325,000 Wii Consoles Sold In Europe

After announcing initial figures for the UK, Nintendo of Europe has claimed that a total 325,000 Wii consoles have been sold in Europe as a whole in the format's first two days on sale. The company claims that these figures make the Wii the fastest selling in home console history. As in North America, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess proved to be the most successful launch title with 240,000 copies sold over the launch weekend, representing 74 percent of all hardware purchasers. Wii Play, released so far only in Europe and Japan, was the second most popular with over 50% of console owners purchasing the game, which is bundled with a second Wii remote. Nintendo of Europe also revealed that the Nintendo DS had a record selling week, with 515,000 units sold across Europe last week. This represents the highest week’s sales since the portable console’s launch and the most any console has ever sold in a week in Europe. The portable console’s European installed user base is now put at 8.5 million consoles out of roughly 30 million worldwide. European marketing director Laurent Fischer commented, “Wii has become an overnight success in Europe with people of all ages rushing out to get their hands on the console. Even at this early stage it is clear that Wii is delivering on its promise to expand the gaming market, with a uniquely diverse audience all keen to experience the sensation for themselves." He added, "For those who were unable to buy Wii during the launch weekend, rest assured more stock is already on its way and we are doing everything possible to ensure that a steady supply of Wii units is shipped to stores across Europe throughout December and into 2007.”