NPD Figures Show Strong Consumer Response to Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit

Two Nintendo video games designed to appeal to both novice and expert gamers posted healthy numbers in the May sales charts, according to the independent NPD Group, which tracks sales of video game products in the United States. Mario Kart^® Wii and Wii Fit^™ finished No. 2 and No. 3 for the month, demonstrating continued consumer response to new controls and experiences.

“The Wii Wheel and Wii Balance Board accessories make game play fun for new gamers while presenting new challenges for those who have been playing a long time,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “The diversity of the seven Nintendo games represented in NPD’s top 10 for May demonstrates how Nintendo has something for everyone.”

Other highlights from NPD’s May U.S. sales report include:

• Wii^™ (675,089 sold) and Nintendo DS^™ (452,608 sold) again emerged as the two top-selling video game systems.
• Wii represented 63 percent of all current-generation consoles sold in May, while Nintendo DS had a 71 percent share of the portable market.
• Lifetime sales of Wii now stand at nearly 10.2 million.
• Lifetime sales of Nintendo DS are now at more than 20 million.
• Wii Play^™ sold more than 295,000 in May, bringing its lifetime sales to more than 5.8 million.
• Of the top 30 best-selling games of May, 19 are made for Nintendo systems, including third-party hits like Guitar Hero^™ III: Legends of Rock from Activision, We Ski^™ from Namco Bandai, Game Party^™ from Midway and Boom Blox^™ from Electronic Arts.
• Pokémon^® Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Pokémon^® Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness combined to sell more than 208,000 in May, with lifetime sales of more than 613,000.

Source: Nintendo PR email