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'''VG Chartz''' is a [[video game]] sales tracking [[website]] that provides weekly sales figures of [[Video game console|console]] software and hardware by region. The site was launched in June 2006 and is owned by Brett Walton.<ref>[http://www.cinemablend.com/games/CB-Games-Interview-VG-Chartz-Speaks-Out-4825.html CB Games Interview: VG Chartz Speaks Out<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
'''VG Chartz''' is a [[video game]] sales tracking [[website]] that provides weekly sales figures of [[Video game console|console]] software and hardware by region. The site was launched in June 2006 and is owned by Brett Walton.<ref>[http://www.cinemablend.com/games/CB-Games-Interview-VG-Chartz-Speaks-Out-4825.html CB Games Interview: VG Chartz Speaks Out<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>


VG Chartz provides tools for data analysis and charting and regular written analysis of the data referencing major news in the video gaming industry. Sales figures on VG Chartz are based on estimates extrapolated from small retail samples.<ref>[http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18919</ref> VG Chartz does not want to publish any sources on how they get thier data. <ref name="mem">[http://www.vgchartz.com/welcome.php VGChartz.com <!-- Bot generated title -->].</ref>. Bacause of this, some have questioned the reliability of the information presented by the site.<ref>[http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18919 What VGChartz Does (And Doesn't) Do For The Game Biz]</ref><ref>[http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2008/06/why-we-dont-ref/ Why We Don’t Reference VGChartz]</ref> VG Chartz has defended the credibility and reliability of its sales data often comparing their numbers with the ones published by [[NPD Group]],<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.vgchartz.com/news/news.php?id=564 | title=NPD Data vs. VGC Data for the September 2007 Sales (9/2/07 to 10/6/07) | author=TheSource | date=2007-10-19 | accessdate=2007-11-10}}</ref> although the charts are adjusted after NPD's monthly report is released.<ref>{{cite web | last=Walton |first=Brett | date=2009-03-20 | title=Post NPD Adjustments - Feb 2009 | url=http://news.vgchartz.com/news.php?id=3205 | work=news.vgchartz.com | accessdate=2009-07-28 | publisher=}}</ref>
VG Chartz provides tools for data analysis and charting and regular written analysis of the data referencing major news in the video gaming industry. Sales figures on VG Chartz are based on estimates extrapolated from small retail samples.<ref>[http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18919</ref> VG Chartz does not want to publish any sources on how they get their data. <ref name="mem">[http://www.vgchartz.com/welcome.php VGChartz.com <!-- Bot generated title -->].</ref>. Because of this, some sites have questioned the reliability of the information presented by the site.<ref>[http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18919 What VGChartz Does (And Doesn't) Do For The Game Biz]</ref><ref>[http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2008/06/why-we-dont-ref/ Why We Don’t Reference VGChartz]</ref> VG Chartz has defended the credibility and reliability of its sales data often comparing their numbers with the ones published by [[NPD Group]],<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.vgchartz.com/news/news.php?id=564 | title=NPD Data vs. VGC Data for the September 2007 Sales (9/2/07 to 10/6/07) | author=TheSource | date=2007-10-19 | accessdate=2007-11-10}}</ref> although the charts are adjusted after NPD's monthly report is released.<ref>{{cite web | last=Walton |first=Brett | date=2009-03-20 | title=Post NPD Adjustments - Feb 2009 | url=http://news.vgchartz.com/news.php?id=3205 | work=news.vgchartz.com | accessdate=2009-07-28 | publisher=}}</ref>


==History==
==History==

Revision as of 06:20, 16 May 2010

VG Chartz
Type of site
Video game sales tracking
OwnerBrett Walton
Created byBrett Walton
URLhttp://www.vgchartz.com
RegistrationOptional (free)

VG Chartz is a video game sales tracking website that provides weekly sales figures of console software and hardware by region. The site was launched in June 2006 and is owned by Brett Walton.[1]

VG Chartz provides tools for data analysis and charting and regular written analysis of the data referencing major news in the video gaming industry. Sales figures on VG Chartz are based on estimates extrapolated from small retail samples.[2] VG Chartz does not want to publish any sources on how they get their data. [3]. Because of this, some sites have questioned the reliability of the information presented by the site.[4][5] VG Chartz has defended the credibility and reliability of its sales data often comparing their numbers with the ones published by NPD Group,[6] although the charts are adjusted after NPD's monthly report is released.[7]

History

VG Chartz began in September 2005 when Brett Walton created a small site which collected together publicly available video game sales data in one place for users to view.[8]. The site began to gain media attention after some of its figures were quoted in mainstream publications.[citation needed] VG Chartz earns money from advertising banners and programs such as Amazon.com stores.

In February 2008, Forbes editor, Michael Noer, cited VGChartz in his The Future Of Videogames article.[9]

In June 2008 Robert Pasarella wrote an article comparing VGChartz and NPD services, advantages and disadvantages, VGChartz being the winner due to the modality on their service.[10] However, in the same month Simon Carless wrote an article in which he criticized VG Chartz for the poor tracking of low selling video games and for adjusting the numbers after other sales tracking firms released their numbers, mentioning Metal Gear Solid 4, for which the numbers for Europe were an educated guess based on Japanese and American sales of the game. [11]

Content

The main service provided by VG Chartz is weekly charts of hardware and software sales for the video game consoles sold by Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft. This data is presented in three separate charts that each cover one of the three main video game markets (Japan, North America, and 'Others' - primarily Europe and Oceania). The site does provide sales charts for many older consoles, but with the exception of the PlayStation 2, the regular updates focus on the current generation of home consoles and handhelds. In addition to sales data, VG Chartz also covers general gaming news and features analysis articles about various results and trends in the sales information. The website also has a form where general users can submit news articles that are reviewed by the staff and posted if acceptable.

VG Chartz also provides forums for discussing the website, sales information, and gaming news in general. Each member receives a customizable profile page where they can post information about themselves and their gaming preferences. Additionally, the site runs a prediction league where members can predict the sales of console software and hardware in a specific region for the following week. Users are then awarded points based on the accuracy of the prediction and league table is updated with the highest-scoring participants. The website also features a moderated user-run database of console game information where users submit information such as publisher, release dates, screenshots, and other info about the game. Each game in the database has its own page combining user-contributed information with VG Charts sales figures and a divided bar chart of its sales in the three major regions.[3]

Analysis Tools

The sales figures database can be analyzed with tools on the site for data analysis and graphical representation purposes. Tools available include:

  • Hardware by date: Users can select start and end dates or hardware from launch, the specific region of sales and which consoles they would like to be displayed (up to three at once); a line chart is then shown. Data can be displayed as weekly or cumulative sales. [12]
  • Periodic sales summaries: Users can view weekly, monthly, yearly, or total summaries of data by region, giving a software sales chart as well as hardware and software sales figures with pie charts of sales share. Software sales by publisher are also given.
  • Hardware table: Users can see a subset of the data in table form by region and console between set start and end dates.[13]
  • Million sellers: A table of console software that has sold over a million copies according to the publishers' data is shown. [14]

References

  1. ^ CB Games Interview: VG Chartz Speaks Out
  2. ^ [http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18919
  3. ^ a b VGChartz.com .
  4. ^ What VGChartz Does (And Doesn't) Do For The Game Biz
  5. ^ Why We Don’t Reference VGChartz
  6. ^ TheSource (2007-10-19). "NPD Data vs. VGC Data for the September 2007 Sales (9/2/07 to 10/6/07)". Retrieved 2007-11-10.
  7. ^ Walton, Brett (2009-03-20). "Post NPD Adjustments - Feb 2009". news.vgchartz.com. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
  8. ^ The Bitbag » The Bitbag Interviews Brett Walton, President Of VGChartz.com
  9. ^ Noer, Michael (2008-02-11). "The Future Of Videogames". forbes.com. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
  10. ^ Data on the Web: VGChartz vs. NPD - O'Reilly Radar
  11. ^ GameSetWatch - Analysis: What VGChartz Does (And Doesn't) Do For The Game Biz
  12. ^ VGChartz.com | Hardware Comparison Charts
  13. ^ VGChartz.com | Hardware Comparison Charts
  14. ^ VGChartz.com | Worldwide Million Sellers
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