Wii outselling rivals

A rise in the number of Wii units dished out to retailers has lead to chocolate-like popularity of the console this Easter, with Nintendo telling GamesIndustry.biz it had sold more than 25,000 last week in the UK alone.

Leaked Chart-Track figures showed that 17,000 PlayStation 3 units were shifted during the same period, while the figure for Xbox 360 stood at 11,000. A spokesperson for Chart-Track declined to comment on the data.

According to a Nintendo spokesperson, "Last week was Wii's third biggest sales week since launch. Everything we are shipping, we are selling."

The spokesperson conceded that the figure was boosted by the availability of more stock than usual last week, stating, "Sales in previous weeks weren't as strong as 25k. More units are shipped some weeks than others."

However, he added, "We are making regular shipments, and we are consistent."

The spokesperson went on to say that the Easter holiday was a major factor in the high figure for Wii units sold. "Easter was the catalyst for the spike in sales," he said. "It's a traditional gifting week and that was definitely a contributing factor, along with the fact that there was more stock than usual."

It's still not clear when the Wii stock shortages will end - as the spokesperson observed, "Demand for the console is clearly huge and is exceeding supply." However, he added, "We are doing everything we can to get as much stock out there as possible."