Nintendo heading for third consecutive Christmas victory

by Stevie Smith - Dec 12 2008, 13:00

Despite sweeping price cuts to the Xbox 360 and improved traction for the PlayStation 3, it would appear that Nintendo’s hot-selling Wii is heading for a third consecutive Christmas win in the videogame console hardware battle.

More pointedly, Japanese gaming giant Nintendo has sold more than 2 million units of its innovative Wii console in the United States alone during November, which effectively rewrites the history books for monthly performance outside of December.

And following close behind in terms of consumer popularity, Nintendo has also shone the spotlight on its Nintendo DS handheld, which sold some 1.5 million units across the U.S. in November – also setting a record for non-December sales.

According to diligent number crunchers at NPD Group, Nintendo’s market rivals, the Microsoft Xbox 360 and Sony PlayStation 3, also experienced improved monthly sales during November. However, both consoles fall limp when measured beside the Wii.

The Xbox 360 shifted 836,000 units in November, equating to a month-on-month boost in excess of 450,000, while the PlayStation 3 managed to sell 378,000 units, which is more than twice the number sold during October. Sony’s PlayStation Portable console also posted increased monthly sales, moving 421,000 units in November compared to the 193,000 units sold in October.

NPD’s figures show continuing strength in software sales too, with Microsoft and Epic Games’ action shooter Gears of War 2 taking top spot for the month with 1.57 million copies sold. Activision’s Call of Duty: World at War secured second place with an impressive 1.41 million copies, while Nintendo’s interactive Wii Play, exercise-based Wii Fit and classic Mario Kart Wii rounded out the top five titles.

Regardless of Nintendo’s strong claim to 2008’s festive bragging rights, the all-encompassing industry improvement clearly shows that U.S. videogame consumers are not being swayed in the least by the supposedly dire economic climate.

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