Nintendo’s Mario Kart Wii topped the Japanese software chart, selling an impressive 594 000 copies in its opening week. The title was released on the 10th of April so this figure accounts for just three days of sales. It will be interesting to see how many copies Mario Kart Wii sells in a full seven day period and only time will tell if it will continue to sell as well as Mario Kart DS has.

Taking a stroll down memory lane now, the previous iteration of the popular Mario Kart series was Mario Kart DS. Released in Japan in December 2005, Mario Kart DS sold 224 411 copies in its opening week while its life-to-date sales stand at 2.9 million copies. Its predecessor Mario Kart: Double Dash on the GameCube was released in Japan in November 2003 and sold 179 230 copies in its launch week with its life-to-date sales being 825 984 copies.

MHP2G passes SSBB

The latest Media Create figures show that Capcom’s Monster Hunter Portable 2G continued to sell well in its third week of release. The popular title moved down one place to finish second with 222 000 copies for the week ending the 13th of April. It is interesting to note that MHP2G has now passed Super Smash Bros. Brawl in terms of life-to-date sales, MHP2G stands at 1.59 million while SSBB records 1.56 million.

Koei’s Musou Orochi: The Evil King Returns for the PS2 moves down one place to number 3 with 56 000 copies and Nintendo’s Wii Fit picks up the pace, moving up three positions to number 4 with 31 000 copies. Life-to-date sales of Wii Fit now stands at 1.86 million, if MHP2G continues to sell well it may well pass Nintendo’s exercise game. If we take into account the fact that the PSP has a higher install base than the Wii and that MHP2G costs just $50 in comparison to Wii Fit’s slightly higher $130 price tag, the likelihood of this happening seems to increase.

Pokémon Ranger: Batonnage for the Nintendo DS gains one place to settle in fifth with 30 000 copies while Namco Bandai’s Tottado! Yowiko’s Deserted Island Life for the Nintendo DS moves up two places to number 6 with 26 000 copies. The PS2 version of Konami’s Pro Baseball Spirits 5 drops three places to number 7 with 22 000 copies while Square Enix’s Star Ocean 2: Second Evolution for the PSP moves down five places to number 8 with 18 000 copies. Hudson’s Deca Sporta for the Wii gains one place finish ninth with 17 000 copies while Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Brawl moves down one place to settle into tenth with 14 000 copies.

Wii to top hardware chart?

The only title to fall out of the top ten this week is the PS3 version of Konami’s Pro Baseball Spirits 5, which moves down from last week’s number 5 to number 11. Nintendo’s Mario Kart DS moves down one place to finish at number 16 but is still selling well despite having been released in 2005. Touchstone’s Turok for the Xbox 360 enters the charts at number 29, the only Xbox 360 title to make it into the Top 30 this week.

There is no doubt that Mario Kart Wii will cause a boost in the sales of Wii hardware, and I would wager that Nintendo’s Wii will beat the PSP to become the best-selling console in Japan this week. If we take into account that the PSP had just two titles in the top ten in comparison to the Wii having four, it looks even more likely that it will lose its crown this week to the Wii.

All that remains to contend then is second place on the hardware chart. With the Nintendo DS tie with the PSP with two titles each in the top ten, the race looks to be tight, but if we take into account that the NDS has another fourteen titles in the Top 30 whereas the PSP has no other titles making it into the Top 30 this week, it becomes more likely that the Nintendo will hold the top two spots on the hardware chart this week. Tune in tomorrow to find out.

Source: Media Create