Ben-DutkaSo it appears a certain sequel isn't selling very well.
The critics seemed to love the latest Lara Croft adventure but as we're seeing now, it's not exactly flying off store shelves.
According to one report , Rise of the Tomb Raider only sold 330,000 copies in its first week at market, although recent rumors say the game has now passed a half-million . Either way, these are not impressive numbers and you have to think developer Crystal Dynamics is regretting their decision to side with Microsoft for a timed exclusivity deal. The 2013 reboot sold 3.4 million units in its first month and went on to sell over 8.5 million. Of course, it released for multiple platforms, and jumped generations to come to two new consoles.
Even so, 3.4 million is a far cry from the few hundred thousand the sequel will sell in its first month. It'll be lucky to top a million at this rate, right? The question is, did the team opt to take Microsoft's cash before they saw just how popular PS4 was going to be? Maybe they're kicking themselves now for possibly assuming Xbox One would be in the early lead, like Xbox 360 was over PS3. Or, maybe they just thought more Xbox One's would be in homes by now (at last count, sales are at what, 16, 17 million?). On the flip side, PS4 has already passed 30 million ; had RotTR been a timed exclusive for PS4, I think we all know the numbers would be much better.
Well, I bet Crystal Dynamics is really looking forward to the PS4 release now, huh?
Related Game(s): Rise of the Tomb Raider
Called it. Multiple sources claimed this game would be HUGE for Xbox One and I could never buy into this game as a system seller. It can't even sell itself for that system.
They were too busy playing Halo 5 and Blackops 3 to care for some boring single player adventure.
Dont Forget Fallout 4 🙂
@Big, Tem, TrueAss:
And we will be too busy playing Detroit, "Whatever Santa Monica is cooking" and Horizon to care for a year old game.
They might not regret the decision because MS's pockets are so deep, they might have paid them enough to make up for the abysmal sales numbers.
Even MGSV sold poorly on MS systems dunno why people got that absurd idea of Tomb Raider doing better, fact is franchises that got big on Sony are not what resonate with X-Box fanbase they are more about their exclusives and multis that got popular on the 360 days.
I have an xb1 but hav'nt got halo 5 as i hate the franchise, i do have Rise Of The Tomb Raider it really is a great game.
They just joined Freespawn on the losers bench this gen. Insomniac also picked a terrible time to support Xbox with exclusives.
Insomniac stayed up too late and lost their minds.
I'm hoping Insomniac's presence at PS Experience means that studio is ready to come back more into the PS fold now. I understand part of why it went with MS regarding Sunset Overdrive was because it wanted to own the IP and supposedly Sony doesn't allow that, but Insomniac's fans are on PlayStation, just like the Tomb Raider fanbase is. The decisions these suits make sometimes just defy commonsense.
Resistance 4!
The more I think about it the more it suggests MS will be shut out from every territory this gen, in terms of winning. MS went into this holiday season with the "strongest exclusive lineup ever" and yet they still got beat with Sony's weakest exclusive holiday lineup ever.
Edit: Tomb Raider was MS's answer to Uncharted 4 and here Sony didn't even need it.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 12/10/2015 10:19:57 PM
That's exactly right.
It was certainly a unwise move on their part because it was totally unnecessary. Maybe we'll get it sooner!
I'd love a peep at the contract they signed.
when it does come out for PS4 it will also sell bad just because there are so many games coming next year that no one will care about an old ass game.They should have released it on everything including the ps3 which will never see the game even though the 360 got it.
I have to agree. These timed deals are never as good as they seem. Consumers are the voices here, and they were completely ignored.
It was a disaster that was predictable from the start.
The franchise shot itself in the foot. I wonder if S-E will seriously slash the budget of the next two installments just to fulfill the terms of their MS contract and be free of them.
Anyone remember Namco doing that with SEGA and the Dreamcast (at least I seem to recall it as such)? They released Soul Calibur exclusively and it sold below Namco's expectations so the remaining games Namco was under contract to provide were made into being cheap indie-like games.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 12/10/2015 11:18:04 PM
I concur. To sell on PS4 it will need a big overhaul, a bunch of DLC, and a low price tag. Even then, as you say we will all be busy on the inside of a very busy year for Sony AAA games.
It wouldn't be Crystal Dynamics that took the money, but Square Enix, and I doubt they regret it at all.
Yet CD was right there telling everyone how this deal was the best possible thing for the franchise.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 12/10/2015 10:48:12 PM
Keeping in mind that none of the numbers posted are anything but rumors at this point, but assuming they are accurate, what else are they supposed to say after the company that owns them signs the deal?
"Square was really stupid for doing this deal, something something system wars?"
Of course they're going to stump for it. I don't think that changes the fact that Square ran the numbers and decided that whatever MS paid them was enough to make it worth their while.
And if those reports are true, the numbers still would have sucked if it were PS4 exclusive, assuming PS4 owners bought it with the same frequency, which they may or may not have. Tacking an extra 60% onto ~330k gives you just over half a million in sales.
If I had to guess, the game's allegedly low sales can be better explained by the asinine choice to release it the same day as Fallout 4.
Oh well, I'll be getting it on PC and since I just bought my son a PS4 for Christmas, I'll probably check out that version as well.
They ran the number that were projections. Sales on PS4 for the next year COULD easily be more profitable than the check MS cut them.
PS4 would have sold more copies imo simply because there are thrice as many systems and fans. so 330k X3 brings the total up quite a bit.
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 12/11/2015 11:25:03 AM
I'm sure it would have sold more as a PS4 exclusive. I even said so, so I'm not arguing that. But there are not 3x as many PS4s as XB1s. If the PS4 just passed 30 million, and XB1 is at 17 (going by Ben's numbers), they wouldn't have sold 3x as many copies, assuming the same percentage of buyers on both systems. They would have sold 1.6x as many, or roughly 530k.
Still an abysmal sales figure for a big budget, high profile game, so I don't think platform is the problem, here, unless we want to make the baseless assumption that a much higher percentage of PS4 owners would have bought the game because reasons.
Given Tomb Raider was always a Playstation title (until recently) it make sense that it would sell better on Playstation 4. They can make it up to use by releasing the definitive edition when it makes it on Playstation 4.
this.
… Except most PS4 owners never had a playstation console before.
Kinda doubt that Beam
Perhaps the game just isn't that good. The reboot was pretty mediocre. It looked nice but the gameplay was blagh.
I don't think most would agree with that sentiment. Fans of the first at least, and we are legion, liked Rise so it's probably the console not the game.
Belive me jawknee when i say Rise of The Tomb Raider really is a great game, i know because i have an xb1 and the game, its the best tomb raider yet in my opinion.
You're probably right world. I've never liked Tomb Raider so I wouldn't be the best one to judge.
I'll take your word for it wambo.
They should give the PS4 some free story driven or side mission DLC packs for their great big M$ mis-step.
they should give everyone who buys a PS4 copy a Lara Croft styled stripper for an evening after this debacle.
Yeah, but after already being in bed with M$, I'm sure that stripper's got numerous social diseases
…….and head lice!
and Windows 10!
"OH NOES"
And a life size statue of Lara for us guys over 60
Yeah I'll drool to that!
The biggest blunder was releasing it on the same day Fallout 4 came out,
That may actually be a good point.
This plus Halo 5 like a week before it. Fanboyism aside
I woulda just bought TR and FO4. It was stupid to put them out on the same day, but I still don't think FO4 is the elephant in the room here. Maybe the giraffe.
same world
Precisely what you say, what a ridiculos time to release the game the same day as fallou 4 , theg should of waited a week or 2 , it might of generated more sales.
Exclusivity must die. It's a pest of the gaming world.
Then i guess u want Street Fighter 5 console exclusive to die 😉
You mean third party right?
No, exclusive deals period. First or third party makes zero difference to the consequence. It's just an annoying trick to sell consoles, it's not in our best interest at all.
Street Fighter should of course be released on all platforms. There's no technical reason not to.
And don't bring me the "exclusive titles are technically the best" argument – it's just bullshit. The case is that the console manufacturers have purchased or paid the best developers on the market to limit their releases only to them. And now after both consoles are based on the same architecture this should be too obvious to all: There's no technical reason whatsoever to think that Uncharted 4 or Tomb Raider would be any worse had they been built for both consoles. Only Highlander would have been able to construct such nonsense.
Last edited by Beamboom on 12/11/2015 11:41:43 AM
Gonna have to agree with Beam, here. Exclusivity sucks, and long gone is the argument that it brings out the best in games. Consoles are only getting more and more homogeneous in terms of hardware. What is, and should, be separating them is services.
The question shouldn't be "Do I get an Xbox or Playstation? Which one has more games I don't want to miss?" It should be "Do I get an Xbox or Playstation? Which one's features and services appeal more to me? Which company supports their hardware better? Which system is more reliable?" and such.
Personally, if that's the discussion, I'd go with PS4. Some may go with XB1. You shouldn't miss out on games for making that decision, though.
So if you say exclusivity sucks , that means you want Uncharted an every other sony first party game on the xbox one right?, or am i wrong.