Platform holders respond to NPD data

Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony have issued statements following the release of NPD US sales data for November.

Yes, Nintendo's winning again, with their products accounting for nearly 80 per cent of all hardware sales. Nearly 60 per cent of consoles sold were Wiis, and 66 per cent of handhelds sold were DS units.

More than 2 million Wii and 1.56 million DS machines were shifted during November. That means lifetime sales for Nintendo's home console have now topped 15 million in the US, while the figure for DS stands at 24.6m.

The most popular first-party game of the month was Wii Play, with nearly 800,000 units shifted. Wii Fit followed (697,000) along with Mario Kart (637,000) and Wii Music (297,000, "following its long-tail trend", according to Nintendo).

"Shoppers are looking for gifts that can be enjoyed by the whole family," said Nintendo exec Cammie Dunaway, who recently bought herself a new house made of diamond bricks. "Nintendo provides an incomparable range of experiences that gets the whole family involved." Money can't buy grammar, you see.

Microsoft was also feeling pleased with itself, pointing out that the Xbox 360 "outsold PS3 and PS2 combined" during November with 836,000 units shifted. Apparently it's got a "2 to 1 sales advantage", according to NPD figures "and Microsoft internal data".

In Europe, sales of Xbox 360 were up 124 per cent year-on-year. For Wii that figure stands at 43 per cent, noted Microsoft, while for PS3 it's just 3 per cent.

Each Xbox 360 owner possesses eight games, on average, giving the console the best software attach rate. Third-parties have made more money out of Xbox 360 software than games for Wii and PS3 combined. Top-selling games during November included Gears of War 2 (1.6 million units shifted) and Fable 2 (184,000).

"We've created the optimal line-up of experiences this holiday season for families," said Don Mattrick, who is meeting Cammie Dunaway in the car park later for a fight 3.30 no blades.

"We have the largest library of games, TV and movie content and the most expansive and rewarding social experiences."

Sony's press release leads by highlighting the "strong sales momentum" of PS3, with hardware sales experiencing year-to-date growth of 60 per cent. Total hardware revenue was only up by 9 per cent though.

More than 1 million PlayStation consoles were sold during November, up 93 per cent over the previous month. The PS3 figure of 378,000 units was described as "solid". Software's doing well, with 3.5 million games sold during the month and year-to-date growth of 150 per cent.

The number of PSPs sold during November stood at more than 420,000 units, while 206,000 PS2 consoles were shifted. Over all, the PlayStation "brand" earned Sony USD 663 million.

There's no executive quote on Sony's press release. Perhaps Jack Tretton and Kaz Hirai are too busy barbecuing turkey burgers and chilling here on the deck.