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.