Ben-DutkaMany critics and gamers agreed that God of War: Ascension felt a little tired, and some claimed it only existed as a vehicle for the all-new multiplayer.
But whatever the reasons, it seems the latest GoW installment has failed to impress on the sales charts. Cowen & Company analyst Doug Creutz told GamesIndustry.biz that both Ascension and Gears of War: Judgment for the Xbox 360 suffered from disappointing first-month sales in the US.
In an investor note that gave us an idea of what to expect when the official NPD results arrive, Cowen & Company said estimated month-one sales of Judgment were around 420,000, which is merely a quarter of the 2 million units Gears of War 3 sold in the same time period when it launched in September 2011. As for Ascension , it seems it only sold 360,000 units, which is a big drop compared to the 1.1 million God of War III sold. However, that being said, Creutz did say some third-party titles did quite well; for instance, Bioshock Infinite apparently moved 665,000 copies in just 10 days on the market.
Overall, the firm expects the NPD to reveal that March 2013 saw a 21% year-over-year decline, which has unfortunately been par for the course recently. Bring on the new consoles!
Related Game(s): God of War: Ascension