The DSi remains top of the hardware chart, selling 46 855 units for the week ending the 5th of July. With four games on the DS platform featuring in the Top 10 this week, the tally of DSi units sold increases quite substantially from last week’s 39 885 units. Combined sales of the DSi and DS stand at 54 362 units for this week.

With Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Starry Sky releasing in Japan tomorrow, the 11th of July, expect both the DSi and DS Lite to sell record numbers next week. In addition a new red DSi will go on sale in the region on the 11th of this month so sales will experience an additional boost. It will also be interesting to see how many copies the ninth installment in the extremely popular Dragon Quest series sells in Japan in its opening week so be sure to check back for both the software and hardware charts next week Thursday and Friday.

The PSP is another success story this week, with 32 849 units sold Sony’s handheld moved roughly 6 000 more units than last week. Although the distance between the DSi and the PSP remains quite sizeable (14 006 to be exact), it did make good ground in closing the gap this week. However, next week will see the PSP being eclipsed when sales of Dragon Quest 9 for the Nintendo DS will inevitably drive sales of the DS.

Although Wii Sports Resort sold an impressive 360 000 copies in its opening week in Japan, the hardware sales of the Wii only recorded a slight sales increase that week. This week tells a similar story, Wii Sports Resort sold 155 000 copies in its second week on the market but the Wii sold only marginally more units, 24 971 units, up roughly 3 000 from the previous week. According to Media Create, 146 000 separate Wii MotionPlus units were sold this week. The total number of Wii MotionPlus devices in the Japanese market (including Wii Sports Resort) now stands at 956 000.

Although sales of the Wii have been flagging this year in Japan, remember to check back during the first week of August when sales of the console are certain to skyrocket. In addition to the highly anticipated Monster Hunter 3 (tri-) being released on the Wii on the 1st of August, Nintendo will release the black Wii on that date (the black Wii will also be available bundled with Monster Hunter 3). Japanese gamers scrambling to get their copies of Monster Hunter 3 will drive Wii sales to record highs but the combination of gamers’ opportunity to get their hands on the much wanted black Wii will add fuel to the hardware sales fire. Black Wii Remotes and black Nunchuks will also be available on that day.

The PS3 drops slightly to 11 196 units followed by the DS Lite which notes a marginal sales increase with 7 507 units, placing it ahead of the Xbox 360 this week which sells 5 876 units. The PS2 rounds off the chart with 3 734 units.

Hardware Chart

• DSi - 46 855
• PSP - 32 849
• Wii - 24 971
• PS3 - 11 196
• DS Lite - 7 507
• Xbox 360 - 5 876
• PS2 - 3 734

Source: Media Create