January Next-Gen Console #'s out from NPD Group

[SirFozzie]

Wow.. if these #'s continue to hold this way (and with all the reports of Wiis still flying off of shelves and PS3's supposedly being stuck on them, it just might).. the Next-Gen race is going to get REALLY interesting.

Hardware sales were brisk as well, with the Wii selling around 436,000 units. Trailing behind were Microsoft and Sony, with 360 hitting 294,000 units sold and the PS3 selling 244,000 units

[sooner333]

Somehow Nintendo hit a home run by getting cross-gender appeal for their system.

[albionmoonlight]

Who knew that charging less for a system and making it appeal to a broader range of people would be such a good business idea.

[TroyF]

I think that'll be the order of the finish when it's all said and done in this console war.

The Wii is a fantastic system. Crackdown is going to give the 360 a serious workout over the next month or so though.

[ISiddiqui]

The Wii has a loooong way to go to take down the 360. Remember the Wii is still fairly new and supply is plentiful so it'll have high numbers, while the 360 has been out for over a year and supply has been plentiful for at least 8 months. The question is after the initial surge how will the Wii sell. It seems the 360 has done VERY well in continuing sales.

[SirFozzie]

except supply isn't plentiful, it's being held back for weekend sales because of demand

[ISiddiqui]

It's plentiful enough. Sony and Microsoft (when it came out) had demand far in excess of supply. Nintendo is able to put out far more units than either Sony or MS in the early stages of their respective consoles.

[Coffee Warlord]

Uh....no. There is WAY more supply for PS3s than demand. I can walk into any number of stores right now and buy a PS3. There's stock everywhere for the things.

Wii...they cannot produce them fast enough. They're gone in a matter of hours after being put on a shelf.

[ISiddiqui]

Well, then for XBox 360s at the very least. You couldn't get a 360 after launch for months and then they'd get a few and they'd be gone.

[spleen1015]

I find it interesting that the 360 is selling more than the PS3.

Was the PS2 outselling the Xbox 3 months after it came out?

[TargetPractice6]

Well, then for XBox 360s at the very least. You couldn't get a 360 after launch for months and then they'd get a few and they'd be gone.It's the same way for the Wii. It took me over 2 months to find mine. In fact, there is still a shortage in supply as next to no online retailers have them in stock and you have to be extremely lucky to find one on a store shelf.

[SackAttack]

We actually had a shipment of Wii's last until 2:30 in the afternoon a couple weeks ago.

There were people at the store at 10 am for new release Tuesday who bought about half of them, and the others lingered until later shoppers realized "wait a second, that's actually a Wii!" and ultimately bought the other half in the span of about 15 minutes.

PS3? I think I've sold 3 of a shipment of 30'ish that came in last week. Most of the rest are still there.

[Coffee Warlord]

We actually had a shipment of Wii's last until 2:30 in the afternoon a couple weeks ago..

Snag 2 Wii's next shipment and send em to me. :)

[Maple Leafs]

I was actually pretty shocked to walk into a store this week and see all the PS3s sitting around. I heard all about the shortages during the holidays and just assumed it was still the case. I wonder how many other people assume the same?

I'm a PS guy but I hope Wii wins this round just so companies will make enough units next time instead of this manufactured scarcity strategy.

[Greyroofoo]

Is there a link or anything to the original report?

[SackAttack]

Snag 2 Wii's next shipment and send em to me. :)

I don't even know when the next shipment will BE, let alone have the money to snag two and send them to you. :)

[SirFozzie]

Here's a full story on it:

hxxp://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17260768/

It's probably available for a fee from the NPD Group site

[dawgfan]

I'm really enjoying the Wii I bought, and I don't yet have a 360 or a PS3, but I am beginning to wonder about the long-term appeal of the Wii. The games like Wario Ware and Wii Play, along with 3rd party games like Rayman are an entertaining, original take on how a controller can be used for gameplay, but they are also somewhat limited in terms of lifespan - outside of firing them up as party games, none of those games are ones that I see myself playing much anymore. Zelda is fun, but I'm still waiting to see if more traditional console games make a fun adaptation to the Wii controller scheme.

Right now, I'm looking at the Wii as a fun, party-game console and will probably pick up a 360 for my more hard-core gaming fix. The great part is I'll have spent about the same amount for both of those as I would buying a PS3...;)

[gstelmack]

Right now, I'm looking at the Wii as a fun, party-game console and will probably pick up a 360 for my more hard-core gaming fix. The great part is I'll have spent about the same amount for both of those as I would buying a PS3...;)

I suspect this is accurate. Wiis are good for party games, casual gamers (which is a huge market), and young kids. The 360 and PS3 are fighting for the hardcore crowd. I suspect that among gamers with families, the Wii + (360 or PS3) setup will continue to gain momentum.

[wade moore]

I suspect this is accurate. Wiis are good for party games, casual gamers (which is a huge market), and young kids. The 360 and PS3 are fighting for the hardcore crowd. I suspect that among gamers with families, the Wii + (360 or PS3) setup will continue to gain momentum.

It will be interesting to watch software sales in conjunction with the hardware sales... we all know that's "where the money is made"... potentially the Wii will have lower software sales if this is true, as I imagine that casual gamers and party gamers will have less games for their console than the hardcore gamers.

I don't know if this is how it will play out, but I think it's certainly possible.

[Raiders Army]

You can play porn on the 360 and PS3.

[ageofquarrel]

You can play porn on the 360 and PS3.

You do know that the wii can connect to the internet?

[EagleFan]

The most telling stat is that the 360 is also outselling the PS3. The 360 has been out for over a year and is outselling the new kid on the block, which is usually where the demand is. The Wii outselling it shows that gamers actually may want more than just pretty graphics but want something fun to play.

Down the line I would like to get a Wii / 360 combination. That way I have the more hard core system in the 360 and the fun family system in the Wii.

[ISiddiqui]

It will be interesting to watch software sales in conjunction with the hardware sales... we all know that's "where the money is made"... potentially the Wii will have lower software sales if this is true, as I imagine that casual gamers and party gamers will have less games for their console than the hardcore gamers.

I don't know if this is how it will play out, but I think it's certainly possible.

The interesting thing in software is to see how third party developers are dealing with the new system. EA has used it in Madden so far in an interesting way. Most developers may be more comfortable with the traditional console interface of the 360/PS3. Right now the Wii doesn't have all that many games (so the software sales aren't all that hot compared to, say, a system like the 360 whose library has been growing a bunch lately), so we'll have to see what happens.

[SackAttack]

The interesting thing in software is to see how third party developers are dealing with the new system. EA has used it in Madden so far in an interesting way. Most developers may be more comfortable with the traditional console interface of the 360/PS3. Right now the Wii doesn't have all that many games (so the software sales aren't all that hot compared to, say, a system like the 360 whose library has been growing a bunch lately), so we'll have to see what happens.

Wii's software library is mostly a function of a lot of developers following EA's early lead, which can be summed up in three words: "missed the boat."

Now that they're scrambling to get back on board, I'd imagine you're going to see other developers follow suit...but games don't spring fully formed from Zeus' noggin.

[Kodos]

Maybe the slow sales will force Sony to lower the price sooner than they were planning.

I hardly ever get to play my 360 or PS2, so I can wait. :) Besides, outside of Resistance, there is little reason to want a PS3 right now.