Wii are the winners
16-05-2008
by Emmet Ryan

Grand Theft Auto IV might have been the star game released in April, but it wasn't enough for Microsoft to stop Nintendo's Wii from topping the US console charts.

The Wii was the biggest-selling console Stateside last month, shifting 714,200 consoles, according to data from researchers NPD Group. This was slightly down from March sales of 721,000 units but still one of the most successful months ever for the console outside of the Christmas period.

The success of Nintendo's device can largely be attributed to the launch of Mario Kart Wii. The racing game featuring Nintendo's flagship character added a new dimension to the racing genre on the console, encouraging more users to buy the console and with it additional hardware such as steering wheels.

Having sold 9.5 million units to date in the US alone, the Wii's current market dominance shows no signs of abating. The next big winner for the console is likely to be Wii Fit, a game that's seen consumers forking out cash to do exercises which they could easily do for free. The mind boggles, but Nintendo must be doing something right as it has found an entirely new market with the console; the active gamer.

Microsoft has to be disappointed with its figures. Shifting 188,000 units of the Xbox 360, down from 262,000 in March, is a poor return for the console given the release of Grand Theft Auto IV. The gap could however be partially attributed to more consumers buying consoles ahead of the release of the game rather than at the moment of purchase. This portion though is unlikely to come close to account for the entirety of the massive drop in sales.

Still the Redmond-based IT giant can take some comfort in the knowledge that the Xbox once again came up trumps against the PlayStation 3. Sony's console was the only other platform on which the latest incarnation of the Grand Theft Auto franchise was launched. With sales of 187,100, down from 257,000 in March, the PlayStation 3 was narrowly defeated by its Microsoft rival.

Nintendo will surely look at the relative failure of its rivals with some glee. Having trailed both Microsoft and Sony for years, Nintendo now possesses the hottest console on the market and its market share is set to grow further in the coming months.