Wii U sales jump in wake of price cut, increased by 200 percent in September
It looks like Nintendo's Wii U is finally getting the shot in the arm it needs: according to the latest numbers, the console's sales jumped 200 percent last month. The company points to the Wii U's August price drop and the introduction of a limited-edition Legend of Zelda bundle for the increased interest, the former of which parrots the company's success with cutting the 3DS' original price back in 2011.
Nintendo optimistically says that the sales boost only measured the first 15 days of the new price, but NPD's numbers tell a different story, reporting that "sales were up over 100% on an average per-week basis from August 2013." Neither outfit defined the base number the contested multiplier is working from, however. At least one thing's for sure: the 3DS is still selling like hotcakes, outpacing all other hardware for the month of September -- not bad, considering that it was also the first month in almost three years that the PlayStation 3 outsold the Xbox 360.
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Nintendo 3DS Repeats at No. 1, Wii U Responds Following Price Cut
Nintendo enters the critical holiday selling season with strong momentum, as Nintendo 3DS finished as the best-selling video game system in the U.S. for the fifth consecutive month and Wii U enjoyed new momentum following a price cut.
On Oct. 15, Nintendo revealed that Pokémon X and Pokémon Y, which launched globally on Oct. 12, combined to sell more than 4 million units worldwide during its first two days on the market. A full breakdown of U.S. sales for the games, as well as the new Nintendo 2DS handheld, which launched on the same day, will be included in next month's NPD report. In addition to the latest Pokémon adventure, Nintendo 3DS fans have two exciting games on the horizon, both launching on Nov. 22: The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and Mario Party: Island Tour.
On Sept. 20, Nintendo reduced the price of the Wii U Deluxe Set by $50 to a suggested retail price of $299.99 and introduced a limited-edition bundle that features a download code for a digital copy of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD. Sales of Wii U hardware in September increased by more than 200 percent over sales in August, and that is with only 15 days of data being reported at the new price. Over the next few weeks and months, Wii U fans can look forward to playing Wii Party U (Oct. 25), Wii Fit U (Nintendo eShop, Nov. 1) Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games (Nov. 15) and Super Mario 3D World (Nov. 22).
*Data regarding physical sales of games in September are from the NPD Group. Data regarding digital downloads of games and combined physical/digital life-to-date numbers are from Nintendo's internal sales figures. All numbers, unless otherwise stated, are specific to the United States only.
September NPD – Biggest September for Xbox 360 Software Sales
This month, Xbox 360 reached 80 million consoles sold to retailers worldwide* and maintained its lead as the number one selling console in the U.S. in 2013.
September 2013 NPD highlights:
Last month marked the biggest September software sales for Xbox 360, with sales reaching $401.2 million, the most for any console in the U.S. (Source: NPD Group, September 2013)
Xbox 360 continues to see strong consumer demand with an amazing lineup of titles. In fact, Xbox 360 held five of the top 10 console games during the month of September including: "Grand Theft Auto V," "FIFA 14," "Madden NFL 14," "Diablo III" and "NBA 2K14." (Source: NPD Group, September 2013)
Xbox 360 remains the number one selling console in the U.S. in 2013, with 1.6 million units sold this year. (Source: NPD Group, September 2013)
Xbox 360 is poised for another successful holiday with recently announced Xbox 360 holiday bundles available worldwide at select major retailers. The three holiday bundles are:
Xbox 360 250GB Holiday Bundle with "Halo 4" and "Tomb Raider" as well as one month free of Xbox Live Gold available for $249.99** USD (ERP).
Xbox 360 4GB Kinect Holiday Bundle with "Kinect Sports: Season Two" and "Kinect Adventures" as well as one month free of Xbox Live Gold available for $249.99** USD (ERP).
Xbox 360 250GB Kinect Holiday Bundle with "Kinect Sports: Season Two," "Kinect Adventures," and "Forza Horizon" as well as one month free of Xbox Live Gold available for $349.99** USD (ERP).
This holiday only, the Xbox 360 4GB Console is available for an incredible value of $179.99** USD (ERP). Now is the time to get a great deal on Xbox 360.
Looking ahead to Xbox One launch, we continue to see overwhelming demand for the console with pre-orders for Xbox One selling out quicker than any previous Xbox release; Xbox One pre-orders continue to outpace Xbox 360 pre-orders in the same time period. While we remain on track to honor all pre-order commitments, we do expect to sell every Xbox One we deliver to retail this holiday.
With the release of Xbox One, amazing new titles coming to Xbox One and Xbox 360 and best-ever holiday offers available for Xbox 360, it's going to be a great year for Xbox.
*Internal Microsoft data
**Games inside marked packages, while supplies last. Estimated retail price; actual prices may vary.
See participating retailer for details.
