Saudi FM calls Indian, Pakistani counterparts to discuss developments    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Arabia cracks down on fraudulent Hajj campaigns, urges pilgrims to use official channels    Nammos Amala Resort to open soon with Saudi-Greek designs    Saudi Arabia completes 674 Vision 2030 initiatives, achieves 93% of KPIs as ninth-year milestone marked    Literature Commission inaugurates Saudi Pavilion at Muscat Book Fair    Saudi Minister of Culture holds talks with his Costa Rican counterpart in Jeddah    Alkhorayef praises advancements in Al-Kharj food industries sector    MHRSD: 80% of recruitment offices are non-compliant with regulations    At least 50 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes across Gaza    Teenage girl killed in French school stabbing attack    Trump claims meeting with China after Beijing denies any trade negotiations    GACA chief chairs 16th meeting of the Steering Committee on aviation's strategy    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Jennifer Lopez dazzles in Jeddah with a Formula 1 performance    Saudi Arabia open to expanded 64-team World Cup in 2034, says sports minister    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Film Commission launches 'Cinema' initiative to enhance content    Famed Philippine film star Nora Aunor dies at 71    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



What recession? Sequels snapped up by gamers all through 2008
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 02 - 01 - 2009

DESPITE the sluggish global economy, video game sales remained recession-proof in 2008 as game sequels were snapped up by fans and music games struck the right note.
Sequels like MTV Games' “Rock Band 2,” Bethesda Softworks' “Fallout 3” and Konami Digital Entertainment's “Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots” won over game critics and consumers.
“In uncertain economic times, gamers do what every other consumer does -- focus on quality brands,” said Sid Shuman, senior editor at GamePro Magazine.
“If game purchases are limited, gamers will flock to core titles that are guaranteed to satisfy like “Call of Duty: World at War,” “Gears of War 2” and “Grand Theft Auto IV.” Think of them as gaming comfort foods.”
Rockstar Games' “Grand Theft Auto IV,” which was released back in April, has sold over 11 million copies worldwide. The first next generation story in the award-winning franchise presented gamers with an open world sandbox to explore.
Xbox 360 gamers will be introduced to a new storyline come February 17 when “The Lost and Damned” expansion pack is released digitally via Xbox Live with the new episode introducing Johnny Lebitz and his biker gang, The Lost.
With the average age of a gamer today 35, mature-rated games like developer Epic Games' “Gears of War 2” have risen to the top of the global charts. This sci-fi shooter that sent Delta Squad into the heart of Planet Cera to take out the monstrous Locust Horde sold over 3 million units in its first month.
In the battle between Microsoft and Sony in the sci-fi sequel department, Microsoft's Xbox 360-exclusive “Gears of War 2” nudged Sony's PlayStation 3-exclusive “Resistance 2” by an aggregate review score of 94 percent to 87 percent, according to GameCritics.com.
Activision returned to World War II after taking a year off in 2007 to introduce “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare” and gamers were eager to experience the Pacific Theater of War in “Call of Duty: World at War.”
The franchise has sold over 35 million units around the globe and remains a top draw on Xbox Live. Although Electronic Arts' “Madden NFL 09,” the 20th installment in that franchise, and “NCAA Football 09” once again attracted enough loyal gridiron fans in the US to place high in the charts, the music game genre surpassed sports.
The one-two punch of Activision's “Guitar Hero” and MTV Games' “Rock Band” have achieved success with both hardcore and casual gamers. “Guitar Hero: World Tour,” “Guitar Hero: Aerosmith” and “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock” helped propel the franchise to global sales of over 23 million, according to The NPD Group, Charttrack and GfK. “In the aggregate, I expect “Guitar Hero” will sell through around $800 to 900 million at retail globally this year, while “Rock Band” probably will sell through half that figure,” said Michael Pachter, videogame analyst, Wedbush Morgan Securities.
“However, “Rock Band” appears to have a huge lead in the sales of downloadable content.”
Nintendo's Wii ushered in a whole new gaming audience, and as a result, Nintendo sequels like “Mario Kart Wii” and “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” each sold over 4 million units through the end of November in the US, according to The NPD Group.
Nintendo creator Shigeru Miyamoto introduced a balance board that allows gamers to exercise and do yoga with “Wii Fit,” which has topped US sales of 3.5 million
And Nintendo wasn't the only one pushing creativity. Sony Computer Entertainment and developer Media Molecule delivered the first user-generated game experience with “LittleBigPlanet” on PS3. Gamers have already created over 100,000 custom levels, which have generated over 20 million plays.
“I think the very nature of the games industry has changed,” said Anita Frazier, videogame analyst, The NPD Group. “Yes, there is still a dedicated group of core gamers and the really great more traditional games will still sell a lot of units, but there is so much more possibility now imaginable with content for videogame systems.”


Clic here to read the story from its source.