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Forums - Microsoft Discussion - Why is the Xbox 360 SO popular in the U.S.?

betacon said:
Microsoft monopoly of the American market, they have a far bigger stake in the media than Sony.

^^^^ This.

I can't belive we've forgotten about this one. The amount of 'bad' Sony news and a whole lot of negative and less than positive reviews, for games and announcements, made it easier for Microsoft's console to sell well in the US.



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betacon said:
Microsoft monopoly of the American market, they have a far bigger stake in the media than Sony.


would like see proof of that



Eyes of ganon are everywhere , be careful.



We love our FPSs here, and the 360 is the king of those.. Also, I think there is a certain patriotism so to speak for American companies.



Americans love violence. It is in their culture, it is part of their history. The 360 focuses heavily on violence and that's what american teens want to do. Not to mention MS has a lot more advertisement going on than Sony. 



"Trick shot? The trick is NOT to get shot." - Lucian

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Somini said:
NintendoPie said:
Somini said:


The Wii and Wii U might also be pushing gamers to Microsoft. As mentioned, those consoles cater to a casual sector of the market – one that Microsoft doesn’t really care about. At the same time, hardcore gamers who have played the Wii and Wii U and try to stick with it have trouble. Like it or not, the consoles just aren’t capable of keeping their attention as much as the PS3 or the Xbox 360.

 

 

But... but what about this?

That's what the article says, not me lol! You have a point though, still the effort to capture the casual gamer came a little late into the lifecycle of the 360.

Perhaps it came late, but I think Kinect IS the reason it's selling so well at this stage. Kinect is selling disproportionately well in the USA compared to all other countries just the same as the console itself.

The article notes that CoD has been the highest selling game for 4 years on 360. Well it's been the same for PS3 in the USA. So it's not like there are just a handful of FPS gamers on PS3.

360 sales were falling in the USA before Kinect and it was Kinect that gave it a massive shot in the arm. The shot in the arm has lasted in the USA, but it did not last beyond the first holiday anywhere else.

The real question is why is it so dang popular in the UK? It's almost at the same sales ratio as the USA between PS3 and 360. And 360 will probably overtake Wii in UK before it overtakes Wii in the USA.



“The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.” - Bertrand Russell

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace."

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Areym said:

Americans love violence. It is in their culture, it is part of their history. The 360 focuses heavily on violence and that's what american teens want to do. Not to mention MS has a lot more advertisement going on than Sony. 

That's a pretty ignorant statement.. If you look at history as I have (got my degree in history) you'll see violence is present throughout nearly every culture throughout time, at least to an extent. I will agree that American media loves to hone in on violence to boost ratings, but that doesn't mean the American public loves violence.

Also, let's be honest here, is the PS3 lineup really less violent than the 360's?





 

bonkers555 said:
Areym said:

Americans love violence. It is in their culture, it is part of their history. The 360 focuses heavily on violence and that's what american teens want to do. Not to mention MS has a lot more advertisement going on than Sony. 

Americans love violence as much as Japanese love kiddie porns. Its Japanese culture to rape women and children, its part of their history. Doesn't Japanese have video games that simulate raping women? And is it legal to own kiddie porn in Japan?

You see how racist and ignorant my post is? Now look at how ignorant you post is.

Crossed out due to poster's request. 




Yay!!!

Metallicube said:
Areym said:

Americans love violence. It is in their culture, it is part of their history. The 360 focuses heavily on violence and that's what american teens want to do. Not to mention MS has a lot more advertisement going on than Sony. 

That's a pretty ignorant statement.. If you look at history as I have (got my degree in history) you'll see violence is present throughout nearly every culture throughout time, at least to an extent. I will agree that American media loves to hone in on violence to boost ratings, but that doesn't mean the American public loves violence.

Also, let's be honest here, is the PS3 lineup really less violent than the 360's?


True that, there are plenty of others nations and/or empires throughout history that have been equally or more violent. The main difference lies in American involvement in so many modern conflicts, the ones you see on the news and learn about in recent history in school, thus the notion that the US is a more violent nation persists.The 360 is just as dominant and important in the UK, perhaps a remnant from colonial times? It is not big at all in old war nations such as Italy, Greece, Japan, France and Spain, so that theory is out the window in a flash.

As far as the PS3's lineup against the 360's; I agree 100%, the PS3 and 360 are nearly the same console as far as library goes.

My take on why the 360 dominates in the US:

First off its a damn good product and they also enjoy massive brand recognition there. Secondly, they had terrific 3rd party support from the beginning, the 360 was lead platform on mostly any multiplat developed from 2005 to 2009, this established a (mostly correct) picture of the 360 getting superior versions of most 3rd party games, the metascores from the period reflect the same belief.

Then there's marketing and Western-centric games, MS spend incredible amounts on marketing and these are bound to have a large impact on sales in the "homeland of the commercial", imagine ball-games, rodeo, monster trucks, track & field, concerts, cinema, TV spots in the middle of hit shows, billboards and countless events that they shell out for to show off their product. As far as marketing is concerned, Sony and Nintendo would do wisely to pick up a few cues (and a clue) from MS. The Western centric games spek for themselves, the 7th generation has become the Hollywood generation, almost all genres and games have fallen into the CoD conventions and mindset.

Superior online; the 360 has by far the best online service and it was honed and ready to go from launch. They focused a lot on online gaming from the beginning, knowing that this would be big.

In conclusion:

1: Brand recognition (A trait that Japan and the US shares, especially the parent generation and up will be massively patriotic in their purchasing habits)

2: First class 3rd party support

3: Extensive and Western centric games library

4: Massive advertising budgets

5: Affordable price, especially over the PS3

Note; the above are not in any kind of order, just making it easier to read.