x360 is a software beast because

a) Compared to PS3, it sells much better in America, where the the attacment ratios are much higher against Europe (where games are more expensive and piracy is widespread) and Japan (where the population is older and more conservative, and tending to handheld gaming).

b) It's not accurate to evaluate the number of consoles sold globally as each console sold in America (and the English speaking countries) are more valuable to producers due to attachment and MS is leading Sony in this respect.

The whole "360 has been out longer" argument is absolutely pointless. The Wii has been out nearly as long as the ps3 has and look at the numbers it has sold. It is already double the ps3's total sales and well on it's way to selling even more.

That being said, The ps3 will probably never break the 40m mark, not because of how long it's been on the market, but because of poor strategy when it comes to selling and promoting. It's too expensive and the lack of quality games is what's bring it down, not how long it's been on the shelves.

If you are talking about attach rates, it is because of the aforementioned 1 year head start of the 360.

If you are talking about total software, the Wii would be the software beast, not the 360. Wii software outsold 360 software worldwide by 50% in 2008.

The main thing to look at is why the 360 is so popular. Software sales follow. Here are a few things the 360 has offered before the other 2 consoles at launch. The first 2 transferred over from the previous gen:

• Unified Gamertag
• Established online community
• Achievements

Add those along with these and you'll sell software:

• Friends
• Word of mouth
• Exclusivity deals
• Diversity of the 360 portfolio

 

Can someone please explain to me why the 1 year head start makes a difference? I'm doing several things at once right now and just can't wrap my head around it. I thought I remember reading that the ratio is supposed to go down as a console gets older (I think that was a VGC article if I'm not mistaken).

xbox games are generally cheaper

every single game ever made for the 360 coming with achievements helps.

Afterall, the likelyhood that i would have bought NHL 07, NBA street homecourt and Call of duty 2 (Again) are very slim.

I've played over 100 xbox 360 titles in just under 2 years, i have never played so many games in such a short space of time on any other console.

Achievements > Trophies
360 Live > PSN

Darth Tigris said: Can someone please explain to me why the 1 year head start makes a difference? I'm doing several things at once right now and just can't wrap my head around it. I thought I remember reading that the ratio is supposed to go down as a console gets older (I think that was a VGC article if I'm not mistaken).

 

I’ll try – but it isn’t the easiest of things to get your head round.   First of all, remember we are talking about the attach ratio/tie ratio. That is, the number of software units sold divided by the number of hardware units sold. We’re not talking about absolute hardware or software numbers (which obviously go up with time).   Now, just for ease of understanding. Let’s take a fanciful scenario.   Suppose there are two consoles, X and Y, both equally popular, both with similar games available, and everyone who has either console buys a new game every month.   And suppose console X has been out two years and console Y has been out one year.   And suppose both consoles have been selling at a consistent rate since launch.   As console X has been out for two years, the average console X has been in the users hands for 12 months. So they’ve bought 12 games. So the tie ratio is 12.   As console Y has been out for one year, the average console has been in the users hands for 6 months. So they’ve bought 6 games. So the tie ratio is six.   And the only difference between the consoles is that X has been out twice as long, which gives it twice the tie ratio.   That make sense?
 

Darth Tigris said: Can someone please explain to me why the 1 year head start makes a difference? I'm doing several things at once right now and just can't wrap my head around it. I thought I remember reading that the ratio is supposed to go down as a console gets older (I think that was a VGC article if I'm not mistaken).

Oops, forgot to address your second point.

The ration will keep going up so long as people keep buying games at about the same rate. It will go down if the rate of buying games goes down. As only new game sales get measured there are several possible reasons for this:

1) used game sales

2) piracy (rampant on the PS1)

3) gamers get bored and no longer buy games for the console (typically when a new console comes out, tie ratios for the older ones drop)

4) when the price of a console gets low enough to purchase it for a single game. For example, there's lots of new PS2's being bought only for Singstar.

5) hardware failures, when a new console is bought to replace a bricked older one.

Remember it is all done with averages, so it is generally only late in a console's life that the ratio will take a significant dip unless it is particuarly vulnerable to piracy or failure or there is a very active second-hand market.

Piracy on its own is probably not a significant factor, as if you get a game for nothing it doesn't dip into your disposable income for buying new games as well. You just play more games but you probably buy new ones at about the same rate. Except in places where the games market is almost wholly pirated.