One thing I really don't understand is why the gaming industry thinks consumers will not buy games between April and August.  Most schools and colleges are out from June through August, it seems like an ideal time for the young male demographic to spend lots of money on games.

With the recent release of Soul Calibur IV and Madden 09 coming next week, this is the start of a four month period with just a ridiculous number of games scheduled for release.  How many of these will the average gamer buy?  Most people probably wouldn't even be able to rent all the games they're interested in.

Which games will:
- ride the coattails of a big game to better than expected sales?
- get lost in the hype of bigger games and bomb?

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- 10/07: Fracture would probably sell better with a delay.  The latest in a string of gimmicky shooters (TimeShift, Haze, etc.) that have generally not been very successful, it comes out a week after the superior FarCry 2, and on the same day as Fallout 3, both NBA games, and a Rockstar game.

- The seven day period from 10/14 to 10/21 looks very brutal.  I would assume higly anticipated games like the Rock Band 2 bundle, Fable 2, Saints Row 2, and the Tom Clancy game will all do very well.  Mediocre games like Rock Revolution, Golden Axe, and Spider-Man will probably fizzle out quickly against the tough competition.  It will be interesting to see how the middle games (fairly high quality but less well known) like Shaun White Snowboarding, Dead Space, and Ghostbusters will do.

- Will games like Left 4 Dead, Call of Duty World at War, and Mirror's Edge benefit from their proximity to the monster that is Gears of War 2?

- Will gamers have any cash left in their bank accounts by the time Prince of Persia, Huxley, and Brutal Legend are out?

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Here is just a partial list of Xbox 360 games scheduled for release between August and early December, and it's over 70 games!

August - December Games:

0812 Madden 09
0819 Too Human
0826 Tales of Vesperia
0826 Tiger Woods 09
0831 Mercenaries 2: World in Flames
0901 Infinite Undiscovery
0902 Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise
0902 World in Conflict: Soviet Assault
0903: FaceBreaker
0908: NHL 2K9
0909: NHL 09
0914: Rock Band 2 (game only)
0916: Pure
0916: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
0916: Warhammer: Battle March
0923: Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway
0923: Just Cause 2
0923: LEGO Batman
0930: Legendary
0930: Rise of the Argonauts
0930: Silent Hill: Homecoming
1001: Far Cry 2
1001: Project Origin
1007: Crash Bandicoot: Mind over Mutant
1007: Fallout 3
1007: Fracture
1007: Midnight Club: Los Angeles
1007: NBA 2K9
1007: NBA Live 09
1013: Blitz: The League II
1014: Dance Dance Revolution Universe 2
1014: FIFA Soccer 09
1014: Golden Axe: Beast Rider
1014: Mass Effect GOTY Edition
1014: Rock Revolution
1014: Saints Row 2
1015: Shaun White Snowboarding
1015: Tom Clancy’s EndWar
1019: Rock Band 2 (bundle)
1020: Dead Space
1021: Fable II
1021: Ghostbusters
1021: Spider-Man: Web of Shadows
1026: Guitar Hero: World Tour
1028: Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
1103: Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon
1104: 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand
1104: Left 4 Dead
1104: Lord of the Rings: Conquest
1107: Gears of War 2
1110: Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe
1111: Call of Duty: World at War
1111: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
1111: Mirror’s Edge
1111: WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2009
1117: Need for Speed Undercover
1118: Prince of Persia
1118: Sonic Unleashed
1118: Tomb Raider Underworld
1120: The Last Remnant
1125: Huxley
1128: Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts
1202: Brutal Legend
1202: WET
1 vs 100 Live
Blood Bowl
Lips
Naruto: The Broken Bond
Scene It? Box Office Smash
You’re in the Movies

Edited to remove XBLA games.


XBLA Games:

0806 Braid
0813 Bionic Commando Rearmed
0820: Galaga Legions
0827 Castle Crashers
0903: Fable II Pub Games
A Kingdom for Keflings
Age of Booty
Axiom Overdrive
Banjo-Kazooie: Stop N’ Swop
Darwinia
Defense Grid: The Awakening
Dishwasher: Dead Samurai
Duke Nukem 3D
Feeding Frenzy 2
Gin Rummy
HoopWorld
Lode Runner
The Maw
Peggle Deluxe
Portal: Still Alive
RBI Baseball
Shred Nebula
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
Things on Wheels
Uno Rush
Vigilante 8 Arcade
Zombie Wranglers

Damn I'll be broke by Christmas to buy the family presents...... AGAIN!!!!

Yeah it is a lot of games, I hope I can play all the games I want.

Yes. That is a lot of games. Fact.

I was hoping for more of a sales analysis discussion...

Like, how many million sellers will the 360 have this fall? 

Which of the above games will be delayed? 

Surprise hits?  Surprise bombs?

It was this way last year: Two Worlds, Blue Dragon, Eternal Sonata, and Mass Effect...Bought all of them Day-1.

This year, I have Tales of Vesperia, Infinite Undiscovery, and Silent Hill: Homecoming JUST in late Aug. to September. I want to also buy Rock Band 2, Fable 2 (eventually), and Fallout 3....Oh, Tomb Raider UW and TLR will be bought too.

Add Too Human, Viva Pinata 2, Brothers in Arms, World in Conflict, Rise of the Argonauts, Dead Space, Endwar, Red Alert 3, Gears 2 and Banjo Kazooie for other games I want.


...It's amazing to think that, last year, every analyst said that the 360 wouldn't have a great holiday 08 in light of the spectacular 07 season.

IGN doesn't list any big games for December 2008, I'm trying to remember if the 360 had any big games in December last year.
The last really big games I remember from 2007 were Mass Effect and Rock Band, and those were both released on November 20.

Considering most Americans do their Christmas shopping at the last minute (instead of getting it done the Friday and weekend after Thanksgiving like in the past), I'm surprised there are no big games scheduled for December 9 or even December 16.

I wish they did put more big hits at the beginning and the middle of the year. GTA4 and MGS4 were the most anticipated games around that time and they sold really well. I don't think GTA4 would have broken first week sales records if it was released during the holiday season. Also having high profile game during the first half of the year can cause a temporary boost to hardware sales and it shouldn't hurt holiday sales because those are always up, plus those hit games might be cheaper when it hits holiday season causing more people to buy that game plus save some money for another game. i got bored during the first half of the year and started borrowing games from a friend because nothing new really interested me. the games I definitely will buy during the holiday season will be viva pinata 2, banjo-kazooie, and gears of war 2, and I'm gonna have to wait to get the other games I want till next year when I can buy them used.

Oh God..I have still some last holidays games unfinished

Me too lol, without saying that I have a tone of achievement to do