FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Case Zero Dominates Xbox Live Arcade Sales, as 2010 Reaches Record Revenues
January 26th, 2011 - As per the Research & Analysis division of analyst firm Forecasting & Analyzing Digital Entertainment, LLC (FADE), Microsoft set a new record in 2010, as Xbox Live Arcade grew to an estimated $122 million USD in revenues through the year.
Although retail software found difficult progress in 2010, Xbox Live Arcade continued to grow, posting a 16% year-over-year increase in revenues, despite the strengthening of Games on Demand and Indie titles. Growth was across the board, as new releases earned an average of $816,000 USD per title on the year - up from approximately $720,000 USD among new releases the year prior. Top title in terms of units, Capcom's 'Dead Rising 2: Case Zero' saw just under 700,000 units sold at $5.00 USD per unit. Not to be ignored, Playdead's highly-reviewed platformer 'LIMBO' was the highest grossing, having recorded roughly $7.5 million USD in revenues by years' end.
Well-Planned Promotions See Major Benefits During 2010
Having seen success from two major 'Summer of Arcade' promotions, Microsoft added two new potentially-annual promotions. In March, Microsoft's 'Block Party' posted major gains during an otherwise weakening part of the year. Its tentpole title, 'Toy Soldiers' saw over 200,000 unit sales during the month, en-route to 383,000 units sold through the end of the year. Shortly after the 3rd annual 'Summer of Arcade', Microsoft promoted another successful lineup with 'The Games Feast', which ran from late September through October. The 'Feast' saw strong grosses from titles such as 'Super Meat Boy' and 'Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode 1' which was not technically part of the promotion, but helped propel October to nearly a triple-digit increase in revenues.
Top Selling Titles, by Units Sold in 2010
- Dead Rising 2: Case Zero (Blue Castle Games/Capcom) - 689,000 Units
- Trials HD (RedLynx, LTD) - 553,000 Units
- LIMBO (Playdead) - 527,000 Units
- Castle Crashers (The Behemoth) - 415,000 Units
- Toy Soldiers (Signal Studios) - 383,000 Units
- Family Game Night [Various Titles (Hasbro)] - 294,000 Units
- Monday Night Combat (Uber Entertainment) - 293,000 Units
- Perfect Dark (Rare) - 279,000 Units
- Battlefield 1943 (EA Dice) - 268,000 Units
- Deadliest Warrior: The Game (Pipeworks Software) - 210,000 Units
About Forecasting and Analyzing Digital Entertainment, LLC
FADE is a strategic market research and consulting firm focused on electronic entertainment and the emerging download and mobile game markets. With very little information currently available in these markets, FADE allows smaller developers to investigate these new potential sources of revenue and make informed business decisions moving forward. Currently, FADE produces monthly and annual reports for Steam, Xbox Live Arcade, Playstation Network, WiiWare & Virtual Console, and mobile markets including iOS, Android, Windows Mobile, and Blackberry. For more information, please visit https://fadellc.com.
