Ruh-roh: Simon Carless of Gamasutra/Game Set Watch analyzes VGChartz...

[steven787]

theRepublic said:

shio said:

steven787 said:
Accuracy of 10 or even 20 percent error isn't a big deal when you are discussing Qualitative properties of sales. Of course publishers and retailers want more accurate data, but as far as using sales to predict future trends in gaming (what type of games sell, what console is "winning") broader estimate work just fine. I don't see what the problem is or why the established game websites are so against the idea of VGChartz.

a 10% error, let alone 20%,  is a mortal flaw in methodology. Any professional outlet that often possesses that terrible margin of error wouldn't last long in the business world.

The article didn't say much I didn't already know, and I agree completely with it.

 

To Brett Walton: Please give credit to your sources, that's the way it should be.

 

Read this post from naznatips:

"That said, all data trackers provide nothing but estimates. ALL. Famitsu and Media Create differ as much as 40% on a given week, and each one tracks more of the Japanese market than NPD tracks of the NA market. Pretending any sales data gives anything more than a basic idea of sales trends is laughable."

Famitsu and Media Create are profesional tracking services.  I guess they and the NPD are all mortally flawed by your standards.

This is not science, and it is not a labratory.  There are different standards in the real world.

 

Shio, your missing the point.  If you want more accurate data, you are (1) not going to get it and (2) setting your standards unecesarily high.  We are just here having fun, talking about general trends, etc.

Common anti-social thinking.  People are having fun, oh my god, I need to stop it.

 

VGChartz is free.

VGChartz is open about its errors and goes out of its way to compare their results to non-free trackers.

VGChartz is fun.

Next the false logic in this thread is really nagging me:

Non-free trackers aren't necesarily better.  One of the first things you learn in (a real) statistics class is that a larger sample can mess up extrapolation.