Nintendo sells 21 million DS systems worldwide

by Blake Snow { Jul 24th 2006 at 1:00PM }

The Big N announced today in a press release that the company sold "more than 21 million DS systems" in less than two years since it was first released on November 21, 2004. Vying to follow if not outdo Apple's mp3 hottie, the iPod, Nintendo said, "by comparison, Apple shipped one million of its ever- popular iPod music players in its first 19 months."

The company attributes the success to "Nintendo's overall strategy of offering something for everyone -- from five-year-olds... to 65-year-olds." Would it be a problem for Nintendo's marketing message (and their upcoming Wii strategy) if the system merely sold well to gamers?

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

bob @ Jul 24th 2006 1:05PM

to answer your question...maybe?

dickweed @ Jul 24th 2006 1:07PM

Nintendo might be in trouble if they only target gamers, specificaly old school gamers.

If I was Nintendo, I'd go for a diverisifed Wii portfolio just like the DS.

Slestak @ Jul 24th 2006 1:11PM

The iPod comparison is a bit unfair -- they have a higher price point and require a bunch of other junk (computer, iTunes, broadband) to really take advantage of.

Nevertheless, props to the Big N. I love my DS Lite like your mom loves Twinkies.

caller @ Jul 24th 2006 1:12PM

I think their success is due to their well budgeted evangelists (joystiq for example) rather large campaign of disinformation. Most notable and most common being that their competition has no games.

duscrom @ Jul 24th 2006 1:15PM

Hey, remember, that's 21 Million SHIPPED, not SoLD.

Probot @ Jul 24th 2006 1:17PM

"Hey, remember, that's 21 Million SHIPPED, not SoLD."(duscrom)

From the press release: "Nintendo has sold more than 21 million Nintendo DS™ systems worldwide."

I don't know if that's true, but Nintendo likes to use in-the-hands-of-consumers numbers.

Kabraxis @ Jul 24th 2006 1:19PM

duscrom it says sold not shipped dumbass

MetaHuman @ Jul 24th 2006 1:19PM

AGH Nintendo, WTF with the Apple comparison? You don't need it. :(

In my opinion, the industry will have become complacent if they only decided to rely on established gamers. I would not be the gamer I am today if I hadn't recieved my NES as a gift for Christmas. :P

However, focusing on more 'complex' considerations, the industry needs to always market to EVERYONE. Games are for everyone, as well as there are games that aren't made for everyone. To enjoy the latter however, EVERYONE has to be marketed to in some way.

The image of the gamer would benefit if the industry itself would be more tolerant for variety and appreciation for new perceptions. Even embracing an extremist like Jack Thompson would do wonders.

While I do agree a tiny bit that Nintey's not entirely genuine in this regard because they are a business (which is why I hate the iPod comparison), it is something I believe is possible.

DBX00 @ Jul 24th 2006 1:20PM

Why is it such a suprise that Nintendo is doing well in the handheld market? As history has shown, it doesn't necessarily translate into home console success.

Zo� K. @ Jul 24th 2006 1:20PM

caller,

You seem to... to have... what is that? There's something on your shoulder. What IS that? Looks almost like a... like a chip, of some kind. May or may not be ruffled, but I'd venture to guess it is.

.ed @ Jul 24th 2006 1:28PM

@ caller

It's not the press that isn't buying PSP... its the entire market.

as stated many times before, DS has over 12 million seller games... PSP had 3.

In every territory people have prefered DS, you can't blame the press saying people don't buy PSP because the press says there are no games for it... when you walk into a store to buy either you are met with a wall, a demo unit and accessories for each.. and seriously, the psp has bigger floor space everywhere i go...

Stop blaming the reactive press/bloggers for reporting on numbers that exist SOLEY based on what consumers have decided was the best choice for them.

or you can go buy 17 Million PSPs to try and help it catch up.

caller @ Jul 24th 2006 1:33PM

ed.

this blog is not the press, it is a blog.

striderhayasa @ Jul 24th 2006 1:34PM

DS sales over 20 million? Wow, why so few? Oh well, maybe they'll catch to the comptetition next year....oh wait...

@DBXOO

I guess success in the console market doesn't translate into success in the portable market either.

existonfile @ Jul 24th 2006 1:37PM

In Japan, there is no difference between shipped and sold. Cause every DS that hits store shelves is sold right away. Congrats to Nintendo for the milestone, now give us gamers in USA Mother 3!!!

Cabbage @ Jul 24th 2006 1:40PM

I don't know where you do your shopping .ed, but at my local Wal-Mart the PSP has very little space at all. They have about half of one of those glass case things, with the bottom half being used for Eye-Toys and other Playstation 2 accessories. DS and GBA combine to make up the rest of that wall (3 or 4 glass doors if I remember right). There are maybe six or eight UMD movies hanging out next to the giant fake PSP.

DBX00 @ Jul 24th 2006 1:44PM

striderhayasa

When did 34% of the handheld market for a new entry not count as a successful product? By those standards, the XBOX wasn't a successful console. I'm personally a fan of both machines, but realistically the PSP came out later and will have a longer product life cycle than the DS. In the long haul, the race may be closer than it is today. It's just ridiculous that people think that the person that dominates the market is the only player in town. Business just doesn't work like that folks.

Zo� K. @ Jul 24th 2006 1:45PM

I will say this to those who can't seem to remove that chip from atop their shoulders: the PSP is not near the failure that people make it out to be. No other company has come this close to taking Nintendo's dominance of the handheld market by storm.

I can guarantee you that we probably wouldn't have the DS in the form it is today (or any at all) if not for the PSP. They could have been content to sit on their Game Boy brand, but they didn't because they knew Sony, a formidable foe, was coming to try and shake the portable market. Sony has made mistakes along the way, sure, but this is their first portable game system. They deserve a little slack.

And why gamers should care that Sony's handheld is in "second place" to Nintendo's still boggles my mind. Some actually take it personally (see caller, comment #4). Both systems are still going fairly strong, and both still recieve good support, so why does it matter which system is allegedly better? It comes down to preference. Some people, like myself, prefer to have both. Some go with one or the other. Why should it turn into a game of "my **** is bigger than your ****"?

Having said all that, I don't know why talk of PSP keeps making it into DS articles and vice versa. It's pretty obnoxious.

shivr @ Jul 24th 2006 1:54PM

From what I've observed: at walmart the PSP gets 1 case for games, one for movies, usually not right next to each other, and the DS gets one case, GBA gets one case. Last saturday I want to the Gamestop in the mall though, and PSP had at least 2 wall sections right next to the entrance, and the rest of the wall was PS2, while the xbox/360 had like, an entire half of the store(WTF?), and the ds had a tiny half wall in the back corner right next to the gamecube corner. And they didn't even have Meteos, which was what I was lookin for -_-

Robotic House Plant @ Jul 24th 2006 1:54PM

From a manufacturer's perpective, shipping = sold. They make the sale as soon as it ships. Sold is more relevant to merchandiser selling the product.

If we were talking actual sold numbers, it would never end evenly. It would be like 21,139,459 sold! Instead they round the shipping numbers, and from Nintendo's perspective it's a sale once they ship it.

It's not a huge deal. I really don't care ship vs sold, other than that's A LOT of units out there. Nintendo has done an amazing job.

Jay @ Jul 24th 2006 1:59PM

The Wii has already won.

I've been saying this since the start. Sony are shrinking their target market, Nintendo are expanding. You tell me which makes the most business sense? Microsoft, yet again seem to be the middle man. trundling along as if nothing has happened.

ps. I like the 360 just incase the mob jump on me.

caller @ Jul 24th 2006 2:01PM

Zoë K.

Why have you taken such an intrest in me today? Did I ruffle your feathers? I think it's funny that the PSP is doing as well as it is w/o the evangelists on the pay roll (must make folks like you nervous).

BTW, the chip you so desperatly tried to put on my shoulder didn't stick.

digitalFrequency @ Jul 24th 2006 2:08PM

well if the target is the 'gamer', then that's already elminates everyone else so it's reasonable to assume that nintendo wouldn't have as much sales as it does now... however, i still think the nintendo ds would've been just as successful if not slightly less.

the reason why i say that is because i don't think nintendo has quite captivated the non-gamer market yet. if you take out brain age and nintendogz (games which i'd imagine are popular among the non-gamer consumer), and you're still left with games like mario kart, new mario brothers, advance wars, tetris.

the problem does seem to come in where nintendo seems to produce 'old-school' style games. we've seen em all before, but here's a couple new handy new features and it ships off. fortunately, for nintendo, this seems to be working well so far.

for the nintendo wii, what nintendo needs to do is encourage or somehow spark the creativity among game designers (1st and 3rd party) to produce unique games that people wouldn't have seen coming... games like this on the DS would include trauma center: under the knife and phoenix wright (exception that phoenix wright was already glorified in its gba version).

it might be no surprise that smash brothers brawl, super mario galaxy, zelda twilight princess, and other old school games glorified in next gen become successful and immediate favorites, but is it going to be because they have that 'old-school' feel? would these games be as popular now if they were released with absolutely no history (i.e. first zelda game, first mario game)? if the answer to that is good, then it may turn out that nintendo might captivate the new generation of gamers despite the reuse of old characters.

if nintendo targets the wii towards gamers only though, i think it'll lose the edge much more than it would if it were the nintendo ds, because i think the xbox360 and the ps3 are more suitable products for the gamer audience... whether it be the solid 3rd party support or the solid online system.

however, i can't really totally assume that as i've seen polls where the nintendo wii is favored for next gen (of course as well as ps3 and xbox360).

i'm a gamer myself, but i'm siding with the wii this fall. i'd really love to have all 3 because they have their own distinct advantages, but the wii will be the first next gen system i'll be owning. then in time i'll pick up the ps3 and the xbox360.

Zo� K. @ Jul 24th 2006 2:10PM

caller,

Folks like me? What makes these folks like me, per se? Is it because I'm tired of hearing you come into DS-themed articles and whine about how this is inferior to PSP or that is inferior to PSP?

Just because I find you obnoxious doesn't mean I dislike the system. I sold my PSP long ago, but I have made plans to buy another in the near future, so the systems really have nothing to do with it. I just find you to be fairly ignorant and petty, so I call you on it. Quite simple, really.

kcgb @ Jul 24th 2006 2:12PM

While there there have been many similarities between Nintendo and Apple, the comparison between the first 19 months of the DS with the first 19 months of the iPod, is a very poor one. iPods were only available on macs for their first year, and they weren't bundled with a decent software until well after the 19 month mark. Also over the last 19 months the iPod has well outsold the DS.

However in terms of handheld console sales the DS totally owns. I can understand why Nintendo would want to put their DS in the same kind of popular light as the iPod, but there really is no need to.

caller @ Jul 24th 2006 2:13PM

"I'm tired of hearing you come into DS-themed articles and whine"

Please be so kind as to post some examples of me doing this.

Lorben @ Jul 24th 2006 2:15PM

Unless I'm getting bad numbers from wikipedia...

The number of DS systems sold outnumbers the number of Gamecubes sold.

That is rather impressive.

MetaHuman @ Jul 24th 2006 2:20PM

"Some go with one or the other. Why should it turn into a game of "my **** is bigger than your ****"?"

You know, there are some people wouldn't prefer to have both. You said that, yet you told someone who expressed simple disagreement to shut up. Effectively, your **** is more important than Caller's ****.

Personally I hate Sony, I don't make a huge deal about it to others.

riffgod @ Jul 24th 2006 2:20PM

I don't think so. I think even if the DS was only accepted by gamers, then all sorts of gamers would jump on board. I believe the same to be true for Wii.

I think that non-gamers realistically have to be the next market to shoot for. MS is taking their steps and doing it quite well with the XBL casual games. The problem they still face is the casual gamers forking out that pricetag for a 360. However, the folks at Nintendo are old pros at this. They caused quite a few people to start playing video games and purchasing console system some 25 years ago. Nintendo is set to do this again. With all that we've seen of the new systems so far, Nintendo is the only company that seems to understand what it takes to get those who don't play to buy a system.

The same goes for the DS. Nintendo has been putting out portable for quite some time now and they know what their portable needs to have in order push units. Like we've heard some folks at Sega say, never underestimate Nintendo.

N-ZERO @ Jul 24th 2006 2:23PM

Robotic house Plant and others who just dont really know what they're talking about. Okay who told you robotic house plant that shipping=sold. Let me just say no that is not true. Sold means when you sell your product TO CONSUMERS and the market tells your company how much units they have sold of YOUR PRODUCT. Shipped means when a store buys your product but at a lower price point then the orginal price so lets say they buy some DS units but they get each unit at lets say 60 bucks then they upscale so the store makes profit and also Nintendo gets money too. Their is a difference between shipped and sold. Just trying to inform you that you were wrong. you can't post things that you aren't really sure about with out investigating it first from a reliable source.

turtleboy @ Jul 24th 2006 2:24PM

All this post is saying is wow look at Nintendo selling all those ds units. I can't for the life of me see why people are so upset about that. Get over it please. I'm a nintendo fan and I'm not gong to cry that the ps2 outsold the gamecube. What the hell is wrong with people that they freak out over a post like this. For those of you who are pissed off about this post take some Zoloft or something will ya.

UNCCShannon @ Jul 24th 2006 2:24PM

This is proof of how Nintendo is taking the other road of gaming to gain support. Companies, like Sony, look at gaming from the PC realm, that is how can we get more power out of the box. Nintendo is taking the approach they have for decades, how can we change gaming for the next-generation, by that I mean how can Nintendo advance gaming in a different direction.

Handheld gaming has always been a screen and buttons. Nintendo has always had success in the handheld market and with Sony's entrance in the market they felt that there had to be a new approach so that the market wouldn't run dry. I have a number of friends who own PSPs and feel that they just lack something. I personally do not have either a PSP or a DS, but feel that DS has something that the competition can't offer, yet.

Nintendo usually does well at changing the face of gaming (console and handheld) and the DS is proof of that and I think and believe that Wii will do the same.

MosquitoControl @ Jul 24th 2006 2:26PM

"When did 34% of the handheld market for a new entry not count as a successful product? By those standards, the XBOX wasn't a successful console. "

While that's normally true, isn't the PSP sold for a loss? If it is, I sincerely doubt it is selling the kind of software needed to make that back. In which case it is arguably not successful.

Was the Xbox successful? Again, arguably, depends on how you define success. It was a huge financial loss for Microsoft. But Microsoft wasn't looking at it as something to make money so much as advertising. They just wanted their name out there and a presence in the living room. If the 360 doesn't make money, though, the success of the Xbox division can really be called into question.

LoOpey @ Jul 24th 2006 2:30PM

So funny how the ps2 killed the gc, and nintendo fans shrug it off, yet the psp has shipped 17 million units and the Ds has sold just over 20 million units, and nintendo fanboys talk about the psp as if its dead.

Well Lol @ Anyone who thinks the ds has won already, or that the ds will beat the psp the way ps2 destroyed gc. And lol at anyone who thinks the wii will beat ps3 or 360 based on this outcome.

What I find funny is this. The psp has yes, only shipped 17 million units, but at current the ds (all versions) has sold just over 20 million markets.

Now atleast think for a second that stores order games consoles they can sell, they order what they need, so the shipped figure cant be relly far off from the actual sales, a maximum of 2 million less and that is bieng very negative/unfair on the psp.

Also the ds is selling well pretty much all the time, so i would say to be fair we can put an extra 2 million extra sales on the current ds lite & ds and on ds sales.

So the psp is probably sold 15 million and the ds has sold probably 22 million.
Now lets think for a second that is 7 million units diffrence, do you not belive that sony can make 7 million units gap?

The psp 2 hasnt been relased yet, so you can never trully know whats gonna happen. Better psp games are finnally ariving, but some of the best ds franchises are already out, all thats left is zelda and ff3 remake.

Now that umd movies is dead, sony will focus on games. What happens when the protable mgs, grand turismo, ratchet and clank, ico game come out. Remeber that grand turismo has been the best selling game for 2 generations of gaming, on top with gt1 with the ps1 era, and gt3 aspec with the ps2 era. Even gran turismo 4 has sold 7 million copies.

Ds fans should actually be worried,this is a 5 year race, a 7 million lead is not that much, especially when most of the best franchises are already out.
The psp has sold this well with hardly any graet games out, when the titles start to flood in, the sales will increase, ds fanboys have shown remarkable confidence with hardly that great advantage.
Remebr also that psp has sold either above the ds or neck and neck with the ds in every other region. It is only japan that has made this perception that the psp has died, even though it sells more than every other console/handheld then the ds lite.

If you think the psp is dead be ready to see a ressurection, because 7 million more sold units is not game over, at all.

The ds has better games without a doubt over the psp, hell i own one, and it has certainly sold more than ds, im not trying to deny it. But dont allow seeing he week in week out sales of the ds to suddenly shape this perception in your head that the psp is dead.
Were only 2 years in right now, we still have 3 years to go.

Also dont forget ms portable is coming and we will see if the ds, can still carry on as no1 with 2 other competitors in the market.

Sea @ Jul 24th 2006 2:30PM

As much as we 'hardcore gamers' would like to believe that we are the majority, we probably make up less than 10% of the video game buying demographic, which means our opinions are rather moot.

Funny how it's never the most powerful or most expensive system, and consequently the most coveted by hardcore gamers, that ends up winnning its respective console/handheld war. Good luck PS3.

Zo� K. @ Jul 24th 2006 2:34PM

caller,

#4 on this page:

"I think their success is due to their well budgeted evangelists (joystiq for example) rather large campaign of disinformation. Most notable and most common being that their competition has no games."

You may not consider that whining, but again, that would be your opinion. I'm sure many others would gleefully disagree.

#11 on the DS web browser article:

"How pathetic. DS'ers should evolve and get a PSP (it has a built in browser)."

It may very well be pathetic. I could probably be bothered to agree. However, there are things that don't need to be said. This is one of them.

#25 on that same page:

"HINT: the PSP's browser supports flash."

Again, good for the PSP. Why that belongs in the comments of that article is beyond me.

#36 on that same page:

"Zoë K, you asked how my mention of the PSP's support of Flash had anything to do with this article and I responded by stating that it is a good alternative (heck it has a built in browser).

"This makes you shoot expletives like assholes? Maybe you should see a doctor about that insecurity."

This was, of course, in response to me... so it really doesn't count, but damn if it isn't whiney. And wrongfully so, as you completely misunderstood me.

In any case, I feel I have done worse for Joystiq than maybe you have by indulging in this circus, so this will be my last reply to you. Figured I may as well give you what you wanted before I did, though, so you didn't cry foul. You know, more whining.

Karen @ Jul 24th 2006 2:39PM

Lorben
"The number of DS systems sold outnumbers the number of Gamecubes sold."

I think your correct with that statement. That is very interesting considering the DS has only been out for only what 18 months. Software sells hardware.

Congradualtions Nintendo as a thank you to your customers, how about releasing a Mother/Earthbound DS collection :P

Tarik @ Jul 24th 2006 2:45PM

http://www.macobserver.com/article/2006/07/19.13.shtml

Apple sold 8.1 million Ipods last fiscal quarter, and a press release:

http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2004/jan/06ipodmomentum.html

They only had 2 million sold before christmas 2005. The holiday season last year showed the Ipod to be the "must have" item, along with the XBox 360...except, no one could find an XBox.

I bring these points up to underscore the almost-idiotic success of the DS. The DS is a dedicated game-player. Not an mp3 player, or video player or whatever other crap they crammed into the PSP.

People were buying Ipods when they were called Walkman (Sony 1990's FTW!), and then when they were called CD-players or Rio's (I still remember seeing a 64meg mp3 player, and needing to change pants).

Anyway, people need to understand that 1. It is SOLD...read the article...if someone says shipped 1 more time, they're going to get a PSP thrown @ their face, since that's about all they're good for these days.

I really do not see how the PSP is going to "bounce back" against the DS here. With its UMD movies dropped by most major retailers, and its Memory Stick being a more expensive proprietary format (anyone remember Betamax?), plus its miniscule consumer base comparative to the DS, it's laughable to think it's going to catch up.

Oh wait! It's coming out in white! At this point, the DS has had a complete retrofit (phat to lite) and is available in about...5 colors...don't bitch that you can't find non-white in the US. I ordered a pink DS lite for my girlfriend's birthday, it shipped on the 21st, and I received it this morning...for only 179...

And...they're just getting started. Granted, the Opera browser blows (yes, it blows, 3 minute load times = gAyOL), but that's where most wi-fi browsing is these days.

All nintendo needs to do to secure its dominance over the next-gen wars, is to ensure Sonic and most/all Sega characters, like Knuckles and the Streets of Rage crew and the Golden Axe peeps are playable in the next-gen Super Smash Brothers...if they do that, I can only say one thing...

Mario vs. Sonic FTW!!

Zo� K. @ Jul 24th 2006 2:53PM

MetaHuman,

I'm sorry to have confused you. The comment I left for caller was in relation to more than simply what he has said on This page. I can see where the confusion would arise from that. Like I said before, it's all a matter of preference, and I don't feel I went back on that. I also don't recall telling Anyone to "shut up." I'd love to see that one.

I, personally, am a Nintendo fan. I always have been. I don't like Sony's business models and practices. However, these are My preferences, and I don't let them blind me. I think both systems have very redeeming qualities and very hindering faults. I may prefer one to the other, but I do not mock those who don't make the same choice I do. As such, I abhor those who Do. People like Mr. or Ms. caller.

shoop008 @ Jul 24th 2006 2:59PM

Shipped and sold are two different things. In many cases big stores have agreements with movie and game companies to provide shelf space and to sell at a certain price. If they do not sell as well as expected the company must buy back the product from the retail store, or agree to sell it at a lower price. Most game software and hardware is sold at a very low margin at retail outlets. The store's margin on a game might be 10%, the margin for a system may be 5% if they are lucky.

daniel @ Jul 24th 2006 3:01PM

so its already overtaken the gamecube in half the time and almost passed the xbox thats a lot of ds's

Clint @ Jul 24th 2006 3:02PM

The only have to sell about 80 million more to catch up with the PS2.

Robotic House Plant @ Jul 24th 2006 3:09PM

Thanks for the explanation, but I do understand the difference between shipped vs. sold. I was talking about it depends on your perspective. Who sold what to whom.

If Nintendo ships 100,000 units, they're actually selling 100,000 units to a distributor. The distributor may even resell the product, depending on the circumstances. Distributors send the product to retail, where it's up the consumer if they want to purchase the product or not. It's not like this is the point where Nintendo makes the sale. It's the retail store that makes the sale. If they sell enough, they ask the distributor for more units. If the distributor needs more units, they ask Nintendo to ship them more, which Nintendo then sells them.

Tracking actual units sold it a tricky situation. To achieve that, you would have to have sales data from all retail. There is no all inclusive listing of all retail sales, at least not in the US. Retail is competive you won't see Best Buy or Circuit City (etc etc) releasing actual sales numbers if they can help it. What is done instead, is there are research firms which look at a percentage of sales from certain markets and they estimate total sales based on formulas.

As far as shipping is concerned, Nintendo knows exactly how many they shipped. Whether or not they choose to release such information is up to them. Typically it's not a item you see released. More often than not though, you end up with research companies providing you with 'estimates' on what they believe were sold, based on the limited information they have and calculations they perform.

Anyway, I wouldn't get too caught up on the whole shipped vs sold thing. What I thought was more imporant was how well Nintendo is doing.

Mohan @ Jul 24th 2006 3:21PM

It's a fun system to have, and not that expensive. I got mine when the DS Lite launched and have 5 games for it already.

Watership @ Jul 24th 2006 3:45PM

Do you know how many people I know have both DS's? The original and lite? Its INSANE. I bet it's millions.

striderhayasa @ Jul 24th 2006 3:46PM

@DB

It's like this

Sony talked all the big talk, Sony fans and pro Sony sites talk about eminent doom for the DS and Nintendo. anyone that was an early adopter of the DS was seen as an idiot because of the perceived victory that was already Sony's based on the console market.

See my problem is, it's cool to tow the partyline in regards to Sony (pro-sony). What many of these mental giants can't seem to grasp is Sony dominates the console market because of the games available. The portable market illustrates what Nintendo fans have known for decades.....Nintendo is a better developer than Sony, period. PSP needed superior first party support. Where is it?

Look at the present DS is rocking the charts and it's only going to get better as time goes on and yet, many of the same PSP fans are saying "second place is not so bad." That's not what Nintendo fans had to put up with DS launched, it was the opposite along the lines of " Sony owns". I applaud Nintendo for laying the smack down. I hope for more from the Wii.
Sony is a fraud. Third party support is what drives sales for the PS2. That same third party support is there for the PSP but what have they done other get "me-too-port itis". If Sony had to carry a launch on their own, they would fail miserably.

Nintendo deserves the credit and the kudos because they are great at what they do, I'd say they're some of the best at what they do and the numbers prove it.

Second place is first loser....suck it up.

Zo� K. @ Jul 24th 2006 4:02PM

I don't know why there's an argument over this.

Yes, units shipped to retailers is money in Nintendo's pocket, but hypothetically, if those retailers don't sell that product to consumers, the "units sold" numbers begin to eat away at the "units shipped" numbers simply because retailers don't want the product anymore. So the shipping dies down.

They are numbers that obviously play off of one another, so why do we argue about it?

MrD @ Jul 24th 2006 4:18PM

#21

Do DS and DS Lite sales skyrocket every time someone posts a blog or an article about it online (I say online, because I see very few magazine articles about it)?

Yes, I'm sure all these DS sales are because of internet blogging sites like Joysiq. Or maybe it's because of real reasons...

rubaiyat @ Jul 24th 2006 4:35PM

@8

I honestly think its a dig at Sony and their "iPod killer".

I think it out of place, but I think that's a partial reason for the statement.

DBX00 @ Jul 24th 2006 4:37PM

striderhayasa

There's no doubt that Nintendo has Sony beat with first party franchises, but that doesn't negate the point that third party support exist and drives success in the home console market. Sony would never have to carry a launch on their own because that's not their business strategy. They've realized that they aren't capable of creating the diverse game offering consistently to satisfy consumer demand. There's no doubt that Sony has dropped the ball with first party support for the PSP, but that doesn't mean that as the product life cycle continues that won't change. We'll see how this console war plays out in 3 years toward the end of the life cycle. Sony's strength is in developing hardware; Nintendo has proven that they can't keep up to speed in pushing the envelope on hardware, but have superior software offerings on the handheld. Everyone needs to calm down and stop screaming victory before the war is over. Never underestimate your opponent whether it is Microsoft, Nintendo, or some newcomer.

In addition, 2nd place is NEVER failure, in the home console or handheld market. The gamecube and XBOX weren't failures in the last generation and the PSP isn't a failure simply because it hasn't sold as many systems as the DS to date. It's irrational for anyone to think that you're going to just jump into a new market and dominate on your first attempt.

The problem is that everyone judges a company based on what fanboys run around screaming or the latest rumor on the internet. Who cares if some random guy says the PSP is going to kill the DS before the product launches? Even if the PSP doesn't live up to the hype of some fanboys, doesn't mean that it hasn't created a niche in a market that once was a monopoly.