November game market a bloodbath |
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November game market a bloodbath
Nintendo's Wii may have run away with the U.S. console hardware market for November, but two titles for Microsoft's Xbox 360 were solidly atop the NPD Group's rankings of video-game sales for the month. Yet Microsoft won't exactly be citing these results as evidence that it's broadening its market beyond hard-core gamers.
"Gears of War 2" for Xbox 360 -- complete with its trademark chainsaw battles -- topped the list at 1.56 million units sold. That was followed by the "Call of Duty: World at War" for Xbox 360, which was close behind at 1.41 million units.
In fact, with the exception of games for the Nintendo Wii, every single title in the top 10 for the month was a violent, mature-rated game. The PlayStation 3 version of "Call of Duty" came in sixth on the list, with 597,000 units sold. "Left 4 Dead" for the Xbox 360 was eighth, and "Resistance 2" for PlayStation 3 was ninth.
Nintendo had five titles in the top 10. Here's the full list:
Of course, hard-core games have a place in the market. And yes, the Xbox 360 and PS3 have tapped the general audience with downloadable games and digital entertainment.
But at this point, given how much lip service Microsoft and Sony have given to broadening the appeal of their offerings, it doesn't seem unreasonable to expect at least one non-violent, non-Wii game in the NPD top 10 during the peak shopping season.
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