Wii Defies Recession as PS3 Plummets

December 12, 2008 By Nick Mokey

Wii Defies Recession as PS3 Plummets

Nintendo set records this November with 2 million Wii systems flying off shelves, while Sony saw PS3 sales slide by an agonizing 17 percent.

While the rest of the world copes with widespread recession and economic turmoil, thick-skinned Nintendo set a new United States sales record in November, with more than 3.6 million Wii and DS systems sold.

According to NPD Group, Nintendo’s November Wii sales of 2 million exceed what the system has ever sold in a non-December month, even outshining last year’s performance in a decidedly cheerier economy, and its November launch back in 2006. The new numbers bring total Nintendo Wiis sold up to 15.4 million in the U.S.

Meanwhile, Sony’s more-expensive PlayStation 3 has seen the opposite performance in the face of economic decline, seeing sales fall from 466,000 last year to just 378,000 this year during the month of November, marking a 17 percent decline.

For its part, Microsoft managed to forge ahead like Nintendo, selling 836,000 units, up from 777,000 last year.

Showing 5 comments

Greg at 7:42pm 12th December 2008 I am with Roy, Sony should have just came out with a PS3 without the Blu-ray player. Then it would have been more affordable.

For the price, sure the PS3 is a bargain IF you want a movie player too. But most gamers don't.
Roy at 12:52pm 12th December 2008 The PS3's problems aren't just lack of games (though that is a massive part of the equation), it's that the Wii has broken wholeheartedly in the mainstream market and the PS3's otherwise OK sales seem pathetic by comparison. Also, it's obvious that the public has a serious issue with a game system costing as much as a household appliance.
James at 11:20am 12th December 2008 I can promise you if there were enough good games on it, more people would buy it though...
Kevin Bush\ at 11:02am 12th December 2008 No, the problem with Sony, is that they price their systems extremely high, while most people are not willing to drop the cash for such a gadget/device. There's a typical niche group, but you need to work some pricing strategies, when you're up against two other big names, competing for the same markets.
James at 10:06am 12th December 2008 The problem with Sony is there are very few games coming out for it.