Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Michael Pachter Responds! Thoughts on the Wii Vitality Sensor


Two weeks ago, on Monday, March 15, 2010, I posted up a blog titled, "Analyzing the Analyst: Michael Pachter is Wrong".

I included in a paragraph, "If you would like to issue a reply to me directly, my email is CoffeewithGames@gmail.com."

Well, I couldn't believe my eyes when I opened my email and saw a response from Mr. Pachter himself!

I had shown in my original post, three points I thought Mr. Pachter was incorrect about in one of his statements.
One thing Mr. Pachter had said, I disagreed with was, 'Unlike the PS3, with multiple high-profile exclusives and the newly-announced Move Controller, and the Xbox 360, with Project Natal, the Wii lacks an important upcoming catalyst."

I said in response to that, "We don't know if Nintendo will show anything new this year at E3, but we do know they'll be showing the Wii Vitality Sensor, which was first shown at last year's E3.
I think Mr. Pachter again is dismissing or ignoring something coming to the Wii, that may very well be '...an important catalyst...' for the system."

What did Mr. Pachter say in response to that in the email, about the Wii Vitality Sensor being a possible catalyst?

Mr. Pachter said, "We can agree to disagree about the Wii Vitality Sensor.  It looks tremendously stupid to me, but I'm sure I'm not the target market."

I'll be posting Mr. Pachter's other responses within the next week*.

Question:
Do you think Mr. Pachter is correct in dismissing the Wii Vitality Sensor, and not seeing it as a possible catalyst for the Wii, compared to Sony's Move and Microsoft's Project Natal?




Picture of Mr. Pachter from http://www.gameinvestmentconference.com/speaker_bio.php?ind=1.


PlayStation Move ControllerPlayStation Move Sub-ControllerWii Vitality Sensor
 

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Nintendo Wii Games: Wii Sports Resort, Wii Fit Plus, & New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Wii Sports Resort, Wii Fit Plus, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii
(click image to enlarge)

Number of Players Reporting Data:
Wii Sports Resort has 370,546 players reporting their data this week on the Wii's Nintendo Channel.
Wii Fit Plus has 177,652 players reporting data this week.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii has 377,854 players reporting their play-time data.

Player Increase Over Last Week:
Wii Sports Resort had an increase of 9,147 more players reporting play-time data this week, over last week.
Wii Fit Plus had an increase of 6,077 more players reporting play-time data.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii had an increase of 14,218 more players reporting their data.

"Total" Game-Play Hours Reported/Increased:
Wii Sports Resort has 8,002,315 Total Hours reported, an increase of 286,007 hours from last week.
Wii Fit Plus has 2,674,062 Total Hours reported, an increase of 140,628 hours from last week.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii has 9,484,491 Total Hours reporting, an increase of 588,319 hours from last week's data.

Amazon.com Sale Ranks & Advertised Prices:
Wii Sports Resort's Amazon.com sale rank is #32 and the current selling price is $46.99.
Wii Fit Plus', the game only, Amazon.com sale rank is #35 and the current selling price is $14.54.
Wii Fit Plus w/ Balance Board's Amazon.com sale rank is #14 and the current starting new price is $104.57.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii's Amazon.com sale rank is #7 and the current selling price is $39.54.

GameRankings.com Review Score Averages:
Wii Sports Resort's review score average is 82.88% based on 50 reviews.
Wii Fit Plus' review score average is 81.32% based on 19 reviews.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii's review score average is 88.12% based on 54 reviews.

Thoughts:
12 weeks and counting.  Still no supply of Wii Fit Plus w/ Balance Board on Amazon.com.  It's the end of March now, and the last I was informed, Wii Fit Plus w/ Balance Board was supposed to be back in stock by the end of March, so perhaps tomorrow it will be?

If you haven't played New Super Mario Bros. Wii and have been waiting for a price drop, Amazon.com is selling the game for more than 20% off the MSRP, for $39.54 with free shipping.

If you're interested in any of the games, you can see Amazon.com's prices below:
   

Monster Hunter 3: No Midnight Release!

Monster Hunter 3's Ironbeard McCullough

As of now, this will be the last two questions/answers in regards to Monster Hunter 3 with Ironbeard McCullough.

Questions/Answers:
CwG Question:  "How long have you been in the States?"

Ironbeard:  "Hard t' tell.  When I'm not in either Moga Village of me hometown of Rockrack, I travel on me boat from place t' another, huntin' monsters and promotin' great games.  But I canna tell how long I've been anywhere, as me watch only goes up t' 50 minutes."

CwG:  "Will there be a midnight release for Monster Hunter 3 in the States?"

Ironbeard:  "No midnight release, but there are plans fer *somethin*.  They'll be talkin' more about that later..."

A huge thanks to Ironbeard McCullough for his replies!  Monster Hunter 3 will be releasing in a few more weeks, on Tuesday, April 20.

Question:
What do you think the "somethin" is, that Ironbeard said they are planning for in conjunction with the game's release?


If you're interested in Monster Hunter 3, Amazon.com has the "Standard" game and the "Classic Controller Pro Bundle".  Amazon.com is also offering a "$10 Video Games Credit", which is $10 off a future video game purchase.
Also, Amazon.com is offering "Release-Date Delivery" for Monster Hunter 3.  If you're interested, you can see the two bundles with prices right below:
 

Friday, March 26, 2010

Nintendo Wii FPS Games Data

Nintendo Wii FPS Games Data
The Conduit and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Reflex
(click image to enlarge)

Number of Players Reporting Data:
The Conduit has 58,955 players reporting their play-time data through the Nintendo Channel.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare Reflex has 40,818 players reporting their play-time data.

Player Increase Over Last Week:
The Conduit had 781 more players reporting their play-time data this week, over last week.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare Reflex had 1,961 more players reporting their data this week.

"Total" Game-Play Hours Reported/Increased:
The Conduit has 1,303,311 Total Hours reported, an increase of 18,084 hours from last week.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare Reflex has 1,472,795 Total Hours reported, an increase of 108,333 hours.

Amazon.com Sale Rank & Advertised Price:
The Conduit's Amazon.com sale rank is #827 and its current selling price is $20.19.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare Reflex's Amazon.com sale rank is #172 and its current selling price is $39.99.

GameRankings.com Review Score Averages:
The Conduit's review score average is 72.23% based on 64 reviews.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare Reflex's review score average is 78.76% based on 33 reviews.

Thoughts:
If Call of Duty Modern Warfare Reflex keeps increasing in average hours "Per Person" at the same pace, by the middle to end of May, it could enter Kotaku.com's "Most Played" Wii games chart, that Stephen Totilo compiles.

If you're interested in either game, you can see some new/used prices from Amazon.com right here:

Nintendo Wii Rail Shooters

2009 Nintendo Wii Rail Shooters' Data
(click image to enlarge)

Number of Players Reporting Data:
House of the Dead Overkill has 40,388 players reporting data on the Nintendo Channel.
Dead Space Extraction has 11,479 players reporting their play-time data this week.
Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles has 15,814 players reporting data.

Player Increase:
House of the Dead Overkill had an increase of 476 more players reporting play-time data this week.
Dead Space Extraction had an increase of 379 more players reporting their play-time data.
Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles had an increase of 634 more players reporting play-time data.

"Total" Game-Play Hours Reported/Increased:
House of the Dead Overkill has 337,519 Total Hours reported this week, increasing 4,644 hours over last week.
Dead Space Extraction has 75,144 Total Hours reported, an increase of 2,957 hours.
Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles has 181,291 Total Hours reported this week, increasing 8,712 hours since last week.

Amazon.com Sale Ranks & Advertised Sale Price:
House of the Dead Overkill's Amazon.com sale rank is #247 and is currently selling for $15.43.
Dead Space Extraction's Amazon.com sale rank is #1,312 and is currently selling for $29.99.
Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles' Amazon.com sale rank is #1,584 and is currently selling for $46.99.

GameRankings.com Review Score Averages:
House of the Dead Overkill's review score average is 80.80% based on 55 reviews.
Dead Space Extraction's review score average is 83.75% based on 59 reviews.
Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles' review score average is 74.54% based on 40 reviews.

Thoughts/Question:
Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles has seen a pretty large decrease in its Amazon.com sale rank compared to last week.  Last week, it was ranked #828, this week it's ranked #1,584.
I wonder if the release of Red Steel 2 had anything to do with it?

Do you think Red Steel 2 releasing is the reason for Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles' large drop in Amazon.com's sale ranks?




Games mentioned in article:
   

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Monster Hunter 3's Ironbeard McCullough: Questions Answered Part 2

Monster Hunter 3's Ironbeard McCullough

Almost two weeks ago, I asked some questions regarding Monster Hunter 3's Ironbeard McCullough, and was really surprised when he responded.
Last Saturday, March 20, 2010, I posted up the first set of Questions/Anwers.
I ended that post by asking, "If you could ask Monster Hunter Ironbeard McCullough a question, what would you ask him?"

Chuckpebble commented and said in part of his comment, "Ask him what his favorite blend of coffee is."

Well, I wrote up some questions, and sent them over again, not sure if I would get a second response or not.
Ironbeard McCullough replied again!

Here are two more Questions/Answers:

CwG Question:  "A reader of my blog is wondering if you drink coffee, and what your preferred type of coffee drink is?"

Ironbeard's reply:  "Coffee?  Normally I only drink that on early mornin's when I need t' wake up t' hunt beasties that only come out right before dawn.  During those times, though, I drink yer so-called "robusta" "espresso".  Really wakes ya up and puts hair on yer chest(and elsewhere).  And I dunna drink it in those mincy wee cups they usually serve it in.  I down the stuff straight out of me grog strein."

CwG Question:  "Will we see you in actual television commercials for the game?"

Ironbeard replied:  "Dunna if the powdered wigs at Capcom would let me say any specifics, but...lemme just say, dunna stop watchin' yer tele."

Thoughts:
I would say television commercials are 100% confirmed for Monster Hunter 3, and it sounds like Ironbeard will be in them.  I think Capcom is doing a really good job, making the YouTube videos interesting and funny. I wonder what approach they'll take for the television ads, or if they'll be the same clips as the YouTube videos, just shortened up.

Also, since Tuesday of this week, I've been noticing Monster Hunter 3 advertisements on a lot of the gaming websites I visit.  Here's one I grabbed a screenshot of:
 

On the coffee question, Ironbeard is a more hardcore coffee drinker than myself, since he's drinking espresso straight from his, "grog strein".

Questions:
Have you noticed any of the Monster Hunter 3 online advertisements yet?
Have you seen the newest Monster Hunter 3 video with Ironbeard McCullough in it?
If not, I'm including it here:

What do you think about it?

If you're interested in Monster Hunter 3, you can see Amazon.com's prices for both bundles here:

Red Steel 2: A Concern

Red Steel 2 Red Steel 2 w/ MotionPlus
Red Steel 2 released on Tuesday this week, and the reviews are coming in for the game pretty steadily now.

Red Steel 2's current review score average, on GameRankings.com is 82.00% based on 18 reviews.
So, it seems like the game is pretty solid and most reviewers are having fun with it.

Now, rewind back June of 2009.

Another FPS was being released on the Nintendo Wii, that game was The Conduit.

About four days before The Conduit's release date, it broke into Amazon.com's "Top 100" games as for sales.
http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=86585

On June 22, 2009, The Conduit broke in Amazon.com's "Top 50".
http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=86799

On June 23, 2009, The Conduit was at #29.
http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=86892

On June 24, 2009, The Conduit crossed into Amazon.com's "Top 20", making it at least to #18.
http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=87006

My Concern:
I think Red Steel 2 may not be selling very well, if Amazon.com's rankings mean anything, when comparing it to The Conduit.

I've been following Red Steel 2's rank, both the game alone, and the WM+ bundle, for a while now on Amazon.com.
It was only on Tuesday, that Red Steel 2 broke into Amazon.com's "Top 100".

Now, I know that this brief snapshot in time doesn't mean Red Steel 2 will sell poorly.
I just think it is concerning, seeing as neither Red Steel 2 the game by itself, nor Red Steel 2 w/ WM+, have made it into Amazon.com's "Top 50", before/after its release yet.

Question:
Do you think Red Steel 2 will perform better or worse than The Conduit overall?
If you've purchased Red Steel 2 already, what are your impressions of the game?

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Wii Data

Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Nintendo Channel Debut
(click image to enlarge)

Quick Info:
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories was released on the Nintendo Wii on December 8, 2009.
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories took approximately 105 days from its release, for the play-time data shown in the picture and discussed below, to appear on the Wii's Nintendo Channel.

Number of Players Reporting Data:
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories has 7,024 players reporting their play-time data.

"Total" Game-Play Hours Reported:
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories has 51,388 Total Hours reported for its debut on the Nintendo Channel.

Amazon.com Sale Rank & Advertised Price:
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories' Amazon.com sale rank is #1,046 and the current selling price is $42.77.

GameRankings.com Review Score Average:
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories' review score average is 78.34%, based on 38 reviews.

Thoughts:
I've never played a Silent Hill game.  My wife remembers seeing the first Silent Hill game played, and she remembers it as being scary.

I've read a lot of player comments about Silent Hill: Shattered Memories on the Wii.
I've read that it's about 6 hours in terms of a single play-through, but that the game has multiple endings and things can change each time you play the game, according to how you answer some questions at the beginning.

One thing I wonder about though, is why the Wii version of the game has a MSRP currently of $49.99, while the PS2 version of the game has a MSRP of just $29.99.

Questions:
Have you played Silent Hill: Shattered Memories on the Wii?
If so, would you recommend the game to other Wii owners like myself, that maybe have never played any of the Silent Hill games before?


If you're interested in Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, you can see new/used prices for the game on Amazon.com in the picture:

2009 Nintendo Wii Games: New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Fit Plus, Wii Sports Resort: Data, Sales, Review Scores

Wii Sports Resort, Wii Fit Plus, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii
(click image to enlarge)

Number of Players Reporting Data:
Wii Sports Resort has 361,399 players reporting their data this week on the Wii's Nintendo Channel.
Wii Fit Plus has 171,575 players reporting data this week.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii has 363,636 players reporting their play-time data.

Player Increase Over Last Week:
Wii Sports Resort had an increase of 9,344 more players reporting play-time data this week, over last week.
Wii Fit Plus had an increase of 6,072 more players reporting play-time data.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii had an increase of 14,800 more players reporting their data.

"Total" Game-Play Hours Reported/Increased:
Wii Sports Resort has 7,716,308 Total Hours reported, an increase of 287,171 hours from last week.
Wii Fit Plus has 2,533,434 Total Hours reported, an increase of 146,340 hours from last week.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii has 8,896,172 Total Hours reporting, an increase of 592,465 hours from last week's data.

Amazon.com Sale Ranks & Advertised Prices:
Wii Sports Resort's Amazon.com sale rank is #22 and the current selling price is $46.99.
Wii Fit Plus', the game only, Amazon.com sale rank is #31 and the current selling price is $17.54.
Wii Fit Plus w/ Balance Board's Amazon.com sale rank is #9 and the current starting new price is $129.94.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii's Amazon.com sale rank is #13 and the current selling price is $42.54.

GameRankings.com Review Score Averages:
Wii Sports Resort's review score average is 82.88% based on 50 reviews.
Wii Fit Plus' review score average is 81.32% based on 19 reviews.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii's review score average is 88.12% based on 54 reviews.

Thoughts:
11 weeks and counting.  Still no supply of Wii Fit Plus w/ Balance Board on Amazon.com.
Also this week, New Super Mario Bros. Wii is discounted by 15% on Amazon.com right now, to $42.54, the lowest I think it's been when I've done the reports.

Wii Sports Resort is still putting up pretty decent hours each week, and hopefully continued sales of Wii Sports Resort, will mean better sales for games like Red Steel 2 and even Rage of the Gladiator(WiiWare), both of which use the Wii MotionPlus accessory.

Questions:
Do you find it interesting that Wii Fit Plus has the fewest review scores, out of these three games?
Why do you think it is?  
Perhaps it's because it would require the "reviewers" to be active?  Or maybe the cost is the reason?


If you're interested in any of the games mentioned, you can see some of their prices new/used, from Amazon.com right here:
   

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Red Steel 2 and Monster Hunter 3: Spokesmen


Red Steel 2 releases today, March 23, 2010, for the Wii.
It's the first FPS type game, that requires the WM+ accessory to play the game.
Monster Hunter 3 will release on the Wii on April 20, 2010.
The Classic Controller Pro will be releases simultaneously in North America, with Monster Hunter 3.

Jason VandenBerghe pictured on the left, I would say is known as Red Steel 2's spokesman.
Ironbeard McCullough pictured on the right, I would say is becoming known as Monster Hunter 3's "spokesman" of sorts.

Here's a brief "comparison" of the two:
                               Jason VandenBerghe    Ironbeard McCullough
                                    for Red Steel 2:         for Monster Hunter 3:

Means of Travel:             Airplanes                   1971 Ford F-150

Target Audience
When Talking                 Gaming Press            College Students
About the Game:

Notable Items:                Walking Cane              Great Sword

Hair:                                     Lots                              Lots


Questions:
1)  Do you think the "Target Audience" that Jason and Ironbeard are talking about their games with, will have an impact on the sales of the games?  
2)  Do you think either company, Ubisoft or Capcom, has chosen a better "spokeman" and means of talking about each game?

3)  Also, being that Red Steel 2 is being released today, do you plan on picking it up?


As always, if you're interested in either game, you can see them on Amazon.com below:

Monday, March 22, 2010

Drink of Choice when Gaming: 400+ Cups

You may have wondered why my blog is named, "CoffeewithGames".
(one of my first banners I made for the blog)


A Brief History:
I can remember starting to drink coffee in the sixth grade.  My coffee would be fixed up with cream/sweetener.
In high school, some friends and I would go to IHOP late at night, and we would almost always get the "Never Empty Coffee Pot", sometimes I would use cream/sugar, sometimes I would drink it regular.
In 2003 when I was still living in Louisiana, I started going to a local coffee shop almost on a daily basis.
I would get a cup of coffee and while I was drinking the coffee, I would usually play a game(or two) of chess at the coffee shop.

Many years later, in 2010, I'm still drinking coffee daily!
I ended up making an email address, followed by an account on GoNintendo.com a few years back, and my email/username was/is, CoffeewithChess.
I haven't played a game of chess in a while, but I do play video games on a regular basis.
When I'm on the computer chatting/commenting on video game stories, I usually have a cup of coffee sitting on the computer desk(as I do now @ 12:58AM on 3-22-10).

When I was setting up this blog last year, I was trying to decide on a name, and ended up replacing "chess" with "games", from my normal username on different sites.
I created a few banners(one seen in this post) for my blog, using a cup with coffee in it as the center logo.  Then a reader known as, ArakniD, from GoNintendo.com visited my blog one day, and created the current banner used on the site, without me even asking him to do it!  It was/is greatly appreciated!

My Coffee/Game Addiction:
Coffee is my drink of choice most days.
If I don't have at least one cup of coffee in a 12-24 hour period, I usually end up with a migraine.
I enjoy playing videos games, and reading news about the video game industry.
I remember first getting into gaming, when my dad bought my brother and me the NES system, with the Mario/Duck Hunt bundle.  My "addiction" to the video game world has continued ever since.
Luckily, I don't get a migraine if I don't play a game within a 12-24 hour period!

When I'm playing a video game I usually have a pot of coffee on, so if I pause the game or come to the end of a level, I can easily get up and go get another cup.
In my first video I created for the blog using my capture device, my wife and I were playing New Super Mario Bros. Wii, I actually say near the very end of the video, "...I'm gonna go get some coffee."
The line wasn't planned,  and there really was coffee in the pot.
I didn't even realize I had said it, until I was putting the video and audio together.

A few weeks ago, my wife decided she was going to start tracking how much coffee we(I) drink.
She had purchased us a container of Folgers "French Roast" coffee(pictured below), that's a medium-dark roast.
Folgers French Roast Ground Coffee, 27.8-Ounce Units (Pack of 3)
She wrote, "op: 2-14-10", on the coffee container the day I opened it, but she didn't tell me she had written anything on it.
A few days later, I noticed it written on the coffee container, and realized what she was doing.
The meaning of it was simple, "Opened on February 14, 2010".

On Friday, February 26, 2010, the coffee container was empty!
How much coffee was in the container originally?  Well, the coffee case reads, "MAKES UP TO 240 6 FL OZ CUPS" or "1 LB 11.8 OZ" of coffee.
So, in a matter of 12 days, we had gone through 240 cups of coffee!

Now, my wife usually drinks just one cup of coffee per day when she's leaving for work.
Sometimes, rarely, she'll have a cup of coffee when she gets home from work.
So, if she had 2 cups of coffee per day, over the 12 day period, that would be 24 cups of coffee.

Also, I know one night I brought some to a friend's house(Cansecoholic), and he and I drank about 8 cups between the two of us.

What about the other 208 cups of coffee?

Well, our ten month old son doesn't drink coffee(yet), so I know he didn't drink any of those cups.

When the first container was emptied on February 26, 2010, I opened the next container of Folgers coffee.  My wife had bought us the "Brazillian Blend", a medium roast(pictured below).
Again, the container was the same as the first in amount of coffee it made, "...UP TO 240 6 FL OZ CUPS", containing "1 LB 11.8 OZ" of coffee.
I thought to myself after realizing how much I drank from the first container, "I'm going to slow down with this one."

Well, on March 11, 2010, the second container was empty.
Just 13 days after I had opened it!  So, 240 cups of coffee in 13 days!  At least it lasted one more day, right?

Again, my wife averaged the same one cup per day, and she even skipped a few days during this time.

So, let's say she had 26 cups of coffee during the 13 days, that would leave 214 cups of coffee for somebody else to have finished off.

What About Games:
During the 25 day period, I completed Mirror's Edge on my PS3, and I played a few hours of Rabbids Go Home on the Wii, before I had to return it.
My wife played some Animal Crossing: City Folk, and she also played Rabbids Go Home as well.

In the period of 25 days, I drank about 422 cups of coffee(give or take a few).
Averaging about 16 cups per day.

You may be thinking, "Is that a normal amount to drink?"  I don't know, but I think it's on the high side from what I've heard from friends and family.

Also, I should probably note that I now drink about 99% of my coffee just freshly brewed, no sugar or cream added in it.

Coffee is my drink of choice when gaming, and just during my normal daily routine.

Questions:
What is your drink of choice when gaming?
If you like coffee, do you drink it regular?  Or do you add cream/sugar to it?
Do you have a favorite brand of coffee(as I know some of you prefer Dunkin' Donuts)?


As always, I'm posting the links for the games and some of the coffee mentioned in this post:
      









































Picture of the Folgers Brazillian Blend captured from Folgers.com.  The IHOP "Never Empty Coffee Pot" picture captured from IHOP.com.

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