Remember this figure is first week up to Oct 2nd, sure not as good as the previous expansion but mop is being reviewed well by critics, ignoring the zero scores on metacritic ofc. Mop is still likely to sell over 3 million in the first month, chances are it already has.
I think these figures are good, when an expansion sells better than the last there is little reason to push the boat out, blizzard have already talked about what coming in the next content patch and that ptr will soon be up, this might have been the kick in butt blizz needed.
I tend to agree metacritic is open to trolling . I do hope your right about Blizzard getting the kick up the butt they needed but I fear it will talke something more than figures being down on the previous expansion . If anything if the figures are real then all it will do is reinforce thier direction .
I would just like to see them remove the finder tools from pvp servers . Then it may return to something like it once was . Keep them on pve ones and allow people free migrations if they dont like it .
Not everyone wants to raid and raid and raid and raid .
imo sales are not that important with thise expac because alot of ppl i know and read through various forums are waiting atleast a month maybe 2 before purchasing to see how it goes. instead of getting depressed after buying cata from day 1 lol.
Blizzard "Hey we only counted the first week when MOP was not released in China!!!!"
Fooled fanbois " OMG SEE NO CHINA IN THE NUMBERS!!!! ONLY WEST!!! WoW STRONG!!"
Reality: Blizzard always reported sales numbers before the Chinese release. They never released any other "sales" reports including China in first place. Its the same conditions as always, the same global Asian (inc. Russian), Oceanic, South-American, European and US release conditions as always
Except for subscriber. Which where likely already slightly inflated due to the fact the "first week" ended just two days before the rushed Chinese expansion release and user got active again shortly before, (as it happens with any games expansions or content pdates) which are counted as full "subscriber" by Blizzard even if they leave the 25 cent MOP trial run after just a day of boredom.
You again. Oh I see you updated your sig.
Yes, you are right. Altho this is a spin (if you can even call that), it does not change the fact that MoP numbers are only West and prove that WoW after 8 years of ruling is still going strong.
And I don't know why are you pulling China numbers into this. They were not counted as sales nor as subscribers.
Blizzard "Hey we only counted the first week when MOP was not released in China!!!!"
Fooled fanbois " OMG SEE NO CHINA IN THE NUMBERS!!!! ONLY WEST!!! WoW STRONG!!"
Reality: Blizzard always reported sales numbers before the Chinese release. They never released any other "sales" reports including China in first place. Its the same conditions as always, the same global Asian (inc. Russian), Oceanic, South-American, European and US release conditions as always
Except for subscriber. Which where likely already slightly inflated due to the fact the "first week" ended just two days before the rushed Chinese expansion release and user got active again shortly before, (as it happens with any games expansions or content pdates) which are counted as full "subscriber" by Blizzard even if they leave the 25 cent MOP trial run after just a day of boredom.
I tend to agree that it is a spin . The reason I thnk this is the figures given were an approximation . I know Blizzard cant give the exact figures but when they were describing every other expansion packs figures they used the word over ( as in over 3.3 million for MoP ) . Approximations give a lot of room for maneuvre .
It also suggests Blizzard may not be using thier own numbers but those of industry analysts that offer a more favourable view of them . Having said that I was expecting around 2- 2.5 million to be sold in the first month this slighly exceeds that .
But if a million people have come back to WoW that means of the roughly 5 million players outside of China only 30 percent brought the expansion in the first week . That also doesn't add up to me because the majority of WoW players will have at least one level 85 character . I would have thought more existing players would have brought the expansion in the first week .
Something is amiss here . If Blizzard are trying to pull the wool over peoples eyes with their approximation it will be noticed when the companys financial figures come out .
Have they exagerated or not ? Only time will tell .
I don't know what's not clear here. WoW peaked in WOTLK with 12 million subs yet "only" 3.3mil bought Cataclysm. Its the same thing now. 10mil subs, 2.7mil MoP sales. I am more interested in numbers after a month. I doubt MoP will come close to Cata's 4.7mil in the 1st month but just because theyv've lost too many with Cataclysm, not because MoP is bad. Word of mouth will spread and I can see sales rising. Especially around holidays.
Part of the low initial sales might be due to the fact that you don't need the buy the expansion to play the new class and race. If someone is concentrating on leveling up their kung fu panda, why bother buying the expac right away. The lower sale numbers are also a result of lower overall sub numbers since Cata was released.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
Originally posted by Ginaz Part of the low initial sales might be due to the fact that you don't need the buy the expansion to play the new class and race. If someone is concentrating on leveling up their kung fu panda, why bother buying the expac right away. The lower sale numbers are also a result of lower overall sub numbers since Cata was released.
Really? I dont think so, not even close.
We all know that most fans of a MMO buys the expansion no matter what. And we also know that most sales is happening the first week, both can be said about any earlier Wow expansion and any other MMO expansion as well.
If Blizzard sold less and expected it probably mean that a higher percentage than we thought of the quitting players the last 2 years were western. And that Blizzard for some reason didnt get as much players back into the game for the expansion as they usually get, before numbers have always been a lot higher just when they release an expansion since many older players get the expansion and run a month or 2 to experience most of the new content.
I dont think it is the pandas that is the problem either, Blizzard needs to try something new with the game if they want to keep the players.
Half of my Wow playing friends love it, the other half hates it which is rather funny, before have most of them been in between with a slightly positive angle. Here everyone seems to have a extreme opinion one way or another.
Anyways, the real reason for the sales decline is probably just that the game is getting old, it happens to everything and everyone sooner or later. 8 years is pretty venerable for a computer game.
Originally posted by Ginaz Part of the low initial sales might be due to the fact that you don't need the buy the expansion to play the new class and race. If someone is concentrating on leveling up their kung fu panda, why bother buying the expac right away. The lower sale numbers are also a result of lower overall sub numbers since Cata was released.
Really? I dont think so, not even close.
We all know that most fans of a MMO buys the expansion no matter what. And we also know that most sales is happening the first week, both can be said about any earlier Wow expansion and any other MMO expansion as well.
If Blizzard sold less and expected it probably mean that a higher percentage than we thought of the quitting players the last 2 years were western. And that Blizzard for some reason didnt get as much players back into the game for the expansion as they usually get, before numbers have always been a lot higher just when they release an expansion since many older players get the expansion and run a month or 2 to experience most of the new content.
I dont think it is the pandas that is the problem either, Blizzard needs to try something new with the game if they want to keep the players.
Half of my Wow playing friends love it, the other half hates it which is rather funny, before have most of them been in between with a slightly positive angle. Here everyone seems to have a extreme opinion one way or another.
Anyways, the real reason for the sales decline is probably just that the game is getting old, it happens to everything and everyone sooner or later. 8 years is pretty venerable for a computer game.
The fact that Cata initially sold around 3.5 million with a player base around 12 million disproves the highlighted portion of your post. Selling 2.7 million of MoP with a player base thats now less, around 10 million, doesn't mean that there is all of a sudden some sort of massive decline.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
I am interested in seeing the second week sales. How many heard reviews that were positive and decided they would give it a try that were waiting and not buying at first?
Originally posted by Ausare I am interested in seeing the second week sales. How many heard reviews that were positive and decided they would give it a try that were waiting and not buying at first?
Many people are saying MoP is the best WoW expansion yet. Some estimates say sales will be around 4.5 to 5 million for the 3rd quarter, meaning from now until the end of December.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
Still amazed at how desperate people get with trying to figure China into these numbers in a negative way.
If what these crazies are saying were true, the very first time Blizzard published "subscriber" numbers would be followed by a month of extreme decline, numbering in the millions, since all those Chinese folks only played for one hour that month and never again, right?
Do you not get how stupid that is? It wasn't true the first time you said it, it wasn't true last year and it's not true now. How current would Blizzard have to be with their playerbase info to satisfy you? If a month isn't enough, maybe a week? Day? Realtime updates? Enough already...
P.S.:
MoP is top quality for sure, WoW wasn't this good since I set foot in Howling Fjord as far as questing / eyecandy goes, for example. Almost made me forget all about Cataclysm (although I did like Vashj'ir).
Originally posted by nsignific Still amazed at how desperate people get with trying to figure China into these numbers in a negative way.
If what these crazies are saying were true, the very first time Blizzard published "subscriber" numbers would be followed by a month of extreme decline, numbering in the millions, since all those Chinese folks only played for one hour that month and never again, right?
Do you not get how stupid that is? It wasn't true the first time you said it, it wasn't true last year and it's not true now. How current would Blizzard have to be with their playerbase info to satisfy you? If a month isn't enough, maybe a week? Day? Realtime updates? Enough already...
P.S.:
MoP is top quality for sure, WoW wasn't this good since I set foot in Howling Fjord as far as questing / eyecandy goes, for example. Almost made me forget all about Cataclysm (although I did like Vashj'ir).
These ae the same people who would rip you to peices if you try to down play success of GW2 and yet they are here on daily basis trying too hard to show that MOP is a failure.
Originally posted by Ginaz Part of the low initial sales might be due to the fact that you don't need the buy the expansion to play the new class and race. If someone is concentrating on leveling up their kung fu panda, why bother buying the expac right away. The lower sale numbers are also a result of lower overall sub numbers since Cata was released.
Really? I dont think so, not even close.
We all know that most fans of a MMO buys the expansion no matter what. And we also know that most sales is happening the first week, both can be said about any earlier Wow expansion and any other MMO expansion as well.
If Blizzard sold less and expected it probably mean that a higher percentage than we thought of the quitting players the last 2 years were western. And that Blizzard for some reason didnt get as much players back into the game for the expansion as they usually get, before numbers have always been a lot higher just when they release an expansion since many older players get the expansion and run a month or 2 to experience most of the new content.
I dont think it is the pandas that is the problem either, Blizzard needs to try something new with the game if they want to keep the players.
Half of my Wow playing friends love it, the other half hates it which is rather funny, before have most of them been in between with a slightly positive angle. Here everyone seems to have a extreme opinion one way or another.
Anyways, the real reason for the sales decline is probably just that the game is getting old, it happens to everything and everyone sooner or later. 8 years is pretty venerable for a computer game.
The fact that Cata initially sold around 3.5 million with a player base around 12 million disproves the highlighted portion of your post. Selling 2.7 million of MoP with a player base thats now less, around 10 million, doesn't mean that there is all of a sudden some sort of massive decline.
Not quite, cata sold around 4 million in total I forget how much, and in China they don't really pay for the retail just a by the hour. Which means probably most of western players (the ones that actually buy it) bought it.
Originally posted by Nadia agree, 3rd quarter ended Sept 30thwill see 3rd quarter financial reports in early November
Not always. Some businesses, and governments, use a different system. First quarter begins 1 April, 2nd 1 July, 3rd 1 Oct. and 4th on 1 Jan.
True, but usually they make it obvious when they're talking about fiscal quarters or calendar quarters. The reports you were referring to earlier were about the 3rd quarter ending end of September, and the sales made IN that quarter, as the multiple references in the source article showed clearly.
That said, it was still nothing but just another analyst's speculation, we'll see what the official figures will be for the 1st month's sales. It'll also be interesting to see how the sub figures will be when the annual passes for D3 have run their course for many, but that's not for anytime soon.
MoP has already outsold all it's competitor's. It only took a week to do so. I find it funny that some people are trying to paint this in a negative light.
Originally posted by Atlan99 MoP has already outsold all it's competitor's. It only took a week to do so. I find it funny that some people are trying to paint this in a negative light.
Clinging on straws is a natural human reaction.
To be fair, there IS a decline in sales compared to previous expansions (only Blizzard is a real competitor to Blizzard).
But taking into account a smaller playerbase + the general decline in sales in the industry as a whole - the numbers are actually exceedingly good.
Not to mention WoW's age. It's been 8 years and no game can outsell it, still.
Comments
I tend to agree metacritic is open to trolling . I do hope your right about Blizzard getting the kick up the butt they needed but I fear it will talke something more than figures being down on the previous expansion . If anything if the figures are real then all it will do is reinforce thier direction .
I would just like to see them remove the finder tools from pvp servers . Then it may return to something like it once was . Keep them on pve ones and allow people free migrations if they dont like it .
Not everyone wants to raid and raid and raid and raid .
imo sales are not that important with thise expac because alot of ppl i know and read through various forums are waiting atleast a month maybe 2 before purchasing to see how it goes. instead of getting depressed after buying cata from day 1 lol.
probably just a minority but just my opinion
You again. Oh I see you updated your sig.
Yes, you are right. Altho this is a spin (if you can even call that), it does not change the fact that MoP numbers are only West and prove that WoW after 8 years of ruling is still going strong.
And I don't know why are you pulling China numbers into this. They were not counted as sales nor as subscribers.
I don't know what's not clear here. WoW peaked in WOTLK with 12 million subs yet "only" 3.3mil bought Cataclysm. Its the same thing now. 10mil subs, 2.7mil MoP sales. I am more interested in numbers after a month. I doubt MoP will come close to Cata's 4.7mil in the 1st month but just because theyv've lost too many with Cataclysm, not because MoP is bad. Word of mouth will spread and I can see sales rising. Especially around holidays.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
Really? I dont think so, not even close.
We all know that most fans of a MMO buys the expansion no matter what. And we also know that most sales is happening the first week, both can be said about any earlier Wow expansion and any other MMO expansion as well.
If Blizzard sold less and expected it probably mean that a higher percentage than we thought of the quitting players the last 2 years were western. And that Blizzard for some reason didnt get as much players back into the game for the expansion as they usually get, before numbers have always been a lot higher just when they release an expansion since many older players get the expansion and run a month or 2 to experience most of the new content.
I dont think it is the pandas that is the problem either, Blizzard needs to try something new with the game if they want to keep the players.
Half of my Wow playing friends love it, the other half hates it which is rather funny, before have most of them been in between with a slightly positive angle. Here everyone seems to have a extreme opinion one way or another.
Anyways, the real reason for the sales decline is probably just that the game is getting old, it happens to everything and everyone sooner or later. 8 years is pretty venerable for a computer game.
The fact that Cata initially sold around 3.5 million with a player base around 12 million disproves the highlighted portion of your post. Selling 2.7 million of MoP with a player base thats now less, around 10 million, doesn't mean that there is all of a sudden some sort of massive decline.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
Yes, sorry. Monk requires MoP. Playing as a panda doesn't.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2012/08/18/blizzard-is-making-every-world-of-warcraft-race-including-pandarens-playable-for-everyone/
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
Many people are saying MoP is the best WoW expansion yet. Some estimates say sales will be around 4.5 to 5 million for the 3rd quarter, meaning from now until the end of December.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
If what these crazies are saying were true, the very first time Blizzard published "subscriber" numbers would be followed by a month of extreme decline, numbering in the millions, since all those Chinese folks only played for one hour that month and never again, right?
Do you not get how stupid that is? It wasn't true the first time you said it, it wasn't true last year and it's not true now. How current would Blizzard have to be with their playerbase info to satisfy you? If a month isn't enough, maybe a week? Day? Realtime updates? Enough already...
P.S.:
MoP is top quality for sure, WoW wasn't this good since I set foot in Howling Fjord as far as questing / eyecandy goes, for example. Almost made me forget all about Cataclysm (although I did like Vashj'ir).
These ae the same people who would rip you to peices if you try to down play success of GW2 and yet they are here on daily basis trying too hard to show that MOP is a failure.
Irony they don't know what it means.
Not quite, cata sold around 4 million in total I forget how much, and in China they don't really pay for the retail just a by the hour. Which means probably most of western players (the ones that actually buy it) bought it.
agree, 3rd quarter ended Sept 30th
will see 3rd quarter financial reports in early November
EQ2 fan sites
Not always. Some businesses, and governments, use a different system. First quarter begins 1 April, 2nd 1 July, 3rd 1 Oct. and 4th on 1 Jan.
Is a man not entitled to the herp of his derp?
Remember, I live in a world where juggalos and yugioh players are real things.
Not always. Some businesses, and governments, use a different system. First quarter begins 1 April, 2nd 1 July, 3rd 1 Oct. and 4th on 1 Jan.
True, but usually they make it obvious when they're talking about fiscal quarters or calendar quarters. The reports you were referring to earlier were about the 3rd quarter ending end of September, and the sales made IN that quarter, as the multiple references in the source article showed clearly.
That said, it was still nothing but just another analyst's speculation, we'll see what the official figures will be for the 1st month's sales. It'll also be interesting to see how the sub figures will be when the annual passes for D3 have run their course for many, but that's not for anytime soon.i know quarters vary depending on the company but Blizzards 3rd quarter does end Sept 30th
last year:
Activision Blizzard Announces Better-Than-Expected Third Quarter 2011 Net Revenues and Earnings
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/activision-blizzard-announces-better-than-expected-third-quarter-2011-net-revenues-and-earnings-133474498.html
For the quarter ended September 30, 2011
EQ2 fan sites
Clinging on straws is a natural human reaction.
To be fair, there IS a decline in sales compared to previous expansions (only Blizzard is a real competitor to Blizzard).
But taking into account a smaller playerbase + the general decline in sales in the industry as a whole - the numbers are actually exceedingly good.
Not to mention WoW's age. It's been 8 years and no game can outsell it, still.