| mrstickball said: @Khuurta - it is a rhetorical question for those arguing that Tales of Graces either did good, or want to argue why it sold poorly. It seems that some want to have it both ways - MH3 can do good because the Wii sells RPGs, but Tales of Graces does bad because it doesn't have the user base that DQX will bring in - so I am asking them to think about the moving goal posts we're seeming to have here. |
Well let's you and me cut through the bullshit here and get down to the hanky-spanky.
Monster Hunter 3 did very well for an RPG (or any third-party console game) in Japan this generatioin because Monster Hunter fans - the real ones - will follow it regardless of where it goes and assuming they can get past the whole "I have to subscribe to an online service!?" thing. Monster Hunter is enormous, but it's not the kind of game that will draw RPG-playing crowds for other RPGs. It doesn't appeal to the same userbase.
Tales isn't lik that either but Tales is further hampered by the fact that 1. Tales titles are relatively flooding the market and 2. Tales's appeal is at an all-time low. Players just don't want it that damn badly!
Wii does not have an RPG-buying crowd right now because it does not have the library that draws RPG buyers. The DS and (to a much lesser extent, minding the nature of Monster Hunter) the PSP do, but none of the consoles do right now.
The reason people bring up Dragon Quest as a game changer is because Dragon Quest is at least thought to be the game that draws all RPG players in Japan. It's not in tthe same class in Monster Hunter, and it's not even on the same planet as Tales. Granted, though, that the Wii is a unique scenario, because Dragon Quest traditionally comes to consoles that have strong RPG-playing bases already, either because developers flock to that console to anticipate the RPG players or because RPG players follow Dragon Quest. One of those is true, but if it's the former then Dragon Quest X very much will not help other RPGs.
I still expect Dragon Quest X to smash every other console RPG in Japan this gen in terms of sales, because Dragon Quest players will buy Dragon Quest. The only question is if they'll buy anything else.
