GTA IV drives PS3 sales, PS3 momentum picking up

by Majed Athab { May 1st 2008 at 9:00PM }

According to SCEA, the high demand for Grand Theft Auto IV on the PlayStation 3 is driving sales for Sony's system exponentially just within the first 24 hours of the game's release. Senior Merchandising VP of GameStop Corp., Bob McKenzie, chimed in backing up the claim on the retail side of things: "From our position, the launch of GTA IV has been tremendous in driving traffic to our stores, as well as providing a vigorous lift in PS3 console sales over this time last week. We attribute the growth to a huge fan base of PS2 owners who see this title as the trigger for the PS3 upgrade they've been planning."

GTA IV as the trigger for a PS2-to-PS3 upgrade? It's quite logical considering that Grand Theft Auto as a series is very closely associated with the PlayStation brand. However, GTA IV is not exclusive to the system, yet is still able to cause such a boisterous push in sales. Imagine what will happen when Metal Gear Solid 4 comes rolling in?

[Via press release]

Tags: gta-iv, mgs4, ps3

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

LAZoftheTamarinds @ May 1st 2008 9:06PM

Not really surprised. Great that sony's selling some more PS3's with GTA4. And MGS4 and the MGS4 bundle will increase sales greatly. :D

Daniel Lawson @ May 2nd 2008 7:08AM

In what world do you live in? MGS is a popular game, but I bet that GTA sells more these two weeks then MGS4 sells for a whole year... and that's just counting the PS3 sales. I think most of the people who want MGS4 already have a PS3 and if Drakes or Rachet and Clank were not enough to jump on board then what makes you think PS2 owners will jump on in droves over MGS4? I predict that Final Fantasy 13 will have a greater effect since by the PS2 will be dead for all intent and purposes. Let's not even talk about MGS4 being ported... it does after all sell way more units in the US than in Japan.

Justin @ May 2nd 2008 2:18PM

Wow Daniel, you're kind of a jackass.

For one thing, you really think R&C is in the same league with MGS?

And second, nowhere did the OP say MGS would do a better job than GTA, he simply he said it would continue to drive sales, which in undoubtedly will. Except in MGS's case, it's exclusive to the PS3 so it'll only drive the PS3 hardware sales.

gregory mitchell @ May 1st 2008 9:11PM

I bought my ps2 the day GTA3 came out...cant say the same this time though

Jove @ May 1st 2008 9:34PM

traitor!!!!!! hahaha

DrunkRaba @ May 1st 2008 11:30PM

Thats exactly why I got my first PS2. Got the PS3 at launch this go-around so GTA didn't make it 2 console generations for me. But I can definatley see this game pushing consoles on both sides, but more with the PS3 because of the bundles.

Agrajag @ May 1st 2008 9:20PM

I can't believe that someone would buy a PS3 for this game, I mean the game is out for all systems and the 360 is a couple hundred dollars cheaper, I'm not complaining that there will be more n00bs to pwn, just surprised

bs6268d @ May 1st 2008 9:23PM

more like 50

Gunegune @ May 1st 2008 9:46PM

Perhaps GTA IV is just one of the many reasons they're buying a PS3 as opposed to a 360. Aside from the whole multi-media entertainment thing the PS3 has going on, it also has free online. On top of that, it comes with built in wi-fi. Last, but certainly not least, they may want more of the many exclusive games coming to the console this year. After all, 2008 is the year for the PS3.

Devin @ May 1st 2008 9:51PM

Don't forget to add $50 more to that once that free 1-month (woot!) XBL membership runs out if you want to keep playing online.....

P.S. Sorry for the double port, but I needed to reply to this.....

The Sound @ May 1st 2008 9:54PM

I priced an 360 out, and it is more expensive than a 40gb PS3. The Premium model + online + wifi is almost $500.

Jove @ May 1st 2008 10:09PM

...i was going to say something but everyone else pretty much said what i was going to...

washcloth @ May 2nd 2008 6:50AM

@ the sound.
at $500 and it still doesn't play blu rays and is a shitty dvd player. ;)

Nate @ May 2nd 2008 8:01AM

The myth that the 360 is cheaper than the PS3 is the greatest fallacy perpetrated on the public in this console generation.

Presuming that the Pro model is good enough for you, with a 20 gig hard drive (which is tiny), that's $350, plus $50 for Live Gold, plus $80 for a wifi adapter (if you get it on sale) = $480... and it doesn't even play blu-rays.

The Arcade version is a joke, I hope we can all agree about that. It's basically just there so Microsoft can advertise 360's at a super low price, then gouge you on proprietary hard drive upgrades.

Or, you could pay $400 for a PS3 and be done with it. Wifi, online, blu-ray, all free. Plus, hard drive upgrades are super cheap.

And don't forget Microsoft's proprietary memory cards if you want to take saved games or anything around with you. Oh and don't forget rechargeable batteries plus a charger (or microsoft's proprietary $20 "play and charge" cables).

Daniel Lawson @ May 2nd 2008 9:05AM

seems that the only joke Nate is the number of 3rd party exclusives on the PS3 that matters... The Xbox 360 is cheaper... it's the entery point that matters the most... 50 bucks a year after a free month of gold is hardly something most people would scoff at and the wifi is an option that is in affect only needed if you require it... let us talk games... where are the most next(current) gen games at? There are intangables... things like Microsoft has better 3rd party support and gamerscore and Major Nelson... these things all help make the system better over all. As for BR... I don't know if you've noticed this little trend of downloadable HD content that is taking the interwebs by storm but I'm sure that you'll find you'll be using your PS3's networking features alot more than that BR disk for movies in the near future.

Jason @ May 2nd 2008 10:33AM

Mr. Lawson, yeah, I can't wait to download heavily compressed DRM ravaged movies to my console!! Hooray DRM!!! GFYS.

James @ May 2nd 2008 12:26PM

Wow, I mean, I know the title of the site and all, but that's a lot of poo getting thrown around for one thread. To summarize:

PS3: free HDMI, HD movie disc playback, wifi, online play but pay for backwards compatibility, no movie store, and higher base price point.
360: free BC, movie rentals, but pay extra for wifi and online play, plus lower base price point.

I got my 360 before I got my PS3, because I didn't need XBL Gold or wifi, which meant that the system was markedly cheaper for me -- especially when you consider that I wasn't willing to sacrifice BC on the PS3 just to save a few bucks. It's a personal decision, though -- some people might think the Blu-Ray player adds enough value to justify the extra price, or some people might consider the free online play to be worth something. Neither of those things add value for me, personally, so that factors into the equation.

@Jason: I personally don't think it's worth 5 bucks to rent an HD movie, but a) I think it's still cheaper than going to Blockbuster, and maybe cheaper than Comcast PPV; b) they look pretty damn good, considering the constraints; and c) of course you need DRM to enforce the rental period, but apparently there's enough people whose needs are met by only being able to play it back on a single game console considering the rentals are selling like gangbusters. Long story short, it's just another feature that may or may not have value for you personally. Some people love it, some people don't get any use out of it. If you hate it, you can ignore it (like I do). You certainly can't pretend it's a net minus for the console, though.

Can we stop fighting now?

Jove @ May 1st 2008 9:32PM

i tought ive read somewher that the bundle hadnt caused the impact they hoped? maybe i got it wrong. either way. what will happen when mgs4 comes out is that it wont sell as much cuz its exclusive. at least on its first day. dont know over time. still the installed base for the ps3 will grow a lot by the time mgs 4 comes out. i know that every ps3 owner has to have that game.

wonway01 @ May 1st 2008 9:35PM

Somone I work with bought a PS3 100% because GTA4 was not going to be on his PS2. He also discovered COD4 and is totally digging the pruchase.

tristan88 @ May 1st 2008 9:45PM

i really want to see official numbers before i believe it. ive heard that xbox is selling more copies then ps3 so theres really no reason to believe anything from sony or microsoft yet

The Sound @ May 1st 2008 9:55PM

Duh, the 360 is definitely going to sell more, considering it has a larger user base.

However, the attach rate (amount of owners who own the game) is going to be better on the PS3. Something like 1 in 5 PS3 owners own the game, while 1-10 own in for the 360.

tristan88 @ May 1st 2008 10:01PM

i know its going to sell more on the 360 i mean i want to know which company actually deserves to be bragging. im buying for ps3 tomorrow so i wont care by then

leiwei @ May 1st 2008 11:01PM

It's not like Sony is bragging that they sold more than the competition. Just that they're saying the game drove hardware sales.

tristan88 @ May 2nd 2008 6:46AM

yeah but does sony need to say anything about it. its not something that is hard to figure out for yourself. its gta 4. everybody wants it.

ck @ May 2nd 2008 7:45AM

The Sound; If the PS3 attach rate for GTA is twice that of the 360 then it will have sold more copies. According to vgchartz.com the hardware numbers are 12 million vs 18.4 million. It's catching up pretty fast.

http://vgchartz.com/hwlaunch.php?cons1=PS3®1=All&cons2=X360®2=All&cons3=®3=------&weeks=138

Devin @ May 1st 2008 9:49PM

Don't forget to add $50 more to that once that free 1-month (woot!) XBL membership runs out if you want to keep playing online.....

Devin @ May 1st 2008 9:49PM

Don't forget to add $50 more to that once that free 1-month (woot!) XBL membership runs out if you want to keep playing online.....

P.S. Sorry for the double port, but I needed to reply to this.....

marauder800 @ May 1st 2008 10:46PM

You get what you pay for. Sorry, but Xbox Live is just that much better than PSN. Any objective dual system owner will tell you the same. I have no problem at all paying less than $4 a month for Live. Hell, that's a gallon gas. I just hope one day PSN catches up because the online might as well be Wii's.

Sorry for not posting this 3 times

Wes @ May 2nd 2008 12:44AM

Hey now Maurader. They don't want any truth on this site about xbox live. Say it crashes frequently and they'll vote you back up out of oblivion.

MASTUR CHEEF (Yes I pay for Xbox live you cheap ass scrub) @ May 2nd 2008 2:34AM

@Wes

ROFLMAO Is funny cuz is true :cD +1

keep it up PS3fanboy.com

Nate @ May 2nd 2008 8:17AM

The ONLY things XBox live has over PSN is cross game chat, invites, and achievements.

.... name one other thing it does better. It's amazing how many XBox fans tout how much "better" Live is, but when pushed, can't actually come up with any actual reasons why they think that.

PSN allows developers to host their own servers, so you don't have to have 8 players playing over someone's crappy 768k upload cable modem. This is why PSN games can have 32 or even 64 people in a multiplayer game vs. Halo's 16.

PSN allows any size game downloads.

PSN allows mods and user created content.

PS3 allows in-game keyboard and mouse controls (not exactly a PSN feature, but it goes with the territory).

PS Store uses actual currency instead of asinine "points".

PSN allows shared downloads of games and add-ons, and re-downloads of stuff you've downloaded before.

PS3 lets you copy saved games and media onto any old USB drive or flash memory card (again, not exactly PSN, but pretty closely related)

And the icing on the cake is that it's free.

Devin @ May 2nd 2008 10:15AM

Heys guys. Since you are all so confident that XBL is better (worth spending $50/yr) than PSN could you please list off the reasons why?

Thanks.

Phil @ May 4th 2008 8:10PM

Speaking as an objective owner of both consoles:

Xbox Live has an absolute wealth of game demos and arcade demos available that absolutely eclipses that which is available on the PS3.

Xbox Live has downloadable movies, shorts, interviews, tons of trailers and all sorts of other nonsense that you might be able to get online anyway

Essentially every arcade game has a demo, the same can't be said for the PS3 which really irks me.

Xbox Live has achievements, keeps track of everything you play for penis-size comparisons with friends and is well tied into a web interface in which I can add/message/manage friends.

The Xbox has an MSN client.

The newly re-designed PS3 store still sucks in comparison to the Xbox Live alternative and seems, like most things on the PS3, to make damned poor use of screen real estate.

The Xbox has XNA which, granted, costs more wonga but opens up Xbox 360 development to anyone who can hack a few lines of C# together. I've done so and found it to be immensely fun, granted I could probably also write something in C in linux on the PS3 but it would take me longer to boot linux on a PS3 than it would to boot my PC and Visual Studio and I would never get access to the PS3s hardware or be able to write a native game. Once the deployment method for Xna gets out of better, user created and user quality controlled indie game content will explode onto Xbox Live... no such thing is happening on the PS3 front. Xna is a pleasure to use and running code on the Xbox 360 "Just Works". Any C# developer worth his/her salt will sing the praises of Microsoft and their developer support, you need only look at DirectX for concrete proof.

On the other hand... the PS3 has a web browser, built-in blu-ray, supports UT3 mods and doesn't sound like a jet engine the instant it's turned on. I wish it could directly read the disks hooked up to my airport base station though.

I wouldn't easily part with my PS3 but I still find the Xbox 360 overwhelmingly superior in most of the departments that matter to me.

brettjr @ May 1st 2008 10:25PM

Well I don't really think you should compare MGS4 to GTA4. So the whole "imagine when mgs4 comes out" line was sorta out of place. The game will do nice and sell great, over a million worldwide! But it's not going to do GTA4 sales hell it won't even do Halo sales.

Also please stop overhyping my favorite games.

adolson @ May 1st 2008 10:55PM

Just sold my GTAIV to a guy who doesn't have a PS3 yet. He was waiting for this game... Michael Pachter was right once again.

YouFaceTheTick @ May 1st 2008 10:56PM

Considering the PS3 for just GTA IV. The only other game I'd play on it is Madden.

I wouldn't look at an Xbox.

waz @ May 1st 2008 11:15PM

I bought a PS3+GTA4 bundle yesterday. I suppose I'm boosting sales.

Nate @ May 1st 2008 11:25PM

A lot of people don't realize that people are looking for excuses to buy the ps3. Its well loved, but until they get enough of an excuse to justify it in there minds... how can you buy it? Lets face it, the ps3 has the reputation of few to no good games and mediocre online play. We know its not true, but thats the impression.

So we get enough great games, maybe a few of them exclusives, and the last barrier is just the press.

Hoffer @ May 1st 2008 11:43PM

I bought a PS2 to play GTA3. It would make sense people are buying a PS3 to play GTA4.

Personally, I'm playing GTA4 on my 360. Achievements and DLC FTW!!! :-)

Devin @ May 2nd 2008 12:08AM

In PS3's defense:

First off, DLC may be coming to 360, but when (this summer, does that mean late summer? Nothing really official either)? Also, you don't know what it will include as well as how much MS will want for it. Lastly, according to the statement below, PS3 will also be getting a form of DLC (why wouldn't they? The PS community is the real fan-base, right?), but since you can enjoy the achievements on 360 today it does have the "edge".

As for the 360 achievements, "According to Playstation World Magazine, Rockstar will in a way aid Sony in launching Accomplishments for the system, Themed spaces for Home and provide exclusive content for the PS3 (although not as large scale as the 360's exclusive content) after the release of the 360's episodes."

So it may not be here currently, but sometime in the near future this will be implemented and will give PS3 owners of the game more reason to play the game over (that's only if they spent the 100 or more hours to beat the game).

"GTA 4 will take roughly 100 hours to finish, Rockstar has told VideoGamer.com"

xGOLDEN_ONEx @ May 2nd 2008 12:18AM

well if you think this is a big increase. Wait till you see the sale go up again for the long awaiting Socom...You can go onto socom C.A and you will see alot of people still playing, alot of my friends, and alot of people i know. I didnt hear one of my friends say he was buying a ps3 when gta4 was released, go onto socom and ask, "when you getting a ps3?" they will reply when socom comes out...lol. another game that will help boost sonys sells. Gta4 is a great game. but sell wise for the ps3 cause of the game, i think socom will be more.

Da @ May 2nd 2008 1:11AM

lol

PS3FanxD @ May 2nd 2008 9:24AM

You know, I used to not arguin with the Xbox live vs PSN thing, because I do use to believe that Xbox live is better atm, I have both. After carefully looking at it, and downloading almost every single demo on the arcade for 360, it isn't great at all. A lot of the games are old classic games just bought over to the system, or "evolution" versions of classic arcade games. The other half is usually very, very horrible games. I'd say only 5-10% of the games in the library are worth buying. I don't know who would pay 3-5$ to rent a single episode, I rather save up the money and buy the discs. Themes and pictures cost money which is stupid, not to mention that you have to pay to change your name. Paying for songs on the 360 imo is retarded. So all is left is the achievements which PSN will be getting a similar system soon. I also like the PSN store much better then the Xbox 360 part, but that's just my preference.

Silverbullet767 @ May 2nd 2008 3:48AM

Jesus, some of you guys on here really can't take criticism.

I own both systems, and while Xbox live is £40 a year, I would rather pay it than use the PSN network. Believe it or not, you DO actually get what you pay for and it is superior FOR NOW. Sony need to get their finger out and improve the service, but if they receive no revenue for it, why should they?

And stop with the wifi thing, I mean who actually uses it?? wifi for anything, not just consoles, is slow, unreliable, laggy, I tried to connect my PS3 to wifi and it kept randomly disconnecting. Wired all the way.

I bought GTA4 for the 360, and only because the 360 had my friends list in it. If I was buying for single player only, I would have bought the PS3 version, as its graphically superior.

Just be happy with what you've got and stop slagging other systems you don't own!

Whoppeh @ May 2nd 2008 4:02AM

I use the WiFi tis great. Sounds like you just need a better router, one that causes your vision to waver and ears to bleed when you come within 5m of it.

I use mine to keep my coffee warm.

doom saber @ May 2nd 2008 5:30AM

I use Wifi for my ps3 ad laptop and it is quite fast. Never had any disconection probs with it. The again, the dsl quality where I am at is very fast.

Wifi is helpful for those who does't want a dsl or cable wire runing up the stairs and into another room.