Borderlands would have done a LOT better if anyone could find a damn copy of the game here in Canada.
I have a feeling that once Take Two noticed the game was going to sell, and that Walmart and friends (Best Buy, FS) were running it at 39.99 for the first few days, WHICH was advertised on Xbox Live for Canada, they cut supply.
The walmart beside my apt got zero copies. The one 20 minutes away had seven. SEVEN. On launch day, at 9am.
Futureshop had a few, I grabbed mine there, but then they didn't have anymore for a bunch of days.
Most buggered launch ever, and my conspiracy theory brain tells me it was on purpose. SEVEN goddamn copies at walmart? ZERO at the store next to me? #retail
Brutal Legend received the sales it deserved. Double Fine has ALWAYS been about form over function. Their games are never mentioned with awed reverence over the genius of the game mechanics, control schemes, or innovative gameplay. Their games are strong in art style, quirky characters, running through an eccentric story. Had they stuck with their strengths, I and many others would have been happy campers. Instead they decided to play to their weaknesses, which is gameplay and the title suffered for it.
I think that Brutal Legend would have done better if released at a different time, like the late spring/early summer lull. How many people out there, like me, are interested in the game but have passed on it because of all the amazing options right now? #retail
@Curse lily: Bought it, loved it! And if it hadn't sold out everywhere, who knows? it could have broken the top 10.
Impressive performance for a game that isn't mainstream by any stretch of the imagination, especially at this time of the year. Beating Brütal Legend is amazing, considering the strong marketing push behind Schafer's game, as well as the insane amount of hype and free promotion that blogs gave it.
I hope the success of Demon's Souls will inspire "big name" developers and publishers, both for the level of challenge and the very unique online capabilities. #retail
@Curse lily: Not me!!! Although I can't, for the life of me, gather up the desire and energy to play NG+. The thought of having to go through world 5 again fills me with bile and tears. #retail
@Curse lily: Cut across platforms as much as possible and expect to repeat a lot of your time pad actions to cut the time. The first one is the hardest. The third is the easiest; I think I ended up having a few seconds left over on that one. The first two, I've beaten with 0 seconds remaining (but have since improved my times). #retail
Okay I'll bite. Aside from a probable AC 2, I'm looking at either Borderlands, Demon's Souls, or Ratchet and Clank. I've heavily invested in R&C, but I can wait to play it. I've heard Borderlands is addicting, but also heard the same thing about Demon's Souls.
@crabperson really wants Uncharted 2: Demon's Souls is gonna be harder to find much faster. Get it now. Borderlands won't disappear nearly as quickly, nor will Ratchet. #retail
@crabperson really wants Uncharted 2: Atlus is notorious for low print runs. Their games get discontinued very quickly. Demon's Souls sold so fast that Atlus had to print an entirely new run of copies in the first month of launch.
@Archaotic: Oh ok. I'm reading the review IGN has up. You can't pause the game and it gets harder the more times you die?
That's badass, in a good kind of way. Although not really.
A game has yet to be punishingly hard for me this year, although I haven't tried Uncharted 2 on Crushing. I think I'm leaning towards Demon's Souls. #retail
@crabperson really wants Uncharted 2: Let's put it this way, Demon's Souls is a game where I've played for a four hour sitting and ended up making absolutely zero progress (losing all my souls), but the next day I'm still itching to try again.
I hear Borderlands is fun, but it really shines in co-op. Demon's Souls has online play, but it's a solo experience at its core. That may affect your decision. #retail
@crabperson really wants Uncharted 2: There's no pause because of the online nature, but you can save and quit when alone and you'll load back where you left off even if it's in the middle of a level. #retail
Traversing the halls, I find more ghosts than foes. Villains and heroes alike, we are lost in these endless depths hunting for our elusive ends. To hear that the spirit horde grows numerous is emboldening, but it too is frightening. Liars leave their glowing runes among those which read true, and distrust spreads to all. The black phantoms are countless, relentless in their nature. No one alive is spared from the hunt. Friendship is rare, and some allies are unsavory.
We are many who have chosen the path of Demon's Souls, many more than would have been believed. We walk this path of blood. Our cold comfort measured in ghosts, our equals, all lost and damned together. #retail
@Psudonym: wow
the most interesting thing about this game (outside of its cruel awesomeness) is the level of inspiration it has given to the musings of critics' and fans' the game.
Some really beautifully written comments and reviews were because of this game.
Considering Gim Frandango was called the death of the adventure game and Psychonauts came in just after all platformers died. I wonder he if gets down about it much :( #retail
Brutal Legend had great sales for a Tim Schaffer game.. but awful sales for a EA game, full of celebrity voice actors and almost 4 years in development.
I am sad that the most creative game I have ever seen this year is #12.
Let's hope Tim doesn't come down with some disease of not being able to make a huge sales hit with his games. #retail
@Boom-Chicka-Ah: Here to Create a Star Commenter Empire: Tim's problem is that he doesn't seem to understand a game can be original and creative without having horrendous gameplay that is a poor attempt to be unique.
The game could've been a lot better had they been more traditional with the gameplay. The demo? Fantastic. The actual game? Ehh.... #retail
Awesome, Demon Soul's deserved a good placement. I have some problems with the difficulty, because I suck at it, but I have mad respect for that game. I can tell I will go back from time to time to get my ass handed to me by that game.
DJ Hero... Awesome! Activision deserves to have that game and Tony Hawk flop. #retail
@valor79: Except DJ Hero is actually quite fun, just that it's so freaking expensive. Let Ride flop since we've already had about a dozen Tony Hawk games, but DJ Hero could actually become something else.
If anything, it's a Holiday seller so if things don't pick up after December, then it'll pretty much be a failure. #retail
@Atomsk88: I think the issue is that people are drowning in music/rythm game overload. There's just way too many way too fast on way too many platforms. They need to stop releasing those games for a year or 2. #retail
@dgonchild: I agree, especially with how faster Guitar Hero 5 came out, and I didn't even know what Band Hero was even suppose to be about until I saw it in stores. #retail
@Atomsk88: My problems with DJ Hero are not just part of the music game overkill I am feeling. I would be fine with DJ hero if it actually let you mix songs other than the two they chose to mix, and while I understand the business of the more expensive DLC, I would rather see it cheaper.
DJing is one of the few things games should be able to get very close to, like drums. I would rather see less pop music and have a game that really lets you do what you should be able to on the tables.
Tony Hawk would also be a fine game for the Wii Balance Board, but putting out an expensive peripheral in this economy just feels like more proof of Activision's complete lack of sanity.
I do have my fingers crossed for Scratch, but DJ Hero is just not the game I was hoping.
I have not played it yet, though, so I will admit to judging before experiencing.
I am always open to being wrong... I am just not going to spend $120 to find out that I am.
Maybe Cheap Ass Gamer will help me find it for around $80 before too long. #retail
@valor79: The thing is, how would you be scored if you were only to simply fiddle with two tracks? It's a game, not a simulator. Heck, all the Hero/Rock Band games are, well, games. I don't know why people actually expected to have any sort of actual DJ experience, other than to hear mixes aside from regular songs.
As for Scratch, the only difference I can see is how they'll handle their DJ turntable and sources for their mixes. #retail
@Atomsk88: I kind of thought that there would be a non-scored mode that would let you mix the songs on the disk any way you wanted, and then post them online for people to play on.
I know it is kind of a pie in the sky thing, but I thought it was possible.
I had a DJ roommate in college, and I would be open to this game if it was more like being a real DJ.
I agree with Polite, if it had not been called DJ Hero I might have been more forgiving.
I am glad some of the peeps here are liking it though. Maybe if it is fun then it will have a slow build like the first Guitar Hero did.
It is nice to have a comment chat on this site without a ton of bickering. Great job, guys! #retail
@Rampage: Poor guy, he really had the ball rolling this time around, with the massive advertisement around it.
I blame the poor sales on them not advertising it as an action-rts from the get go. They should've focused more on it so you wouldn't have these whiners going "waah EA tricked me, I can't handle RTS-type playing waah!".
The driving parts are solid, with the Mouth of Metal setting the mood right and the impeccable art design of the whole land nailing it.
I don't think that people are playing the RTS portions correctly, it's all about being down there with your troops dishing out the pain because the strongest attacks in the game are the Double Team attacks! If you pit 4 squads of Headbangers against each other, it's an even match, but if you put Eddie Double Teaming with one of the sides, it's a complete steamroll. Double Teaming, be it with the Drowning Doom's Brides, the Tainted Coil's Pinboy or Ironheade's Razor Girls, is what puts the "action" in "action-RTS" here.
Plus, the multiplayer online battles are a ton of fun. There is a deep imbalance with Fire Baron rushing, but Double Fine's on it.
@Ethereus: "I blame the poor sales on them not advertising it as an action-rts from the get go. "
I would agree with this. I was totally planning to buy it the whole run up to the launch, thinking it was all action-adventure style the whole way through. Then it launched and there was all the RTS talk and Schafer saying "Don't play it in traditional RTS style" and suddenly I had to step back to re-evaluate a decision I'd thought was already made.
I had no idea before then that there were any RTS elements in it at all. And it's not that I have anything against RTS games, but the fact that it was a completely conflicting image with what I thought the game was, I completely froze up and still haven't bought it. #djhero
11/17/09
I have a feeling that once Take Two noticed the game was going to sell, and that Walmart and friends (Best Buy, FS) were running it at 39.99 for the first few days, WHICH was advertised on Xbox Live for Canada, they cut supply.
The walmart beside my apt got zero copies. The one 20 minutes away had seven. SEVEN. On launch day, at 9am.
Futureshop had a few, I grabbed mine there, but then they didn't have anymore for a bunch of days.
Most buggered launch ever, and my conspiracy theory brain tells me it was on purpose. SEVEN goddamn copies at walmart? ZERO at the store next to me? #retail
11/17/09
/Pre-ordered Brutal Legend
//Sad panda #retail
11/17/09
11/16/09
11/16/09
ok who forgot to buy Demon's Souls?
Just tell me, i swear that i won't be mad at you ^_^
11/16/09
11/16/09
*cries* I just don't know if I can handle anything that difficult right now!!!! #retail
11/16/09
Pfft try beating the Sigmund challenge in Ratchet and clank, i swear that s*** is impossible ヽ(`Д´)ノ #retail
11/16/09
Impressive performance for a game that isn't mainstream by any stretch of the imagination, especially at this time of the year. Beating Brütal Legend is amazing, considering the strong marketing push behind Schafer's game, as well as the insane amount of hype and free promotion that blogs gave it.
I hope the success of Demon's Souls will inspire "big name" developers and publishers, both for the level of challenge and the very unique online capabilities. #retail
11/16/09
@Curse lily: I didn't buy it.
Go ahead and attack me NOW. #retail
11/16/09
11/17/09
11/17/09
11/16/09
11/16/09
SOMEONE HELP. #retail
11/16/09
11/16/09
11/16/09
11/16/09
Damn this is just asking for a lmgtfy.com link... #retail
11/16/09
That means the game is going fast. #retail
11/16/09
That's badass, in a good kind of way. Although not really.
A game has yet to be punishingly hard for me this year, although I haven't tried Uncharted 2 on Crushing. I think I'm leaning towards Demon's Souls. #retail
11/16/09
11/16/09
11/16/09
I hear Borderlands is fun, but it really shines in co-op. Demon's Souls has online play, but it's a solo experience at its core. That may affect your decision. #retail
11/16/09
11/16/09
We are many who have chosen the path of Demon's Souls, many more than would have been believed. We walk this path of blood. Our cold comfort measured in ghosts, our equals, all lost and damned together. #retail
11/16/09
the most interesting thing about this game (outside of its cruel awesomeness) is the level of inspiration it has given to the musings of critics' and fans' the game.
Some really beautifully written comments and reviews were because of this game.
this is one
11/16/09
I shot an email at Kotaku's tips line: if this doesn't make Week In Comments... #retail
11/16/09
Has Tim ever actually made a game that sold well?
Considering Gim Frandango was called the death of the adventure game and Psychonauts came in just after all platformers died. I wonder he if gets down about it much :( #retail
11/16/09
A shame. #retail
11/16/09
Let's hope Tim doesn't come down with some disease of not being able to make a huge sales hit with his games. #retail
11/16/09
The game could've been a lot better had they been more traditional with the gameplay. The demo? Fantastic. The actual game? Ehh.... #retail
11/16/09
DJ Hero... Awesome! Activision deserves to have that game and Tony Hawk flop. #retail
11/16/09
If anything, it's a Holiday seller so if things don't pick up after December, then it'll pretty much be a failure. #retail
11/16/09
11/16/09
11/16/09
DJing is one of the few things games should be able to get very close to, like drums. I would rather see less pop music and have a game that really lets you do what you should be able to on the tables.
Tony Hawk would also be a fine game for the Wii Balance Board, but putting out an expensive peripheral in this economy just feels like more proof of Activision's complete lack of sanity.
I do have my fingers crossed for Scratch, but DJ Hero is just not the game I was hoping.
I have not played it yet, though, so I will admit to judging before experiencing.
I am always open to being wrong... I am just not going to spend $120 to find out that I am.
Maybe Cheap Ass Gamer will help me find it for around $80 before too long. #retail
11/16/09
As for Scratch, the only difference I can see is how they'll handle their DJ turntable and sources for their mixes. #retail
11/17/09
I know it is kind of a pie in the sky thing, but I thought it was possible.
I had a DJ roommate in college, and I would be open to this game if it was more like being a real DJ.
I agree with Polite, if it had not been called DJ Hero I might have been more forgiving.
I am glad some of the peeps here are liking it though. Maybe if it is fun then it will have a slow build like the first Guitar Hero did.
It is nice to have a comment chat on this site without a ton of bickering. Great job, guys! #retail
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
I blame the poor sales on them not advertising it as an action-rts from the get go. They should've focused more on it so you wouldn't have these whiners going "waah EA tricked me, I can't handle RTS-type playing waah!".
The driving parts are solid, with the Mouth of Metal setting the mood right and the impeccable art design of the whole land nailing it.
I don't think that people are playing the RTS portions correctly, it's all about being down there with your troops dishing out the pain because the strongest attacks in the game are the Double Team attacks! If you pit 4 squads of Headbangers against each other, it's an even match, but if you put Eddie Double Teaming with one of the sides, it's a complete steamroll. Double Teaming, be it with the Drowning Doom's Brides, the Tainted Coil's Pinboy or Ironheade's Razor Girls, is what puts the "action" in "action-RTS" here.
Plus, the multiplayer online battles are a ton of fun. There is a deep imbalance with Fire Baron rushing, but Double Fine's on it.
The game is brutally fun. #djhero
11/13/09
"It didn't deserve this." #djhero
11/13/09
I would agree with this. I was totally planning to buy it the whole run up to the launch, thinking it was all action-adventure style the whole way through. Then it launched and there was all the RTS talk and Schafer saying "Don't play it in traditional RTS style" and suddenly I had to step back to re-evaluate a decision I'd thought was already made.
I had no idea before then that there were any RTS elements in it at all. And it's not that I have anything against RTS games, but the fact that it was a completely conflicting image with what I thought the game was, I completely froze up and still haven't bought it. #djhero
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
Oh well, Tim Shafer still has a chance of landing a gig for Telltale Games. They always make cash, even if it's partly due to low overheads. #djhero