To the MS crowd: only joking. Gears of War 2.
So arguably these are the biggest offerings from the big three this holiday. Sure, there are other titles, but let's keep things simple.
Resistance 2
Pros
Very good word of mouth, both from the beta and from pretty much everyone that has played the game.
Supposedly huge scope, encompassing single player, co-op, and multiplayer online.
Significant visual improvement over the first game (which I personally never had a problem with, but still).
Insomniac
Cons
The gore. This is just my opinion, and I haven't seen it myself, but I think this could work against the game. It is supposed to be rated 18 in the UK, and other countries could follow suit. The first game wasn't very gory, so why change things? Could put off some users, and mean lost sales.
Summary
The first game sold over 3 milliion, which is pretty stellar for a new IP on brand new hardware. There is more competition out there now, but even so, I expect this game to outsell the first by a significant amount.
Gears of War 2
Pros
The first game was very highly praised and seems to have satisfied the majority of players.
Probably now the second biggest franchise on the 360 (?).
Not much competition in regard to third person shooters.
Supposedly bigger, badder, better etc.
Cons
No beta or demo?
I have the impression it's not getting quite as much attention as it would like. Cliffy B says this, Cliffy B does that? Who gives a rat's ass?
The game is being labelled Gears of War 1.5 in some places. Maybe it is justified, maybe not. Even so, can't be seen as a 'pro'.
Not being sold in Japan or Germany.
Summary
The first game sold over 5 million, which is stellar really. However, again, now things have changed quite a bit. The sequel should still be huge, particularly in the US, but just how well is it going to fare elsewhere?
Animal Crossing
Rather a different genre, but a big hitter none the less. Wii Music seems to be a curse word around here, so...
Pros
Tied in with some new hardware. Usually works well for Nintendo.
Quite frankly, not a whole lot of competition.
Previous versions have been big in Japan and the US.
The DS game was massive.
Cons
The DS game was massive. In other words, the last game was on a handheld, so the jump back to a console may not be so well received.
Is this really what Wii owners are asking for right now?
Does not have the words, 'Wii', or, 'Mario', in the title.
Summary
Past games have been very big, but the jump back to a console may work against this. The DS version outsold the GC version by more than double.
Which will sell the most?
They are all going to be huge. I think R2 is going to do very well, better than the first game. If Gears 2 can exite the US crowd like the first one did, then I think it is going to come out on top. There's no guarantee though. Animal Crossing should be massive, but there's an element of doubt there too. So:
1
Gears 2
2
Animal Crossing
3
Resistance 2 (but not far behind)
PSN - hanafuda
