US console charts: August 28-September 4

Via Gamestop

When Saints Row was first shown off at the unveiling of the Xbox 360 during an MTV special, its resemblance to Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series was more than apparent. As further details and screenshots of the game came to light, the word "resemblance" was replaced with "carbon copy." And now that THQ's gangsta-themed sandbox game is out, critics have even said the game looks like a "Grand Theft Auto rip-off," while reviewing the game positively.

Well, if you're THQ, there's one place you really want Saints Row to mimic Rockstar's best-selling franchise--in the sales charts. That's exactly what the game did on Best Buy's sales charts for the week of August 28 to September 4. The Xbox 360 game took the top slot in its first week in retail, pushing even the almighty Madden NFL franchise down from its usual throne.

Madden wasn't standing idly on the sidelines, though. The pigskin sim held four of the top-10 rungs, down from its dominating seven from the previous week. The Xbox version came in second, followed by the PlayStation 2 (fourth), Xbox 360 (eighth), and PlayStation Portable (10th) editions. Madden's collegiate cousin, NCAA Football 07, showed its longevity, as the PS2 version of the game rushed into sixth.

New Super Mario Bros. recovered from its tackling and double-jumped back into familiar territory in third, up from 10th the previous week. Where there's Mario, there's Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day--the edutainment title held fast in ninth. Another Nintendo icon, Fox McCloud, made his debut on the DS last week and landed in fifth with Star Fox Command.

Rounding out the top-10 list was another debut, From Software's Enchanted Arms for the Xbox 360, which took seventh.

Best Buy console charts: August 28-September 4, 2006

1 Saints Row
Platform: X360
2 Madden NFL 07
Platform: XBOX
3 New Super Mario Bros.
Platform: DS
4 Madden NFL 07
Platform: PS2
5 Star Fox Command
Platform: DS
6 NCAA Football 07
Platform: PS2
7 Enchanted Arms
Platform: X360
8 Madden NFL 07
Platform: X360
9 Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day
Platform: DS
10 Madden NFL 07
Platform: PSP

Well its not a surprise why Xbox is dominant(sort of) in the North Americas....lol

They need it in order to survive since they dont compete with Sony and Nintendo in japan. LMAO

Too bad those numbers aren't for the Handhelds only. I can see those 3 DS games being high on the list, since there's a lull in strong PSP titles, and they are ok games if you're a new DS Lite owner. Personally, I think even a generic game like Crash Bandicoot Racing OWNZ the lot of them. :P

I guess those numbers don't reflect Loco Roco sales either. That game is AWESOME! I hope it's charm isn't lost on an American audience, lost in games of gang violence and serial Ogre abuse (I'm talking to You, Oblivion!)