Saling The World: Mario Kart, Monster Hunter Lead Japan Sales

Gamasutra's weekly column, "Saling The World", covers the top five sellers for every available platform in the United States, Japan, and Europe according to real-time Amazon.com data, providing an important update of sales patterns worldwide. This week's charts, with data taken from April 10th, 2008, find Japanese Wii sales headed by the recently released Mario Kart Wii, while a rereleased God of War II finds new popularity in the United States. Data for "Saling The World" comes courtesy of the public sales information on Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, and Amazon.co.jp, with sales split out for each platform and territory, and pre-orders disregarded. This results in a true sense of what games are selling worldwide on the real-time updated service, as follows: Nintendo Wii North America: 1. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 2. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo), 2. Wii Play (Nintendo), 4. Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo), 5. No More Heroes (Ubisoft). Japan: 1. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 2. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 3. Dairantou Smash Brothers X (Nintendo), 4. Wii Sports (Nintendo), 5. Deca Sporta (Hudson). UK: 1. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega), 2. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami), 3. Carnival Funfair Games (2K Games), 4. Wii Play (Nintendo), 5. Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo). A drop in price at Amazon brings new demand for the Wii port of Guitar Hero III, which places first in this week's Wii software sales results in North America. This marks the first time that Super Smash Bros. Brawl has failed to take the region's top weekly sales spot since its initial release in early March. Elsewhere, Mario Kart Wii tops multiplatform preorder sales in the UK, and debuts as the week's single best-selling console title in Japan. Xbox 360 North America: 1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 2. Rock Band Special Edition (MTV Games), 3. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (Ubisoft), 4. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 5. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision). Japan: 1. Turok (Touchstone), 2. The Idolm@ster: Live for You! (Namco), 3. Armored Core: For Answer (From Software), 4. Skate (EA Games), 5. Dark Sector (D3 Publisher). UK: 1. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (Ubisoft), 2. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 3. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 4. Devil May Cry 4 (Capcom), 5. Viking: Battle for Asgard (Sega). After some minor chart disruption last week, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is back at the top of Xbox 360 sales in the United States. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 jumps up a spot from its fourth-place finish last week, while the bundled version of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock returns to the top five at fifth place. Last week's sole debuting Japanese title, Turok, leads in this week's Japanese Xbox 360 chart, meanwhile, as Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and Halo 3 see a successful week in the UK. PlayStation 3 North America: 1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 2. Rock Band Special Edition (MTV Games), 3. MLB 08: The Show (SCEA), 4. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 5. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (Ubisoft). Japan: 1. Pro Yakyuu Spirits 5 (Konami), 2. Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan! (Sega), 3. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 4. Armored Core: For Answer (From Software), 5. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision). UK: 1. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (SCEE), 2. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 3. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 4. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (Ubisoft), 5. Formula One Championship Edition (SCEE). Only a few days remain until the North American release of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, and its prerelease popularity is reflected in this week's PS3 sales results at Amazon. Though Prologue once again leads weekly U.S. PS3 sales by preorder strength alone, Call of Duty 4 takes top sales honors among all titles currently available in stores, followed closely by Rock Band and MLB 08: The Show. PlayStation 2 North America: 1. God of War II (SCEA), 2. Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection (Konami), 3. Arcana Heart (Atlus), 4. Rock Band Special Edition (MTV Games), 5. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision). Japan: 1. Musou Orochi: Maou Sairin (Koei), 2. Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch - Lost Colors (Bandai), 3. Pro Yakyuu Spirits 5 (Konami), 4. Musou Orochi: Maou Sairin -- Premium Box (Koei), 5. Shinkyouku Soukai Polyphonica 0-4 Hanashi Full Pack (Prototype). UK: 1. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 2. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 3. WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2008 (THQ), 4. SingStar Legends (SCEE), 5. High School Musical: Sing It! (Disney). God of War II returns to North American PS2 charts this week after recently being rereleased as part of Sony's "Greatest Hits" line of budget-priced software. The drop in price drives the title to a first-place finish, despite its long absence from the region's weekly best-seller charts. The niche 2D fighter Arcana Heart also makes a surprise appearance in this week's North American sales results with an impressive third-place debut, while demand for Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection remains strong in its third week of release. PC North America: 1. World of Warcraft: Battle Chest (Blizzard), 2. World in Conflict (Sierra), 3. Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties (Microsoft), 4. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 5. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision). Japan: 1. Clannad Full Voice (Key), 2. Infinity Plus (CyberFront), 3. Vocaloid 2 Character Vocal Series 01: Hatsune Miku (Crypton Future Media), 4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 5. A Ressha de Ikou 8 (ArtDink). UK: 1. Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath (EA Games), 2. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War -- Soulstorm (THQ), 3. The Sims 2 (EA Games), 4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 5. Football Manager 2008 (Sega). Recent top-five favorites like Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath and Sins of a Solar Empire are nowhere to be seen among this week's top PC sellers in North America. Instead, regional sales are headed by a trio of last year's most popular releases. World in Conflict, World of Warcraft: Battle Chest, and the Age of Empires III expansion pack The Asian Dynasties all see boosted sales in the wake of a series of PC software discounts at Amazon. The recently released PC port of Assassin's Creed still manages an impressive showing in its first week of release, meanwhile, as Kane's Wrath and Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War -- Soulstorm top sales in Europe. Nintendo DS North America: 1. Final Fantasy III (Square Enix), 2. Professor Layton and the Curious Village (Nintendo), 3. Brain Age 2 (Nintendo), 4. Brain Age (Nintendo), 5. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo). Japan: 1. DS Bimoji Training (Nintendo), 2. SimCity DS 2 (EA Games), 3. Tottadoo! Yoiko no Mujintou Seikatsu (Namco), 4. Vitamin X Evolution (D3 Publisher), 5. Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side 2nd Season (Konami). UK: 1. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (Nintendo), 2. Solitaire DS (Deep Silver), 3. 42 All-Time Classics (Nintendo), 4. Puzzle League DS (Nintendo), 5. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega). North America's weekly DS chart rivalry between New Super Mario Bros. and Professor Layton and the Curious Village is interrupted this week by Square Enix's DS remake of Final Fantasy III, which tops sales following an Amazon-sponsored "Deal of the Day" price drop. Professor Layton manages a decisive victory over New Super Mario Bros. otherwise, as Mario falls to fifth place in favor of Brain Age and its sequel. PlayStation Portable North America: 1. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (Square Enix), 2. God of War: Chains of Olympus (SCEA), 3. Patapon (SCEA), 4. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (Konami), 5. Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection (Crave). Japan: 1. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (Capcom), 2. Star Ocean: The Second Evolution (Square Enix), 3. Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch - Lost Colors (Bandai), 4. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd (Capcom), 5. Umihara Kawase Portable (Marvelous). UK: 1. God of War: Chains of Olympus (SCEA), 2. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami), 3. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (Rockstar), 4. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 5. WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2008 (THQ). This week's PSP sales results in North America remain mostly unchanged from last week's, as Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII continues to edge out God of War: Chains of Olympus in a weekly battle for chart leadership. The budget-priced Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection makes an unexpected appearance in the top five, meanwhile, as high demand and positive word-of-mouth bring big sales numbers for the reportedly difficult-to-find pinball compilation. In Japan, Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G and Star Ocean: The Second Evolution remain at the top, while the SNES platformer/puzzler remake Umihara Kawase Portable debuts at fifth place.