Q3 has been an interesting quarter. There hasn’t really been any blockbuster titles (with the exception of Madden 10) so we’ve been playing what we got and XBLA games. I already wrote on the most played 360 games in the past year so now I’m focusing on our favorite console network, XBLA. These are the top 8 played XBLA games per gamer in Q3 so far.

8.
TMNT: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled – 1.2 hours per player

This classic pretty much only takes 1 hour to beat with a good team. Just like the original – without the quarters. (more…)

Ever wondered how long a gamer plays Halo 3 or Gears of War 2 on average? You may be surprised by the results.

A few things before I get started: The games are listed in reverse order by playtime. I chose games that have been out for more than 6 months because newer games obviously won’t have as many hours. I also added possible explanations to why the hours are the way they are for the ‘OMGWTFBBQ WHY DOES HALO 3 HAVE SO LITTLE HOURS’ comments. Important note: this data is taken from the past year – so these are the top games from now to about the same time last year.

11.

Grand Theft Auto 4 – 10.1 Hours per player

First on the list is Grand Theft Auto 4. So it looks like people only play GTA4 for about 10 hours – that’s understandable. GTA4, IMO, is one of those games everyone tries, then gets bored of it quickly. Sure, there’s a bunch of DLC and replay content, but the “try-it-and-sell-it” crowd drag the average hours down. (more…)

Working at Raptr, I see video games come and go. I see games get hyped up, explode, then disappear – however, once in a while I see a game stay. So it got me thinking, what makes people keep coming back? Does a developer/publisher strive to make sales or provide replayability? Here’s what I looked at. Disclaimer: I am not a professional research analyst, just a Community Manager and gamer that watches trends.

So the game that brought about my sudden inner analyst was Battlefield 1943. I read all over the place about Battlefield 1943 shattering records and causing server crashes. I let a few weeks pass, and this is what I saw:

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Looks like some people are still playing it, but it is no where near it’s server crashing status. Looks like people have gotten a little bored of it. So I looked at other XBLA games. Next stop, Monkey Island: (more…)

I recently bought Tales of Vesperia for the 360 and wanted to buy a strategy guide. I generally like to get the strategy guide for RPGs because I don’t like missing extra content (sometimes that stuff is impossible to get without help!). I noticed that there weren’t any guides at Best Buys or Gamestop, so I went to Amazon and saw:

Holy crap! This game came out not too long ago! I thought strategy guides were supposed to be like 20 bucks. Lame. I started poking around Ebay to see what strategy guides were worth something. First stop: Final Fantasy 7.

I know, right? That’s ridiculously expensive. It is “Buy It Now”, so that could mean that nobody will ever buy it, but I didn’t see any other similar items for a reasonable price. It’s the only 1st edition copy there too. I think I threw my Final Fantasy 7 strategy guide long ago…

I started searching for strategy guides I knew I still had from back in the day.

These are just a few of the guides on Ebay. After spending some time looking through my guides and price checking on ebay, I calculated that I could make about $300. Some of them weren’t worth anything, but several were worth a lot. Not bad for guides that I don’t use anymore.

So hold onto those strategy guides and keep them in good condition! You never know what they’re going to be worth later on.

A lot of companies out there claim to be a “social network for gamers” but what does that mean exactly? For us at Raptr, it means making your offgame experience a lot more fun and social. What is offgame? It’s when you’re not actually playing the games you love.

Experiences that happen when you’re not connected to the ‘net are called “offline”, and let’s face it, a lot of activities aren’t as fun when you’re offline: you don’t have email, instant messaging, Wikipedia and of course, online gaming. Online, you can talk to your friends, access information and generally communicate and feel a part of a larger whole.

Equally, offgame refers to your experience when you’re not playing a game: discussing a game on forums, perusing news sites for new screenshots and trailers and maybe drooling over the next big achievement in your game du jour. Ongame, whether it’s with your friends in your living room, in an online poker table, raiding a dungeon with your guild, or playing Call of Duty 4 against worthy opponents, the experience is engaging, immersive and often social.

This social experience shouldn’t be limited to the confines of your games. What we aim to accomplish with Raptr is a way for players to continue that experience in the context of common interests. Through Raptr,  people can discuss games they already play and have in common with other players. Even more exciting for us is the prospect of players discovering new games and content through their friends and others on the network.

Raptr is like that friend that understands your musical tastes and recommends to you the next big unsigned bands. Except instead of music, we’re doing it for all games.