Saling The World: Professor Layton, Apollo Justice Impact DS Charts in U.S.

Gamasutra's weekly column, "Saling The World", covers the top five sellers for every available platform in the United States, Japan, and Europe, providing an important update of sales patterns worldwide. This week's charts, with data taken from February 21st, 2008, see the adventure genre leading on the Nintendo DS with Professor Layton and the Curious Village and Apollo Justice, while Sins of a Solar Empire climbs to the top of PC software sales in North America. 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. Wii Play (Nintendo), 2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 3. Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo), 4. Carnival Games (2K Games), 5. Winter Sports: The Ultimate Challenge (Conspiracy). Japan: 1. Dairantou Smash Brothers X (Nintendo), 2. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 3. Winning Eleven Play Maker 2008 (Konami), 4. Family Ski (Namco), 5. Wii Sports (Nintendo). UK: 1. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega), 2. Wii Play (Nintendo), 3. Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo), 4. PDC World Championship Darts 2008 (Oxygen), 5. Carnival Funfair Games (2K Games). Post-holiday restocks may have finally arrived for many of the Wii's most popular titles in North America. Previously difficult-to-find releases like Guitar Hero III, Carnival Games, and Wii Play all appear in this week's chart results, and if supplies hold out, all three titles are likely to chart in future weeks as well. In Japan, Konami's Winning Eleven Play Maker 2008 debuts to sales numbers that approach Wii Fit's weekly take, while Dairantou Smash Brothers X remains the region's top Wii seller. Xbox 360 North America: 1. Rock Band (MTV Games), 2. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 3. Rock Band Special Edition (MTV Games), 4. Lost Odyssey (Microsoft), 5. Halo 3 (Microsoft). Japan: 1. BioShock (Spike), 2. Burnout Paradise (EA Games), 3. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 4. Devil May Cry 4 (Capcom), 5. The IdolM@ster -- Xbox 360 Platinum Collection (Namco). UK: 1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 2. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 3. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 4. Gears of War (Microsoft), 5. Mass Effect (Microsoft). Both the regular and bundled versions of Rock Band receive sales boosts on the Xbox 360 this week at Amazon. A recent "Deal of the Day" sale price for the standalone version proved popular enough to place the title at the top in weekly Xbox 360 software sales, while both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 bundled editions receive a smaller temporary discount. Meanwhile, Japan finds new chart leadership in a pair of Western releases, with BioShock and Burnout Paradise topping regional sales after their debut earlier this week. PlayStation 3 North America: 1. Rock Band Special Edition (MTV Games), 2. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 2. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 3. Time Crisis 4 (Bandai Namco), 4. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft), 5. Devil May Cry 4 (Capcom). Japan: 1. Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (Capcom), 2. Devil May Cry 4 (Capcom), 3. Burnout Paradise (EA Games), 4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 5. Makai Senki Disgaea 3 -- First Print Limited Edition (Nippon Ichi). UK: 1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 2. Burnout Paradise (EA Games), 3. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami), 4. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (SCEE), 5. Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction (SCEE). A price drop for the peripheral-bundled edition of Rock Band drives the title to finish first in this week's PS3 software sales at Amazon. Time Crisis 4 returns to the charts this week after a similar discount, though if its previous chart showing is of any indication, Amazon customer interest is likely to fall sharply once the promotion ends. Elsewhere, Capcom's port of Lost Planet: Extreme Condition arrives to take first place in weekly PS3 sales in Japan, as Call of Duty 4 overtakes Burnout Paradise in the UK. PlayStation 2 North America: 1. High School Musical: Sing It! Bundle With Microphone (Buena Vista), 2. Rock Band Special Edition (MTV Games), 3. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 4. Guitar Hero II Bundle (Activision), 5. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Activision). Japan: 1. eb!Kore + Kimikiss Special Edition (Enterbrain), 2. Suzumiya Haruhi no Tomadoi -- Limited Edition (Banpresto), 3. Lucky * Star -- DX Pack (Kadokawa Shoten), 4. NiGHTS into Dreams (Sega), 5. Last Escort 2: Shinya no Amai Toge (D3 Publisher). UK: 1. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar), 2. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 3. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 (EA Sports), 4. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 5. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami). North America's PS2 sales results are dominated by the rhythm genre for the second week in a row, with Rock Band and Guitar Hero III continuing to wage a close battle for chart positions. This week's chart is headed by the microphone-bundled version of Disney's High School Musical: Sing It!, which sees a surge of interest after a discount in price at Amazon. In the UK, the three-year-old Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas finishes first in Amazon's PS2 charts after a steady climb in sales over the last few weeks, likely as a result of the building anticipating for the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV. PC North America: 1. Sins of a Solar Empire (Stardock), 2. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 3. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (Blizzard), 4. The Orange Box (EA Games), 5. SimCity 4: Deluxe Edition (EA Games). Japan: 1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 2. Winning Post 7: Maximum 2008 (Koei), 3. Vocaloid 2 Character Vocal Series 01 -- Hatsune Miku (Cripton Future Media), 4. Final Fantasy XI: Altana no Kamihei (Square Enix), 5. Monster Hunter Frontier Online Season 2.0 Premium Package (Capcom). UK: 1. The Sims 2 (EA Games), 2. Football Manager 2008 (Sega), 3. The Orange Box (EA Games), 4. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (Blizzard), 5. World of Warcraft (Blizzard). After finishing second in North American PC software sales twice in the weeks following its release earlier this month, Stardock's real-time strategy title Sins of a Solar Empire climbs up to take top honors in this week's sales results. Given its impressive sales performance in the face of competition from PC favorites like Call of Duty 4 and The Orange Box, Sins of a Solar Empire is likely to remain a strong chart force in future weeks. Nintendo DS North America: 1. Professor Layton and the Curious Village (Nintendo), 2. Brain Age 2 (Nintendo), 3. Brain Age (Nintendo), 4. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo), 5. Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney (Capcom). Japan: 1. Sekaiju no Meikyuu 2: Shoou no Seihai -- Limited Edition (Atlus), 2. Sekaiju no Meikyuu 2: Shoou no Seihai (Atlus), 3. Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side 2nd Season (Konami), 4. Bokujou Monogatari: Kira Kira Taiyou to Nakama Tachi (Marvelous), 5. Populous DS (EA Games). UK: 1. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega), 2. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (Nintendo), 3. 42 All-Time Classics (Nintendo), 4. Sight Training (Nintendo), 5. Professor Kageyama's Maths Training (Nintendo). Professor Layton and the Curious Village tops North American DS software sales for the second week in a row after its recent debut. Sales for the title have remained consistent throughout the week, and show no signs of slowing down in the foreseeable future. Capcom's fellow adventure title and Phoenix Wright series successor Apollo Justice also makes a big sales impression this week, and could remain in the top five in future weeks if demand continues. In Japan, the Etrian Odyssey sequel Sekaiju no Meikyuu 2: Shoou no Seihai debuts this week to take first place in sales, and stands likely to remain at the top for some time to come, given the long-running popularity of its predecessor. PlayStation Portable North America: 1. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (Konami), 2. Tekken: Dark Resurrection (Namco Bandai), 3. Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions (Square Enix), 4. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (Rockstar), 5. Daxter (SCEA). Japan: 1. Musou Orochi (Koei), 2. Kidou Senshi Gundam: Giren no Yabou - Axis no Kyoui (Bandai), 3. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd (Capcom), 4. Maplus: Portable Navi 2 (Edia), 5. Makai Senki Disgaea Portable: Tsuushin Taisen Hajimemashita (Nippon Ichi). UK: 1. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 2. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (Rockstar), 3. The Simpsons Game (EA Games), 4. Sega Mega Drive Collection (Sega), 5. Final Fantasy (Square Enix). North American PSP software sales remain almost unchanged from last week's results, save for the odd intrusion of Namco Bandai's Tekken: Dark Resurrection, which manages to find its way back into the platform's top five on an irregular basis. As was the case last week, the bulk of PSP sales continue to be devoted to upcoming releases like God of War: Chains of Olympus, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII and Patapon, all of which will see release within the next month.