Xbox 360 sales top 8 million in Europe

@Autolycus Don't forget that the 360's 3-Year Warranty alone cost MS $1 Billion. Not only that, but think about the low yields they were having on their production line while manufacturing and how much money that cost them. This point I'm not so sure on, but I don't believe MS makes a profit on the 360. I know their game division is finally making a profit though. Remember MS said for this stage in the console war, they were only focused on market share, meaning they don't care if they're losing money to do so. They plan to profit with the next Xbox. So just remember the PS3 isn't the only company hemorrhaging money right now. They both are, it's just shown in different ways.

It seems everything has happened as I thought it would. Wait until the official NPD numbers come in.

Good news for Microsoft, especially with the hit their reputation took with all the reported hardware failures. It's great they completely paid to have consoles fixed, but no one wants to go through the hassle of having to ship it out and be without it for two weeks. But it is good to see console makers are still moving units across the board.

I own all three systems (Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii), and as a gamer who hopes none of them "wins" the console war so that competition for my money remains strong, I can honestly say that as far as strictly gaming goes, my Xbox 360 is hands down the system I play the most. In fact, I bought my PS3 primarily as a movie player, and that's pretty much all it gets used for, with a few notable exceptions (Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, MGS 4). If a game comes out for both the 360 and the PS3, I almost always buy the 360 version because I know that the 360 version will run at least as good, if not better than, the PS3 version. I've been reading comments for two years now about how it's only a matter of time before the PS3 dominates the market. These comments are obviously written by people who are desperately clinging to the past. I owned a PS2 and loved it as much as everyone else, but times have changed. It's one thing for Sony to compete against a company with no money like Sega and another thing entirely to compete against the deep pockets of Microsoft. Unfortunately, the people in charge at Sony let their inflated egos get the best of them and now they're suffering for it, and all the PS2 fans who can't accept that things change are suffering along with them. As for me, someone who just wants to play some great games, I'm thrilled with my 360. Maybe the PS4 will turn things around for Sony. I'll let Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo worry about that. The PS3 is a fantastic movie player, probably the best on the market. But as a gaming system, no one who's capable of looking at things realistically could claim that it in any way compares with the 360.

The 360 should have been recalled for faulty hardware instead of making consumers deal with the torment brought on by the RROD. I got my Desktop back from Alienware in one week after they had to replace a faulty harddrive that crashed out of the box. Technology does fail but Microsofts accpetance of a 30% failure rate with in year of purchace for the Xbox 360 is unacceptable.

I say good for Microsoft. I was never an Xbox man, I always preferred the ps2, but this generation the 360 is doing by far the best job for non-casual and casual gamers alike, with great titles and unsurpassed online support (and to those who quibble about the Xbox Live price - can you really not afford £3.33 a month? Its a pittance) It sucks that my PS3 is not justifying its investment yet, but I reckon next year will see the PS3 coming on strong. A closer console war means Sony and MS will be competing to make us happy :-)

I really think graphics card need price cuts so everyone can just PC game on their HDTV forever.

<< LINK REMOVED >> check it out.

and for those who say Sony PS3 needs a price cut, Sony literally, cant afford to cut the price of the PS3. They are losing only about 20-40 dollars per system right now and they have yet to generate a profit on the massive black hole called the PS3. Since PS3 has costs the company, literally, BILLIONS of dollars of profit, I have high reservations on if the PS4 is even going to exist. Cutting the price 100 bucks, would make them lose 120-140 dollars per system, how would that help them? more sales = loose more money. Right now, sales is exactly what they DONT want. Because the more they sell the more they lose.

ECS33: are you serious? How can you say that when Wii sales are through the roof? The system has dominated the market. Yes, the 360's attach rate is twice as high as the Wii, but the console has outsold the 360 almost two to one, and their market was largely untouched by either Sony or MS in previous generations. Also, do you know the second best selling console? It's not the 360 or PS3, it's the DS and it also has a great attach rate. Also, the PS3's attach rate is fast catching up to the 360's to the point that they are almost equal, they just haven't sold as many consoles. Never discount a multi-billion dollar corporation.

@ jasopan Why is it a better system? I know game development and I know hardware. Unique processor architecture, doesnt mean "better". In fact, unique in computers, is always a bad thing...

joevitale1 Posted Jan 6, 2009 7:33 am PT Can we not use the word obselete? all games systems are obselete. Even before they come out. ---- In the past that has been true, but now the game systems are more advanced then the developer houses. Unfortunately most of these developers aren't given the time, company resources or company willingness to learn everything that is involved in going into Multi Processor application programming. Game programming is still single core. Sony TRIED to make things easier with the CELL (because you just send the instruction set to the controlling SPE, which is in control of the 6 other semi cores) but since CELL was designed completely different then video games are actually programmed, it doesnt do developers any good to put all their eggs in one basket to take advantage of the CELL's unique (read ONLY UNIQUE, not more powerful) architecture. So in closing, the technology is hardly close to being tapped despite what developers are saying...

Congrats, Microsoft! You deserve all the success for giving us gamers an awesome console and amazing online service!! :D

Blu-ray is losing to DVD, big time. On average 9dvd's to 1 blu-ray except for massively large titles like IRON MAN and DARK KNIGHT where the rates were 3dvd's to one blu-ray. But then again, those blu-ray's were mainly sold at 20-25 dollar sale prices...

price cuts will only delay whats going to happen... the Wii on top and ps3 slightly edging out the 360, as most people see the value of the ps3 its just that the price cuts makes the 360 more appealing.

@kavadias1981: You're assuming that people are only looking at the specs. I agree with you that the PS3 has many features that are better than the 360, but most people simply just want to play games. The 360 allows people to play next gen games for a cheap price. When you are faced with the option of purchasing systems with identical graphic capabilities and both play the same current gen games but one offers blu ray and other features with a price tag that is $200 dollars more, most gamers will likely choose the cheaper alternative because gamers just want to play games. Microsoft marketed its system as a gaming system, and Sony marketed their system as a home entertainment system. If the PS3 was the same price as the 360, then the Ps3 would win. But look at the market - most people really just want to play games. Sony failed in this generation because they assumed the gamer market would fork over more money for a home entertainment system. They failed to realize that most people have this already and most people aren't tech savvy enough to know the benefits of a blu ray player. Gamers know one thing. Both play the same games, but one is 200 dollars cheaper. When a gamer or a parent goes to buy a gaming system for their kids or themselves, they are looking for something that can play games. They don't give a crap what more the PS3 can do over the 360 because in terms of playing games the 360 is the cheaper alternative. I expect next generation to be all blu ray. This will come in a time where the blu ray becomes more common in households. 360 simply won the marketing battle. They produced what the people really wanted. Some do want a good all in one home entertainment system, but most really just want to play games. And most people don't know what RROD is.

I tell u the truth with so many flat screen tv's being sold and the blu-ray player to go with it, it makes sense to buy a PS3 than a 360, but when it comes to games the 360 wins hands down, i own a 360 since the launch of the 360 and it's one of my pride and joy, but i am thinking of buying a PS3 just because it's blu-ray, it's the best blu-ray player out there, it's too bad the PS3 is struggling to compete against consoles that are less quality than the pS3 but i think if the 360 and the PS3 were to launch at the same time i think the tables might have turn for the PS3

Can we not use the word obselete? all games systems are obselete. Even before they come out.

The 360 will likely top this generation of consoles. The price of the PS3 is too elusive for many when there is a 200 dollar alternative out there, and Wii is more for the softcore gamers. The Wii will never attract the many investments a year hardcore gamers put into video games and consoles. I'm not 100% sure about this, but I think that appealing to the softcore crowd doesn't ensure a steady flow of income in terms of the games that are purchased for the system. I know most softcore gamers buy a few games and will maybe buy another game within the year or so.

More and more and more it looks like the 360 is going to be the King of these Gen of Consoles. People will argue that the Wii will win, but the Wii, it was obselete on release and has the same power as a Original Xbox. So you can also say the Wii is a LAST generation console. Either way, despite Nintendos hardware sales, their software sales are nothing compared to the 360, which still has the biggest, baddest attach rate for software than any of the systems.

There is no doubt the 360 is the better console for the price. There no added value on another more expensive console that doesn't give anything compelling enough to differentiate itself from the other. People has been saying the PS3 will eventually catch up, but they have been saying that since 2006. I don't think the PS3 is going to catch up by this time. Its too late. I think the 360 is competing with the Wii at the same time, but they are both very different consoles.

I think there is still time for the PS3 to catch up if they lower their prices immediately. Congrats to MS for pulling off a great showing this generation

360 is at it's peak atm, but watch out; Next year i am confident the PS3 will slowly climb itself back to the top Everyone has to admit the PS3 is a better system; but not enough games and way too exspensive, but once the technology industry truly goes to 'next-gen' and 'hd' then the PS3 will take over. Period

"Ps3 is still outselling the 360 in europe" i think that was true for some of 2008, but i think 360 is back on top again.

I recently visited gamestore and saw the 360 with 3 games £160, my brother couldnt believe what a bargain it was and we bought one. Simple really and the ps3 never appealed to me, i have nothing against the system but i cant believe sony have not made a price cut, or done something to counter the 360s momentum. Who gives a damn about production costs when a console isnt selling. Sony better pray that microsoft dont get the rights to MGS4 otherwise they will have problems. I dont care about console sales figures but surely Sony must be looking at reducing the price.

@frmld who said "oh im sorry, didn't _we_ just win game of the year award?" we? ;-)

Ps3 is still outselling the 360 in europe.Microsoft was so desperate this year that they had to cut the price of their console three times to keep up with the ps3.Wii is destroying the 360 and is more expensive.

good job xbox 360. looks like its going in turns, ps2 won last generation over all, and know 360 won this generation. but just as the xbox climbed to the highest mountain, the wii came crashing in and ended up on top (top as in highest sales/profits). the xbox still has the more speed and better graphics then the rest. i still like my ps3 though, its technological innovation and reliability(doesnt break down as much) is unmatched. also, i must admit the xbox has a better online system, but the ps3 still has that sense of 'futurism' attached to it. for example(taking car 1 and car 2 into account), u know that car 1(xbox) has better speed, handling and is cheaper, but u look at car 2(ps3) and you see that it has those 'extras'. the 'push a button to start the car instead of using the keys" or the 'upwards opening doors'. in conclusion, people always want the latest and i guess thats why u see the ps3 always show up in shows and adds and movies etc. non the less, the xbox has against all odds shown its self as a superpower. PS- i dont like it when people say that the sony was overconfident because in reality, Microsoft was overconfident in its console to not break down (rrod). @snakes3425 said 'sony vastly overestimated Nintendo and Microsoft'. hahahahah. yeh sure. its actually Sony and Microsoft underestimated Nintendo ok so don try and put the blame on Sony just to save your own backside. also, @peterbandulj said' Sony messed up this year because it didn't have good exclusives'. oh im sorry, didn't the ps3 just win game of the year award?MGS4! another attempt to save your own end by putting blame on Sony.

Makaatsu you are correct. PS2 was leaps and bounds ahead of the Xbox/GC and they never caught up. Looks like its Wii's turn for this round. In order for PS3 to catch up in terms of numbers, it will need to keep more exclusives, lowered manufacturing costs, and reach the 'mass market magic price' of $299. With the current economic situation I dont see that happening anytime soon. Hope Sony can pull through

that happens when you sell better hardware for less price you should

The battle goes on for those who said this and who said that and the story is ever ending.

I was stood in GAME 3 weeks ago trying to decide whether to buy a PS3 or 360 and went with the PS3. It was its exclusives: Resistance 2, LBP, MGS4 and Valkyria Chronicles that persuaded me in the end. Not to mention the free online, free PS HOME, slightly visually superior multiplatform games and Blu-ray player, It is also much quieter, looks better, has an almost non-existent malfunction rate and doesn't eat game discs. Why am I highlighting this? Because it doesn't make sense to me that a console that I believe to be superior does not sell as well as one I believe to be inferior. The mind boggles.

*NEWS FLASH* Meanwhile Sony is in chaos and losing money at a rapid rate. As the Xbox 360 continues to outsell Sony's console world wide by more than 2 - 1 and softwear sales for the 360 are over 4 - 1, Sony is restructuring in order to stop the bleeding.

Makaatsu, yeah..... thats right!!!

So 08 finished just like 07 did. Wii miles ahead of everyone and 360 miles ahead of the PS3. Surprised Gamespot have not put up another one of their articles entitles "2009 The Year Of The PS3!" just like you did in 08 :) The pattern for this generation is set. Wii miles ahead of the 360 and 360 miles ahead of the PS3, nearly 2 and a half years of data would suggest thats how it will continue to go then.

berkner youre right and im not saying you do im saying you get alot right out of the box.did i ever say you needed those things?nope didnt think so.just stating theres alot of reasons the ps3 cost more.it comes with more.and if you dont want those things thats fine.but not everyone is you.so get your panties out of a bunch.wasnt bashing.just stating my opinion. dragorro that video was hillarious

Last I checked abuman00, you don't need a wireless network adapter to play the 360 online. Plus, the $50 is nothing compared what you get with Xbox live compared to PSN.

to division_9: it is a great achievement when prodution values on the 360 make them win more money for every console sold than Sony makes for every PS3 they sell! Also what Finstar said!

@finstar ps3-$400-includes built in wifi,no play and charge required,free online play,built in blu-ray player,80gb xbox360-$299-play and charge $20,wireless network adapter $100,xbox live $50 (per year),20 gb less hard drive space,no hd movie playback capabilities. lawl people arent paying more.if you include everything that comes with the ps3 youre making out very well imo.

well if microsoft drives sony under or sony trashes microsoft it could lead to a merger further leading to the unspeakable... a sysyem with amazing hardware and amazing software and games such a thing could mean the destruction of the universe and it would be frikin awesome lol

yeah then a year later when one of the chips melts on the motherboard you send it back to be reapired, and another year after that and so on!! Man microsoft made a dodo there, i had 3 go on me!! sony ps3 now and quality. Thanks mr gates , quality product, they got it spot on with the software though.

Here's to a bright future in Europe. Cheers!

Who cares about sales. The 360 could sell 200:1 if I care, as long as I get to play all the games, I'm happy. In this case, it's not the point, they're neck to neck and I know as a gamer I can look towards the future.

@Finstar I sincerely believe that most of the PS3's first 2 years of sales were as a cheap Blu-Ray player first, game console second. Which is why they actually saw sales decrease this past year, now that stand alone BD players can be had for around $200. The fact that every time I consider buying a PS3, they introduce a new SKU with more functionality chopped out doesn't help...

great news for microsoft but the Wii continues to rein suprime

@ divison 9 The question shoud be: Why are 7 million people paying almost double the price, for a console with only one truly outstanding game exclusive (Mgs4) while they can get everything else better on the 360... It is certainly a great game, but does it excuse paying for an obiously overpriced console? I mean, we are talking double here... And for everybody stating that there are oh so many other great exclusives on the Ps3 (Killzone, Drake, Lair, HS,WH, LBP..)..Come on please...

Good news. I bet at least 5 million of those 8 million people used the Xbox 360 to replace their PS2 instead of going to PS3.

that is so true!

I dont know about Microsoft but I dont consider getting 8 million people to pay $199-$300 as much as an achievement of getting 7 million to pay $399-$599.

Xbox 360 is just AMAZING