 35,000, and it's bad... but somehow selling over 10,000 less (nearly 24k) means things are going good for the 360 in Japan?

This is the most idiotic and fanboyish logic I have ever had the misfortune to read. What a total tool.

[Jimis78]

Just wait until it gets a price drop.The sales then will b sky high...

[Ldubbz]

to even be competing with the PS3 in Japan. Regardless of a price cut or whatever game release, Japanese gamers have been taking a better liking to the 360 this year, which is doing much better than the Xbox did at this point in its lifetime.

[psthreee]

i cant believe x360 is under ps3 with that price lol
psp is the same price and its doing better then xbox

[tonywood]

TheExodus, you left me no choice. First off, Casino Royal is a blu ray movie, with one of the best HD transfers since Transformers and I,Robot. (it still cost $29,99 in stores)Secondly, Ratchet and Clank got a add on to that game, this year...and I am sure you knew all of that.

I am not talking about the "cash cow" 160 gig Drakes bundle, THAT systems is worthless. (Does everyone hear my NON-BIAS words? Even against the ps3, which I own) Again, I am a non-bias speaker on ALL games and systems. If you don't watch blu ray movies, then "TheEXODUS", clearly my message was not for you. Once again, a blogger of lessor intelligence tries to talk about something that he or she know nothing about. Before talking, how about reading the subject matter. This way you can actually provide opinions correctly. This whole topic is about stalled sales, NOT "Is the ps3 ready to sell out!" or "Can the ps3 hit millions of units sold in time for christmas?" I don't perceive you as a superfan, just a un-informed hater!