Wii U sales at 400,000 units within past week, DS outsells 3DS, more

Nintendo sold more than 1.2 million hardware units during the past week, according to NOA president Reggie Fils-Aime.

Breaking things down more specifically, over 700,000 consoles were sold. Wii U came in 400,000 units sold while the Wii moved another 300,000 systems.

Regarding Wii U’s performance, Reggie said that the console’s limited stock impacted sales. He noted that the company “is essentially sold out of retail” and when stock is replenished at stores, “they’re selling out immediately.”

“Wii U is essentially sold out of retail and we are doing our best to continually replenish stock. Retailers are also doing their best to get the product to store shelves. But as soon as product hits retail, they’re selling out immediately.”

Shortages are a concern, but Reggie stated that Nintendo has learned lessons from the Wii’s situation and is replenishing stock on a more regular basis.

“Wii was a unique phenomenon. You couldn’t walk into a retailer and buy a Wii until spring of 2009. We’ve certainly learned many lessons from that and we are replenishing retailers more quickly this time around. We are looking to have as much product into retail as possible. It’s driven by consumer response.”

Sales for Nintendo’s handhelds have also been reported. Believe it or not, the DS actually outsold the 3DS last week. The DS sold 275,000 units while the 3DS shifted 250,000 devices.

Why did this happen? Reggie pointed to the “significant” deals offered during Black Friday. That being said, Reggie also said that the 3DS “continues on record-setting pace”.