Dumb, Dumber, Dumbest: Tony Hawk: RIDE, Console Conversations

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     I showed a few weeks back how Tony Hawk: RIDE on the Wii was selling better than the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of Tony Hawk: RIDE.  I explained how I wasn't sure what Wii owners were buying it, other than the "casuals", because I couldn't figure who would buy a $120 game without looking at reviews.  I decided to keep track of the game over the past week, and see how the sales data was comparing between the different versions on Amazon.com.

Tony Hawk: RIDE Sales Data:

So how has Tony Hawk: RIDE continued to perform well on Amazon.com's sales chart, after the horrible review scores for the game?

Take a look at Tony Hawk: RIDE's Amazon.com sales data for the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii, over 8 days, taken at random times during the days.

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Things to Consider

Tony Hawk: RIDE Advertising:

As of my searching today, I found only one TV commercial for Tony Hawk: RIDE and you can watch it for yourself.

I don't know if there are other commercials for Tony Hawk: RIDE, but this commercial shows a lot of board movement, with very few in game moves associated with the board's motions.  Is this sole TV commercial the reason for Tony Hawk: RIDE's sales data on the Wii, and even PS3 and 360, to rise from their late November sales rankings on Amazon.com?  Are there other TV commercials for the game I didn't find?

Tony Hawk: RIDE Reviews:

The last time I posted up Amazon.com's sale data for Tony Hawk: RIDE, there were only a few review scores for the game on each console.  As the "comic" strip showed, Tony Hawk: RIDE is currently averaging less than 50% on review scores for the PS3 and Xbox 360. Take a look at the average review score for each console version of the game:

Now you may be thinking after seeing the average review scores, "Well, the Wii version does have a higher average, so maybe it's the better game and that's why it's selling better?"  Well, if you take a close look at the picture, it shows that the Xbox 360 version has been reviewed by 19 reviewers, the PS3 version by 9 reviewers, and the Wii version by only 4 reviewers.  The reason for some of this, is that when a PS3 copy is reviewed, they often will count it as the Xbox 360 review as well, and vice versa.  This means that lot of reviewers, though Tony Hawk: RIDE is essentially the same game on all consoles, aren't showing a review score for the Wii version.

Kevin Cassidy, of GoNintendo.com, said this about Tony Hawk: RIDE, "Tony Hawk: RIDE seems to be quite the disaster, doesn't it? Review scores have been very bad, with more negative comments coming in. I had absolutely no intentions of buying the game based on the wave of negative press, but just yesterday Activision dropped a copy of the game off. I tried playing it...some friends tried playing it...and we all almost killed ourselves. The board doesn't do what it's supposed to do...at all. Expect a review in the near future."

Questions:

Do you think the Amazon.com data shows that a Wii game can sell well, regardless of review scores, as long as it's advertised on TV?  Should Wii owners(and others) be able to return the game and board, if it doesn't perform like it's expected?  Or, are people buying the game responsible for knowing how the game plays, before they buy it?

If you've purchased Tony Hawk: RIDE and believe the reviewers are way off base, like Tony Hawk himself does, please leave a comment and let me know what you think of the game!

Maybe all of this just proves that Michael Pachter was correct when he said, "I think that Metacritic scores are irrelevant for people who don't look at them - how's that for obvious? While there are many Wii owners who are hardcore and who care very much about scores, there are many - perhaps half - who are quite casual, and wouldn't know Metacritic if it fell on them.  Clearly, somebody's buying Carnival Games, Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum, etc,. A well positioned game with an interesting concept can sell well on the Wii regardless of review scores, and I think that is what Peter's talking about."

What do you think?

The Wii's Nintendo Channel Data: Wii Sports Resort versus New Super Mario Bros. Wii

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The Games:

Nintendo released Wii Sports Resort this past summer, on July 26.  Wii Sports Resort was Nintendo's debut title showing off Wii Motion +.  Nintendo used Wii Sports Resort in a variety of ways to show players the new level of control possible in games, now thanks to Wii Motion +.

On November 15, Nintendo released New Super Mario Bros. Wii.  It was a return to 2D platforming for Mario, something that hasn't been done on a console since the SNES.  New Super Mario Bros. Wii was the first console 2D Mario game that offered a simultaneous multi-player experience in the game.

The Observance:

Both Wii Sports Resort and New Super Mario Bros. Wii have debuted and have data being shown on the Nintendo Channel.  Which game accumulated more play-time in the first two weeks after they released?

Take a look:

 

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The Nintendo Channel Data Breakdown

Wii Sports Resort had 221,213 Total game-play hours showing, 15 days after it released.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii had 283,363 Total game-play hours showing,  15 days after it released.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii beat Wii Sports Resort, by 62,150 game-play hours.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii per person average play-time was 17 minutes higher than Wii Sports Resort.

Wii Sports Resort had 23,329 players report data during it's first 15 days.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii had 28,959 players report data during it's first 15 days.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii had 5,630 more players report data it's first 15 days, than Wii Sports Resort did.

Questions:

Were you one of the 28,959 players to report data for New Super Mario Bros. Wii within it's first 15 days?  If so, were you above or below the average "per person" play time of 9 Hours 47 Minutes?

Between the two games, do you prefer Wii Sports Resort's "new" factor in controls, or do you prefer New Super Mario Bros. Wii's "nostalgia"?  Leave a comment and let me know!

The Wii's Nintendo Channel Data: EA Sports Active, Punch-Out!!, The Conduit, Wii Sports Resort

Wii Nintendo Channel Data for Week Starting Monday, November 30:

Nintendo Channel Data Breakdown

Player Numbers:

43,403 players reported data for EA Sports Active on the Nintendo Channel this week, an increase of 1,122 players reporting data.

68,820 players reported data for Punch-Out!!, an increase of 1,731 players.

42,436 players reported data for The Conduit, an increase 1,223 players.

151,348 players reported data for Wii Sports Resort, an increase of 7,658 players.

Sales Rank:

EA Sports Active was the only game of the four this week, to see it's Amazon.com sales rank decrease.

Last week, EA Sports Active was ranked #6 in video games, and when I captured the data this week it was ranked #50.

The Conduit increased to #586, from #645 last week, on Amazon.com's video game sales rank.

Punch-Out!! increased from #219 last week, to #187 this week.

Wii Sports Resort increased on Amazon.com's sales rank from #9 last week, to #4 this week.

Thoughts:

Wii Sports Resort, as well as other Nintendo titles like New Super Mario Bros. Wii and Wii Fit Plus with Balance Board are continuously ranking in the Top 10 on Amazon.com's overall video game sales rank page. Take a look at Amazon.com's Top 10 sales in the video game category, at the time of posting this:

 

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Something New:

This should be the last week for these games to be compared directly, I'm doing a "reorganization" of sorts and it should start fresh next week!  Until then, are there any games you've picked up recently on the Wii(or other consoles) that you've been enjoying and putting many game-play hours into?  Are you playing any of the four games compared in this article?  If so, leave a comment and let me know what you think of them!

The Conduit wrestles Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] and Metroid Prime Trilogy

Earlier today, I posted up Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex]'s Nintendo Channel debut data.
After looking at the data, you may be think, "Well, how did Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] debut compared to The Conduit and perhaps Metroid Prime: Trilogy?"
It does seem that the FPS market on the Wii is one that is neglected for the most part, after-all, it's Wii owners that got stuck with the holidays with only ONE first-person shooter, and it's a two year old port of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

The Pre-Match Talk:
The Conduit boasted before the match, that it was going to have the best controls for a FPS on the Wii, the most robust online multi-player, as well as some powerful graphics, flying high above the rest of the competition.  The Conduit was hyped up and many thought it would easily knock-out any FPS game before it on the Wii. 
Metroid Prime Trilogy boasted before the match, that it would be bringing old school talent, but with new moves, and it would give you the most for your money in one package.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] was extremely humble before the match, not really speaking out much about himself, and some say his former agent(Infinity Ward) had a lot to do with keeping him quiet and humble.

So, in their debut match in the Nintendo Channel Data ring, which game came out on top?  Let's take a look:

The Match Performance Breakdown

Days:

13 days from when The Conduit released, that's how long it took The Conduit to debut with data on the Nintendo Channel.

21 days from when it released, that's how long it took for Metroid Prime Trilogy's Nintendo Channel debut.

20 days, that's how many days it took Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] to have game-play data reported on the Nintendo Channel.
Days verdict: The Conduit delivered a stunningly fast performance and blasted both Metroid Prime Trilogy and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] with it's speedy attacks, showing it's 13 days of game-play couldn't be beat by just name recognition for the other two.

Players:

6,963 players reported data for The Conduit's Nintendo Channel debut.

5,415 players had reported data by the time Metroid Prime Trilogy debuted on the Nintendo Channel.

3,748 players reported the data for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex]'s debut.
Player verdict:  Again, The Conduit showed in this match-up that talking trash and bragging loudly about yourself before a match can help you have fans showing up to support you.
The Conduit had 1,548 more fans(players) than Metroid Prime Trilogy and 3,215 more fans than Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex].

Nintendo Channel Total Hours:

74,522 total hours were reported for The Conduit's debut.

63,930 total hours were reported for Metroid Prime Trilogy's debut.

65,114 total hours were reported for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex]'s debut.
Total Hours verdict: Again, The Conduit outperformed the Metroid Prime Trilogy and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] in this category.

Nintendo Channel Hours Per Person:

10 Hrs. 42 Min. reported per gamer for The Conduit's Nintendo Channel debut.

11 Hrs. 48 Min. reported per gamer for Metroid Prime Trilogy's Nintendo Channel debut.

17 Hrs. 22 Min. reported per gamer for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex]'s Nintendo Channel debut.
Hours Per Fan(Person) verdict:  Though Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] may have lost the debut match overall to The Conduit, Call of Duty's fans were the most dedicated in giving of their time for support.  They were outnumbered by more than 3,000 fans for The Conduit, but Call of Duty's fans must have been camping out late, and stayed late long after the match had ended, and it shows with their match(game) time per person, being nearly 6 hours longer than Metroid Prime Trilogy and nearly 7 hours longer than The Conduit.

In the end, I believe it was the hype for The Conduit that High-Voltage Software was able to create for the game, that allowed it to perform better than Metroid and Call of Duty in their first debut.
Will there ever be a rematch?  Perhaps in the future, but for now, The Conduit can boast having the best FPS debut on the Nintendo Channel for 2009.

Have you played any of these games?  If so, are you still playing them or have you moved on to something else?  Also, if you watch wrestling now, or have in the past, do you have a favorite wrestler?  Check the comments for my favorite wrestler!

The Wii's Nintendo Channel Data: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] Debuts

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare[Reflex] Nintendo Channel data debut

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This is the first week since it released, for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] to debut on the Nintendo Channel with game-play data.

Days:

21 days, that's how many days it took Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex] to have game-play data reported on the Nintendo Channel.

Players:

3,748 players reported the data for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex]'s debut.

Were you one of the 3,748 players that contributed game-play data for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare [Reflex]?  If you've played the game, what are you opinions of it, good or bad?