Halo Microsoft.com
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010Halo Microsoft.com
3 Video Games Stocks Could Surprise
Video game sales have been disappointing for some time. The main reason for lethargic sales has been the high price points for video game consoles (>$200) combined with consumers cutting back on discretionary purchases. In addition, those consumers that are still actively buying video games are playing their favorite games longer than in previous years.
As a result, the earnings estimates for video game stocks haven't been moving in the right direction. However, companies in the video game industry are in a position to change that trend and deliver upside surprises in the near future. Getting into these stocks before the analysts start raising estimates could deliver decent returns.
Software Sales Have Bottomed
While software sales in June dropped 15% year-over-year, sales climbed 14% from May. May sales were up 4% from April.
What's more, hardware sales are hot. Console makers have dramatically cut prices on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Wii. Combined console sales increased by 54% year-over-year in June to nearly 1.2 million units. The price cuts will hurt the console makers' profit margins, but the owners of those new 1.2 million video game consoles will be buying games for their new systems.
That's good news for the software side of the business, which saves its best games for the second half of the year. For video games, the unofficial holiday season kicks off with the August release of Madden NFL 11. There are several other titles that will be popular with gamers. These titles include Halo:Reach, Gears of War 3 and Call of Duty: Black Ops.
Online Play
Games like Madden, Halo and Call of Duty have become so successful that today's gamers resume to play those games for hundreds of hours beyond what was expected by the game developers. The longer game lifespan comes from the ability to play these games online with other gamers. Online play goes beyond the storyline written for these games. The game developers have a provided a virtual play area for gamers that want to team up with their friends and try to defeat other teams in various warfare scenarios or play a football game against a human opponent.
Online play is extremely popular, but it can hurt the sales of new games. It is also essentially free. Video game developers haven't done much to monetize online play. Sure, Call of Duty has offered additional maps for a charge, and the sports games are allowing advertising in their virtual stadiums. I think that is only a start. In my view, these online playgrounds will soon begin to charge a fee to play their online versions and begin to allow even more advertising. When the video game developers finally begin to charge for their online offerings, profit margins will expand well above current expectations.
New Technology
Ever since the Wii came out, both Microsoft (MSFT) and Sony (SNE) have worked on their own technology that allows gamers to use body movement to play games. This year those plans are hitting the market. Gamers got a preview of Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Move at E3. Both companies plan to roll out their motion-controlled devices in the fall of 2010.
The Kinect and Move will usher in a new era of gaming beyond the basic sports games like bowling, tennis, or fitness/exercise work-outs. Players will become fully immersed in games that require dancing, jumping, catching, hitting, running, and even driving. The Kinect also allows gamers to navigate the Xbox 360's dashboard without a controller. Using voice commands and hand gestures (a la Tom Cruise in The Minority Report), Xbox users can watch movies, play games, chat with friends or even Facebook -- all without touching a controller.
Here are three ways to participate in the upcoming advance in video game sales:
Activision Blizzard (ATVI) publishes interactive software products and peripherals. Its products cover various game categories, such as action/adventure, action sports, racing, role-playing, simulation, first-person action, music and strategy. Its games include Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and Tony Hawk.
The company had first-quarter EPS of $0.07, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5 cents, or 250%. ATVI has beaten the Zacks Consensus in four of the last five quarters.
In the last month, the Zacks Consensus Estimates for 2010 and 2011 are each down a penny. Activision Blizzard is scheduled to report second-quarter results on August 5.
ATVI is a Zacks #4 Rank stock. Its shares trade at 18 cents 2010 EPS estimates and 16 cents 2011 EPs estimates.
GameStop (GME) is a retailer of new and used video game hardware, video game software and video game accessories.
For the first quarter, GameStop earned $0.47 per share, an increase of 11.6% compared to the year-ago quarter. It also beat the Zacks Consensus by a penny, or 2.1%. In the last three quarters, GameStop has beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate by an average 2.3%.
In the last month, the Zacks Consensus Estimates for 2010 and 2011 have been flat. The video game retailer is scheduled to report second-quarter results on August 19.
GME is a Zacks #2 Rank stock. It trades at 8 cents fiscal 2011 consensus estimates and 7 cents fiscal 2012 consensus estimates.
Take Two Interactive (TTWO) publishes, develops and distributes interactive entertainment software under the labels Rockstar Games and 2K, which publishes titles under 2K Games, 2K Sports and 2K Play. Its brands include Grand Theft Auto, Sid Meier's Civilization, NBA 2K and NHL 2K.
The company reported fiscal second-quarter results of $0.23, topping the Zacks Consensus by 6 cents, or 35.3%. Take Two has beaten the Zacks Consensus in the last five quarters by an average of 35.3%.
In the last month, the Zacks Consensus Estimates for 2010 and 2011 are flat.
Take Two has a Zacks #3 Rank, and its shares trade at 12 cents fiscal 2011 consensus EPS estimates.
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Why did microsoft delete Halo Trial????
You used to be able to play halo trial here http://www.microsoft.com/downloadS/details.aspx?FamilyID=1c2678b1-90a1-4ca7-af68-b83ae2dec1cf&displaylang=en
Now it says that the link is dead. Is there another (safe---as in virus free) place where you can download halo trial. And will microsoft bring halo back? If you dont know what im talking about quit being a noob.
They deleted halo trial because halo and the halo trial wern't diffrent at all the halo trial was the same as the full version of just halo. So now they just wan't you to buy it. But i can try too give you the halo trial i just downloaded it to all of the computers at my school. I'll just have to use my usb cable. Just give me a few days i don't know when my class is getting into the computer lab anytime soon.
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HALO Reach HD OFFICIAL TRAILER E3 2010 MICROSOFT XBOX 360 KINECT PRESS CONFERENCE
Wholesale Video Game Market -articles for reprint
Home video game consoles have come a long way from the original 8-bit systems. One huge benefit to the wholesale industry is the console wars, and the continual release of new video games, accessories, and even entire game systems. These console wars and new releases mean the games and systems replaced are now the hottest commodities on the wholesale market. Here is a quick guide to the wholesale video game world by system.
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Let's begin with an overview of the world of video games. There are three major console players: Nintendo, Microsoft, and the largest one, Sony. Each company has released what are now called third generation consoles. These consoles are the Wii, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.
Prior to the third generation consoles, gamers had Nintendo's GameCube, Microsoft's Xbox, and Sony's PlayStation 2 to keep their thumbs in shape. The games and accessories of these second generation consoles are what primarily make up the wholesale video game market today. One key aspect to keeping these wholesale games and overstock video game accessories in value is backward compatibility. Backward compatibility is the ability of older video games and accessories, such as controllers and memory cards, to interface with newer generation consoles.
Nintendo GameCube
The saving grace of the Nintendo GameCube games and accessories are backward compatible with the Nintendo Wii. Wholesale retailers can capitalize on the fact the Nintendo GameCube, and Wii appeal to younger game players, so customers of wholesale GameCube games are less concerned with the lack of graphics and innovation. Additionally, Nintendo's GameCube controller and memory card is compatible with the new generation Wii, and a requirement for some games' backward compatibility.
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Top selling wholesale video game titles for the Nintendo GameCube include Animal Crossing, Super Monkey Ball, and anything Super Mario or Zelda franchise related. Parents will appreciate the general nonviolent nature of Nintendo GameCube games, and therefore the shelf-life for wholesale accessories and games is long. Purchase of the Nintendo GameCube at wholesale prices is the best first console for children aged six and above, and for those adults who still have a child at heart.
Microsoft Xbox
Xbox is the least backward compatible console to its third generation counterpart. In typical Microsoft fashion, Xbox 360 players must download a patch for individual Xbox games they desire to play on the Xbox 360. Also, since memory cards are almost unnecessary to save progress, there is no sense to install the Xbox's now dwarfed 10GB hard drive in place of the Xbox 360's 20GB or even 120GB hard drive. Popular titles for the Xbox franchise continue to be the Halo series and EA Sports titles, all of which can be found readily available in wholesale video game bargain bins. Wholesale Xbox consoles and games will appeal most to late comers in the violent and action packed video game genres, and those unwilling to spring for the hefty price tag of the Xbox 360.
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Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Soundtrack $9.61 2 - CD Set produced by Kristofor Mellroth and Paul Lipson. We trust that this music will continue to inspire you, and that it will reignite your passion for the evergreen world of Halo. You will certainly find some new surprises here - bold choices and brave adaptations. It is a tribute to that first sound of hope; and a reminder of what connects our community as we move forward together. - P... |
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Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Soundtrack $19.24 Vinyl LP pressing. This is the first Vinyl release of any Halo soundtrack. It's something the gaming partners were very keen on doing and they are so incredibly thrilled about it they just had to do it. The goal was to deliver the Halo soundtrack in an entirely new way but also to create a collectible that would look great on a shelf, wall or trophy case for the serious Halo fan. Vinyl is a physic... |
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Megabloks Halo UNSC Falcon with Landing Pad $39.99 This Falcon is piloted by a silver UNSC Pilot. The heavily armed UNSC Falcon takes off from the landing pad to fly UNSC troops into battle. The Mark V Air Assault Spartan takes aim with a side mounted M247H Heavy Machine Gun, engaging Covenant infantry and assault vehicles. The buildable Falcon set features rotating propellers and opening cockpit windows, and a landing pad, a new Silver UNSC Pilot... |
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Mega Bloks UNSC Mongoose $10.99 Establish your army, build and expand your units with the Halo UNSC Mongoose playset by Mega Bloks! Build and recreate epic battle scenes between the UNSC and the Covenant with this authentic buildable vehicle! The UNSC Mongoose is the military’s all-terrain light vehicle capable of battlefield reconnaissance and high-speed rapid assault maneuvers. A Covenant Elite attempts to eliminate the ... |
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Megabloks Covenant Banshee $8.33 Establish your army, build and expand your units with the Halo Covenant Banshee by Mega Bloks! The Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft – also known as the Banshee – is the standard ground assault unit in the Covenant military, capable of reaching speeds of over 100 Km/H. As it screeches across alien skies, the highly agile and acrobatic Banshee is armed with twin plasma cannons and fuel ro... |
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Xbox 360 4GB Console $183.00 Microsoft Xbox 360 RKB-00001 Slim Gaming Console RKB-00001 Video Game Consoles... |
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Halo Reach $19.37 Microsoft Halo: Reach HEA-00069 Xbox 360 Games... |
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Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary $39.99 Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary is a spectacularly remastered version of the original campaign, created in celebration of the 10th anniversary of one of the most beloved franchises in gaming history. With a bounty of new features including cooperative play over Xbox LIVE, a bundle of some of the most beloved multi player maps in history re-imagined for Xbox LIVE, new challenges and a new story t... |
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Xbox 360 Chatpad $14.26 Microsoft P7F-00001 Gaming Controller Accessory P7F-00001 Video Game Accessories... |
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Halo 2: The Official Game Guide $3.70 The Official Halo 2 Guide: Strategy Evolved Developed on-site at Bungie studios and written by the elite Piggyback team, this guide includes an encyclopedic appraisal of Halo 2's multiplayer mode; a full, highly accessible walkthrough for the epic Campaign mode; and everything on basic play, all in one book. The product of over four months of writing, research, and design, this guide includes: ·D... |
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