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Even though it launched early in 2007, Nintendo's Wii Play continues to chart just behind brand-new blockbusters on the monthly NPD. We find out it's sold 7.9 million in the U.S. to date -- and examine how large a share of the industry's growth Nin

Leigh Alexander, Contributor

December 12, 2008

1 Min Read

It's unsurprising that the top two games on November's NPD software charts were the month's blockbuster titles, Gears of War 2 and Call of Duty 5 -- but coming in third was Nintendo's Wii Play, a title that continues to be a regular staple of the top 10 even though it debuted in February 2007. So just how many units has Wii Play sold to date? 7.9 million in the U.S. alone, Nintendo tells Gamasutra. With yesterday's NPD, the company announced that 15.4 million Wii consoles have been sold in the U.S. since launch, which means close to half of Wii owners in the country have bought the title. Nintendo had four titles altogether in the top 10 on the month's software charts, none of which launched in November -- Wii Play, Wii Fit, Mario Kart Wii and Wii Music. The company's stated strategy of creating "evergreen" products with mainstream appeal seems to ensure its titles continue to sell. In fact, according to Nintendo, it can take credit for 198 percent of the industry's year-over-year revenue growth, and it claims 66 percent of November's total hardware revenue -- combining its Wii and DS, the company accounted for a staggering 3.6 million units.

About the Author(s)

Leigh Alexander

Contributor

Leigh Alexander is Editor At Large for Gamasutra and the site's former News Director. Her work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Variety, Slate, Paste, Kill Screen, GamePro and numerous other publications. She also blogs regularly about gaming and internet culture at her Sexy Videogameland site. [NOTE: Edited 10/02/2014, this feature-linked bio was outdated.]

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