So long New York! Today’s Rundown was written mostly on a train headed for upstate New York. The lady next to me got train sick and proceeded to cup her mouth for most of the trip. Not exatly the best way to end what was overall a wonderful trip to the Crispy offices, but hey we roll with the punches. On to the news after the break.
NPD sales data numbers for the month of Nov. 2008 are in, and to its competition’s chagrin, Nintendo continues to dominate the hardware sales chart. for the month of November, Nintendo managed to sell through 2.04 million units in North America, outpacing its own sales numbers from the same period a year ago (981K) by twofold. The Nintendo Ds also did pretty well during the month, moving 1.57 million units, up slightly from 1.53 million in Nov. 2007.
While Nintendo’s platforms continue to take the rest of the pack to the woodshed on a regular basis, there’s some good news for Microsoft and some even more bad news for Sony; the Xbox 360 sold 836K units in Nov., up slightly from 770K units a year ago beating out the PS3, PSP and PS2. The PS3 moved 378K units, but was down from 466K a year ago. The PSP moved 421K units, but was down from 567K in the same period a year ago, and the aging PS2 moved 206K units - down substantially from 496K units in Nov. 2007. (more after the break)
Wii Music is in stores today and our review is alive and kicking - i’ll warn you: it’s not pretty. But first, the promises.. Wii Music promises some social fun using the Wii Remote and a selection of 60 musical instruments. Using the Wii Remote, players mock play instruments to a variety of original Nintendo tunes and licensed tracks with your favorite Miis. Here is an excerpt from our review:
Amidst a clanging clash of guitar, bass drums, cat meows, dog barks and glockenspiel , there’s a sense of something interesting and innovative going on. But damned if you can figure out what it is through all the noise.
I hate Wii Music because I love Nintendo and I want to love Wii Music.
So why all the hate? Read the Wii Music Review and find out.
All of this week’s post-E3 coverage has been leading up to today’s coup de grâce, a final and mighty blow against the atrocity that was the 2008 E3 Media and Business Summit. We end our coverage with the first annual Crispies - awards of a cynical nature that put a spotlight on some of the not-so-glorious events, people and games that let us down the hardest.
We also analyze why E3 was broken and what the ESA can do to make things right in 2009; we deliver part III of our E3 Greatest Hits, which reveals the top five games of the show, and Gus Mastrapa’s bittersweet look back at what games tugged on his heartstrings and what games left him with heartburn. Buckle up, because this will be a bumpy ride.
Feature - Eyes-on at E3 2008 by Gus Mastrapa
Feature - The 2008 Crispy Awards: Special E3 Edition by the Crispy Staff
Feature - E3 Aftermath: The CG Greatest Hits, Part Three by the Crispy Staff
Feature - How to Fix E3 by Billy Berghammer
Nintendo wants to keep everybody smiling, except apparently hardcore gamers. That was the theme at today’s press briefing, and while some interesting things were shown, Nintendo fans felt a little disappointed. Various Nintendo executives including Reggie Fils-Amie, Cammie Dunaway, Satoru Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto took to the stage to show off new Wii games and to talk up the success of Nintendo Wii and DS. Here’s the highlight reel:
