Pages

Friday, March 4, 2011

PS3 vs. Xbox 360: Marvel vs. Capcom 3's February Sales Ranks Per System - Analysis with Chart

Coffee Beans:
     Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds was released on February 15, 2011 in North America, for both the PS3 and Xbox 360.  The game released with a "Standard" edition with a MSRP for $59.99, as well as a "Special" edition which quickly sold-out upon release.
     The game was developed and published by Capcom, and the ESRB gave Marvel vs. Capcom 3 a "T for Teen" rating, and has "Mild Language, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Violence" listed as content for parents to be aware of.

     With Marvel vs. Capcom 3 being the first new game released for the series in more than 10 years, did more PS3 owners or more Xbox 360 owners apparently purchase Marvel vs. Capcom 3 during February?  Let's take a look!

Click chart to enlarge

Chart Info:
     The chart above shows the sales ranks for Marvel vs. Capcom 3's Standard edition on the PS3 and Xbox 360, with ranks recorded February 1 through February 28, 2011.  The sales ranks are reflective of pre-order sales ranks and release/post-release sales ranks in February.  All times were recorded as Pacific Standard Times.
     Not only did I record the date/time and sale rank of each version, but I also recorded the price of each game version as Amazon.com had it listed, but the price is not listed in the chart, mainly because both games were priced nearly the same each time I was recording the data.
     The chart above is not supposed to replace the NPD sales numbers for February, but is designed to be a supplement for the NPD numbers, and perhaps give us idea of what the sales breakdown was for each version of the game during February.

Highs & Lows:
     The highest recorded sale rank for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on the PS3 was #5, on February 14 and February 15 around 7:10PM and 9:25AM, respectively.  The game was selling for $59.99 both days/times the sales ranks were recorded.
     The lowest recorded sale rank for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on the PS3 was #62, on February 27 around 8:15PM, and it was selling for $56.99 when the sale rank was recorded.

     The highest recorded sale rank for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on the Xbox 360 was #6, on February 15 and February 16, around 7:10PM and 9:25AM, respectively.
     The lowest recorded sale rank for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on the Xbox 360 was #84, on February 27 around 8:15PM.  The game was selling for $56.99 when the sale rank was recorded.

Overall Monthly Average:
     The PS3 version of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 had an overall monthly sales rank of #23 when I averaged all the Amazon.com sales ranks together.

     The Xbox 360 version of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 had an overall monthly sales rank of #33 when I averaged all the Amazon.com sales ranks together for it.

Critical Reception:
     Marvel vs. Capcom 3's "professional" review scores started being published on the internet on February 14, the day before the game released.  Several sites that posted reviews on February 14 are: IGN, 1UP, Game Informer, and Game Spot.

     Marvel vs. Capcom 3's current review score average on the PS3 is 86.35%, based on 33 reviews on GameRankings.com.
     Marvel vs. Capcom 3's current review score average on the Xbox 360 is 87.10%, based on 43 reviews on GameRankings.com.
Agree, or disagree?

Filtered Thoughts:
     I don't own and haven't played Marvel vs. Capcom 3, but I know a few of the regular readers here picked up the game, and you can read Chalgyr's review for Marvel vs. Capcom 3, HERE.
     Again, while we don't know the official NPD numbers for February, I hope the recorded sales ranks can give us an idea of perhaps how Marvel vs. Capcom 3 was selling on the PS3 and Xbox 360 throughout the month.
    I really think it's interesting that neither the PS3 version, nor the Xbox 360 version, remained in the Amazon.com "Top 10" video games more than 5 days in any of my recorded sales ranks, and considering it had been a while since the last Marvel vs. Capcom game, I really expected at least one version to be in the "Top 10" for at least one full week of the month.
     Not only did neither version remain in the "Top 10" for a full week, but both versions fell out of the "Top 20" video game rankings by February 20, and neither entered the "Top 20", or "Top 10", for the rest of the month.  I think seeing the overall monthly average for both versions being below the #20 spot is interesting, but not necessarily meaning the games together wouldn't be in the NPD "Top 20" for February if they release the "total" sales numbers for the month.

Questions:
     Do you think the Amazon.com sales ranks for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 will be reflective of the February NPD data, and perhaps the PS3 version did outsell the Xbox 360 version for the month of February?
     If you purchased Marvel vs. Capcom 3, which version did you purchase, and is it a fighting game you would recommend to other PS3 and Xbox 360 owners perhaps looking for a good fighting game?

If anybody is interested in Marvel vs. Capcom 3, you can see prices for both the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions on Amazon.com linked below: