Japanese Charts: Taiko Drum Master Wii Leads Nintendo Chart Takeover

Nintendo platform releases have taken complete control of the weekly Japanese sales top 10, with seven of the top ten titles published by Nintendo themselves (including Pokemon Platinum). However, despite the time of year, there are still few new releases, although those that have debuted this week are again all for either the Wii or Nintendo DS. The number one selling title has again earned its place with a relative low sales total, although overall sales across the rest of the chart are still above average. The highest selling game of the week is Namco Bandai’s new Taiko Drum Master title for the Wii, with 106,000 unit sales. Originally an arcade and then PlayStation 2 franchise, the rhythm action game features the traditional Japanese drums and a wide variety of Western and Japanese music. As with the earlier DS versions, the game’s mass market appeal has transferred easily to the Wii. The only other new entry in the top ten is Konami’s Penguin no Mondai: Saikyou Penguin Densetsu! for the DS at number five. The Kirby-esque platformer debuted with 59,000 unit sales. The rest of the top ten is filled with the usual Wii and DS stalwarts, with Animal Crossing: City Folk on Wii increasing it sales on the previous week as it moves up one place to number two. Other Nintendo published titles also on the rise include Kirby Super Star Ultra for DS at number three, Wagamama Fashion: Girls Mode on DS at number four, Rhythm Heaven on DS at number eight, Wii Fitat number nine and Mario Kart Wii at number ten. Outside the top ten, the highest new entry is Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat at number fourteen, the first of Nintendo’s repurposed GameCube games for the Wii. The first of the Wii de Asobu (New Play Control! In the West) range, the game replaces the original bongo controllers with motion and traditional controls and also adds new stages. The only other new entry in the top 30 is Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of Heroes. The new 2D beat ‘em-up for the Wii pits famous Capcom characters against those of anime company Tatsunoko, including the original Japanese forms of Battle of the Planets and Speed Racer.

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