PS3 outsells Wii in Japan for the first time

Sony Playstation 3 overtook the Wii from Nintendo for the first time in Japan, thereby taking a vision that Sony will dominate in the global video market.

Playstation 3 which was launched a year ago sold about 183,217 PS3 consoles in Japan in November, thereby beating Wii sales which sold around 159,193 consoles according to a game magazine. The game industry was dominated by Sony for about a decade with previous editions of Playstations but had to lose its prestige to the Wii with its new technology of motion sensor in the control unit.

With this, a whole new range of games were opened which helped in expanding the gaming population beyond users of young males to women and elderly. “Wii Sports” which is one of the most popular game titles for the Wii, allows grandparents to have a tennis match with their grandchildren.

The latest data fortified PS3, but was too early to paint a picture for Sony, said analysts. One of the analyst of KBC securities said that outside Japan he didn’t see PS3 being successful as it was more expensive and contained less software.

Some months had stiff competition. About 5-6 times as many Wii sold as PS3’s in Japan. Wii has been a challenger to the Microsoft Xbox 360 console. PS3 had a scarcity of game titles and high price tag, but now Sony has launched more games and the prices have been reduced.

Sony said that sales have boosted by a new mid-range model with a 40 GB hard disk drive. On Saturday, in Japan, Nintendo will be launching a home fitness game called “Wii fit”. The new game features a pressure sensing mat called “Wii Balance Board,” which can sense when a person moves, which enables players to head virtual soccer balls on a TV screen.

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December 2, 2007 | Filed Under Gaming, Tech News