Wii is on track to outsell PlayStation 2, while PS 3 is on par with GameCube sales

Nintendo has gone from worst to first in consecutive console releases, with Sony doing exactly the opposite this generation. A closer look at collective data released by the NPD Group, the official tracker of U.S. video game sales, reveals the stark reversal of roles.

Based on the first 26 months of availability, the Wii is on its way to becoming the best-selling console of all time, a title currently held by the PlayStation 2, which has sold more than 50 million units in America and an estimated 140 million worldwide. In just over two years, the Wii outsold the PS2’s comparable initial sales by 10 percent, according to the NPD. That is, in the first 26 months of the Wii, Nintendo sold 17.5 million Wiis while Sony sold 15.9 million PS2s in the U.S. in the first 26 months of sales. If the sales pattern holds, we expect Nintendo to sell 55 million Wiis in America by 2014 and 154 million units worldwide.

By comparison, the PS3 sold 6.79 million units in the U.S. during the same initial 26-month period, compared to 6.75 million GameCubes, which finished a distant third last generation and forced Nintendo to rethink how it sold video games. Microsoft, for its part, sold 9.2 million Xbox 360s in the U.S. in its first 26 months, trailing Nintendo in a faraway second by a margin of 2 to 1 — the same position the company held last generation. But Microsoft has improved its fortunes: its latest machine sells 18 percent faster than its predecessor, according to NPD figures, and even turned a profit, something the original Xbox never did.

Worldwide numbers will likely follow the same pattern — as it did last generation — but reliable numbers are hard to come by.

While good news for Nintendo, all is not lost for Sony. In the previous generation, the GameCube was profitable for Nintendo, even if it failed to meet expectations. And it was home to dozens of well-received games. What’s more, the PS 3’s graphics are so good that the machine is expected to have a longer shelf life than the GameCube. Lastly, it is quite possible that Sony will have a profitable generation with the PS 3, since the game audience as a whole is much bigger now than in past generations. That means this larger audience can sustain three profitable console companies.

But the chances of the PS3 making any kind of comeback are becoming increasingly remote, if not impossible, because — let’s face it — numbers don’t lie.

http://venturebeat.com/2009/01/19/wi...amecube-sales/

The PS3 is going to need to turn around soon or settle for third, true. I still think it's quite possible for the PS3 to grab second place (no way to catch up to the Wii now, though).

First, if the rumored price cut materializes, even by $50, that'd help a lot. But it will have to be accompanied by an advertising push, one that brings out all the different things the PS3 does. Not just Blu-ray - they need a clip of a motion-control game like High Velocity Bowling, just to show the Wii doesn't have a total monopoly on that. Show it displaying YouTube videos. All that stuff.

Then another ad that compares the cost of the PS3 vs. Xbox + add-ons.

And an ad that talks about the exclusives coming up on the PS3 - Killzone 2, etc.

Given that, Sony's got a shot. Absent that, no way.

Wii and PS3 shouldnt even be compared. This whole thing is just ridiculous, but this kind of article so typical of an overly self-important console sceneon the internet.

The former is a cheap, gimmicky, novelty console practically a whole generation lower than the PS3 - a full entertainment media centre capable of PC style utility, but in a price range which reflects that. - hardly something the GameCube could boast is it?

I Think the PS3 will fair better that the cube (sales wise) in the end. Also I don't think the Wii will Beat the PS2 total sales. I think eventually the bubble will burst with the Wii and the sales will drop fast. Having said that I'm have been surprised the Wii has done so well for so long.

I am pretty surprised that Wii has been on top for so long, but i dont believe it will beat the sony playstation 2... Sony have made alot of mistakes with the PS3 and they better turn around soon or Playstation could end up from the top of the bunch to the bottom..

The Wii will remain the best seller of this generation, and outsell the previous generation.

An interesting fact I foundout last week, was that Nintendo are the only company in the console market making a profit on their consoles. For every Wii sold in the U.S. it is said that Nintendo make $6 profit, whereas SONY and Microsoft are at a loss with each console they sell.

So all in all, Nintendo are definitely going to be on top at the end of the current market in which Nintendo will make all the profits ($1million per every 166,666 consoles sold). :cool:

Only piracy can boost ps3 sales