VGChartz

Last updated
VGChartz
Vgclogo.JPG
Type of site
Video game sales tracking, video game journalism
OwnerBrett Walton
Created byBrett Walton
URL http://www.vgchartz.com
LaunchedJune 2005;19 years ago (2005-06)

The VGChartz Network is a collection of five video game websites: VGChartz, gamrFeed, gamrReview, gamrTV, and gamrConnect. VGChartz sits at the center of the network and is a video game sales tracking website, providing weekly sales figures of console software and hardware by region. The site was launched in June 2005, and is owned by Brett Walton. [1] [2] Employing ten people, [3] VGChartz provides tools for worldwide data analysis and regular reviews of the data it provides.

Contents

VGChartz provides tools for data analysis, charting, and regular reviews and examinations of major data news in the video gaming industry. Sales figures on VGChartz are based on estimates extrapolated from small retail samples. [4] While offering some information about their methodology through their website, [5] VGChartz does not publish any of their data sources. Some sites, including Gamasutra and Wired News , have questioned the reliability of the information presented by the site. [4] [6] VGChartz has defended the credibility and reliability of its sales data, [7] often comparing their numbers with the ones published by NPD Group, [8] although some charts have been retroactively adjusted to better match NPD's monthly reports. [4] [9]

History

VGChartz began in June 2005, when Brett Walton created an area on everythingandnothing.org.uk (as the site he had created at the time) called "videogame sales charts" which collected publicly available videogame sales data in one place for users to view. [10] In July 2006, Brett launched VGCharts.org, a stand-alone version of the sub-site on everythingandnothing and still collecting publicly available data together from across the web. [11] In March 2007, Brett bought the VGChartz.com domain and rebranded the site as VGChartz. [12] With this re-launch came the move from collecting publicly available data to carrying out original research on the videogame market, and VGChartz began to produce its own weekly charts. [13]

In June 2008, Robert Pasarella wrote an article comparing VGChartz and NPD services, advantages and disadvantages, with VGChartz being the winner due to the modality on their service. [14] However, in the same month Simon Carless wrote an article in which he criticized VGChartz for the poor tracking of a video game Iron Man in comparison to NPD, for adjusting data to match other sales tracking firms in certain cases, and for making educated guesses for some figures data in other regions. [4] Brett argued against the claims made by Simon, indicating that he had cherry-picked certain pieces of data to present VGChartz in a bad light rather than present a fair evaluation of the data. [7]

With the launch of PlayStation Move and Kinect towards the end of 2010, renewed interest in the videogame market led VGChartz to report estimates for initial sales of both pieces of hardware. [15] [16] Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft Chief of Staff for Interactive Entertainment Business, openly criticized VGChartz data for Kinect on his Twitter feed, [17] later adding "Sorry if my note offended." [18] The comments from Greenberg prompted Walton to write an editorial, "Why it is so Easy to Blame VGChartz," in which he addressed why media organizations and publishers try to undermine the data and methods on the site. [19]

Criticism

Many websites and editors criticize VGChartz for how they obtain and verify their data. In response, VGChartz has stated that they use "a number of proprietary[ sic ] and ever-developing methods". Critics have noted that the website is ad-supported and claims to track every country's individual hardware and software sales to a single digit, something not even Microsoft or Sony are always capable of achieving. [20]

VGChartz Network

In June 2010, VGChartz launched the VGChartz Network with VGChartz remaining as the site for sales data. [21] gamrReview was launched as a home for the network's reviews and previews. gamrFeed was launched as a blog-style site for news, editorials, and features. It also aggregates the content from VGChartz and gamrReview. gamrConnect was launched as a site dedicated to the VGChartz community.

VGChartz provides sales data for all current gaming consoles and portables, as well as retail gaming software for all major platforms. The main service provided by VG Chartz is weekly charts of hardware and software sales for the video game consoles sold by Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft. This data is presented in three separate charts that each cover one of the three main video game markets (Japan, North America, and EMEAA encompassing Europe, Middle-East, Africa and Asia). The site does provide sales charts for many older consoles, but with the exception of the PlayStation 2, the regular updates focus on the current generation of home consoles and handhelds. The sales figures database can be analyzed with tools on the site for data analysis and graphical representation purposes. Tools available include: 1) Americas pre-orders, which lists all upcoming titles and the weekly change, 2) Hardware table, where users can see a subset of the data in table form by region and console between set. start and end dates, 3) Million sellers, a table of console software that has sold over a million copies according to the publishers' data is shown, 4) Weekly Records, a chart listing the top selling title in a given week from release, and 5) Milestones, a chart listing the quickest games to a given sales milestone.

gamrFeed is a gaming news blog that features breaking news stories, features, editorials and sales articles. gamrReview features reviews and previews of games as well as a video game database that features reviews, release dates, screenshots, details, cheats, sales data and more. gamrConnect is the social branch of the network featuring active forums and profiles that feature comment walls and a game collection. Users can rate games that they own on a 1-10 scale, as well as comment on various video games own comment walls.

Related Research Articles

2004 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Madden NFL 2005, NBA Live 2005, ESPN NBA 2K5, Tony Hawk's Underground 2, WWE Smackdown! vs. Raw, Doom 3, Dragon Quest VIII, Gran Turismo 4, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Half-Life 2, Halo 2, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Myst IV: Revelation, Ninja Gaiden, Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen/Emerald, Everybody's Golf 4, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, Silent Hill 4: The Room, Tekken 5, and World of Warcraft. New intellectual properties included Fable, Far Cry, FlatOut, Killzone, Katamari Damacy, Monster Hunter, N, Red Dead Revolver, SingStar, and Sacred. The Nintendo DS was also launched that year.

2005 saw the release of many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Tony Hawk's American Wasteland, Resident Evil 4, Black & White 2, Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30, Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening, Mario Kart DS, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, Myst V: End of Ages, Need for Speed: Most Wanted, and Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones, alongside prominent new releases including Brain Age, F.E.A.R., Forza Motorsport, Dinosaur King, God of War, Guild Wars, Guitar Hero, Nintendogs, Onechanbara, Shadow of the Colossus, Madden NFL 06, NBA Live 06, NBA 2K6, WWE Smackdown! vs. Raw 2006, and Sniper Elite. The seventh generation of video game consoles also began with the launch of the Xbox 360, while the Nintendo DS launched in PAL regions.

2001 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Madden NFL 2002, NBA Live 2002, NBA 2K2, WWF Smackdown! Just Bring It, Capcom vs. SNK 2,Dead or Alive 3, Final Fantasy X, Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec, Grand Theft Auto III, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Myst III: Exile, Crazy Taxi 2, SSX Tricky, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Sonic Adventure 2, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, and Virtua Fighter 4. New intellectual properties include Ace Attorney, Advance Wars,Animal Crossing, Burnout, Gothic, Black & White, Devil May Cry, Fatal Frame, Ghost Recon,Halo, Jak and Daxter, Max Payne, Oni, Onimusha: Warlords, Operation Flashpoint, Pikmin, Pro Evolution Soccer, Red Faction, Serious Sam, and Tropico.

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1997 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Final Fantasy VII, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, GoldenEye 007, Star Fox 64, Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, Quake II, Mega Man Legends, Riven, Tomb Raider II, Dark Rift, Tekken 3 and Virtua Striker 2, along with new titles such as Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee, Gran Turismo, Diablo, Grand Theft Auto and Fallout.

1996 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Super Mario 64, Duke Nukem 3D, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Super Mario RPG, King's Field III, Virtua Fighter 3, along with new titles such as Blazing Heroes, NiGHTS into Dreams..., Crash Bandicoot, Pokémon Red/Green/Blue, Resident Evil, Dead or Alive, Quake and Tomb Raider.

1995 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Dragon Quest VI, Mega Man 7, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, and Tekken 2, along with new titles such as Mario's Picross, Battle Arena Toshinden, Chrono Trigger, Rayman, Soul Edge, Twisted Metal, Star Wars: Dark Forces, Destruction Derby, Wipeout and Jumping Flash!

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2007 saw many new installments in established video game franchises, such as Madden NFL 08, NBA Live 08, NBA 2K8, Tony Hawk's Proving Ground, WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2008, Super Mario Galaxy, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Halo 3, God of War II, Team Fortress 2, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Half-Life 2: Episode Two, and Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga. New intellectual properties included Assassin's Creed, BioShock, Crackdown, Crysis, Mass Effect, Portal, Rock Band, Skate, The Darkness, The Witcher, and Uncharted.

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2008 saw many new installments in established video game franchises, such as Grand Theft Auto IV, Fallout 3, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Gears of War 2, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Persona 4, Fable II, Call of Duty: World at War, Mario Kart Wii, Madden NFL 09, NBA Live 09, NBA 2K9, and WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2009. New intellectual properties included Army of Two, Dead Space, Left 4 Dead, LittleBigPlanet, Mirror's Edge, iRacing, Race Driver: Grid, and Spore.

The seventh generation of home video game consoles began on November 22, 2005, with the release of Microsoft's Xbox 360 home console. This was followed by the release of Sony's PlayStation 3 on November 17, 2006, and Nintendo's Wii on November 19, 2006. Each new console introduced new technologies. The Xbox 360 offered games rendered natively at high-definition video (HD) resolutions, the PlayStation 3 offered HD movie playback via a built-in 3D Blu-ray Disc player, and the Wii focused on integrating controllers with movement sensors as well as joysticks. Some Wii controllers could be moved about to control in-game actions, which enabled players to simulate real-world actions through movement during gameplay. By this generation, video game consoles had become an important part of the global IT infrastructure; it is estimated that video game consoles represented 25% of the world's general-purpose computational power in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The simExchange</span> Web-based prediction market

The simExchange is a web-based prediction market in which players use virtual money to buy and sell stocks and futures contracts in upcoming video game properties. The main purpose of the web site is to predict trends in the video game industry, particularly how upcoming products will sell and how they will be received by the critics. For those who do not participate in the prediction market, the web site is a database of sales forecasts and game quality forecasts that are updated in real-time. The web site also features a number of "Wisdom of the crowd"-type content collaboration and aggregation tools, including means for sharing information, articles, images, and videos about the games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kinect</span> Motion-sensing input device for the Xbox 360 and Xbox One

Kinect is a discontinued line of motion sensing input devices produced by Microsoft and first released in 2010. The devices generally contain RGB cameras, and infrared projectors and detectors that map depth through either structured light or time of flight calculations, which can in turn be used to perform real-time gesture recognition and body skeletal detection, among other capabilities. They also contain microphones that can be used for speech recognition and voice control.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Video games in the United States</span> Overview of the video game system in America

Video gaming in the United States is one of the fastest-growing entertainment industries in the country. The American video game industry is the largest video game industry in the world. According to a 2020 study released by the Entertainment Software Association, the yearly economic output of the American video game industry in 2019 was $90.3 billion, supporting over 429,000 American jobs. With an average yearly salary of about $121,000, the latter figure includes over 143,000 individuals who are directly employed by the video game business. Additionally, activities connected to the video game business generate $12.6 billion in federal, state, and local taxes each year. World Economic Forum estimates that by 2025 the American gaming industry will reach $42.3 billion while worldwide gaming industry will possibly reach US$270 billion. The United States is one of the nations with the largest influence in the video game industry, with video games representing a significant part of its economy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xbox</span> Video gaming brand owned by Microsoft

Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, as well as applications (games), streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox network and Xbox Game Pass. The brand is produced by Microsoft Gaming, a division of Microsoft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xbox One</span> Video game console developed by Microsoft

The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Australia, and South America in November 2013 and in Japan, China, and other European countries in September 2014. It is the first Xbox game console to be released in China, specifically in the Shanghai Free-Trade Zone. Microsoft marketed the device as an "all-in-one entertainment system", hence the name "Xbox One". An eighth-generation console, it mainly competed against Sony's PlayStation 4 and Nintendo's Wii U and later the Switch.

References

  1. ↑ "CB Games Interview: VG Chartz Speaks Out". Cinemablend.com. 2007-06-21. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  2. ↑ "The Bitbag Interviews Brett Walton, President Of VGChartz.com". Thebitbag.com. 2007-10-18. Archived from the original on 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  3. ↑ "VGChartz Ltd - Company Profile". Linkedin.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Carless, Simon (2008-06-23). "Analysis: What VGChartz Does (And Doesn't) Do For The Game Biz". GameSetWatch. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  5. ↑ "VGChartz Methodology". Vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  6. ↑ Previous post Next post (2008-06-23). "Why We Don't Reference VGChartz". Wired.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.(subscription required)
  7. 1 2 "Response to Internet Comments about VGChartz". Gamrfeed.vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  8. ↑ TheSource (2007-10-19). "NPD Data vs. VGC Data for the September 2007 Sales (9/2/07 to 10/6/07)" . Retrieved 2007-11-10.
  9. ↑ Walton, Brett (2007-11-10). "Where do VG Chartz North American Numbers Come From?". VGChartz Ltd. Retrieved 2010-11-12. If we believe that a particular data set differs significantly from other sources of data (data released into the public domain by tracking firms, manufacturers, analysts) then we do re-check our data and make adjustments to the methods / scaling factors used
  10. ↑ "vgsales - everythingandnothing.org EverythingAndNothing". 2006-02-24. Archived from the original on 2006-02-24. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  11. ↑ "VGCharts.org". Web Archive. Archived from the original on 2006-07-02. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  12. ↑ "VGChartz.com". Web Archive. Archived from the original on 2006-07-02. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  13. ↑ "VGChartz.com Welcome Page". Archived from the original on 2007-02-25. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  14. ↑ Data on the Web: VGChartz vs. NPD - O'Reilly Radar Archived July 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ↑ "PlayStation Move Sell-Through Update". Gamrfeed.vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  16. ↑ "Initial Kinect Sales Revealed". Gamrfeed.vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  17. ↑ "Greenberg laughs off VGChartz's Kinect sales estimates". Gamer.blorge.com. 2010-11-12. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  18. ↑ "aarongreenberg - Twitter Feed". Twitter.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  19. ↑ "Editorial: Why it is so Easy to Blame VGChartz". Gamrfeed.vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  20. ↑ Carless, Simon (2008-06-23). "Analysis: What VGChartz Does (And Doesn't) Do For The Game Biz". Gamasutra . Retrieved 2014-10-03.
  21. ↑ "VGChartz Has Evolved!". Gamrfeed.vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
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