Predictions that DJ Hero would be a slow burner have proven to be accurate, as Activision’s Dan Amrich announces some very respectable sales figures.
Sometimes, things aren’t what they appear at first glance. A humble truck turns out to be a noble alien robot, a blue box is really a time machine, and a “flop” music game turns out to be not such a flop after all.
Before DJ Hero’s release, RedOctane co-founder Kai Huang said that Activision wasn’t expecting the game to be an immediate best seller: “We’re not expecting a typical videogame curve,” he said. “We’re expecting this to be the type of game that may come out of the gate a little bit slower, but continue to grow over time.”
The “slower” part seemed a little too accurate when it was revealed that the game had only sold 122,300 units across four platforms in October, but writing on his blog, Activision’s social media manager Dan Amrich said that DJ Hero had been unfairly written off: “DJ Hero was dubbed a flop on its release … but what it needed was time for its audience to find it, a price break, and positive word from both friends and reviews to circulate. October and November were soft, but after the holiday, DJ Hero had hit about 800,000 units; today it’s 1.2 million units and counting, all of which come with a turntable controller. That’s not a flop; that’s the long tail at work.”
Amrich also makes the point that not every game is going to sell a million copies in its first week, and to expect them to do so is “pretty ridiculous.” It’s true that that initial period right after release is important, but as DJ Hero shows, it’s not necessarily the most important time.
A sequel to DJ Hero, titled DJ Hero 2 is due to be released this fall.
Source: Ars Technica
