Square Enix decided to make Dragon Quest X into an MMO. This was initially seen as a huge disappointment by most Japanese gamers, and the lack of interest has been reflected on the sales charts. While not a flop by any means – and even considering the difference in platforms – Dragon Quest X has only sold around 600,000 units. That’s a long way’s off from Dragon Quest IX’s 4 million units sold.
Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada explained to investors why Dragon Quest X is an MMO at its financial results briefing last month. The short answer is that the game could end up making lots of money for the company.
“People said a lot of things about FFXI when it came out in 2002. At a time when game consoles were still at their peak, we needed to exceed 2 million units to be considered a success in the [Final Fantasy] series. While the early stages were used to recover costs, this title eventually contributed greatly to the overall revenue scheme in the latter half of its lifespan, and proved that MMORPG has a sustainable capacity over a long duration.”
Over ten years, the online game Final Fantasy XI resulted in 40 billion yen ($484.7 million) of profit. Square Enix seems to think that Dragon Quest X could end up providing similar revenue.
The Tower of Druaga will be hitting the Japanese eShop as a Famicom download on December 19 for 500 yen. Screenshots of the game can be found above.
Spelunker will be hitting the Japanese eShop as a Famicom download on December 19 for 500 yen. Screenshots of the game can be found above.
This week’s Japanese software sales are as follows:
01./00. [PS3] Yakuza 5 #
02./00. [WIU] New Super Mario Bros. U
03./00. [3DS] Paper Mario: Sticker Star
04./00. [WIU] Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate #
05./04. [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf #
06./00. [WIU] Nintendo Land
07./03. [WII] Taiko no Tatsujin Wii: Super Deluxe Edition #
08./08. [3DS] New Super Mario Bros. 2 #
09./05. [3DS] Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Magnagate and the Infinite Dungeon
10./02. [3DS] Professor Layton Vs. Ace Attorney
11./01. [PS3] 2nd Super Robot Wars OG #
12./06. [PS3] Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational #
13./13. [3DS] Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (Best Price!)
14./07. [PS3] Call of Duty: Black Ops II – Subtitled Edition
15./00. [WIU] ZombiU
16./17. [3DS] Tousouchuu: Shijou Saikyou no Hunter-Tachi Kara Nigekire!
17./21. [NDS] Pokemon Black 2 / White 2
18./16. [3DS] Style Savvy: Trendsetters
19./22. [3DS] Taiko no Tatsujin: Chibi Dragon to Fushigi na Orb
20./26. [3DS] Mario Kart 7
SAN FRANCISCO — December 12, 2012 —Today, Ubisoft® announced that Assassin’s Creed® III is the fastest-selling game in the company’s history, with total sell-through topping the 7 million mark worldwide just one month after its release.
Fans have wasted no time exploring the game’s open world, and getting involved in the action-packed story. In solo missions alone, gamers have accumulated more than 82 centuries of gaming time and committed more than 3 billion in-game assassinations. The deadly action continues in the multiplayer, where more than twice as many gamers have joined the multiplayer mode compared to Assassin’s Creed Revelations. To date, more than 250 million assassinations have been performed in more than 5 billion multiplayer sessions.
The latest Japanese hardware sales from Media Create are as follows:
Wii U – 308,142
3DS LL – 136,373
3DS – 75,126
PS3 – 36,994
PSP – 19,637
Vita – 11,039
Wii – 6,714
Xbox 360 – 1,216
PS2 – 904
DSi – 245
DSi LL – 179
For comparison’s sake, here are the hardware numbers from last week:
3DSLL – 106,757
3DS – 60,651
PS3 – 29,809
PSP – 15,941
Vita – 11,066
Wii – 5,550
Xbox 360 – 1,217
PS2 – 812
DSi LL – 248
DSi – 209
