Activision's DJ Hero just shipped last week and has generally been quite well received by the press, garnering a Metacritic of 86. Our friends at GameDaily called the game "without question Activision's coolest rhythm game" and "one of the sweetest, most original games we've played in a long time." The question, however, is whether sales will live up to the critical acclaim.
Activision has done a solid job marketing the title it seems, securing a sponsor spot during the World Series, with the Jay-Z and Eminem commercial appearing quite frequently. So far, sell-through on the title appears to be "modest," according to Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian. Sebastian says that this is indicative of "sluggish but stable sales trends" in the industry overall. Sebastian is estimating that DJ Hero will sell approximately 1 million units in the all-important fourth quarter.
It's certainly possible that DJ Hero's $120 MSRP has hurt the game somewhat this fall. "In general, our checks suggest ongoing concern at retail for software price points >$100 when many consumers are still showing price sensitivity," Sebastian said.
Still, if DJ Hero does hit 1 million sold, that's not bad for a new IP in the music space that's definitely more niche than anything guitar-related. This editor has personally been enjoying DJ Hero quite a bit and would heartily recommend it. We're eager to see how the franchise grows from here.
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