Console Games Bulletin: Console games publishing analysis Q3 08 No. 4

Console Games Bulletin: Console games publishing analysis Q3 08 No. 4

The thinking behind this Bulletin is to release regular updates, quarterly or half yearly depending on the data flow and market circumstances, in a similar format to enable subscribers to discern the key trends in the games publishing industry. The Bulletin will also focus in on key areas as necessary to ensure that the content remains timely and relevant.

Q3 2008 highlights:

• In what is looking increasingly like a generation long trend, Nintendo's Wii continues to offer the largest library of packaged games, a gap which is likely to increase in Q3 and Q4
  
  
• EA is the busiest publisher in the quarter as it releases its extensive range of annual sports games with around 21 releases in the quarter while Activision Blizzard is close behind with 19
  
  
• Between them Activision Blizzard and EA will generate around forty per cent of all Q4 and around seventy five per cent of all Q3 packaged releases for Wii, Xbox 360 and PS3
  
  
• While most publishers appear to ramp up release volume in the key Christmas quarter, EA and Activision Blizzard appear to be ramping up release volumes to similar levels in both calendar Q3 and Q4
  
  
• Games publishing data tables have been added to Screen Digest's Games Intelligence: data may now be split by publisher as well as by platform and territory

Quarterly and cumulative release volumes by platform

Quarterly release volumes by publisher

Releases with proven historic sales

Releases based on new IP by publisher

Releases based on licensed IP by publisher

Wii release volumes by publisher

Wii third party support analysis: quarterly and cumulative release volumes by publisher

Releases split by the territory in which they were produced