Is anyone surprised that the Wii is the best selling console in January? It moved 435,503 units during the whole month, with accompanying software to boot. Nintendo says that the only damper to the Wii sell-through is the availability of the console. I would have to agree, as I can't find a Wii (or even a copy of Wii Play) within a 10 mile radius of the state of Ohio. This is great and all, but how long can this feeding frenzy be sustained? Wii Play and Wii Sports may satisfy Mom and Pop nongamer, but the hardcore still need some attention too. Those "signpost" games like Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime 3 seem to get delayed more and more, and I hope Wii sales don't see a violent drop-off as a result.
Nintendo News: Wii are No. 1
Nintendo's new Wii(TM) has become the best-selling video game system of
any kind in January in the United States, and the fastest-selling new-
generation home system. According to the independent NPD Group, Wii sold
through 435,503 systems to customers in its January reporting period. By
comparison, that's 70 percent higher than any other new video game system in
its first January of availability during the last 10 years.
In addition, Nintendo DS(TM) once again triumphed as the top-selling
portable system, with nearly 239,000 hardware and more than 2.4 million
software units sold. In combination, Nintendo game systems accounted for
nearly as many unit sales (46 percent of the total market) as those of all
other manufacturers combined.
The continuing success of Wii and DS demonstrates that the public has
embraced Nintendo's philosophy of entertaining current gamers in new ways, and
expanding gaming for the masses. Four of the top 10 best-selling games in
January were for Nintendo systems, both home and portable.
The only limit on Nintendo's success is the availability of Wii and DS
systems, which continue to sell out as fast as Nintendo can ship them.
Shipments are being made continuously to feed the huge demand around the
country.
For more information about Nintendo, please visit
Nintendo.com
