Saling The World: Soulcalibur IV Debuts High in Worldwide Charts

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 July 31st, 2008, see Soulcalibur IV top weekly Xbox 360 and PS3 software sales in the U.S. and Japan, while Phantasy Star Portable leads overall Japanese cross-platform results. 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. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 2. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 3. Rock Band Special Edition (EA Games), 4. Wii Play (Nintendo), 5. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo). Japan: 1. Zero: Gesshoku no Kamen (Nintendo), 2. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 3. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 4. Boom Blox (EA Games), 5. Tales of Symphonia: Ratatosk no Kishi (Namco). UK: 1. Wii Fit (Nintendo), 2. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo), 3. Carnival Funfair Games (2K Games), 4. Wii Play (Nintendo), 5. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo). Mario Kart Wii takes a first-place sales finish in North America this week, following several weeks of chart dominance from Wii Fit. Both titles remain out of stock at many retailers throughout the U.S. and the UK, but maintain a high level of demand despite their rarity. In Japan, the Grasshopper Manufacture-developed Fatal Frame sequel Zero: Gesshoku no Kamen tops Wii sales in its first week of release, while Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit trail close behind. Xbox 360 North America: 1. Soulcalibur IV (Namco Bandai), 2. College Hoops 2K8 (2K Sports), 3. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 4. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 5. Call of Duty 3 -- Platinum Hits (Activision). Japan: 1. Soulcalibur IV (Namco), 2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 3. Bully (Bethesda), 4. Ninja Gaiden II (Tecmo), 5. The Idolm@ster -- Xbox 360 Platinum Collection (Namco). UK: 1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 2. Soulcalibur IV (Namco Bandai), 3. Halo 3 (Microsoft), 4. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 5. Rock Band (EA Games). A major turnaround is seen in this week's North American Xbox 360 charts, where last week's sales leader NCAA Football 09 drops out of the top five suddenly as popular recent releases and discounted titles take over in its place. Namco Bandai's fighter sequel Soulcalibur IV comes out on top in its debut week, while 2K's College Hoops 2K8 and Call of Duty 3 find a resurgence in popularity after seeing discounts at Amazon. Soulcalibur IV also sees a big debut week in Japan, emerging as the week's biggest 360 seller overseas. Bully and Guitar Hero III rank as its biggest competitors in Japan, while Grand Theft Auto IV and Halo 3 remain strong sellers in the UK. PlayStation 3 North America: 1. Soulcalibur IV (Namco Bandai), 2. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (Konami), 3. Resistance: Fall of Man (SCEA), 4. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 5. Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft). Japan: 1. Soulcalibur IV (Namco), 2. Siren: New Translation (SCEI), 3. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots -- Special Edition (Konami), 4. Tears to Tiara: Kakan no Daichi -- Limited Edition (Aqua Plus), 5. Senjou no Valkyria (Sega). UK: 1. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (Konami), 2. Soulcalibur IV (Namco Bandai), 3. Buzz! Quiz TV with Buzzers (SCEE), 4. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar), 5. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (SCEA). Soulcalibur IV takes top honors on the PlayStation 3 this week as well, overtaking long-time chart-topper Metal Gear Solid 4 in weekly sales numbers in North America and Japan. Resistance: Fall of Man and Assassin's Creed also find new U.S. popularity this week after being rereleased as part of Sony's budget-priced "Greatest Hits" lineup. Japan and the UK likewise find Soulcalibur IV debuting high in its worldwide premiere week. Last week's Japanese sales leader Siren: New Translation is pushed to second place in regional sales, while the UK charts show Metal Gear Solid 4 as the week's winner. PlayStation 2 North America: 1. Rock Band Special Edition (EA Games), 2. Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection (Konami), 3. God of War II (SCEA), 4. God of War (SCEA), 5. Rock Band Track Pack: Vol. 1 (EA Games). Japan: 1. Persona 4 (Atlus), 2. Jikkyou Powerful Pro Yakyuu 15 (Konami), 3. Sengoku Basara X (Capcom), 4. Bully (Bethesda), 5. Kanokon: Esuii -- Limited Edition (5pb). UK: 1. FIFA 08 (EA Sports), 2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle (Activision), 3. Lego Indiana Jones (LucasArts), 4. Kung Fu Panda (Activision), 5. High School Musical (Disney). Konami's series compilation Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection makes a return to the United States' PS2 chart this week after a long absence, due to high demand and a previous shortage of supply. The restocked title nearly eclipses the popularity of long-running chart leader Rock Band Special Edition, though Rock Band and its recently released expansion Rock Band Track Pack: Vol. 1 remain top sellers in this week's results. Little surprise is seen in this week's Japanese sales results, which find Persona 4 and Jikkyou Powerful Pro Yakyuu 15 still holding on to their spots atop the region's chart. PC North America: 1. Nancy Drew: The Phantom of Venice (Her Interactive), 2. World of Warcraft Battle Chest (Blizzard), 3. The Sims 2: IKEA Home Stuff (EA Games), 4. The Orange Box (EA Games), 5. Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword (2K Games). Japan: 1. Monster Hunter Frontier Online Season 3.0 Premium (E-Frontier), 2. Pandora Saga Starter Package (E Frontier), 3. Little Busters (KEY), 4. Ragnarok Online Summer Package 2008 (E-Frontier), 5. Final Fantasy XI: Vana'diel Collection (Square Enix). UK: 1. Football Manager 2008 (Sega), 2. The Sims 2: IKEA Home Stuff (EA Games), 3. Crysis (EA Games), 4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision), 5. The Sims 2: FreeTime (EA Games). With Amazon's Blizzard-themed sale now over, Nancy Drew: The Phantom of Venice retakes the top sales position in this week's PC sales results in the United States. Warcraft Battle Chest still remains a popular choice at full price, however, while the recently sales-energetic Diablo Battle Chest finishes just outside of the top five. Nintendo DS North America: 1. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo), 2. Mario Kart DS (Nintendo), 3. Final Fantasy IV (Square Enix), 4. Brain Age (Nintendo), 5. Brain Age 2 (Nintendo). Japan: 1. Rhythm Tengoku Gold (Nintendo), 2. KORG DS-10 (AQ Interactive), 3. Dragon Quest V: Tenkuu No Hanayome (Square Enix), 4. Daigasso! Band Brothers DX (Nintendo), 5. Dokidoki Majo Shinpan! 2 DUO -- Limited Edition (SNK Playmore). UK: 1. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (Nintendo), 2. More Brain Training (Nintendo), 3. 42 All-Time Classics (Nintendo), 4. Sight Training (Nintendo), 5. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo). Demand for Final Fantasy IV seems to have cooled after its first-place chart debut last week in North America, leaving chart favorites New Super Mario Bros. and Mario Kart DS to reclaim the region's top sales spots. The week also brings the downfall of Guitar Hero: On Tour, which finishes outside of the U.S. top five for the first time since its initial release earlier this month. Rhythm Tengoku Gold leads Japanese DS software demand in its first week of release, meanwhile, topping the previous week's chart headers KORG DS-10 and Dragon Quest V. PlayStation Portable North America: 1. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (Square Enix), 2. Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions (Square Enix), 3. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (Rockstar), 4. Tekken: Dark Resurrection (Namco Bandai), 5. God of War: Chains of Olympus (SCEA). Japan: 1. Phantasy Star Portable (Sega), 2. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (Capcom), 3. Gundam Battle Universe (Bandai), 4. Tengai Makyou Collection -- PC Engine Best Collection (Hudson), 5. Ginga Ojousama Densetsu Collection -- PC Engine Best Collection (Hudson). UK: 1. Lego Indiana Jones (LucasArts), 2. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (Square Enix), 3. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Konami), 4. Call of Duty: Roads to Victory (Activision), 5. God of War: Chains of Olympus (SCEE). Final Fantasy again dominates this week's North American PSP sales chart, with Crisis Core and the discounted Final Fantasy Tactics leading this week's results by a significant margin. Tekken: Dark Resurrection enters the top five again after several weeks' absence, while the recent and popular God of War: Chains of Olympus drops down to fifth place. The Monster Hunter-styled Phantasy Star Portable sees an enthusiastic reception in Japan this week, emerging as both the PSP's top software seller and as the biggest-selling title across all platforms. The PC Engine-born Tengai Makyou Collection and Ginga Ojousama Densetsu Collection also see a strong debut week, while Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G and Gundam Battle Universe provide ample chart competition.