Mario Kart Stuck In Traffic Atop UK Charts

With no major releases until Wii Fit and Grand Theft Auto IV later in the month the UK sales charts have ground to a halt, with the top three titles remaining unchanged from the previous week. Nevertheless, Mario Kart Wii enjoyed a strong second week, with sales dropping by only 22 percent. Gran Turismo 5: Prologue on PlayStation 3 remained static at number two, the only title not for either the Wii or Nintendo DS in the top ten. As well as success for Nintendo in general, the top ten is also dominated by Japanese developed and/or published titles, with prominent releases from Nintendo, Sega, Sony and Konami all continuing to perform well. One partial exception is Sega Superstars Tennis, developed by UK team Sumo Digital, which rises eight places this week to number four on the back of new retail promotions and renewed television advertising. Also benefiting from prominent advertising, is lightgun hardware bundle Time Crisis 4 for the PlayStation 3 at number eighteen. The highest new entry of the week though, at number sixteen, is mini-expansion pack Kitchen & Bath Design Stuff for the PC version of The Sims 2. Also new this week is UEFA Euro 2008, an adaption of Electronic Arts’ FIFA 08 to tie-in with the imminent European Football (soccer) Championships. Despite positive critical reaction, the game’s success may be encumbered by the fact that none of the UK home nations have qualified for this year’s tournament. The Xbox 360 version of the game was the highest ranking at number twenty, with the PlayStation3 version at number twenty-five. Total sales for all versions of the title charted as highly as number eight in the combined format charts. Overall in the top forty this week, there were eleven titles each on the Nintendo DS and Wii, eight on the Xbox 360 (the highest being Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 at number eleven), six on the PlayStation 3, three on the PC, one on the PSP and zero on the PlayStation 2.

Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C)2008. ELSPA Ltd