Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 – How did they fair in 2007?
This past year has seen one of the bloodiest fought battles in console history starting to take shape, with all three major players having consoles on the market, and good games starting to be released for all of them. How did each of the big three fair in 2007?
The console market as a whole has probably never been so healthy, with competition rife, and 3 very good consoles on the market. They are also all different, with strengths and weaknesses, and a spectrum of games which appeal to most, if not all of the population.
Nintendo Wii
2007 has definitely been the year of the Wii, with the underpowered but innovative little white Nintendo machine killing all comers on the way to the top of the sales chart. The main reason for its success is the accessability, thanks to its control system. This is the first console I remember which has seemed to spark an interest in every single member of the family, from young children, all the way up to grandparents.
It’s sold in huge quantities all around the world, and this Christmas has seen a huge shortage of consoles, despite Nintendo ramping up production. So sales haven’t been a problem, with the price, and universal appeal seeing it trounce the PS3 and Xbox 360.
Games on the other hand, haven’t been its strong point. Super Mario Galaxy was released late in the year, and immediately became a fan and critic favourite, but apart from that, releases have been short on the ground. Plus, Wii owners have been shown to be the least generous when it comes to buying games, which could a problem long term for Nintendo.
Microsoft Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 had a relatively successful year, mainly due to Halo 3 finally seeing the light of day. That game alone meant thousands more consoles were sold, and stopped 2007 from being a disaster. Microsoft also took a leaf out of Nintendo’s book, and decided to become more family friendly, both in wallet and content terms, releasing the Xbox 360 Arcade pack.
We can’t however ignore the red ring of death, which affected thousands of machines, and saw a whole swathe of normally loyal Microsoft fans disappointed with how they treated. In July Microsoft did extend the warranties to ensure customers wouldn’t be out of pocket, but that in itself is a move which could cost Microsoft up to a billion dollars.
I would say it was more of a solid year than a spectacular one for the Xbox, with it selling well enough not to drop back in the race, but not being able to reach the dizzying heights of the Wii.
Sony Playstation 3
Did Sony, and the PS3 have a good year or not? That’s a tough question. Certainly if you compare this time last year, to now, then yes, it could be said 2007 wasn’t too bad for the Sony behemoth, but overall I would still suggest there is work to be done.
Sony did take some brave decisions, eventually dropping the price of the console and bringing it in to the pay scale of ordinary people rather than just technophiles. But in doing so, they completely got rid of PS2 backwards compatibility. While the reasons are obvious (allowing the PS2 to carry on selling as a budget starter console), it still rankles with those of us who like and play PS2 games but are looking to get a PS3 soon.
The games are starting to come through on the PS3, and with pretty much all the big franchises scheduled to have updates (their first of this generation) next year, the future looks more rosy for sure.
2007 was a great year for gamers, and that healthy level of competition, and choice looks set to keep that going in to 2008.
Related Posts:
24 Responses to “Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 – How did they fair in 2007?”
Leave a Reply:
You must be logged in to post a comment. Don't have an account? Register today!
December 30th, 2007
Next year is going to be huge for the PS3 while I believe the 360 will see smaller and smaller sales from now on. The Wii I have no idea about. I’ve heard a lot of people say it could sell as well as the PS2 but I think that’s total nonsense because it would need to sell as well as it has in the last year for another 6 years just to match the PS2’s current total and that just isn’t going to happen because I cant see the Wii still being popular in a few years time let alone 2013.
The PS3 will end this year on about 9m sales but having introduced 2 new 2m+ selling franchises (Motorstorm & Resistance) and with all of its big exclusives still to come in 2008. It hasn’t even launched its full online service yet, there is the PlayStation TV to be launched next year in some regions and there will almost certainly be a lot more to hear about the PlayStation Eye.
If I were about to invest in one of the 3 the PS3 is definitely the one I would go for.
December 30th, 2007
The PS3 will limp along this generation but never will make any money for sony. Xbox has the best content and online service and will gain strength as time goes on. I expect that all three will think outside the box next generation.
December 30th, 2007
Little Big Planet will be the future of the Playstation 3.
December 30th, 2007
Seeing as I am currently writing this using my Nintendo Wii, I’d have to say that the Wii will continue to do well. I haven’t gotten tired of it at all. There were a few other games that come to mind when talking about the Wii’s purchase worthy titles. Metroid, Zack and Wiki, NiGHTS mainly.
December 30th, 2007
I would have to agree with Mr Karl Marx there.
I do applaud Nintendo for a fresh approach.
But i don’t think the games are really comming forward for them at this point in time.
The xbox 360. mmm, tough nut really, I really don’t think it will fly, we may end up seeing a repeat of the original xbox. If that does happen, will M.S. develop a 3rd xbox? who knows….
But IMHO i see the ps3 really flying ahead in 08 and 09.
On a side note i wonder if in 8 or so years we see another contender in the console wars? perhaps a old hand (sega, atari) or a new contender, as sony where way back when. (toshiba, ect.)
December 31st, 2007
All the above are not truly predictions, but just wishful thinking. All of you seem to actually believe that Sony is entitled to being first place, no matter what. Hilarious.
December 31st, 2007
You people need to remove your sony-colored glasses and realize that just because MS focused on 2007 and hasn’t talked much about 2008 doesn’t mean they are going to have a weaker 08 then 07. Anyone with their ear on the vine knows that even without Halo 3 – MS can very easily have a way better 08 then their very successfully 07. But perhaps my inside information which I cannot freely discuss allows me to see things a little differently the then the sony loyalist who only owns a ps3 or is waiting for only own one.
As for all these great games the ps3 is magically going to start getting, only one system seller is likely to come out in 2008 and thats MGS4.
And by the time it does (mid year, or later), it might be a little too late. There will be little to no third party games the 360 wont get, and even if want to factor in some of the small Japanese developers – keep in mind the shrinking significance of the Japanese market and most of its developers when considering consoles (not handheld’s).
Anyway – I’m just shocked at all of the assumptions that 2008 will be the year of the ps3 – its as if everyone has just decided to believe (based on nothing, really) that the Wii will no longer exist and that the 360 already has most of its best games out.
But i guess if your a blind fanboy seeing the great year the 360 had (software sales) as well as the wii (hardware sales) and then also seeing the great year the ps3 didn’t even come close to – your want to believe that the ps3’s greatest times are ahead and the other consoles are blowing their loads early.
The truth is that MS is actually way better prepared for 2008 then they were for 2007 – and Sony is not nearly as ready for it as you want to believe.
As for the Wii? It could go on to sell like it does or it could die off tomorrow – but either way, if its software sales don’t start to reflect the hardware sales, it will GC part 2 when it comes to third party support.
One last thing – month for month, for the entire year; the 360 was the king of software sales, by a land slide – if you don’t think developer’s and publisher’s across the world haven’t noticed that and don’t think that will have much of an impact on the ps3 and possibly the wii; your in for a rude awakening in 2008.
December 31st, 2007
“Next year is going to be huge for the PS3 while I believe the 360 will see smaller and smaller sales from now on. The Wii I have no idea about.”
“The Wii I have no idea about.”
Me too. The thing to consider is that almost nobody was programming for the Gamecube and N64, so the Wii success came as quite a shock. As a result, people are just starting to come out with great games. As a result, the Wii will probably not die in sales in 2008.
(Yay, only 2 more months before Smash Brothers comes out!)
December 31st, 2007
@ James
“The truth is that MS is actually way better prepared for 2008 then they were for 2007″
That’s total nonsense. These are the only exclusive games due out on the 360 in 2008:
Banjo-Kazooie 3
Dance Dance Revolution Universe 2
Dogtag
Fable 2
Magna Carta 2
Mobile Ops: The One Year War
Ninja Gaiden 2
Too Human
Not too impressive when you compare it to what the PS3 has exclusively next year:
Metal Gear Solid 4
Heavy Rain
Infamous
White Knight Chronicles
Haze
Final Fantasy 13
LittleBigPlanet
Eight Days
FIA World Touring Car Championship
Gran Turismo 5
The Getaway 3
Ni-Oh
Red Dead Revolver 2
Killzone 2
Motorstorm 2
L.A. Noire
The Agency
Tekken 6
Coded Arms: Assault
“One last thing – month for month, for the entire year; the 360 was the king of software sales, by a land slide”
Only in America does the 360 do really well. In the EU and Japan last week for instance the 360’s software sales were beaten by both the Wii and PS3. Just think about that. The PS3 shifted more software in the EU last week even though there are actually more 360 consoles there. Including all of there range Sony actually sold nearly 4 times as many games consoles as Microsoft did worldwide last week which gives you an indication of how much more popular Sony are with gamers than Microsoft. You also seem to be forgetting that Sony and Nintendo can count DS, PS2 & PSP software as well and they both sell a hell of a lot more software than Microsoft do.
December 31st, 2007
BTW I just looked at the software sales in relation to install base for last week and the results were quite interesting. I keep hearing that the 360 shifts so much more software but statistically each 360 owner bought 0.22 units of software worldwide last week compared to 0.17 units for each PS3 user.
Each US PS3 owner bought 0.28 units last week compared to 0.27 for the average 360 owner. In Japan last weeks game sales per console rate was 0.08 for the PS3 and 0.06 for the 360 and in the EU it was 0.3 for the PS3 but just 0.19 for the 360.
Americans seem to have a totally skewed view of how popular the 360 is and that’s because the majority of its sales come from there making it seem so much more popular than it is.
360
US – 65%
PAL – 32%
JAPAN – 3%
PS3
US – 40%
PAL – 40%
JAPAN – 20%
December 31st, 2007
Sorry, obviously that should have read:
‘but statistically each PS3 owner bought 0.22 units of software worldwide last week compared to 0.17 units for each 360 user.
December 31st, 2007
@ the guy above. You do realize most of the games you have pointed out for the ps3 don’t even have solid release dates. Sony has done nothing but over promise on titles and they have failed to deliver. Take LBP for example which has been delayed to fall 08. Other titled you have posted like Infamous, Motorstorm 2, and red dead revlover 2 are simply speculation. Who knows what 2008 will hold, but to think sony will rise from ashed like a might phoenix while nintendo and microsoft cower in fear is just wishful thinking. Also if u watched E3 07 microsoft has changed their policy stating they will only focus on software coming out for that year not releasing info on titles 2 to 3 years in pipeline. Sony on the other hand continues to provide their consumers with release dates on titles that are no where completion. Bottom line is don’t judge a consoles success by it’s exclusives. 2007 should have taught you and every other ps3 owner that.
December 31st, 2007
Sony and Nintendo fanboys, calm the hell down. We know how you will twist the facts anyway you can to try to make your console look good. “On the island of Antigua the Wi outsold the coconut as the top seller!” Wow. If you average total software sales up WORLDWIDE (Not just in Japan and Antigua) then the Xbox 360 is the winner. Okay, now let’s see how the fanboys will try to twist that fact around.
December 31st, 2007
James, I disagree with you big time. PS3 will win the console war because it was built for the future. wii will come in second and xbox will turn out like the original xbox 1. First of xbox will come in last because they basically took a system like dreamcast and put extra analog stick on the controller and made it black, then the took the console it self and made it hugh and put an extra DVD drive and but a big X. Xbox 360 took xbox made it white, more power and slimmer. It will come in last becasue its the only console you can play and still feel your in the last generation. ALso when ppl buy it, they spend so much money buying so many extras that are built on the PS3 or even some maybe already on the wii. I do give props to microsoft for tring this time, they always give you a console that always needs upgrading, and the bad thing about it is it’s always expensive. Also the disc on xbox is very limited for newer games that will come out.
Wii will come in seocond. YAY, ninendo didnt fail horribly this time. They took a different approch to the console war and gave something unique and low costing. I do think its priced to high becasue it cant even play a DVD but is the cheapest console and is very different then what anyone has seen before. the only thing bringing the wii back is the lack of power and disc space. It has so little power, some ports of games cant even go to the wii.If the game is on PS2 then u may see it on the wii. the wii has so little power it hard for devolopers to remake a game just so it will beable to play one the wii. And they wouldnt make a crapp game so it can be ported. Wii also will have trouble in the future. I belive movent is a fad and sometimes games are made worse becasue of wii’s game play. Like NBA lve 08 and fifa 08. The game play on the motion controls are so horrible it make the game not worth playing, but when played on other consoles, it like one of the best games to play. i believe movement is a fad, and when you have a wii and ur friends think it not cool anymore, would u want to be jumping around by ur self? Ull look like a dumbass and would get tired. Also the contoller is dangerous to TV. U need to play with extream coution.
PS3 will be first and will dominate because of what it can do in the future. techonlogy is moving on up and devolopers can do so many things on the PS3 that other console can only dream about. PS3 games and be much longer and have complexed levels and area. also great graphics. It recently got cheaper and when u buy it ur set becasue thers no need to buy and Accessories apart for controllers and games. PS3 is much cheaper in the long run and give u the free to do what u want with the PS3 for less and u dont need to pay after u buy the console. PS3 will win because it will get the best games and will it still has a mix of motion and regular classic playing styles to suit both hardcore and casul, just want fun gamers.
December 31st, 2007
James, I disagree with you big time. PS3 will win the console war because it was built for the future. wii will come in second and xbox will turn out like the original xbox 1. First of xbox will come in last because they basically took a system like dreamcast and put extra analog stick on the controller and made it black, then the took the console it self and made it hugh and put an extra DVD drive and but a big X. Xbox 360 took xbox made it white, more power and slimmer. It will come in last becasue its the only console you can play and still feel your in the last generation. ALso when ppl buy it, they spend so much money buying so many extras that are built on the PS3 or even some maybe already on the wii. I do give props to microsoft for tring this time, they always give you a console that always needs upgrading, and the bad thing about it is it’s always expensive. Also the disc on xbox is very limited for newer games that will come out.
Wii will come in seocond. YAY, ninendo didnt fail horribly this time. They took a different approch to the console war and gave something unique and low costing. I do think its priced to high becasue it cant even play a DVD but is the cheapest console and is very different then what anyone has seen before. the only thing bringing the wii back is the lack of power and disc space. It has so little power, some ports of games cant even go to the wii.If the game is on PS2 then u may see it on the wii. the wii has so little power it hard for devolopers to remake a game just so it will beable to play one the wii. And they wouldnt make a crapp game so it can be ported. Wii also will have trouble in the future. I belive movent is a fad and sometimes games are made worse becasue of wii’s game play. Like NBA lve 08 and fifa 08. The game play on the motion controls are so horrible it make the game not worth playing, but when played on other consoles, it like one of the best games to play. i believe movement is a fad, and when you have a wii and ur friends think it not cool anymore, would u want to be jumping around by ur self? Ull look like a dumbass and would get tired. Also the contoller is dangerous to TV. U need to play with extream coution.
PS3 will be first and will dominate because of what it can do in the future. techonlogy is moving on up and devolopers can do so many things on the PS3 that other console can only dream about. PS3 games and be much longer and have complexed levels and area. also great graphics. It recently got cheaper and when u buy it ur set becasue thers no need to buy and Accessories apart for controllers and games. PS3 is much cheaper in the long run and give u the free to do what u want with the PS3 for less and u dont need to pay after u buy the console. PS3 will win because it will get the best games and will it still has a mix of motion and regular classic playing styles to suit both hardcore and casul, just want fun gamers. also PS3 has a very strong 08 linup
December 31st, 2007
PS3 and Wii have free online play and wi-fi. XBox 360 charges extra. PS3 includes Blu-Ray. XBox charges extra for HDDVD. PS3 has faster processing and is starting to come out with games that the 360 can’t keep up with. The only thing holding people back from buying the PS3 has been the high price and shortage of games. But now that they have lowered the price and have more good games than any normal human can afford, people assume 2008 will be “the year of the PS3″.
That’s my opinion, but it’s a stupid argument. Just buy what you like… Your system doesn’t need to be officially “better” than everyone else’s.
December 31st, 2007
It’s funny the amount of 360 fanboys calling fanboyism on people who are trying to be unbiased in their views.
tch…
December 31st, 2007
You guys are all crazy. All three of the systems are good. There’s good games on all of them. Just because you have one of the systems doesn’t mean that the other ones aren’t going to have great games.
I bet not all of you had a Genesis, SNES, TG16/DUO, and NeoGeo but I’m sure you can agree that there were good games on all of them.
You guys need to take a Xanax and relax. Watch, when you’re all in your 30’s you’ll end up having all three.
January 2nd, 2008
“Watch, when you’re all in your 30’s you’ll end up having all three.”
Rings true for me .I got the 360 for me and the wii for the kids.The ps3 will come for the blue ray player eventually and the fact i got way to many ps2 games still to play.
January 2nd, 2008
To Brian,
Partially agrees with you, am over 30, i own a PS3,PS2, Wii and PSP and lived all these years with a joystick in my hands, but I will never get any kind of xbox…
Anyway PS3 already rules… Wii is cute but will get outdated very soon, surprise effect can’t come twice. I ve played xbox360 games and felt that there’s always something lacking, something called fun…Maybe because i grew up with the playstations…
January 3rd, 2008
Microsoft Xbox 360 v.s. Sony Playstation 3
By James Stewart
If in 2008, you do not own an XBOX 360 nor PS3, then the choice to make is easy: PS3. Before you judge me as biased or a Sony Fanboy, take into consideration that I don’t own either systems and I researched which to get because I honestly could not decide. I’ll now explain why I believe PS3 may be the better choice. Xbox 360 is no doubt killing Sony, due to the fact that it came out an entire year ahead-(which made people put down the PS2’s and Xbox 1’s to get it; and game publisher’s had only one choice for games for next gen. consoles: Xbox 360). But you have to realize how RAPIDLY FAST our technology grows.
The cheapest PS3 is currently $400. The cheapest Xbox 360 is $280 w/o a hard drive, which means no online experience; But the cheapest Xbox 360 console with hard drive is $350 (let’s compare the 2 consoles with their hard drive). For a $350 Xbox 360, you can enjoy a wide selection of current games out for the X360 along with an enjoyable online experience with the 20 GB hard drive that comes with the $350 price. However, you cannot play HD or Blu Ray DVD’s on the console (you must purchase a separate X360 HD DVD Player for $180), and you cannot enjoy wireless wi-fi internet connection (unless you buy the X360 wi-fi adapter at $100).
Now let’s compare the $350 X360 System with the $400 PS3. The PS3 comes with a 40 GB hard drive (twice as much as X360’s 20 GB), a wi-fi internet connection, and obviously the Blu Ray DVD Player. What the PS3 doesn’t “currently” have is the game selections the Xbox 360 has. This is because of the 1 year head start, and the lack of consumers owning a PS3 due to the huge price PS3 had when it first came out. Now that the PS3 had a hundred dollar price cut, it’s safe to say for 50 bucks more, pick the PS3 for the following reasons:
1.) Blu Ray technology NOT ONLY FOR MOVIES, but for games as well. The X360 has games on a STANDARD DVD, limiting the potential of games to have 7 GB Storage MAX; Blu Ray DVD games can hold a MINIMUM of 25 GB! Currently the game discs do not matter because game publishers makes games for the X360 first, then downgrades the game to the PS3 disc. But the future belongs to Sony when more people purchase a PS3, more games will be developed and the potential of a 25 GB Disc is better than a 7 GB disc. When game developers start to focus on PS3 Games, they have the ability to create fantastic games because of the 25 GB storage of the disc. More storage on the disc – more content, better graphics, or better gameplay. Also, most people who will purchase a X360 or PS3 will have a HDTV somewhere in their house to experience intense graphics from these systems. So why not have an intense movie experience. With the PS3 you can enjoy the amazing blu ray dvd’s on your TV. Standard DVD’s will come to an end soon, and the future is bright with HD DVD and Blu Ray DVD’s.
2.)Wi-Fi connection to Internet AND PSP’s (if you own psp). If your internet connection is in the same room as your gaming console, then this reason is obviously not applied. But if you don’t want to bother with long wiring from the console to the internet, then wi-fi internet is the way to go. For Xbox 360, you MUST buy an external Wi-Fi adapter (retail $100) for all models of the console in order to have wireless internet. PS3 currently has all model’s with wi-fi internet. PS3 can also interact with the PSP by allowing the PSP to share certain content from the PS3’s. In the future, PS3 will be able to download games, as well as classic PS1 games, that work on PSP’s. Sony is working on making the PSP interact with PS3 games (an example is at E3 when Sony showed a racing game playing on the PS3, and the PSP served as a rearview mirror). That example isn’t the most “thrilling”, but it definitely shows the potential of the two systems working and interacting together.
3.) Issues with the Hardware of Xbox 360 consoles, as well as issues with X360’s online service: Xbox Live. We CANNOT ignore the fact that thousands of Xbox 360 consoles experienced hardware problems, otherwise known as the “ring of death”. It was reported 1:3 new Xbox 360 systems broke. Either from overheating, or disc error reads, the X360 console has had numerous of reports and returns, causing Microsoft to give buyers a 3 Year Warranty. Even if your covered with the warranty, it sucks to have to pack up your game system and ship it out so it can be fixed, not knowing when it’ll be back (probably months). Xbox Live had some minor reports of problems, from difficulty downloading content, maintaining a connection, or waiting for long periods of time to play multiplayer games. Xbox Live is a minor problem because Microsoft will make updates to solve any issues, but the hardware issues cannot be ignored. PS3 didn’t have any major hardware problems, but their online community currently lacks users. This is probably because less people own a PS3, and that will definitely change soon.
4.) Price? When it comes to the topic of Price, people automatically see Xbox 360’s $280 system and compare it to PS3’s cheapest system at $400. Don’t be quick to pick $280. Most likely once you own a next generation console, you’ll want to enjoy the online multiplayer experience sooner or later. If you go with the X360 at $280, you need to buy a hard drive, and the cheapest hard drive to get is 20 GB which cost $60-70 on eBay for used ones. In that case, buy the $350 X360 system which comes with the hard drive and currently (Holiday Bundle limited time) 2 games: Forza Motosport 2 & Marvel Ultimate Alliance. Ok, so $350 to $400 is $50 bucks, right? If you pay $400 for a PS3, you get a 40 Gb hard drive, Blu Ray DVD player, Wi-Fi internet, Spiderman 3 Blu Ray DVD, and currently (till Jan. 31st ‘08) 5 Blu Ray DVD’s of your choice from a selected list via mail. Let’s compare the 2 systems if they both had what their capable of. For Xbox 360, you have your $350 system with the 20 Gb hard drive; now add $100 if you want that wireless internet adapter, and add another $180 for their HD DVD player; total cost = $630. Compare that to the $400 PS3, and you still have double the size in hard drive! Also note that a regular Sony Blu Ray DVD player is $360, most other brands of Blu Ray DVD Players are $400 and up. So overall, for the price you pay for each system, PS3 is better in price.
I did a little bit of research for both systems, took some notes, and realized it wasn’t as difficult of a choice as I thought. The PS3 is wonderful because you get a great package for what you pay for, and you will open the doors for the potential gaming and entertainment for the future. The fact is your gonna spend over $300 for something, you might as well use it on something that will last much longer. Xbox 360 works on regular dvd’s with minimal storage verses PS3’s Blu Ray discs. To me, it feels like Xbox 360 is just a better version of old generation consoles PS2 and Xbox 1, in the idea that it uses the old discs and lacks wi-fi and high quality DVD playback. It’s almost like Sony created a PS4, and skipped making a PS3 if you wanted to compare the systems. The main reason why Xbox 360 is ahead in the U.S. is due to the 1 year head start-forcing game developers to model their games after X360, and PS3 had an outrageous starting price at $600, which has now dropped. In conclusion, PS3 in my opinion is the best choice. You won’t regret it!
January 3rd, 2008
a minimum of 25 GB? What does that even mean? I’m sure you could fit a lot less on a blu-ray disc if you really wanted to.
January 3rd, 2008
In response to:
kmak:
January 3rd, 2008
a minimum of 25 GB? What does that even mean? I’m sure you could fit a lot less on a blu-ray disc if you really wanted to.
KMAK,
Sorry for the typo, I meant that the “smallest storage” of a Blu Ray Disc holds a maximum of 25 gb, and some discs hold 50 gb. “Minimum of 25 gb disc” meant the Blu Ray disc’s smallest “maximum capcity” is 25 gb. I hope that makes sense, basically a regular DVD holds 7 gb verses a regular blu ray which holds up to 25 gb. Of course though, a blu ray can hold less than 25 gb (and most ps3 games now are probably still less than 25 gb), but my point was the potential for more storage on the gaming disc is huge. Sorry for the confusion.
January 3rd, 2008
KMAK- Sorry for the confusion, yea of course it can hold less than 25 gb. What I meant by minimum is the “smallest” blu ray disc holds 25 gb or less. Theres also the option to have 50 gb discs if publishers need it.