Wired
The launch of Nintendo DSi propelled total U.S. sales of DS hardware to over 1 million units in the month of April 2009, the NPD Group reported on Thursday. Meanwhile, sales of nearly every other game console fell versus April 2008. Wii sold only 340,000 units compared to 714,200 last year, although it is still the top-selling home machine by a wide margin.“It is important to remember that last April, Wii hardware sales were fueled by two huge new titles: Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Kart. Taking that into account, Wii unit sales are still very strong,” said NPD analyst Anita Frazier in a statement.
WII NOTCHES UP 50 MILLION SALES
Variety:
The Nintendo Wii console will pass the 50 million worldwide sales mark this month, setting a new game console record. The Wii is set to hit the milestone two years and four months after launch, eight months faster than previous record holder, Sony’s PlayStation 2. The Wii console has lured million of gamers of all ages with the Wii Fit, Wii Sports and other software that even beginners with no interest in traditional games can enjoy.
TEACHERS INVITE ‘WII MUSIC’ INTO THE CLASSROOM
MSNBC:
You might play games with your kids at home. But would you send your kids to school to play video games? Eileen Jahn, who teaches music in Newark, N.J. is one of 60 music educators around the country that have begun to integrate “Wii Music” into their regular curriculum. “They are giddy with excitement when they walk into the room and see the Wii set up,” Jahn wrote in an e-mail. “Their aural skills are improving with every lesson, and they have developed rhythmic and improvisational skills as well.”
Nintendo Wii, DS drawing women, seniors to gaming
KING 5:
Contrary to the stereotype of the young slacker video gamer, a new study has found that the prototypical gamer is now as likely to be a woman as a man. A study by market research publisher Packaged Facts says thanks to the Nintendo Wii and DS systems, the gamer population now includes 25 million adults in the 55 and older age bracket, 13 million retirees, and 28 million grandparents. Packaged Facts says the introduction of the Wii and DS systems brought a slew of gaming options developed for the mass consumer and those who would not typically regard themselves as gamers into a marketplace once dominated by hardcore gamers.
