Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 outsold and Sony Corp.'s Playstation 3 and Nintendo Co.'s Wii in the latest retail data from Japan.
Media Create Co. on Fri. reported that the Xbox 360 sold 25,334 units between Feb. 16 and Feb. 22.
By comparison, the PS3 sold around 16,000 units and the Wii sold nearly 17,000 units.
Sales for the 360 were bolstered by the release of Square Enix Co.'s Star Ocean: The Last Hope, which sold 162,232 units to rank as the No. 1 game title for the week.
Microsoft this month announced the release of a new Xbox 360 Elite Limited Edition SKU, which includes Capcom Co.'s Resident Evil 5 software.
The RE5 Xbox 360 Elite SKU includes a red color console, red wireless controller, 120GB hard drive, and a token card including Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix and exclusive Resident Evil Premium Theme for $399.99.
Next month, Microsoft will release Halo Wars, a strategy spin-off of the Halo franchise.
Microsoft in Jan. said that Xbox 360 sales have reached 28 million units worldwide.
Also, the Xbox Live online service now holds 17 million members globally.
NPD Group Inc. this month said that the Xbox 360 sold 309,000 units in Jan. U.S. sales.
After quite a few stories being published about the "so-called" RED Xbox 360 Microsoft have finally decided to put all the rumors to rest and have official announced the upcoming release of the Exclusive "Red Xbox 360" Resident Evil Limited Edition Console.
In celebration of the landmark "Resident Evil" franchise coming to Xbox 360 for the first time, Microsoft unveiled today an Xbox 360 Resident Evil Limited Edition Console Bundle. Available the same day Resident Evil 5 ships to store shelves, Friday, March 13, Xbox 360 fans will be able to pick up the bundle featuring an exclusive red Xbox 360.
Fans will enjoy the same premium Xbox 360 Elite experience at an even greater value with a copy of "Resident Evil 5", matching Limited Edition red Wireless Controller, black Xbox 360 Headset, a 120 GB Hard Drive, exclusive premium "Resident Evil 5" theme (download via Xbox LIVE) and much more all included for the price of $399 (ERP). Supplies are very limited, so "Resident Evil" fans will want to pre-order theirs today.
With the release of "Resident Evil 5" and the special edition red console, the game has found a new home on Xbox 360. The new two-player cooperative experience in "Resident Evil 5" is a perfect fit for Xbox LIVE.* With 17 million members and growing, Xbox LIVE connects "Resident Evil" fans and their new red Xbox 360 consoles to their friends on the couch or across the globe. To further provide a taste of the full entertainment experience available on Xbox LIVE, fans will also receive a bonus card to download the hit Xbox LIVE Arcade title from Capcom, "Super Street Fighter ll Turbo HD Remix."
Ars Technica's writers are currently reporting that along with the launch of Resident Evil 5, Xbox players will be getting a new, special red version of their favorite console and some cool extras like a download coupon for Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD, so read on..
Resident Evil 5 bundle
Red hardware
Red controller
A copy of Resident Evil 5
Exclusive Resident Evil 5 NXE theme
Download coupon for Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD
For all the latest Xbox 360 info for Resident Evil 5 be sure to check out the 360-Hq Games Database which will link you to everything RE5.
It would seem that Microsoft is doing all it can to keep the ball rolling in Japan and to kick the new year off right they will be selling two new bundles that would do well in any country they sell it in.
Kotaku reports: Microsoft today announced two new Xbox 360 bundles for Japan: Star Ocean 4 and Resident Evil 5.
Slated for February 19, the Arcade Star Ocean 4 bundle is priced at ¥24,800 (US$265) and comes with a Star Ocean 4 soundtrack and faceplate.
The Resident Evil 5 bundle comes with a 60GB HDD, a 48 hour LIVE Gold member trial member card, and the RE5 deluxe edition with collector's tin and soundtrack. It goes on sale March 5 for ¥34,800 ($373).
With this line up hitting Japan the XBOX is sure to have another grate year for sells.
Resident Evil 5 is the forthcoming installment in Capcom's survival/horror series, promising to revolutionize the series by delivering an unbelievable level of detail, realism and control. Last week, Capcom Japan released a RE5 demo, and handy gamers could easily download it by signing into a Japanese XBL account. But a week after its release, non-Japanese gamertags were suddenly forced out of XBL when running the demo, and then upon return, the demo magically became corrupted.
When the Resident Evil 5 demo hit in Japan on December 5th last week, enterprising gamers quickly realized that the demo could be downloaded in US and Europe simply by signing on to Xbox Live with a Japanese gamertag.
The demo not only ran perfectly on US and European systems, it was also fully localized meaning that US players saw English text, heard English voices and saw the Resident Evil 5 logo rather than the Biohazard 5 logo. Resident Evil is known as Biohazard in Japan.
About a day after the demo's release, Xbox Live started doing an IP check before the download could be initiated, preventing anyone outside Japan from downloading a new copy of the demo, even if they used a Japanese gamertag. The demo could still be played however, with all features available, including online co-op play. Because of its small size (less than 480MB) the demo was also easy to copy from system to system.
Then, sometime in the last 24 hours, players with the demo noticed two things. The first was annoying, but understandable. Non-Japanese Gamertags were immediately logged out of Xbox Live when booting up the demo. This prevented anyone outside Japan from playing online. The second issue however has started to raise concern.
After logging in to Xbox Live with a non-Japanese Gamertag and attempting to start the Resident Evil 5 demo, Xbox Live actively corrupts the demo code rendering it completely unplayable – even in offline mode. This raises serious questions of DRM issues and official Microsoft policy, especially if Microsoft can disable any piece of software on your Xbox 360 at any time without any warning or recourse.
After confirming the issue on multiple consoles, WorthPlaying attempted to contact both Capcom and Microsoft for comment.
Chris Kramer, Senior Director of communications and community at Capcom said that Capcom US was aware that players outside Japan had downloaded the demo, but was very surprised to hear about the corruption issue. He assured us that it was not something that was planned or done at the request of Capcom US.
"This is the first that Capcom US has heard of the issue. We are looking into it with Microsoft and Capcom Japan and will have an update in 24 hours or less," said Kramer.
He also let us know that plans were in place to officially release the demo in the US and Europe and that Capcom would soon be making an announcement regarding the release timeline.
"Next week we will also be announcing our official plans for the release of the RE5 demo in US and Europe," said Kramer.
Microsoft was unavailable for comment at press time, but is looking into the issue. As soon as an official response is available from Microsoft we will update this story.
The biohazard threat has not ended: Just when it seemed that the menace of Resident Evil had been destroyed, along comes a new terror to send shivers down player’s spines. Chris Redfield, returning Resident Evil hero, has followed the path of the evil literally around the globe. After joining a new organization, Chris heads to Africa where the latest bioterrorism threat is literally transforming the people and animals of the city into mindless, maddened creatures. He is joined by a new partner, Sheva Alomar, who lends her strength, intelligence and sharp-shooting skills to the mission. In order to survive, Chris and Sheva must work together to take on the challenges of discovering the truth behind this evil plot. Utilizing a revolutionary new co-op mode of gameplay, players will be able to assume control of either Chris or Sheva and experience Resident Evil in new ways. In Resident Evil 5, Capcom will have players fearing the daylight as much as they have feared shadow in previous games.
Key Features
Chris Redfield, protagonist of the original Resident Evil and Resident Evil: Code Veronica, returns
Chris is joined by new character Sheva Alomar, an African special agent tasked with investigating the epidemic
2 player co-op online gameplay means that players are not alone in their fight against the horror lurking around every corner
Simultaneous global release date for both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 13, 2009
New enemies bring new challenges: speed and intelligence make adversaries as dangerous singly as they are in groups.
An arsenal of weapons at the player’s command to keep the evil at bay, including knives, pistols, machine guns, sniper rifles and more.
Lighting effects provide a new level of suspense in both harsh light and deepest shadow
True high definition gaming on multiple game platforms, using an advanced version of Capcom’s proprietary game engine, MT Framework, which powered the next-gen, million-plus hit titles Devil May Cry 4, Lost Planet and Dead Rising.
Resident Evil 5 is currently scheduled for release in Japan on March 12, 2009, and in North America on March 13, 2009.
For more detailed information on "Resident Evil 5" including the latest news, screenshots and videos check out the 360-HQ Xbox 360 Games Database.
Once you read this article by gamekyo.com you should get the feeling this game is going to be huge and with a staff this big how could it not be, the article talks about how the Resident Evil 5 team is taking every step they can in order to hit a home run with this game and it sure sounds like there on the right path.
The gamekyo post reads as follows: Capcom has revealed some very interesting details about Resident Evil 5 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in its latest press release. Capcom wants to sell 2.3 million units of Resident Evil 5. "In addition to developing tools, we have also strengthened our game development structure. As more than 400 people including company employees and outside contractors are working on this particular title, we have reorganized the structure to assign appropriate human resources, manage development process and offer mental health care to staff in order to ensure smooth operation. Our belief while developing Resident Evil 5 was that no detail was too small when it came to graphics.". Capcom went to Africa to improve Resident Evil 5 graphics, "Our staff visited Africa, a new backdrop in the series, to experience the real Africa where the contrast between light and the darkness is stunning.". Capcom has also announced that Resident Evil series sold 34.5 million units worldwide.
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