Sega: M-rated Wii games selling 'very well'

By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpotPosted Apr 7, 2009 10:37 am PT

US marketing head Sean Ratcliffe says House of the Dead: Overkill, MadWorld are doing just fine on Nintendo's family-friendly platform.

Although the Wii is often perceived as a family-friendly console that plays home to generally inoffensive pap, a number of unsavory offerings for grown-up gamers are also finding success on Nintendo's latest. Capcom sold more than a million copies of Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition, and Grasshopper Manufacture's No More Heroes was named GameSpot's Best Wii Game of 2008.

He's not a Purell user.

The Wii may have two more M-for-Mature hits on its hands, given that Sega of America vice president of marketing Sean Ratcliffe touted the performance of House of the Dead: Overkill and MadWorld (pictured) in a VentureBeat interview this week. Ratcliffe didn't offer any sales figures to back up his exuberance, but the executive said that the early sales feedback on both games were positive.

"House of the Dead has done very well and has absolutely met our expectations," Ratcliffe said. "The first set of data for MadWorld is very encouraging, as well."

Released in February, House of the Dead: Overkill is an interactive take on expletive-laden exploitation films, letting players blast away zombies (and parts thereof) in a blood-splattered romp. Sega followed that up in March with the release of MadWorld, the first product from the publisher's partnership with PlatinumGames. Borrowing from a handful of sci-fi staples, the largely black-and-white game drops players into a life-and-death gameshow, armed only with a chainsaw and an environment full of sharp points and blunt objects.

Wii gamers with a taste for charnel might have more M-rated fare in the future. The executive also said that Sega "absolutely" wants to make MadWorld into a franchise, provided that it "resonates with the audience."

72 Comments

  • _AbBaNdOn

    Posted May 13, 2009 1:07 am PT

    BRING ON THE AO RATED GAMES!!!!!!!!!

  • Shadowtails9000

    Posted May 5, 2009 12:25 pm PT

    Rightarooni! Of course every M-rated Wii game sells big. Because the many gamers that want more than a cooking simulator need them just to get the feeling they are playing a real game. So what did we learn? People like intense, scary games. What is the solution: Give us Fatal Frame 4. FATAL. FRAME. 4.

  • Legend-of-Evil

    Posted Apr 13, 2009 2:51 am PT

    House of the Dead was kind of lame I say, but the huge glock you got to go with the Zapper was the best Nintendo accessory Ive seen in years

  • TheVGDude

    Posted Apr 10, 2009 2:34 pm PT

    I love Madworld and HOTD:Overkill! Glad to hear they are happy with the sales after earlier reports had me thinking they weren't selling well!

  • gameking5000

    Posted Apr 9, 2009 5:12 am PT

    If the games include the motion-controls then that'll make it even better

  • skullboy950

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 3:38 pm PT

    Looks like we'll have to look up to Sega if we want good Wii games now.

  • Jedilink109

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 12:42 pm PT

    Why is it that EVERY Nintendo system is labled as "kid friendly"?!?!?!? In fact most of the Wii games I own are either T or M rated anyway.

  • Red_leader11

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 12:25 pm PT

    lol i have both of these games! they're some of the best games i have fo the wii. madworld is just mental

  • r_gam3

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 11:26 am PT

    cool

  • tarbun

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 8:27 am PT

    Everyone loves a bit of variety! Thats what makes the Wii worthwhile for both casual and hardcore gamers!

  • evilgamer22

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 8:02 am PT

    Nice to see that Sega isn't neglecting the few homicidal wii owners out there like me.

  • riou7

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 7:23 am PT

    keep it up SEGA!

  • Serpico89

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 6:37 am PT

    That's what I was just thinking about, Madworld should definitely be a franchise, it has a huge amount of potential to be better than it already is, such violence in it, I love it!

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 6:06 am PT

    MadWorld has only sold about 100,000 worldwide right now according to VG Chartz. I can't see how that is selling "very well". But I guess if you take the Wii's casual appeal into account, then maybe that is good.

  • KieranCottrell

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 6:00 am PT

    I think the dilution of casual games has actually been pretty beneficial to this early wave of M-rated games. They stand out on the shelves.
    I think that had there been an even ratio of casual-to-M games, titles like House of the Dead would have been lost among the mix.
    The success of M-rated games on Wii will rely on this awkward balance.

  • wwonka666

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 4:12 am PT

    House of the Dead Overkill is the only new Wii game I have bought since Mario Kart WII last May. And the only reason to own a Wii for the foreseeable future. I wasn't as impressed with Madworld (a bit repetitive) when I played it at my friends house. It was definitely different, just a lot of wiggling of the Wiimote and Nunchuk.

  • kavadias1981

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 2:47 am PT

    Take the hint Wii developers! We want more hardcore adult games like Madworld and HotD not stupid shallow mini game collections and ports. And this report is proof that there is a market for them. So stop developing that crappy cash in that you are working on right now, yes you! And get to work on more games like the above!

  • Payback7

    Posted Apr 8, 2009 2:41 am PT

    More games directed at adults is great for the Wii, and I'm all for it - but where are the RPG's Nintendo!!! PLEASE!!! hehe

  • MrLopezZ

    Posted Apr 7, 2009 11:09 pm PT

    Madworld is a cool game, but it isn't worth 50 bucks. It's finished way too fast for that price.. Only Zelda, Metroid and stuff are worth 50 IMO

  • chappy_man

    Posted Apr 7, 2009 10:37 pm PT

    i gotta say sega has proven to be quite the winning card for the wii recently. I hope they can continue producing games like madworld. My only qualm with madworld was its multiplayer, and the fact that i killed the game with all unlcoks in under 6 hours. A bit short for full pop game, but it is something fun to pick up again and again. Now if only i could do that with a friend :p

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