Top 10 Selling Games of 2008: Nintendo Crushes All
- Categories: Games, News
- Date: Jan 1, 2009 13:12 JST
- Tags: Capcom, DS, Monster Hunter, Nintendo, PSP, Rankings, Statistics, Wii
The top ten selling games in the Japanese market of 2008 are sure to make fans of Sony and Microsoft despair, revealing as they do an almost embarrassing dominance by the resurgent Nintendo:
1. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (Capcom/PSP)
2. Pokemon Platinum (Nintendo/DS)
3. Wii Fit (Nintendo/Wii)
4. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo/Wii)
5. Super Smash Brothers Brawl (Nintendo/Wii)
6. Rhythm Tengoku Gold (Nintendo/DS)
7. Dragon Quest 5 (DS/Square Enix)
8. Hoshi no Kirby: Ultra Super Deluxe (Nintendo/DS)
9. Doubutsu no Mori (Animal Crossing: City Folk) (Nintendo/Wii)
10. Wii Sports (Nintendo/Wii)
The PSP managed to grab the top position all the same, with the latest in the domestically hugely popular (but internationally not well liked) Monster Hunter series (gallery); this blockbuster sold some 2,500,000 copies.
A DS Pokemon title follows up with 2,100,000 copies. A Wii title, Wii Fit, is next up with just over 2,000,000 copies to its credit.
Apart from Monster Hunter on the PSP, the list is entirely dominated by Wii and DS titles, happy days for Nintendo indeed. The top ranked PS3 title was the latest Metal Gear, coming in with a still respectable 650,000.
Via Ore-teki (data is from Ascii).
Recently, doubts have been raised over the state of Japan’s gaming industry, especially internationally; looking at this list, comprised entirely of sequels and casual games, we might wonder if the industry is indeed in something of a slump.
However, nobody could argue with the huge sales these titles enjoyed, or their quality in their respective genres…
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Pokemon......
Gotta Buy 'Em All!
Fail...
Pokemon near the top... *facepalm*
shows how most DS owners are still kinda dumb. Cant believe these pokemon games wont end. I got tired of it ages ago after I played 3 of those earlier titles.
I saved my facepalm for Wii Fit. At least Pokemon is an actual game.
Good point, some of the Wii "games" don't qualify as actual games.
Hey man, WiiFit is fun.
sure is. i love hitting those soccer balls with my face. xD
Fun, yes. Game? No.
LOL at Wii Sports
You buy a Wii... You get Wii Sports >_<
Actually in Japan, Wii Sports is sold seperately. You can also buy it here in North America in case you lose or mess up your original copy.
Yup, 45% of the millions of sold Wiis in Japan have also bought Wii Sports with it. That makes quite a lot...
lol? The anime series is dumb but the game mechanics of Pokemon are more complex than half the RPGs out there.
Serious Pokemon players are more intelligent than you think regardless of how repetitive the games are. Of course it'd be smarter for them to apply their brains to actual work instead of stat calculations but whatever, gamers will be gamers.
Well, I also use my brain for "actual work", since I work as a programmer and just finished computer engineering university =)
That being said, competitive pokemon play is awesome. I became surprised when I discovered how the "childish" Pokemon is, in fact, more deep and complex than most "adult" games out there.
despite what people say negatively about Pokemon, it always hits first in sales when a new one comes out. That's not done by kids or mediocre game play alone.
Rhythm Tengoku Gold is still selling? Wow...well that game is awesome.
What did you expect?
Game slump indeed for 2008. Hope 2009 will bring a greater diversity of titles.
Shows you how Japan is changing from mindless game to games that includes the whole family. The Wiiiii is one of the greatest innovation because it lets you have fun with the whole gang, compared to 360 or PS3's title that usually are single player.
Rhythm Tengoku Gold was incredibly disappointing compared to the original. I remember how bloody hard it was to find that GBA game in Japan, took me all day, but totally worth it.
hmmm out of curiosity, whats the top pic from?
Well.... the picture name says "monster-hunter-archer.jpg". Oh, I know! Maybe that's a hint! Hmm... nope, too hard, my brain hurts.
http://www.sankakucomplex.com/2008/09/11/monster-hunter-ero-gallery/
Yay~~ MONSTER HUNTER BANZAI~
Nintendo: "IT PRINTS MONEY!!!"
The rest of the list from Kotaku
11. Phantasy Star Portable (PSP)
12. Pokémon Ranger: Batonnage (DS)
13. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3)
14. Professor Layton and the Final Time Journey (DS)
15. Wii Play (Wii)
16. Dissidia Final Fantasy (PSP)
17. Super Robot Taisen Z (PS2)
18. Mario Party DS (DS)
19. DS Bimoji Training (DS)
20. Daigasso! Band Bros. DX (DS)
21. Mario Kart DS (DS)
22. Musou Orochi Sairin (PS2)
23. Wagamama Fashion Girls Mode (DS)
24. Chrono Trigger (DS)
25. Meccha! Taiko Drum Master DS: 7-tsu no Shima no Daibouken (DS)
26. Mobile Suit Gundam vs. Gundam (PSP)
27. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (DS)
28. Powa Pro Kun Portable 3 (PSP)
29. Persona 4 (PS2)
30. New Super Mario Bros. (DS)
Japan's fetish for portable consoles is high lol
Dissidia has come too late to be in that list... :(
ALRIGHT! Chrono Trigger! 24!! =DD xD
but wow, Nintendo is making a nice comeback.
Poor xbox.. xD
though most of those are handhelds >.>
trend of portability~
Wii Sports on the DS?
Didn't you hear?
monster hunter is an awsm game O=
I loved it. Now its just boring
Monster Hunter and Dissidia for me :p
The Best!!!
Not the greatest of lists.
He he he...
Nintendo PWNS the competition in Japan. Best of luck, Xbox360 & PS3. Sony better get some new ideas on how to survive, else they be left behind.
Micro$oft still has control & $h1tl04z of money, so even they are second best, they still deliver the goods.
This is imho, the way it has to be. ;D
CASUALS
SUPPER SMASH BROTHERS BARLW
This list really was a disappointment.. Except for Monster Hunter, but I'm a huge fan, so I love it when my favorite stuff does well.
I just hope this success earned Nintendo enough money to pay for that surgery to get their heads removed from their collective asses so they can see that their success won't last unless they make some solid titles, and none of this mini-game compilation bullshit.