The research company NPD Group released data for U.S. sales of gaming consoles: 335,000 Wiis, 228,000 Xbox 360s, and 127,000 PlayStation 3s. The Wii continues to outsell all other consoles in the short term but has a ways to go to catch up to Microsoft in terms of total sales. Latest cumulative figures for U.S. sales for the big three: 5.1 million Xbox 360s, 1.9 million Nintendo Wiis, and 1.1 million PlayStation 3s.
Microsoft is definitely aware of Nintendo’s rapid growth and is trying to counter with more mainstream games, such as the release of Guitar Hero 2, which was a huge hit on the PlayStation 2. David Hufford, a spokesman for Microsoft, said, “I think Guitar Hero is really the first that will break out more into the mainstream and resonate with millions of people… It’s the beginning of our broadening campaign.”
And speaking of the PlayStation 2, it was actually the second best-selling console in February with 295,000 units sold in U.S. stores (mostly due to its very attractive $129 price tag).
Also, for those of you keeping score on worldwide sales, Microsoft had already mentioned that it broke the 10 million mark with the Xbox 360, but those numbers include some consoles that are stilling sitting on store shelves around the world. NPD Group’s figures focus on consumer sales in the U.S. only.
Later this year, Microsoft will release its latest sales-boosting weapon: Halo 3. All these numbers tell me that gaming is still on the rise and the console war is far from over.