Japan’s August Hardware Sales
Including a look at the PSP's fortunes.Published: 19:00, 03/09/2010 by Greg [Watchful].
39Should Sony just kill the PSPgo and put the poor thing out of its misery? That’s the key question raised by this month’s Japanese PSP unit sales figures. With the ‘go falling to a new record weekly low of just 608 units in the middle of August and a PSP release of a new Monster Hunter title only lifting it to a little over 800 while the PSP-3000 sold over 55,000 the same week, it may be time for Sony to end its ‘experiment’.
And the PS2 continues to outsell it by around 2:1 each week.
There is little good news for the ‘go on the opposite side of the Pacific either where the imminent release of the new Kingdom Hearts title, Birth By Sleep, is expected to be UMD-only with the venerable PSP-3000 even getting a limited edition bundle. Combine that with the fact that GameStop will only offer you a trade-in price of $50 on your $250 PSPgo, while offering $80 for a PSP-3000 which is also currently subject to an additional $20 trade-in credit offer. An offer which explicitly excludes the PSPgo.
In the monthly NPD Group figures for North American sales we are used to seeing the PSP family propping up the foot of the table now PS2 sales are no longer reported. GameStop’s trade-in price for the PSPgo would suggest that there is little demand in the American market for the download-only console, which in turn suggests that similar to Japan it represents a small fragment of overall PSP sales.
I cannot find European figures but by combing through GAME Group’s financial reports from the last few years we can begin to paint the UK picture for the PSP using the GfK ChartTrack figures they present. The UK installed base for PSPs, of all flavours, as at 2nd Feb 2008 was 2.7m. By 31st Jan 2009 it had risen 0.5m to 3.2m. In the twelve months to the end of Jan this year, which include the launch of the PSPgo, it only added another 0.4m to reach a total of 3.6m.
There is no indication of how that 0.4m is split between the ‘go and ’3000 and of course falling sales during a recession are not that surprising though the other consoles all sold over a million units each in the same period*. If we use trade-in prices again as a guide to the fortunes of the ‘go, they suggest that it is performing better here in the UK than in the US. For example, CeX are offering to pay £78 (and £81 if it’s white) for the £225 PSPgo, while offering £60 for the £140 PSP-3000 in black.
So in Japan the ’3000 is selling well but the ‘go is not. In America the PSP family is not selling well and indications are that the PSPgo is doing badly. In the UK the PSP family is not selling well though the PSPgo may be doing better here than in the other territories. If last year was Sony’s “Year of the PSP”, then next year really needs to be the Year of the PSP2 if Sony is to retain a significant presence in the handheld market outside of Japan.
And speaking of Japan…
Week Ending August 1st
The PS3 and PSP-3000 dominated the hardware sales this week, each selling more than twice as many units as their nearest rivals. PS3 sales were driven by feudal samurai battler Sengoku Basara 3 which fell just short of the quarter of a million mark with sales of 243,000. Not far behind and the source of the PSP’s sales climb was Hatsune Miku Project Diva 2nd a rhythm action title from SEGA with sales of 241,000.
Sengoku Basara 3 also made its début on the Wii this week but the Japanese obviously prefer their samurai rendered in glorious HD as that version only saw sales of 50,000. The other notable software release this week was Modnation Racers, but that only managed to reach 15th place in the software chart.
Week Ending August 8th
In a quiet week for hardware sales a remake of Game Boy Color (remember those?) title Tales of Phantasia Narikiri Dungeon took top spot in the software chart with 108,000 units sold. Releasing ten years after the original and therefore being imaginatively titled Tales of Phantasia Narikiri Dungeon X.
The game also bundles in more remake madness though as it includes a remake of the original Tales of Phantasia that appeared on the SNES. That is a game that has already been remade for the PSone with that remake being remade for the PSP. How the new remake differs from that one, if at all, is anyone’s guess.
Week Ending August 15th
While most consoles saw an increase in sales this week, as mentioned above the PSPgo hit its new sales low of just 608 units. With no significant software releases this week Wii Party took the opportunity to grab some time at the top of the chart. Though to be far it had been at third and then second over the previous two weeks.
The award for best titled new game for this week goes to Corpse Party: Blood Covered – Repeated Fear on PSP which entered the chart in 12th place. As far as I can tell from the screenshots it seems to about preventing schoolkids, primarily schoolgirls of course this being Japan, getting eaten by zombies. At least that’s my interpretation, yours may be different.
As an interlude, and taking the opportunity to combine interests as I sometimes get a chance to do in posts, I was struck by how much the PSP’s line on the graph resembled the constellation Cassiopeia.
After that brief stellar diversion we return to your regularly scheduled sales news…
Week Ending August 22nd
The PSPgo could take a positive view of this week’s hardware sales as it was the only console to see a rise in sales. Okay, so it only sold 23 units more than the previous week but a rise is a rise, right? On the software side of things the PS3 saw two new entries in the top three. Straight in at number one was Another Century’s Episode: R that gives Japanese gamers a chance to fight mechs from series such as Gundam, Macross and Full Metal Panic against one another.
Presumably in the West this would become a Batman vs. Superman game, but let’s not restart that debate. Wonder if Hideo Kojima was paying attention this week and noticed a PS3 mech game at the top of the chart? Where’s ZOE 3 Kojima-san? The second new PS3 game was Super Dimensional Game: Neptune an RPG which apparently sets out to parody the video games industry with the aid of the standard scantily-clad, doe-eyed female animé characters you can find in most Japanese games.
Week Ending August 29th
An extraordinary result for the PSPgo this week with its unit sales rising a massive 32% to, erm, 836. Meanwhile the PSP-3000 only managed to up its sales by a fraction over 100% to 55,112. What could possibly get so many Japanese excited enough to rush out and buy a PSPgo? The answer to that is the same as that to the question, “What do you get if you cross Monster Hunter with Animal Crossing and make it impossibly cute?”
What you get is Monster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airu Village. How impossibly cute can it get? You play as cute versions of the mascots from the Monster Hunter games, the Airu. Then you can dress your Airu in clothing based on icons of cuteness such as Sony’s cat mascots Toro and Kuro as well as Hello Kitty. Then you can buy a Hello Kitty guild tent with a heart-shaped door. That’s how impossibly cute.
Monster Hunter is seemingly no longer just about driving a cruelly-barbed spear though the still-beating heart of a hapless monster that’s minding its own business in a remote corner of the world. Will it ever recover? 256,000 sales of Monster Hunter Diary have just added their weight to the discussion.
The PSP had two more titles enter the top five this week with Ace Combat X2 Joint Assault at number two, some considerable way behind, with 58,000 sales. In fifth spot was Haku Uoki Zuisouroku with sales of 24,000. The only other new entry in the top 30 was another PSP title, Nise no Chigiri, which sold 8,558 copies. So now you know how to get a boost in sales of the PSPgo of 205 units, release four new PSP titles in one week.
The Monthly Console and Corporate Fights
Across the month the PS3 handsomely beat the Wii (161,397 vs. 97,482), the DSs beat the PSPs (231,631 vs. 200,960) and as you have already seen the PS2 continued to savagely beat the PSPgo (7,367 vs. 3,560). Overall shares of the month’s hardware unit sales see Sony retaking the number one spot that Nintendo have held for the last couple of months, albeit with a lead less dominant than Nintendo’s 58% in July.
Out of the 722,977 consoles sold Sony accounted for 51% (369,724), Nintendo 46% (329,113) and Microsoft 3% (24,140).
Finally, here are the hardware unit sales presented in a dense grid of numerals:
| 1st | 8th | 15th | 22nd | 29th | Total | |
| 360 | 6,929 | 5,639 | 5,065 | 3,842 | 2,665 | 24,140 |
| PS2 | 1,444 | 1,524 | 1,675 | 1,366 | 1,358 | 7,367 |
| PS3 | 45,224 | 28,630 | 33,057 | 29,433 | 25,053 | 161,397 |
| Wii | 20,038 | 18,238 | 25,072 | 18,145 | 15,989 | 97,482 |
| DS Lite | 4,058 | 4,372 | 4,809 | 4,012 | 3,925 | 21,176 |
| DSi | 17,950 | 18,318 | 24,850 | 20,030 | 17,057 | 98,205 |
| DSi LL | 23,120 | 21,018 | 27,923 | 21,179 | 19,010 | 112,250 |
| PSP | 48,603 | 30,397 | 35,734 | 27,554 | 55,112 | 197,400 |
| PSPgo | 777 | 708 | 608 | 631 | 836 | 3,560 |
| Total | 168,143 | 128,844 | 158,793 | 126,192 | 141,005 | 722,977 |
*In the twelve months from Jan ’09 to Jan ’10 the UK installed bases for the consoles grew as follows: Wii up 1.5m to 6.6m, DS family up 1.7m to 10.7m, PS3 up 1.1m to 3.0m, 360 up 1.6m to 4.9m and PSP up 0.4m to 3.6m. Source: GfK ChartTrack figures presented in GAME Group’s financial reports.
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03/09/2010 at 19:05
Member since: Aug 2009
Im surprised the PSP sells as much compared to all the DS versions. I cant help but think that people already have one and thats why sales are lower…
03/09/2010 at 19:13
Member since: May 2009
well in japan the psp is alot more popular because they like portable gaming alot and the psp seems to have more games that appeal to what their market seems to enjoy most
04/09/2010 at 12:01
Member since: Sep 2008
I wouldn’t be surprised if DS sales have slowed a little while people wait for the 3DS.
Side note: I love this site for allowing articles to go out on a tangent like the Cassiopeia picture.
03/09/2010 at 19:05
Member since: Jan 2009
That’s shocking sales figures the PSPgo. Someone better get the shotgun out to put it out of its misery.
03/09/2010 at 19:12
Member since: Feb 2009
That was one huge post! Interesting to see that the Wii phase is slowly but surely dropping in popularity.
03/09/2010 at 19:14
Member since: Jan 2009
Mate, that was bleeding obvious when there was a large influx of people buying it when it was first released.
03/09/2010 at 20:12
Member since: Feb 2009
Well no not really, there was a large influx still years after and has been way ahead of everything else except for this last year and in July Nintendo was dominating the market with a 58% share, as it says in the article. Nobody expected that when the Wii was first released, so nope not obvious at all.
03/09/2010 at 19:19
Member since: Aug 2009
Good month for Sony then!
03/09/2010 at 19:27
Member since: Nov 2009
I think they should ditch the PSP Go, sales seem poor and at least bring out PSP2.
03/09/2010 at 19:51
Member since: Mar 2009
Excellent astronomical interlude! Made the article for me :)
04/09/2010 at 08:53
Member since: May 2009
Couldn’t agree more!
03/09/2010 at 20:32
Member since: Aug 2009
I wonder how long the go will last in the market? they need to release a new psp to challenge the 3DS
03/09/2010 at 22:04
Member since: Jan 2010
The media is so incestuous, the PSP GO never stood a chance, game stores have too much to lose, so their media buddys have spend a year or more trying to destroy it.
I have a PSPGo, and I also has a PSP1000 and a PSP2000, and the PSPGO is easlly way better than the previous models in every way. The Bluetooth tethering, the formfactor (the buttons are better laid out, despite the unit being smaller), the screen is WAY better, it’s cooler allround, the game Hibernate feature.
The only losers are the PSP fans that believe everything they read on the internet.
03/09/2010 at 22:44
Member since: Jul 2009
That and Dissida had a delay of months of the PSN store compared to UMD and Kingdon Hearts won’t be released on the store.
04/09/2010 at 09:57
Member since: Oct 2008
Are you seriously suggesting we’re “buddys” of the game stores? I can assure you we are not.
The PSPgo is “way better than the previous models in every way”?
How is it better at playing my library of UMD games then?
How is it better at using my MS Pro Duo cards?
How is it better at using my Go!Cam?
How does it offer me a better way of replacing the battery when that starts to go?
At its launch RRP how was it better value than a PSP-3000?
In the post I have used current RRP for the ‘go and ’3000 rather than searching for the lowest online prices. As shields_t points out below you can find some better deals online and combine them with Sony’s 10-game offer and the ‘go does look a much better proposition.
You say “the only losers are the PSP fans that believe everything they read on the internet.” The PSP fans lost because Sony made their collections of games and accessories unusable on the ‘go.
Sony’s two major errors were charging too high a price and changing all the physical interfaces on what was simply a model refresh. Also, importantly for the Japanese market, it is always the ’3000 that is in the special limited edition bundles.
How well do you think the PS3 Slim would have sold if Sony had removed the USB ports and Blu-ray drive and priced it at £500. That’s effectively what they did with the PSPgo.
That’s why when most people around the world, regardless of whether they read the Internet or not, buy a PSP, they buy a ’3000.
05/09/2010 at 10:18
Member since: Dec 2008
I like my PSPgo,but ICBA to debate any of the points you made except one, the battery *is* user replaceable (ok you need a screwdriver) – Sony just don’t want you to know it is.
03/09/2010 at 22:17
Member since: Aug 2009
The Go needs to die already. The idea was sound, but the execution could not have been handled worse. Hardware too expensive, not nearly enough of the PSP library available and what was available was massively overpriced in too many instances(No PSP game should cost more than 20 quid imo… 25 at a real push) and most importantly of all: No alternatives to buy games in DL form to the PS Store.
If the Go had cost around 100-150 quid and had it’s games available at all major games retailer’s online stores for download at reasonable prices it would have done significantly better… posiibly it would have even been a success. But as things turned out, it was and is a miserable failure.
Better luck with the next handheld Sony.
03/09/2010 at 22:43
Member since: Oct 2008
It’s £175 on shopto right now, which inlcudes a 20 quid PSN voucher and the 10 game promo, that brought it down to the point where I was willing to part with my hard earned. Bought one this week, and I can see it getting a whole lot more use than my PSP3000 does simply because it actually is portable, whereas my old PSP’s portability is questionable.
Agreed that the launch price was a complete joke though.
04/09/2010 at 08:43
Member since: Apr 2010
The only thing that has put me off the PSP GO has been the price – although I am a little wary of digital downloads and prefer a hard copy of games, it certainly seems more portable than the PSP. I would love one… but for the price, no way, not going to happen :|
06/09/2010 at 22:03
Member since: Jul 2010
Am I the only 1 whose shocked the ps2 is still selling well ? That is true will after 10 years its still selling because of its vast library of games.
Even though I have a ps3 I play my ps2 just as much, ps2 = best console ever imo