Despite all the complaints, controversies and nerd rage surrounding PC version of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Infinity Ward has officially declared that it sold more than the original game, indicating that the lack of dedicated servers was not a huge deal to most consumers.
"The PC version of Modern Warfare 2 has actually outsold the PC version of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare in its first week," confirms Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling, "making it the most successful PC version."
It seems that Infinity Ward could have done no wrong with Modern Warfare 2. It managed to alienate a huge section of the PC gamer community, earn nothing but negative press about the PC release, and yet still eclipse the sales of Call of Duty 4. In any case, it would appear that dedicated servers are not quite as important to most PC gamers as some of them make out.
Of course, it doesn't help that most of the supposed boycotters are playing the game right now.
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Almost.
Sorry Activision. Not all your customers can afford first world broadband.
As for WHY this happened, I assume it is two things: 1) most boycotters bought the game anyway, and 2) the vast majority of PC gamers don't care about dedicated servers as much as the minority would have you think.
On my PC gaming forums pretty much everyone loves the game... the only real complaint I see after release is the inability for the host to just kick a hacker directly, but having to call a vote. Other than that, most people seem very satisified.
Well demonstrated.
(1) PC gamers have no self control.
(2) Some wanted to hack it for The Holy Crusade.
(3) PC gamers have no fucking self-control. They built that gaming rig and damn if those console versions are gonna show it up.
2. If you think it's just about Dedicated Servers you obviously haven't been paying attention. How about a lack of console, lack of mods, lack of user maps, higher lag, lack of recording so no competitive ladders, HUGE cut in amount of players on a server, lack of leaning, lack of an ability to kick or ban hackers, higher price, and some other things I'm probably forgetting.
Oh, how about a plain hatred for Bobby Kotick?
To anyone that bought this on PC: Thanks, dude. Fighting the good fight there.
First of all, for COD4 PC gamers made up 15% of the purchases. This time around the only make up 3%. Now, you can argue that they still sold more total copies on the PC, but the ratios show that 1) their advertising campaign worked but also that 2) they are not getting even close to the same sales ratios for the PC.
You could argue that a lot of the people who would have bought it on the PC bought it on console instead, but there is no way to back that claim up. Additionally, before release of MW2, Activision said that 10% of sales is the norm for the PC. Clearly, if the actual for MW2 is only 3%, they did something wrong somewhere and are falling far short of their projected 10%.
Activision should not look at it as a victory, and I'm sure they are not. They could have maintained that quite-impressive 10%-15% ratio if they had made a decent game. Instead, they get 3%. So, Activision, sit on your piles of money, but just remember that total sales =/= a good product (just look at the movie 2012).
Hype>PC gamers... :p
We had better multiplayer ten years ago ffs. :p
And I hear the singleplayer story got a story not even befitting of a B-movie.
In addition it's too short.
Premium price for a mediocre product? Not a chance I'm playing this shit.
/nerdrage off
(until the next MW2 story atleast!)
I doubt 90% of the playerbase even knows what a dedicated server is.
First, you pulled yout "3%" from your ass, and second over half, if not more, of PC gamers buy their games online through either a digital distribution program like Steam or through amazon.com or similar sites. NONE of this is counted in precious slaes number percentages or NPD reports.
So, stop talking about things you lack knowledge about.
just like it did on all platforms. what would be interesting is seeing what is the ratio of the increase compared to consoles.
anyway, only like 10%/20% of the people that bought it on the pc, were aware about hte actual implications of IW's decisions.
Is it the beginning of the end?
Or did Modern Warfare 2 live up to quality expectations?
I'm just not seeing the grassroots hype for IW that came out of the original that made MW2 so successful.
@ Skip106:
When did Super Mario Bros. 3 stop being a game?
I've probably said that before, but I can't be arsed to backtrack.
So... we could say +2 mill = 3%
97 / 3 = 32.333
32.333 x 2mil = 64,600,000+ total copies sold so far (not including the PC version). Not that I don't think Modern Warfare 2 won't sell a bunch but that number seems a bit unnaturally high when only a few days ago something like 6 million were the reported total combined sales of the US and UK.
I may have made a math error but that still seems really high here.
I'm not pulling numbers out of my ass. Those figures of 3% were actually posted on the InfinityWard forums themselves:
http://www.infinityward.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=183344
Or could it be that it indicates that the vast majority of consumers had no idea, and probably don't even know what "dedicated servers" really means in real terms? I'm not sure what evidence you used to jump to your conclusion.
In which case, I do agree that Captain Obvious is needed. The sequel to ANYTHING popular always has higher first week sales than the original, because consumers need a few weeks to learn about the original before they buy it, but buy the sequel right away after knowing what the original is like.
The 3% number comes from the UK sales numbers(http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/easy-victory-for-modern-warfare-2-in-uk-charts) so Skip 106 did not pull that number out of thin air.
It's worth noting that vgchartz estimates that the PC made up about 12% of sales(http://news.vgchartz.com/news.php?id=5826).
And if Bowling said "The PC version of Modern Warfare 2 has actually outsold the PC version of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare in its first week," confirms Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling, "making it the most successful PC version."
That doesn't necessarily make it true.
What all the 'real' PC gamers have been protesting about will all come to light, unfortunately too late for the PC users who bought the game (unwittingly)
The beginning of the end? Or do you think MW3 will do better than MW2 in spite of everything?
You're assuming 100% of PC consumers who bought MW2 knew about the dedicated server issue beforehand.
Either way, I don't see Modern Warfare 2 being a game PC users are playing a lot after about 4 months. With no modding, competitive gaming, or sense of community, it should lose its steam rather quickly.
Oh, and if you define "huge PC success" based soley on copies sold, then you need your head examined. Tabula Rasa and Age of Conan sold a huge amount of copies when they were released, but I doubt you'd ever refer to them as successful.
You can't prove most, being more than 50%; you can type it or say it but you can't prove it. The statement ALOT would have been better b/c that's a subjective word.
But to say MOST is lying.
You can't prove most, being more than 50%; you can type it or say it but you can't prove it. The statement ALOT would have been better b/c that's a subjective word.
But to say MOST is lying.
/cropdusted.
Yes I have. This is not the "boycott group" but one single boycott group. You could say THIS boycott group. But that's not what Destructoid said.
Just in case you don't understand this group is a steam group and this is just the first page. The screen shot can be misleading as we can;t tell how many in the group is buying it. You might be able to check in steam and figure it out. I'd be happy to know the results.
And even in that picture only 13 of the 24 lists are playing, which while is most is barely most.
But there are many many silent boy-cotters that will not buy the game ever or until its $20 or less.
I really see Destructiod and man others (I assume console players) adding a lot of melodrama, exaggeration, and rhetoric to this topic.
There's nothing "silly" about wanting dedicated servers and not purchasing the game based on that.
The reason this happened is likely that people outside of the hardcore gamer crowd decided to hop in on the biggest entertainment launch of all time, and didn't have a console. Based on what I'm reading within the community, it's very unlikely that the hardcore crowd just gave up on dedicated servers all at once.
I did buy it for the story though, and although it was mega it wasn't as well put together as the COD4 story was, it just didn't flow as well and replay value seems low.