Daily Recap: April 16, 2009

Another day, another dollar, another set of news that you can use. Even better, today is…drumroll please…NPD DAY!

For those that don’t know, the NPD Group is the data analysis group that keeps track of video game sales data, which they then release to the masses on a monthly basis. While in some seedy parts of the Internet the NPDs may be nothing more than “troll food,” providing console crusaders proof that THIER CONSOLE IS TEH BEST EVAR for message board flame wars, the sales data are useful to show a few things we can dig into and analyze.

Resident Evil 5 was the sales leader in March, nearing 1.5 million total copies on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Image from residentevil.com.

A full list of console and game sales totals for March can be found at 1up.com’s news article on the topic. Salient analysis? Resident Evil 5 was popular – selling more than 900,000 copies on Xbox 360, and 580,000 on the PlayStation 3. On the console side, the Wii just keeps selling – moving more than 600,000 units in March, and 700,000 in February. Yowza. RE5 360, Pokemon Platinum on DS, Halo Wars, RE5 PS3 and Wii Fit are the top five games for March, and Wii Fit, Street Fighter 4 360 and then PS3, Wii Play and Killzone 2 are the top five for February.

Also from NPD land: In an article on Joystiq, a survey conducted by NPD suggests that, despite the economic downturn, game sales will continue to stay at around the same level this year – with 65 percent of the people surveyed saying they are planning to spend as much or more money on games this year than the year gone. It makes a certain amount of sense – in talking about this topic before, many gaming pundits have said they wouldn’t be surprised if sales stay strong because of the escapism and value-per-dollar offered by gaming. People may not get as much out of their extra cars, homes, meals out, or vacations, but they certainly can get the extra mile out of their games.

Adding on to a leak that Destructoid got, Giant Bomb puts together the puzzle pieces and deduces that it appears a current-gen downloadable version of classically chaotic fighting game Marvel vs. Capcom 2 may be inbound. Destructoid received a listing for a MadCatz-made MvC-branded arcade stick, which lists the game title by name in the release. There was previously an ESRB rating put out for Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network, and – to add fuel to the fire – a Giant Bomb commentor adds that MvC2 achievements have been spotted at xbox360achievements.org. MvC2 – which originated in arcades on the Naomi board, allowing a direct, perfect version on the Dreamcast – was previously ported to the PS2 and Xbox. All three still command a premium online, especially the Dreamcast version.

Left 4 Dead is getting an update next week, and the developers say the new Survival mode won't just ask for teamwork - it will demand it from players. Image from l4d.com.

Numerous sources point back to the Left 4 Dead developer blog, where the game’s creators at Valve detail the new Survival mode that will come to the game next week. The popular online multiplayer shooter, which pits players against waves of zombies (as well as placing them in the tattered shoes of the undead), will soon have a new mode that the developers say focuses on communication and teamwork.

Survival Mode draws on the planning and communication aspects of a successful Finale or Crescendo event, while taking it to another level. It rapidly hits a fever pitch that only a well coordinated team will be able to successfully survive. Everything from simply covering a reviving teammate, to making every shot count to minimize reloads becomes crucial in Survival Mode.

Valve says that even trying to take advantage of runs for ammo will be dangerous for players and fits in with the theme of necessary teamwork. See for yourself when the DLC drops next week.