Analyst estimates suggest weak early sales for Gears of War: E-Day

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Analyst firm Alinea Analytics estimates that Gears of War: E-Day has sold around 230,000 copies so far, Push Square reports. That breaks down to about 168,000 on Steam and 62,000 on Xbox. Alinea also estimates 1.7 million players through Game Pass. Around 722,000 people are thought to have paid $30 for early access

Alinea puts total revenue at roughly $37 million. Push Square is careful to say that the research group's methodology is unclear. But it argues that the numbers would still look soft even if they were well off. Microsoft has not put out any statement to counter the estimates

There is an interesting twist. A nearly finished PS5 version of E-Day reportedly exists and was even age rated in several regions before Microsoft decided to keep the game exclusive. By comparison, Alinea estimates that Gears of War: Reloaded sold around 700,000 copies on PS5. That suggests a PS5 release could have added significant sales

Game Pass complicates any judgement. Millions of players accessing a game through a subscription is valuable to Microsoft, even if it does not show up as individual sales. Microsoft measures success partly by engagement and subscriber growth. So low copy sales do not necessarily mean the game is a failure in the company's eyes

We talked last week about The Coalition's boss promising the next Gears will come sooner. Numbers like these, if accurate, could put pressure on Microsoft's exclusivity strategy. Push Square suggests the figures may test Microsoft's resolve on keeping it off PlayStation. Either way, E-Day itself has been well received by players

Should Microsoft release Gears of War: E-Day on PS5? And how should we judge success for games on Game Pass?

Dire Estimated Gears Of War E Day Sales Raise Queries About Last Minute Ps5 Cancellationwww.pushsquare.com