In a single 24-hour period 2.4 million copies of Burning Crusade were sold - is that a launch success or what?
A record 1.2 million copies of Burning Crusade were sold during the launch in North America alone. Another 1.1 million in Europe leading to 1.7 million accounts "upgraded" to Burning Crusade by the evening of the launch.
The title is being reported as the fastest selling release of a PC game in North America (and just shy in Europe of taking that title). This might explain some of the lag in downloading patches on day one.
With 1.7 million accounts upgraded on top of those non-crusade gamers that didn't upgrade right away the servers continued to maintain an available state which is impressive considering the "flash crowd."
Bringing some old WoW addicts back from canceled accounts and keeping other gamers from competing MMO's, it seems Blizzard can chalk this up to another successful launch.
Will the content go stale after a few months? Perhaps, but look at the sheer amount of level 60's "grinding" day through day. Now, they'll be grinding level 70 for another few years. In any case, they've got your USD $39.99 for the box along with a few additional months of monthly payments.
Here is the Blizzard Press Release:
The title is being reported as the fastest selling release of a PC game in North America (and just shy in Europe of taking that title). This might explain some of the lag in downloading patches on day one.
With 1.7 million accounts upgraded on top of those non-crusade gamers that didn't upgrade right away the servers continued to maintain an available state which is impressive considering the "flash crowd."
Bringing some old WoW addicts back from canceled accounts and keeping other gamers from competing MMO's, it seems Blizzard can chalk this up to another successful launch.
Will the content go stale after a few months? Perhaps, but look at the sheer amount of level 60's "grinding" day through day. Now, they'll be grinding level 70 for another few years. In any case, they've got your USD $39.99 for the box along with a few additional months of monthly payments.
Here is the Blizzard Press Release:
World of Warcraft®: The Burning CrusadeTM Shatters Day-1 Sales Record
23 January, 2007 PARIS, France -- Blizzard Entertainment® today announced that World of Warcraft®: The Burning Crusade™ has broken the day-one sales record to become the fastest-selling PC game ever in North America and Europe, with a worldwide total of nearly 2.4 million copies sold in the first 24 hours of availability. The Burning Crusade, the first expansion set for World of Warcraft, was simultaneously released in North America, Europe, Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia on 16 January, and on 17 January in Australia and New Zealand.
Blizzard had supplied more than 4 million game boxes to retailers worldwide, and more than 5,000 stores throughout the world had their doors open at midnight to welcome thousands of expectant players.
Day-one sales totals on both continents were similar, with an estimated total of nearly 1.2 million copies sold on the first day in North America and an estimated total of more than 1.1 million copies sold in Europe within the first 24 hours of launch.* By the end of the first day of availability on both continents, a total of more than 1.7 million players had already logged in and upgraded World of Warcraft to play The Burning Crusade.
"The Burning Crusade has already exceeded even our most ambitious expectations," said Mike Morhaime, president and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "We're pleased that so many players are eager to see all of the new content that the expansion has to offer, and we look forward to seeing everyone online as additional players continue to upgrade in the days ahead."
Retailers are continuing to report sustained demand, so if players have not yet purchased their copy of The Burning Crusade, they are advised to call ahead to make sure their store has copies on hand. Additional shipments of the expansion have been routed to retailers to help maintain stock levels.
"The excitement and sense of anticipation generated by the huge crowd at The Burning Crusade launch event far exceeded our expectations," said Tim Ellis, Head of Games for HMV, UK. "And in terms of units shifted, this was HMV's biggest launch event ever, and that includes Audio and DVD events."
Prior to the launch of The Burning Crusade, World of Warcraft was played by more than 8 million players around the world -- with more than 2 million on North American realms and more than 1.5 million on European realms -- making it the most successful subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game in PC-gaming history.
For more information on World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, please visit the official website for the expansion at www.wow-europe.com/en/burningcrusade.
*Based on internal company records and reports from key distribution partners.
source: kotaku.com
