Kotaku: pissing contest

World Tour Outsells Rock Band 2

Luke Plunkett — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 05:30:00 MST

News flash. The NPD Group have compiled the all-format sales of 2008's biggest music titles, Guitar Hero World Tour and Rock Band 2, and found that the Activision franchise was the winner.

Combined sales of GHWT were 3.4 million. Combined sales of Rock Band 2? 1.7 million. That's a convenient 2:1 ratio. Why/how did this happen?

Firstly, Guitar Hero is Guitar Hero. You may know that the guys who made the first two Guitar Heroes so great now make Rock Band, but those guys from work who play every Friday night don't know SQUAT.

Secondly, and potentially more telling, Activision had the sense to release World Tour across all four platforms (Wii, 360, PS3 and PS2) at once. Rock Band 2, however, was rolled out gradually, which must have been confusing to the average consumer, not to mention the fact releasing late on PS2 and Wii meant few of those sales would count towards the game's end of year tally.

Guitar Hero World Tour sells 3.4M in '08, Rock Band 2 hits 1.7M [GameSpot] [Image]

Let's Look At Each Console's Attach Rates, Shall We?

Luke Plunkett — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 22:30:00 MST

A console's attach rate - or tie rate, whatever you want to call it - is an interesting statistic. It basically shows how many games, on average, are owned by each person that owns a particular console. That data can be interpreted any number of ways, but from where I'm sitting, it generally shows how much you're getting out of your console. If you're buying a ton of games, you're getting good use out of it. If you're not, it's probably sitting in a closet somewhere, since you're not buying any games for it. Anyway, let's take a look! Above is a chart, compiled by Gamasutra, showing not only each console's attach/tie rate, but also the break-down between first-party and third-party releases.

Exclusive: PS3, Xbox 360, Wii First/Third Party Game Attach Rate Exposed [Gamasutra]

Steel Yourself For A 360 v PS3 Graphics Showdown

Luke Plunkett — Mon, 26 May 2008 19:00:00 MDT

Anyone up for an attempt at a 360 v PS3 graphics showdown? I'm out, had my fill of these by around 1994, but if you're curious, read on. GameSpot have attempted to settle which system has the better graphics by comparing a bunch of games, blending some screenshots together into a single image then providing some accompanying notes. One-eyed fanboys will no doubt find a way to convince themselves of their system's superiority, but cooler heads know that if you can pick up any differences - let alone major ones - from the tiny screens they've provided, best case, you're most likely a fibber. Worst case, a liar.

Graphics Comparison [GameSpot]