Dismal numbers have indicated that GTA Chinatown Wars may have failed... thus dealing the death knell for quality adult content on Nintendo consoles in the foreseeable future. The game, which is the highest rated on the DS, with a whopping 94 Metacritic points (to put it into perspective, that's like a movie winning eight or nine Oscars... at least), was hailed by many to be the greatest and most fun GTA title ever... better than the PSP GTA games, which evoke mixed responses, and, in some ways, better even than last year's blockbuster GTA IV. Then what went wrong?



There are three posible explanations. The first, and the one which DS haters and PSP fanboys would pounce upon as the likeliest, is that there isn't an audience for mature games like GTA on the DS. While many would not like to belive that, it is a fact, clear as crystal thatmature games have never sold well on the DS. And while many expected CHinatown Wrs to maybe buck that trend, it hasn't happened so far.

The second explanation is that games did not sell well in March at all, except for Resident Evil 5 (whose success is unwarranted and undeserved in my opinion), and Pokemon Platinum. Look at MadWorld, which, according to IGN, sold about 205,000 copies. Or Resistance Retribution. I haven't found sales figures for that game anywhere, but there are many unverifiable sources pegging the game to have sold less than 55,000.

The final reason is releated to the second one. Which is, cosidering so many AAA releases in MArch, many might have opted for RE5 or Pokemon over GTA, holding out to buy Chinatown Wars in April or May. Or maybe they were waiting for the DSi to launch, and get Chinatown Wars with it (in the glaring absence of any proper and viable DSi launch titles, Chinatown Wars can very well fill into that fold).

Whatever the reason may be, there are a few points that need to be considered:

1. Games on Nintendo consoles typically start off slow. Look at Mario Kart DS. Released in 2005, hailed as the best game on the DS, and not even cracking the Top 10 in its first month. Today, the game has sold over 10 million, and still features regularly in the monthly NPD numbers. Another example is Wii Music. It sold less than 80,000 units in its first month and was denounced as a flop by everyone everywhere. Until the numbers for the next month came in when it was revealed that the game had in fact, sold over 2.6 million units already.
2. Look at Resistance Retribution's sales. While Sony and PSP fanboys may pounce upon the chance to cite this as definitive proof that mature games on the DS can never sell well, what would they say about RR's figures? What does that mean? That even a quality game such as RR, hyped as the PSP's saviour, can't sell? What does that mean? That PSP gamers are uninterested? The answer is no, of course not. It just means that March was a slow month. Mark my words, when the April numbers are in, both, Resistance Retribuiton and GTA Chinatown Wars will have a healthy spot.
3. Like I have already stated, a game on a Nintendo platform is in for a long run. Trust me, a year from now, Chinatown Wars will be sitting on a solid 2.3- 3 million copies sold, solid numbers by any standard, and better than the PSP games' overall sales. Oh, and one should remember that Vice City Stories' initial showing on the PSP was also very weak. But it ended up being the highest seller on the PSP. Just give Chinatown Wars some time.

I know a lot of what I've written sounds like optimistic hope, and that's because it is. I really hope that Chinatown Wars sells. I really hope it doesn't fade out of memory like The World Ends With You or No More Heroes (both excellent titles that haven't even cracked the million mark yet). To anybody who's reading this, and likes great games, and hasn't got Chinatown Wars, or Resistance Retribution, or MadWorld already, please get out and get those games now. Support good games please.

What do you think? Will Chinatown Wars recover from this initial setback? Sound off!

The GDC has been quite eventful so far, because apart from the great new titles announced (and elaborated upon), we also have an announcement that could potentially mean a console that would change gaming forever, in a way that even Nintendo could not with their Wii and DS. More than five AAA titles have been released to various systems this month, and there are still more to come. March is certainly turning out to be very eventful Indeed.

That's reflective of what the month of March has been to gaming in general. With fiveAAA titles released for as many systems this month so far, March has been hands down, the reason that gaming has worsened the recession.

The DS is having a hell of a ride this year, with more than five blockbuster titles already released so far, andmore on the way, what with Zelda: Spirit Tracks already having been announced.As far as games this month are concerned, the crown this month would go not to Resident Evil 5, MadWorld or even Resistance Retribution, but to Rockstar Leeds' maiden DS effort, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. A game that many had scorned at the outset, and slammed as a shameless cash in of the GTA IV hysteria wave, had denounced to be a hoplessly impossible project, has in fact turned into the highest rated game of the year so far, the highest rated game of all time on the DS on both Metacritic and Gamerankings, and has also been proclaimed by many critics and players alike to be even better than GTA IV itself. Now that indeed would be an achievment, considering that GTA IV is one of the highest rated games of all time. I'll be posting a review for this game very soon, so watch out for

But while GTA Chinatown Wars was certainly a stellar experience, that game ultimately lost out in my books to another good title released for the DS this month. I'm talking about Pokemon Platinum, the upgrade to Diamond and Pearl released just three days ago. And while I got it just a few hours ago, I'm already quite deep into the game, having won the first badge, and defeating Team Galactic at the Valley Windworks. The first impressions are certainly very promising, and the game seems to rekindle the old Pokemon spirit that has been all but lost since G/S/C, despite FR/LG and D/P's valiant efforts to bring it back. I won't say anything definitive about my opinons on the game right now- all Pokemon games since G/S have had a promising start, and gone on to disappoint later- but I think you can already glean what I think about this game as of now. I'll be posting a review for Pokemon Platinum within a week, so watch out for it.

Moving on to the other releases, I'll be much briefer. MadWorld for the Wii was one of the most refreshing experiences I have had for a long time, and, before GTA and Pokemon Platinum, also my GOTY so far. The game was just what the Wii needed- a lease of life that could prove all Wii detractors wrong. The Wii is capable of great games, and with MadWorld, Sega and Platinum Games have proven that. Check out my review for the game here.

Resident Evil 5. I haven't played that game too much so far- I've found the other three releases I've listed much more interesting- and that, in itself, should tell you enough about my feelings for the game. No? Let me be clearer. I love Resident Evil 4. I think that, along with Metroid Prime, it was the best thing to come out of last generation. On the other hand, RE 5 seems to be horrible. The game has been stripped of everything that made the series great, it's devoid of anyatmosphere, and essentially, it's just a light 'casual' run and gun shooter, where you can't run and gun at the same time. I haven't reviewed this game yet, but if I do, I really have my doubts that I'll be scoring it higher than a 7.

The final big title I'm going to list here is the PSP shooter Resistance Retribution. Developed by Sony Bend, the game seeks to bring all of the PS3 shooters' awesomeness in the palm of our hands much like Chains of Olympus did so succesfully last year. I haven't even started on this one yet. Yeah, sorry. I bought it (technically, I was giftedResistance Retribution, but that's really beside the point), but thanks to the other titles listed here, and the fact that I do have a life beyond gaming after all (evidenced by my erratic blog posts and reviews) and that I haven't been able to find my PSP since I consigned it to being a useless paperwieght (it sucks as a paperweight. Trust me), I haven't started it. I'll be doing it shortly, as soon as Platinum relinquishes its hold on me, and then, my review for this game won't be far off.

Well, there you go. What do you think about my games? DO you think RE 5 was great, and that my opinion can go stuff itself you-know-where? Do you think that my liking Platinum more than GTA is a result of my blind, and somewhat inexplicable, love for the Pokemon series? Am I plain lazy because I haven't bothered to look for my PSP yet? Do you think I like MadWorld so much because I'm a hopelesss and shameless Nintendo fanboy? Dudes, what do youthink about these games? Tell me, via your comments. I'll be waiting.

Okay guys, I just finished MadWorld, and I gotta say, what a game it is. I really mean it, we need more games like this, and not only on the Wii, but on all platforms. Trust me when I say that I havn't had this much fun playing any game this generation. This is hands down the crowning ahievment of this year so far, and the game the Wii has been waiting for.

You can check out my review for the game here.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back and play the damn thing on Hard Mode.